Finding Parking In Downtown Knoxville Is Surprisingly Easy
First things first. Don’t let parking anxiety deter you from going downtown. Parking in downtown Knoxville is surprisingly convenient and affordable if you know where to look.
Fortunately, the city provides convenient parking garages and several free parking lots for easy access to all of the downtown fun.
Although there are many, many more places to park, we’ve highlighted our “go to” convenient parking that we use every time we go downtown.
Parking Garages In Downtown Knoxville
State Street Garage
As a general rule when visiting downtown Knoxville, we almost always park at the State Street Garage for its location near Gay Street and the high probability of always snagging a parking spot.
State Street Garage is the easiest and most convenient of the downtown garages as you can avoid some of the downtown traffic by driving straight to this garage from I-40 and the James White Parkway exit.
It’s a larger garage so you have a pretty good chance of securing a spot.
Tip: Also, check the metered parking ($1.50) on S. Central Street at the base of State Street Garage. If your visit will be less than two hours, it’s a good spot to check in case the State Street Garage is full.
State Street Garage is free after 7pm on weeknights and free on weekends.
If you need ideas of things to do in Knoxville, see our blog “Our Favorite Things To Do In Downtown Knoxville” or “Our Best Restaurants in Downtown Knoxville.”
Other Parking Garages Downtown
Other conveniently located garages that we use include the Locust Street Garage and the Market Square Garage. Each of these are indicated further down on the map below.
Free Parking Downtown Knoxville
Free Parking Garages
Weekends
All Knoxville city-run parking garages (State Street Garage, Locust Street Garage, and Market Square Garage) are free to park all day Saturday and Sunday.
Weeknights
- State Street Garage– Free to leave after 7pm on week nights and all day Saturday and Sunday
- Locust Street Garage– Free to leaves after 7pm on week nights and all day Saturday and Sunday
- Market Street Garage– Free to leave after 8pm on week nights and all day Saturday and Sunday
During the weekday between 7am and 7pm, parking in these garages cost $1/hour to a max of $7/day. (I can hear people from Atlanta and DC guffawing now.)
Warning! Private parking garages, such as the ones under the really tall skyscrapers, have different rules and we generally avoid them.
Tip: The city’s parking website has real time availability of spaces in its main garages downtown. It also lists all of the available parking options downtown- city and private garages and flat lots.
Tip for GameDay Parking: Downtown is also a great starting point if you are attending a University of Tennessee football game.
Park for free in the State Street Garage and walk approximately 1 mile to Neyland Stadium passing through the Farmer’s Market in Market Square and the World’s Fair Park along the way.
For more Game Day Parking advice, see our blog “Where To Park On UT Game Day“
Flat Lots Parking Downtown
Besides the parking garages, you’ll find several city flat lots. The W. Jackson Ave Lot, marked at the top of the map, is near the 100 block of South Gay Street and has the same rules as the parking garages – free on nights & weekends.
Many of the private and city-run flat lots are now being managed by Metropolis Parking (is it me or are they everywhere now???). If you don’t have the app already, go ahead and sign-up for an account so you aren’t having to do it in the parking lot when you are running late for dinner.
All you need is your credit card, cell phone number, and License Plate number. Cameras at the gates to a Metropolis parking lot record your license plate as you enter and exit. Then the app automatically charges your credit card for however long you parked.
Tip: You’ll also find two large flat lots under the James White Parkway on East Jackson Ave in the Old City which are free 24/7, every day of the week. See “Old City Lot” in the top right of the map above.
Happy Parking! Now go adventure in downtown Knoxville! – Amy
Hi Amy,
I enjoyed your article about parking in Downtown Knoxville. Unfortunately, I read it upon arriving home in Pennsylvania after spending a week in K’ville for my granddaughter’s college graduation.
I like to be prepared so I spent time before I left scoping out the parking situation near the Convention Center. Settling on Locust St. Garage, I printed out a map and entered the location into my GPS. When we arrived prior to the ceremonies the lot was full and the attendant waved us on our way. So, we circled the area trying to find something within a reasonable walking distance since my wife uses a walker. First, we came upon a surface lot at St. John’s church, found a perfect spot, but the signs instructed us to scan a barcode to pay. After that, I was told to sign up for an account which told me my credit card was not accepted and that I should try another card. Of course, the second card produced the same result. not knowing that both cards had already sent me texts suspecting fraudulent activity. I then left the lot continuing my search. I pulled into another parking garage with a “public parking” sign. Again, I found a perfect spot. As I exited my car, I noticed the same type of sign, and tried again to sign up for their system. again failing. Now running late and frustrated, I left the car there and headed for the graduation expecting to have my car towed away.
The rest of the day went much better. The grandaughter got her Master’s degree in Medical Sciences while attaining a Summa Cum Laude designation.
In your next article, I hope you can include the need to have a pre-approved parking lot account when expecting to park in most of the facilities in the area. I’d hate to see anyone else have to go through what I did.
Oh no! I am sorry that it was such a hassle to find parking in downtown Knoxville. Saturdays before Christmas can be super busy with everybody shopping downtown. I know that they are transferring management of many of the flat parking lots to the Metropolis parking app and I will make a note of that in the blog. That’s a great idea. Congratulations to your granddaughter on her graduation and achieving Summa Cum Laude, that’s not easy to do. I hope you make it back to Knoxville again and it’s less stressful next time! – Amy