Explore one of our favorite towns – Asheville!
One of our favorite towns in the US is Asheville. It has it all – beautiful nature, adorable town and delicious food. We’ve been to Ashville and the surrounding areas so many times. We’ve got a lot of favorite things in this area and will share them below!
We made a video with some of our favorite things 🙂
Blue Ridge Parkway and Waterfall Corridor
So many great stops along the Blue Ridge Parkway! Our recommendation is to make a day of it, and make a few stops along the way. There are plenty of overlooks, lots of waterfalls – even ones super close to the road. Some favorites include:
- Looking Glass Falls (steps off the road)
- Moore Cove Falls – 1 mile hike, much less busy than others
- Cradle of the Forestry – has a nice picnic area and historical buildings
Sliding Rock
Sliding rock is a super fun summer activity – although, warning, it gets very crowded. Its just outside of Ashville and could be combined with some of the other nature activities (hiking, waterfalls etc). You have to pay about $5 a person to enter, and parking is crowded! Best to get there early if you can. There are places you can change into a swimsuit as well, and even if you don’t want to go down (me), there are places to watch. There is a long line, but it moves quickly. Once at the top, you get to slide down a huge rock face into some really cold water!
Asheville Downtown
The downtown of Ashville is so charming, with a ton of good food options, lively atmosphere and lots of live music. Every Friday there is a drum circle that is a must visit.
We especially love all the street performers and interesting people to meet. Our son met a woman who was typing up poems on the spot based on whatever topic you wanted – his was ‘sharks’ and it’s still framed in his room.
Other Asheville Activities
Pinball Museum
Savage Station for concerts – sadly closed after flooding. They have a gofundme: https://salvagestation.com/
Western North Carolina Nature Center – small zoo
Asheville Food
White Duck Taco
Biscuit Head
Double D’s Coffee
Not pictured, but other recos:
- Daddy Mac’s
- Asheville Pizza and Brewing
- Tupelo Honey
- Wicked Weed
- French Broad Chocolate Lounge
- Early Girl Eatery
Biltmore
The Biltmore Estate is an extravagant mansion and gardens that you can tour. There are tours to choose from, but they are kind of expensive. It is worth doing though, at least once. There are also beautiful gardens outside of the mansion that you can also tour, plus a nice winery on site.
Hendersonville
Another stop we’ve made on our drives to the beach has been Hendersonville for a lunch at Piggy’s Ice Cream. This makes for a fun lunch spot with lots of funny things for the kids to look at, and good, kid friendly, inexpensive food!
Marshall
We stayed in the charming town of Marshall during out drive to the beach as an overnight. It’s right outside Ashville, and we wanted a slightly different experience. We booked a tee-pee on airbnb in the forest near Marshall. (message me for the link!). We loved our time here – it was so peaceful and had a great setup with firepit and chairs, all while still being close to the town where they have a few good restaurants. Not a place I’d stay more than a night, but makes for a great overnight!
