If there’s one thing we could all use a little more of this year, it’s socialization and connection. To help you find entertainment in Knoxville, we collected a few of our favorite ways to practice social distancing while socializing, exercising, or learning new things in our favorite city.
While you’re out and about at these local businesses, parks, and events, remember to wear masks, wash your hands, and bring hand sanitizer!
1. Explore a Nearby Knoxville Park
Living in Knoxville gives us unique access to Knoxville’s Urban Wilderness and Tennessee’s abundant outdoor areas. After so much time spent quarantined, we feel luckier than ever to have these parks at our fingertips—especially because they help us stay active while social distancing.
Here are a few of our favorite local parks in Knoxville:
- Fort Dickerson Park
- House Mountain State Natural Area
- Forks of the River Wildlife Management Area
- Ijams Nature Center
- World’s Fair Park
2. Take a Virtual Fitness Class
Whether you’re a fan of strength training, body weight training, or any other way to get your regular exercise during quarantine, our city has the resources you need to get your heart rate up.
This is especially easy for students in Knoxville. All UT students who have paid their Student Programs & Services Fee are invited to take free Zoom Group Fitness Classes with UTK. And Fort Sanders Health & Fitness Center—a local 5-star health club—offers Virtual Group Fitness with a select membership.
3. Shop with Union Avenue Books
This independently owned local book shop in Downtown Knoxville is open by appointment only to ensure the safety of workers and shoppers. They make it easy to sign up with appointments available online, and they also host virtual events with authors over Zoom! Check out their Book Concierge if you need a recommendation on your next read.
4. Sign Up for a Virtual Cooking Class
One of our favorite ways to socialize is by sharing food (seriously, we love hosting events with free food). But social distance regulations have made sharing meals a lot harder. Luckily, we have access to Knoxville’s own cooking school, The Cutting Edge Classroom, and they host group classes over Zoom! With their help, you can socialize and share amazing meals virtually.
5. Take this Virtual Tour of Blount Mansion
For a low-key way to learn something new at home, check out Blount Mansion. This historic family home in Downtown Knoxville is also known as The Birthplace of Tennessee, and you can get the full story through a virtual tour.
6. Check out The Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum
One of our favorite places for outdoor fun, the exterior spaces at this local botanical garden are open to the public. They’re also hosting socially distanced guided walks, workshops, and more throughout 2021, and you can sign up online!
7. Attend a Concert with WDVX Live From Home
Radio station WDVX is keeping Knoxville’s live music coming with virtual live music events. With this new style of concert, you can buy tickets online and stream the events from home. See what’s coming up next on their schedule.
8. Shop To-Go with the Nourish Knoxville Winter Farmers’ Market
Nourish Knoxville is hosting their Winter Farmers’ Market outdoors this year—complete with free, disposable masks and gloves for customers as well as reusable cloth masks for sale. They’re also offering curbside pick-up, so you can shop locally online and pick up in a socially distanced area on market day. Learn everything you need to about the winter market here.
Have Your Own Idea?
Do you have an idea for fun social distancing activities in Knoxville? Check us out on Facebook or Instagram to share it.
Among other awesome amenities, living at Quarry Trail means living with the perks of included internet and cable in your apartment, so attending virtual events and at-home entertainment are made easy. We also host free, virtual, and socially distanced events exclusively for residents of our community. You can learn more about our Knoxville student apartments here.