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Review: The Harpeth Hotel Franklin, TN
A little over a year ago I was whisked away to Nashville on a surprise bachelor party trip. My best man, Dave, put together an incredible weekend away at The Joseph. I’d long heard about the city, hadn’t visited since I was a child, and had the best time. The music, the food, the energy, I was hooked. I’ve since been back 4 times in the past year and have tried out a few different spots ( even staying at The Hermitage Twice using up Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts credits ). Downtown Nashville can be a bit of an assault on the senses, and for this trip my wife and I chose the charming, lowkey, storybook town of Franklin, TN roughly 20 minutes south of Nashville. We chose The Harpeth Hotel, a Hilton Curio Collection, and would go back in a heartbeat.
Nashville Hotels I’ve reviewed:
- The Joseph, A Marriott Luxury Collection Property
- The Hermitage, Fine Hotels and Resorts
- Thompson Nashville, Hyatt
- Kimpton Nashville
- Hotel Indigo Nashville
The courtyard at The Harpeth
The Harpeth Franklin, TN Stay Details
- When: October 2022
- Where: Franklin, TN
- Rate: 70k Hilton Honors
- Status: Diamond
- Upgrade to Balcony Room
- 100% bonus on points
- $15 per person per night dining credit
- Pet Friendly
- $100 per pet
Booking The Harpeth
Cash rates were in the mid $400s and we elected to use Hilton Honors instead of paying cash. We booked for 70k points, which you could replenish when Hilton has a sale for roughly $350. Not cheap by any means, and if you’d rather stay nearby, but not within walking distance, there are cheaper options like the Hyatt Place and Hyatt House about 5 to 10 minutes outside of downtown Franklin.
The location
Set just off the main roundabout The Harpeth is Franklin’s only downtown hotel and In a great location. We walked to dinner, brunch, coffee, all within 5 minutes. You’re going to pay a premium rate for the location
The main street is just a few minutes walk from the front of the hotel.
Check In
Upon entering, and immediately to your right, you’ll find check-in. We were told that we had $15 per person per day, expiring at noon, to be used at the dining facilities at the hotel.
Parking
There is valet parking which is $40 a night, as well as a paid parking garage semi-attached to the building. You get 30 minutes free, but after that, it’s based on per hour charging with a weird reset over night that could balloon your parking charges over the cost of valet. However… just a couple blocks away, there is a free garage that permits overnight parking. We put our vehicle there…which the hotel didn’t mention at check-in.
It’s just behind the First Horizon Bank with the arches in the background of this photo.
Our Room
We were upgraded to a balcony room which featured french doors, which opened to a large balcony overlooking the entrance of the hotel. If I had to guess, I’d say the balcony was nearly 1/3 the size of the bedroom and really transformed the stay. I spent a solid hour the morning of our departure listening to birds chirp, sitting coffee, and doing some Instagram stories. Idyllic.
One thing to keep an eye on, the walls that separate the balconies across the front have a space under them that our dog could easily get under. I’d guess if you have a small child they could find themselves on another guest’s balcony without much trouble as well.
The room is fresh, spacious, and modern.
The bathroom featured a massive walk in shower with a single vanity.
Communal bath products
A nice seating area built into the nook next to the bed.
Dining
There are two spots to grab a bite: 1799 and McGavock’s
1799
On the northern side of the hotel, you’ll find 1799. An upscale restaurant with a lively bar scene. We chose to use our $30 dining credits for a couple of cocktails. They were quite delicious, classic, and if we were to stay here again, I’d definitely try out the food. The burgers, fries, etc that I saw other guests enjoying looked very good
McGavock’s
A lovely cafe on the southern side of the hotel, near the elevators, featuring pastries, sandwiches, and adult beverages at night.
Overall
Franklin is an incredibly charming town that I will most certainly visit again. Would I stay here? Absolutely if it were a special occasion or making great use of a free night certificate from our Amex Hilton Aspire. Otherwise, I’d do my best to find a sub $300 rate, or perhaps stay a bit outside of town and uber back and forth.
Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Annual Fee
$95
Points Earned
Transferrable Chase Ultimate Rewards
- 5x on all travel purchased through Chase Travel℠
- 3x on dining, including eligible delivery services for takeout & dining out
- 3x on select streaming services
- 3x on online grocery purchases
- (excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs)
- $50 Annual Chase Travel Hotel Credit via Chase Travel℠
- The begins immediately for new cardmembers and after your account anniversary for existing cardmembers
- 2x on all other travel
- 10% Anniversary Bonus
- Every year you keep the card, your total spend will yield a 10% points bonus. If you spend $10k in a year, you’ll get 1k bonus points
- Chase Sapphire Preferred continues to redeem at 1.25c in the Chase Travel℠ and the slew of other benefits remain in tact including Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver ( primary ), purchase protections, etc.
- Points are transferrable to 14 Ultimate Rewards partners
- Redeem in Chase Travel℠ for 1.25 cents per point
- No foreign transaction fees
- Suite of Travel and Purchase Coverage
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver is my favorite
- Get complimentary access to DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees and lower service fees for a minimum of one year when you activate by December 31, 2027.
- $95 Annual Fee
We keep an up to date spreadsheet that lists the best ever offers: You can find that spreadsheet here.
Historically 80k is a very, very good offer and hit in both 2022 and 2023. In 2021, we saw the offer hit an all time high of 100k. Who knows if that will ever come back.
Main Cast:
Cards that earn flexible points and should be used on the bulk of your purchases.
Supporting Cast:
Cards that earn fixed points in the currency of the airline/hotel and can not be transferred at attractive rates. These cards yield benefits that make it worth keeping, but not necessarily worth putting a lot of your everyday spend on.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® is exceptional starter card and offers transferrable Ultimate Rewards, and pairs well with other Chase cards.
If you carry this card alongside Chase’s cashback cards like the Chase Freedom Flex® and Chase Freedom Unlimited® or the business versions: Ink Business Cash® , Ink Business Unlimited® you can combine the points into Preferred account and transfer into hotel and airline partners
Annual fee is quite low at $95 a year + you get a 10% anniversary bonus on points + $50 hotel credit in Chase travel.
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