At the end of May, I traveled to Asheville, North Carolina to visit my friend, Lea, for her birthday. Lea’s birthday is around Memorial Day, so we spent an extended weekend in Asheville. In this post I will go over our itinerary for our 4 day trip to North Carolina.
Day 1:
Day 1 we arrived in Asheville via plane and headed to our accommodations. We stayed at the cutest AirBnB for our entire time in Asheville. The AirBnB was super close to Blue Ridge Parkway and Downtown Asheville. We spent our first day relaxing, getting settled into the house, and exploring Downtown Asheville. We had dinner at White Duck Tacos in Downtown Asheville and it was delicious.
Day 2:
Day 2 was Lea’s actual birthday. We started the day by hiking and exploring the North Carolina Arboretum. The hikes were fairly easy and included some of the most beautiful views (pictured below). After our morning at the arboretum, we ventured to 12 Bones Smokehouse for lunch. I highly recommend eating at 12 Bones if you are ever in the Asheville area. Do not be discouraged by the long line, the line moves quick and there is plenty of seating inside/outside to enjoy your delicious smoked meal. I suggest the potato salad because OMG! my mouth still waters just from thinking about how good it was.
After lunch, we drove through Blue Ridge Parkway and stopped at every overlook to take in the beauty of the nature around us. After hours on the parkway, we went back downtown for breakfast for dinner at Early Girl Eatery. Again, the food was delicious. We then walked from Early Girl Eatery to Sky Bar, where we watched the sunset over the mountains at the rooftop bar.
Day 3:
Day 3 was dedicated to the Biltmore Estate. We started our day at the Biltmore by touring the massive mansion. After our tour of the house we made our way through the Biltmore Gardens. Our trek through the gardens ended up being more of a hike than we expected. Wear comfy shoes! The gardens also have a massive greenhouse that made me feel like I was in a tropical jungle. After the gardens, we made our way to the winery on the Biltmore Estate. A complimentary wine tasting is included with tickets purchased for the tour of the house. We each tasted around 7 wines and found some new favorites. After our delightful wine tasting, we left the estate for dinner at Homegrown. Homegrown made the southern girl inside me so happy! The food seriously tasted just like my Grandma would make it, especially the cheesy grits.
Day 4:
Day 4 was our last day. Since my flight was out of the Asheville airport in the evening, we had a whole day full of activity. We started our last day with breakfast at Tod’s Tasties. After breakfast we enjoyed an invigorating 2.5 hour hike in DuPont National Forest. The hike was full of beautiful views and a few waterfalls like the one pictured below. After our hike we decided to take things slow at the Asheville Art Museum. After the museum we went back to the Blue Ridge Parkway to take in a few more scenic views before our trip was over. We then headed to Sierra Nevada for an early dinner. I had their take on Shrimp and Grits and maaaaaan was it delicious. After dinner it was to the airport for me so I could catch my flight back to Ohio.
Overall Asheville, North Carolina was a beautiful and inviting southern city with mountain views and delicious food. I’m already planning my next trip back!
