The Strip in Knoxville, Explained for Families
The Strip is the stretch of Cumberland Avenue along UT's campus in Knoxville, lined with student apartments, restaurants and bars.
The Strip in Knoxville is the stretch of Cumberland Avenue along the University of Tennessee campus, lined with student apartments, restaurants and bars. Grant Thornham, our Campus Lead for private, student-led Knoxville tours, lived on the Strip as of October 2026, and his words below are from our recorded calls with him that month.
What is the Strip in Knoxville?
The Strip in Knoxville is the part of Cumberland Avenue running along the UT campus. It "first earned the nickname 'The Strip' after a drug raid in the 1970s," according to Volopedia, UT Libraries' encyclopedia.
The street is much older than the name. Charles McClung surveyed and platted Cumberland Avenue in 1791, and it stayed residential until the 1920s, when it grew more commercial, Volopedia says. Visit Knoxville calls the UT Campus neighborhood off Cumberland Avenue "a popular area for students and young adults."
For students, the Strip is the edge of campus. Grant describes the apartments there as "right on like our main street, which is borderline campus." He calls the Strip "a good idea for nightlife and apartments, apartment living."
What is on the Strip near UT?
The Strip near UT holds student apartments, places to eat and drink, and a hotel, along a stretch of Cumberland Avenue the City of Knoxville rebuilt.
- Student apartments. The city's 2013 form-based code required Cumberland Avenue buildings of at least two stories and allowed up to eight or ten, with retail on the first floor and offices or apartments above, per Volopedia.
- A big new development. In February 2023 the Knoxville News Sentinel reported demolition of the north side of Cumberland between 19th and 20th Streets for Hub on Campus, a Core Spaces project of four buildings with "more than 850 apartments and almost 2,300 beds." The first phase was then expected in 2025.
- Food and bars. Grant's walk along the Strip points out two nearby bars, Half Barrel and Cool Beans, plus the fast food along Cumberland. Visit Knoxville lists The Half Barrel in its UT Campus neighborhood. Tennessee's legal drinking age is 21, as UT's student handbook, Hilltopics, notes.
- A hotel. UT's Welcome to Knoxville page places the Graduate Knoxville, 1706 Cumberland Avenue, "right on The Strip."
Where do you park to visit the Strip in Knoxville?
Visitors to the Strip in Knoxville can park in UT's paid visitor parking, which includes on-street spaces on Volunteer Boulevard, the street that meets Cumberland Avenue at the Student Union. UT Parking and Transit's visitor page lists, as of October 2026:
- Volunteer Boulevard, on-street from Todd Helton Drive to Cumberland Avenue: $1 for 2 hours on weekdays, $1 an hour on weekends.
- G7 West Campus Garage, entered from Andy Holt Avenue: visitor spaces on the rooftop, $1 an hour on weekdays and $2 an hour on weekends.
- G12 White Avenue Garage: visitor spaces on the top level. UT's other visitor parking is $2 an hour.
Payment runs through ParkMobile, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, apart from some holidays and campus events. On event days UT warns that parking may not be allowed and "your vehicle may be ticketed or towed."
Without a car, Knoxville Area Transit's Route 11 stops at Cumberland and James Agee Street and at Cumberland and Phillip Fulmer Way, as of October 2026.
How do UT students get home from the Strip at night?
A UT student can get home from the Strip at night by walking into campus or Fort Sanders and requesting UT's late-night shuttle, T: Link, which does not pick up on the Strip itself, or by riding a free Knoxville Area Transit bus while the buses are running.
As of October 2026, T: Link runs on demand from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m., and its service area is UT's Main campus, Ag campus and Fort Sanders to Grand Avenue, "excluding the Cumberland Avenue Strip," per UT Parking and Transit.
Students request T: Link through the Tennessee mobile app, the TransLoc app, a campus Blue Phone or 865-974-4080.
KAT rides have been free for UT students since August 12, 2024, with a VolCard shown to the driver, per KAT. Check the Route 11 schedule for the last trips of the night.
The Knoxville Police Department covers the Cumberland Avenue corridor from its Central District, along with the Old City and Fort Sanders.
Talk the plan for getting home through with a freshman before move-in.
How far is the Strip from downtown Knoxville?
The Strip is about a mile from downtown Knoxville. In a straight line, Cumberland Avenue at 17th Street is 0.99 mile from Market Square and 0.67 mile from the Sunsphere, by our measurement on OpenStreetMap.
Grant puts Market Square "at least a mile walk" from the Student Union. He calls World's Fair Park, on the way, "really beautiful" and "a good touch point," and says Market Square has "a bunch of great restaurants and you really do get a feel for Knoxville."
Plan downtown as a dinner stop: drive or ride there after a day on campus and the Strip. Our post on things to do in Knoxville covers downtown, and our guide to UT Knoxville off-campus housing covers the apartments and the houses behind them.
To walk the Strip, Fort Sanders and Greek row with a current UT student, book a private tour: $150 for your family, 60 to 90 minutes. TourCollegeTowns is independent and not affiliated with the University of Tennessee.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Strip part of UT's campus?
No, the Strip is not part of UT's campus. Cumberland Avenue is a city street, and the Knoxville Police Department's Central District covers its corridor. It runs right along the campus edge, which is why Grant calls the apartments there "borderline campus." UT's Student Union is on Cumberland Avenue too, at 1502.
When did Knoxville rebuild Cumberland Avenue?
Knoxville rebuilt Cumberland Avenue in two phases, and the first, from Alcoa Highway to 22nd Street, was completed in December 2015, according to the City of Knoxville. Phase II, from 22nd Street to just west of 16th Street, narrowed the street from four lanes to three and added new sidewalks, street trees, planted medians and crosswalks, per Volopedia.
Do hotels near the Strip cost more on game weekends?
Hotels near the Strip can cost more on game weekends, because the hotels on UT's visitor page black out UT's rates on "all home Tennessee football weekends," as of October 2026. That list includes the Graduate Knoxville on the Strip. Book early for a home game, or pick a weekend without one.
Sources
- UT Libraries, Volopedia: "The Strip" (Betsey B. Creekmore, October 2018) and "Cumberland Avenue Revitalization" (September 2018), read October 2026.
- City of Knoxville: Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project, archived project page, read October 2026.
- UT Parking and Transit: visitor parking and campus routes, read October 2026.
- Knoxville Area Transit: UT partnership and Route 11, read October 2026.
- Knoxville Police Department: Central District, read October 2026.
- UT Undergraduate Admissions: Welcome to Knoxville, read October 2026.
- UT Hilltopics: campus policies and procedures, read October 2026.
- Visit Knoxville: neighborhoods, read October 2026.
- Knoxville News Sentinel: "End of an era: Cumberland Avenue demolition begins, making way for $530M student housing," Ryan Wilusz, February 15, 2023.