Cheyenne, Wyoming, Is on Its Way to Becoming the ‘Nashville of the West’ — and It’s Much More Affordable, Too

There’s a reason Nashville, Tennessee, is a mecca for bachelor and bachelorette parties. At a high level, it’s a place that caters to the theatricality associated with country music — cowboy boots, sequins, and raucous nights in the honky-tonks on Broadway. Visitors can put on their denim, don a cowboy hat, and embrace a light-hearted side of Music City, if only for a weekend.

The city also has a diverse culture centered around art, fashion, and the food and beverage world, catering to groups of travelers with a variety of interests. Your itinerary can include everything from music festivals, barbecue dinners, and customized denim appointments to brewery hopping, history museums, and tours of the different neighborhoods’ most photographed murals.

While Nashville remains one of the top cities for pre-wedding celebrations and travel in general — even grabbing a spot on Travel + Leisure’s list of best U.S. cities in the 2024 World’s Best Awards — affordability is a factor for visitors to consider. Depending on the season, most travelers should expect to pay anywhere from $200 to $500 per night for a three-star hotel in downtown Nashville. According to Brides, a bachelorette party could easily cost individuals up to $600 for a three-day celebration; though Nashville Luxury Stay estimates even higher after breaking down the price of accommodations, meals, and activities. Luckily, there’s a more wallet-friendly, less populated alternative to consider. Cheyenne, Wyoming is an approximately 65,000-person city that, in many ways, has a similar appeal to Nashville.

The capital of the Cowboy State, Cheyenne has an imitable identity deeply tied to the Old West, one that’s been nurtured since the railroad arrived in 1867 and solidified through the city’s legendary role in the rodeo world. Cheyenne Frontier Days, the world’s largest outdoor rodeo, occurs every July, bringing country music’s biggest stars, professional bull riders, and a whole host of celebrations to town. The Daddy of ‘Em All rodeo isn’t the only reason to plan a trip to this part of Wyoming, though.

Over the last few years, Cheyenne has grown and evolved in a variety of areas that create a natural comparison to Nashville — all while retaining a relatively affordable cost per visit.

Overall Affordability

Hotels are typically the most expensive aspect of a group trip to Nashville, especially if the plan is to stay at one of downtown’s most sought-after properties. This isn’t the case in Cheyenne, where most hotel options cost less than $100 per room per night. Sure, a majority of Cheyenne’s properties are run-of-the-mill budget chains, but a night at the reputable, conveniently located Little America Hotel & Resort starts around $88 (though prices increase during Cheyenne Frontier Days), giving budget-conscious travelers a bit more financial leeway on the rest of their trip. Additionally, Cheyenne has a range of free things for visitors to do — many of which we’ve outlined below.

Honky-tonks and Large-scale Public Art

Renee Jelinek and her husband, Jon, have owned and operated businesses — including The Lincoln, a music venue in a historic theater — in downtown Cheyenne for more than a decade, and they’ve witnessed firsthand the city’s expansion, particularly in the music scene. Live music, she says, used to be a rarity; today, you can find it nearly every day of the week. “Visitors used to come to Cheyenne for the Western culture alone, but now we are seeing [them] coming here for a concert and enjoying some Western culture as a bonus, not as the purpose,” she tells T+L.

Along with getting tickets to a show at The Lincoln, visitors can check out the Outlaw Saloon — Cheyenne’s version of Robert’s Western World or Tootsie’s — or Bunkhouse Bar for live music throughout the week. Though Jelinek is hesitant to call Cheyenne a true “Nashville” just yet, she says the Wyoming city has a “vibrant” culture, showcasing “everything from cover bands to arena-level artists,” along with a growing number of artists creating original music across genres. At the end of the day, country music may have a prominent role in both destinations, but it’s far from the only kind of tunes locals and visitors can enjoy.

The similarities in art and culture between the two cities don’t end with music. In fact, one of the most obvious likenesses makes an immediate, colorful appearance to anyone exploring downtown Cheyenne: large-scale murals. Nashville has Kim Radford’s Dolly Parton mural and Kelsey Montague’s “What Lifts You” wings; Cheyenne has “Women’s Suffrage” by Chris Hoffmeister and Jordan Dean’s “The Buffalo Mural” and “Cheyenne,” the latter of which is a postcard-style work of art featuring galloping purple horses. For a completely free group activity, download the Discover Downtown Cheyenne app to find each mural and snap a picture.

Photo ops in Cheyenne extend beyond murals. The city’s eight-foot-tall, hand-painted cowboy boots, more than 30 in total, first began popping up around town as a joint art project between the Cheyenne Depot Museum Foundation and the Downtown Development Authority. As the collection continues to grow, visitors can learn more about the pieces via a complimentary audio tour.

Custom Cowboy Hats, Western Wear, and Local Boutiques

If you’ve ever been part of a Nashville bachelorette party, there’s a chance someone in the group requested a stop at Rustler Hat Co. or Planet Cowboy to design a cowboy hat, followed by a visit to one of the city’s many cowboy boot stores (Boot Country or Nashville Boot Co.) for Nashville-appropriate footwear. Cheyenne has similar offerings, albeit on a smaller scale.

At Wild J Trading, customers can add their own design flair to a hat in the form of pins, feathers, and other accessories. For cowboy boots, there’s the Cheyenne Boot Barn outpost, a collection of classic Western wear housed in the historic, three-story red building known as The Wrangler. Unlike Nashville, where the best shopping is spread across neighborhoods, Cheyenne’s boutiques are all within a few blocks. With your new cowboy boots in tow, it’s just a short walk to locally owned shops Alexis Drake and Indigo Buffalo Turquoise.

Breweries and Distilleries

Cheyenne’s food scene, while not quite on Nashville’s culinary level, is “on the rise,” says Juan Coronado, chef and co-owner of Railspur. “In the last five to 10 years, more specialty shops and locally owned eateries have flourished and brought new and bold flavors to Cheyenne.” The city’s impressive roster of places to drink also falls into this category.

Cheyenne, like Nashville, has more than a couple of places to sip on a locally brewed (or distilled) drink with your travel crew. Coronado recommends Freedom’s Edge Brewing Company for its “welcoming atmosphere and award-winning microbrews,” and Pine Bluffs Distilling in a neighboring town. “It’s perfect for large groups, and it’s a fun pit stop after a long trip. They also use all locally grown grains in their whiskey,” he says. If you’d rather stay in Cheyenne, try Black Tooth Brewing Company, Accomplice Beer Company, Chronicles Distilling, and the newly opened Westby Edge Brewing Company. And don’t forget to snag the free Daddy of the Malt Pass for drink deals at each stop.