Asheville, NC

One of the most popular tourist destinations in western North Carolina is the Biltmore Estate. The largest privately-owned residence in the U.S., it was built by George Washington Vanderbilt and completed in 1895. The surrounding area is gorgeous, thanks to the 3 million+ trees planted by Frederick Law Olmstead and his crew as part of the landscape design of the estate. The estate is still owned by the Vanderbilt family but has been open to the public since 1930. Today, the estate spans 8,000 acres and includes the 250-room Chateauesque style house, 75-acre formal gardens, the Biltmore Inn (a luxury hotel and spa), a winery, an outdoor center that includes bike and equestrian rentals, and lots of shopping. You could easily spend two full days there.

The town of Black Mountain is just a few miles east of Asheville, and is even closer to the wedding site at Hidden River. Black Mountain is a quaint town with lots of restaurants, shops, and art galleries. Since our guests will be arriving for our stay at Hidden River on the 4th of July, we thought we might catch the holiday fireworks and festivities in Black Mountain that night. There are several restaurants we would like to try when we're there too. We visited the town briefly last May, but since it was a Sunday (and also off-season) when we were there, many of the restaurants were closed. We did, however, discover a great little coffeehouse called the Dripolator. I also recently discovered a blog called Black Mountain Birdie written by one of the town's residents that recommends places to go and things to do there.

Chimney Rock Park is not actually in Asheville, but it's a short drive at around 25 miles away. If you plan to hike to the top of Chimney Rock it will require some leg power, since there are many, many steps built into the mountainside to help you get to the top of the 315-ft. rock formation that bears the park's name. There is an easier way though - there is an elevator that will take you almost to the top, but if you are able to hike it, you'll see a lot of beautiful sites along the way and you'll feel like you earned the great view!

There are also several other trails that don't require climbing all of the stairs. You won't be able to see for miles like you can at from the top, but you can stand near the base of Hickory Nut Falls, one of the highest waterfalls east of the Mississippi River.

One thing that is high on our priority list is a visit to Navitat Canopy Adventures, a 3.5 hour zip line tour in the mountains near Asheville. It opened in May of 2010. We would like to plan for a group of our guests to go with us, possibly on Tuesday, July 5. The tours go in groups of only 8 people, so if we have too many, we may need to go in multiple groups. This won't be a problem, since groups leave in 15-20 minute intervals, and no one will have to wait around for a long time for the others to get finished. We will be compiling a list of the people who are interested so that we can make reservations. The cost is $85 for adults, and $75 for anyone under 18. There are a few requirements, including body weight between 90 and 250 lbs., moderate to good health, the ability to walk a mile, and the strength to pull yourself along the cable. All of the guidelines are listed on the Navitat website.

Dupont State Forest is a beautiful park comprised of over 10,000 acres of forest, trails, and waterfalls, near Brevard, NC (about 30 minutes drive from Asheville). It's a great place to spend the day hiking, horseback riding or mountain biking. There are several lovely waterfalls only a short hike from the parking areas, so its a great place to commune with nature without having to do very strenuous hikes. There are over 100 miles of recreational trails there.

Western North Carolina Nature Center is an educational center exhibiting plants and animals native to the area. It was voted the "best place to take kids" in Western North Carolina. It features a petting zoo, butterfly garden, and nature walks.

Lots more kids activities:

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