I want my vacation to be full of music. Here's where I go.

Seeing Bruno Mars live in Las Vegas will send your senses into overdrive

(Image credit: MGM Resorts)

published 27 June 2025

Incorporating your love of music into a vacation is as simple as do-re-mi. Here are six ideas sure to make you break out in song, from tangoing the night away in Argentina to learning about the blues where it began in Mississippi.

Tango through Buenos Aires

Tango is the sound of Argentina's capital, a dance and music style formed from a "mixture of cultures and migratory currents" that arrived here during the 19th century, said Lonely Planet. Buenos Aires is known for its milongas, or venues where new and experienced dancers can pick up and sharpen their tango moves. La Viruta Tango Club is one of those "iconic" spots, blending "tradition and modernity," said Time Out. Milongas across the city offer classes, shows and open dancing every night of the week.

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Pre-show, go to the Cosmopolitan for drinks in the sparkling, three-level Chandelier, where the cocktails are delicious (try the Verbena, with a Szechuan button that makes your mouth tingle and go numb) and the surroundings spectacular (a two-million-crystal chandelier cascades over each floor). For dinner, head upstairs to LPM for a taste of the French Riviera. The dishes and drinks here are light and flavorful, like the slightly sweet warm prawns in olive oil, citrusy yellowtail carpaccio and signature Tomatini cocktail.

Lucca feels like a Tuscan dream, a "fairytale-like city" filled with "towering Renaissance walls" in the "shadows" of the Apuan Alps and Monte Pisano, Condé Nast Traveler said. This "hub of culture" has long been a favorite for musicians, and composer Giacomo Puccini and jazz legend Chet Baker are among the artists who flocked to the "stately" Grand Universe Lucca. In honor of its melodic history, the hotel offers guests the chance to book the Prelude of Existence Experience. This includes a private meeting with a composer, who will turn the guest's interests into a personalized piece of music.

The Mississippi Blues Trail honors the "people and places that secured the music's legacy," with more than 200 stops across the state, Afar said. Blues was created by Black musicians and "pioneers" of the genre often learned from one another while "sharecropping on plantations in the Mississippi Delta." Stops include cotton fields, train depots, clubs, churches and cemeteries, with markers explaining the significance of each place. Highlights include the Blue Front Cafe in Bentonia, the "oldest surviving juke joint in Mississippi," and the "unmissable" city of Clarksdale, which offers "live music every day and festivals every month."

K-pop fans can follow in their idols' footsteps at landmarks across Seoul, starting with K-Star Road in Gangnam. This boulevard is "dedicated entirely to K-pop artists," with 10-foot cartoon bear statues representing bands like BTS and Girls' Generation, Lonely Planet said. This is also where you will find the agencies that represent K-pop stars and restaurants and boutiques they often visit. Spend the rest of your day visiting K-pop music video filming spots, catching a taping of Idol Radio Live and, if possible, enjoying a performance by your favorite group.

The birthplace of Aretha Franklin, Dolly Parton and country music, Tennessee has "always punched way above its weight class musically," Afar said. Start exploring in Memphis, where you can "honor rock history" at Sun Studio and Graceland and "listen to the blues" on Beale Street. Head east to Brownsville for the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center, home of the Tina Turner Museum, then take a guided tour of Loretta Lynn's Ranch in Hurricane Mills. You could spend a "day or a week or a month" in Nashville and "still not see all the greatest hits," including the National Museum of African American Music, Ryman Auditorium and The Bluebird Cafe.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.