Shopping in Nashville:

As with most cities, Nashville has free parking in suburban and shopping areas, but not in areas (such as Vanderbilt) close to the center of town. Here are some general Nashville shopping links by Citysearch and Yahoo.

Malls

There are tiny strip-malls all over town. Two within walking distance of Vanderbilt are

the Hillsboro Village area, near the intersection of 21st Avenue South and Blakemore Avenue, by the southeast corner of Vanderbilt. Includes some clothing shops, boutiques, a used bookstore.
the West End area, near the northwest corner of Vanderbilt. Includes Borders Books, a small grocery store, some clothing shops, boutiques, etc.

But if you prefer a large, enclosed mall, the two that are closest to Vanderbilt are:

Green Hills Mall -- Go south on 21st Avenue (route 431); after a while it changes its name to Hillsboro Pike. You'll pass some strip malls and residential areas; you'll also pass Route 440 and Woodmont Boulevard (route 155). After a while you'll see the mall on your right. It has several parking lots, some of which are covered (preferable if it's raining). This mall is elegant, fancy, tranquil. It includes several middle- to upper-priced clothing stores, and a variety of other stores -- cooking utensils, science/nature toys, music. Tasteful gifts for the folks you left at home.
100 Oaks Mall --- Go south on Route 65. The first exit after Route 440 is Armory Drive (exit 79). Take that; then turn right on Powell Avenue; follow it to the mall. This mall includes some lower-priced clothing stores. Also Comp-USA (computer hardware and software) and Media Play (software, music, and a few books).
Opry Mills is farther away, but it's worth mentioning -- it's our biggest, newest, fanciest enclosed mall, so it's also a tourist attraction. In fact, it replaced Opryland, the amusement park that used to be one of Nashville's biggest tourist attractions. Opry Mills is also intentionally very noisy, with Jumbotrons and few tapestries or carpets -- apparently the marketers feel that sales are promoted better by an amusement park atmosphere than by a library atmosphere. This mall does have a good selection of stores and restaurants. Northeast of Nashville, on Briley Parkway (route 155). Take Exit 11, Opry Mills Drive. - Even if you're not going to that mall, take a look at its store map; you may be amused to see that it's shaped like a guitar.

Bookstores

With the exception of Opry Mills, all the shopping malls contain only tiny bookstores. If you want books, don't go to a mall. The largest bookstores near Vanderbilt are as follows:

The Vanderbilt Bookstore is not bad, and it's conveniently located if you're already at Vanderbilt. At present, it's in Rand Hall, but it may be relocated to elsewhere on campus sometime in the next year or two. Sorry, no free parking. The Vanderbilt Bookstore carries textbooks, and also books by faculty. It also has a collection of "general books", but that is smaller than the collections in the three stores listed below:
Borders Books is the next closest good bookstore. It is at 2501 West End Avenue, the former location of Alexander Hall; you can see it on our walking map. There is a very small amount of free parking in front, with a 2-hour maximum. There is additional free parking in the back, if you get your ticket validated inside the store (no purchase necessary).
Davis-Kidd Booksellers is a few blocks south of Green Hills Mall, on Hillsboro Pike. Look for a large building with a clock tower and a sign that says "Grace's Plaza", on the western side of the road. This store is comparable, in size and selection, to a typical Border's Books or Barnes and Noble. The parking lot in front is small but adequate. If you drive around to the back, you'll find the entrance to a small underground parking lot, which may be preferable if it happens to be raining when you arrive. Both parking lots are free.
Bookstar is on Route 70S, a few miles southeast of Vanderbilt. (Route 70S changes its name, from West End Avenue to Harding Road, somewhere around here.) Bookstar is run by the same company as Barnes and Noble but is very slightly smaller. The decor is interesting -- this particular store is in the building that contained one of the last old-fashioned movie theaters in town. Both the marquee (outside) and part of the viewing screen (inside) have been retained. The balcony viewing area has been turned into the children's section of the bookstore (but a glass wall makes it impossible for your children to jump down from the balcony). Some photographs on the walls show some of the history of the building.
Farther from Vanderbilt, we have two Barnes & Nobles (in the Opry Mills Shopping Mall and in South Brentwood) and another Borders Books (in North Brentwood).

A VU Math page, updated 2 Mar 2002 by webmaster.