Ultimate Girls Trip Itinerary to Chattanooga (With a Stress-Free Spa Day)
Planning a girls trip to Chattanooga, TN? Let me tell you, you picked a good one.
Chattanooga is the perfect destination for a girls weekend when you want a little bit of everything—great food, cute neighborhoods, mountain views, cocktails, shopping, outdoor adventures, and, obviously, some time to relax.
It’s also the kind of trip where you can actually talk to your friends. You know…the kind where you come home with a full heart instead of being completely exhausted and needing a vacation from your vacation.
At Dandle Spa, we love telling visitors about our favorite places around Chattanooga, so we decided to put together the ultimate Chattanooga girls trip itinerary. This weekend hits some of our favorite areas of the city, including St. Elmo, Southside, and Lookout Mountain, with a spa day right in the middle.
Thursday Evening: Arrive in Chattanooga
Chattanooga is an easy drive from many cities throughout the Southeast, but we also have an airport, making it surprisingly convenient for a girls getaway from farther away.
We recommend arriving Thursday evening so you can wake up Friday morning ready to enjoy a full day in Chattanooga.
Where to Stay for a Girls Trip in Chattanooga
For an Airbnb or vacation rental, look in Southside or St. Elmo. Both neighborhoods have plenty of personality and make a great home base for a weekend with the girls.
For larger groups, we love recommending Relax Chattanooga, which can accommodate groups of up to 12 guests while still working well for smaller groups.
If you're looking for a stay that's more about the experience and connecting with the outdoors, check out Quail Run Farms or Wauhatchie Woodlands. These are especially fun options if your group would rather have a memorable getaway than a standard hotel room.
Prefer a hotel? Chattanooga has some great boutique options.
The Riverview Inn on Lookout Mountain gives you that mountain-getaway feeling while still being close to everything. Or stay at The Kinley Hotel in the Southside area if being able to walk to restaurants, bars, and nightlife is more your speed.
Friday: Lookout Mountain, Lunch & A Chattanooga Night Out
Start With Coffee & Breakfast
Wake up slowly and grab breakfast at your hotel or Airbnb—or head out for coffee and breakfast at Neidlov's Bakery & Café.
Because you're on vacation. There is absolutely no reason to rush through breakfast and Friday is the perfect day to stop at Neidlovs...Saturday the line is out the door!
Explore Lookout Mountain
After breakfast, head toward Lookout Mountain for some of Chattanooga's most iconic attractions.
Rock City is a classic Chattanooga experience and especially beautiful if you're visiting in the fall. The mountain views and colorful leaves make it worth the trip. During the holiday season, Rock City's Enchanted Garden of Lights turns the attraction into a completely different experience.
Visiting Chattanooga in the summer? Ruby Falls is another great option. The underground cave tour gives you a break from the heat, with an impressive underground waterfall waiting at the end.
You don't need to cram both attractions into one morning. Pick whichever sounds more like your group's vibe.
Lunch at State of Confusion
After exploring Lookout Mountain, head back toward Southside for lunch at State of Confusion.
The big porch is perfect for a girls trip, especially when you want somewhere you can linger over lunch, cocktails, and conversation. The menu has enough variety to keep a group happy, and the cocktail selection doesn't hurt either.
After lunch, head back to your accommodations to rest and get ready for the evening.
Dinner & Dancing
For dinner, Elsie's Daughter is a must if you're looking for a fun Chattanooga night out with local charm. This iconic restaurant is part of the historic Chattanooga Choo Choo and requires a reservation!
Then keep the party going at Regan's Place, especially if your group appreciates an unapologetically fun throwback vibe and 80s music.
This is your night to get dressed up, order the cocktail, take the pictures, and stay out a little too late.
Saturday: St. Elmo & The Ultimate Chattanooga Spa Day
Saturday is where we slow things down.
Because even the most enthusiastic girls-trip planners need a recovery day.
Breakfast in St. Elmo
Start your morning in St. Elmo, one of Chattanooga's most charming neighborhoods.
Grab coffee and a pastry at Wayward Pastry Co. before spending a little time exploring the area.
St. Elmo sits at the base of Lookout Mountain, so it's easy to combine with the mountain attractions while still feeling like you've discovered a completely different side of Chattanooga. Do the incline railway, meander on the riverwalk, do a little shopping, visit Naughty Cat, the coolest cat cafe in TN, or relax at Chattanooga Salt Caverns. St. Elmo is a small neighborhood that really delivers on fun.
Have a Spa Day at Dandle Spa
Now for the important part: spa day.
Head downtown to Dandle Spa & Skincare for some much-needed relaxation with your girls.
Whether your group wants massages, facials, a Japanese head spa, or a combination of treatments, a Chattanooga spa day is the perfect way to break up a busy weekend.
And honestly? You don't have to wait until you're exhausted to book a massage.
A spa day gives everyone a chance to slow down, catch up, and actually enjoy spending time together.
At Dandle, we specialize in a more relaxed, approachable kind of spa experience. Think results-focused skincare, relaxing massage, head spa treatments, and a low-tox approach without making the whole experience feel overly precious or intimidating. You can even reserve the whole spa, which allows you to bring snacks and chic chat without strangers being privy to your girl talk.
This is your permission to put the itinerary down for a couple of hours and let someone else take care of you.
Get Ready for Saturday Night
After your spa treatments, head back to your hotel or Airbnb to shower, get dressed, and regroup.
Then it's time for another Chattanooga night out.
Dinner Downtown
For dinner, head downtown to Easy Bistro for a beautiful dinner before continuing the evening with drinks.
After dinner, check out Whiskey Thief’s epic view of the river for drinks and a photo-op, Unknown Call for cocktails and a speak-easy vibe, and or The Vault, a cool new bar in an old bank vault.
Saturday is the perfect night to keep things a little more relaxed than Friday. You've already had your adventure, your spa treatments, and plenty of time together.
Sunday: One Last Chattanooga Adventure
Don't spend your last morning sleeping until noon.
Okay, unless that's exactly what you want to do.
Grab breakfast at your hotel or make something at your Airbnb, then squeeze in one last Chattanooga adventure before heading home.
Hike to Snooper's Rock
If your group wants one more dose of the outdoors, head out to Snooper's Rock for a hike and incredible views of the Tennessee River Gorge.
It's a beautiful way to end a Chattanooga girls weekend—and a reminder that one of the best things about this city is how quickly you can go from coffee shop to mountain view.
After your hike, grab lunch or a drink before hitting the road.
The Perfect Chattanooga Girls Trip
The best girls trips aren't necessarily the ones where you see every attraction, visit every restaurant, and have every minute scheduled.
They're the ones where you have enough planned to make memories but enough downtime to actually enjoy each other.
That's why we love this Chattanooga girls trip itinerary.
You've got Lookout Mountain, charming St. Elmo, walkable Southside, great food, Chattanooga nightlife, outdoor adventure—and a little time at the spa to slow everything down.
So grab your girls, book the trip, and leave a little room in the itinerary for whatever happens next.
That's usually where the best memories happen.