Asheville

Old Farmers Ball contra dance

Asheville is well-known for its scene in contra dance, an easy-to-learn social folk dance with mixed European origins. The main dance takes place at Warren Wilson College, a little outside the city proper.

Lesson at 7:30PM, dance 8PM-11PM·$12

Asheville Brews Cruise

A personalized tour and VIP treatment at three of Asheville's finest local microbreweries -- Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company, French Broad Brewing Company, and Highland Brewing Company.

$40 per person

Asheville Contemporary Dance Theatre

Western North Carolina's first modern dance company. A diverse repertory reflects both traditional and experimental forms of modern dance.

Asheville Glass Center

A glassblowing school, working glass studio, and glass gallery with demos and workshops daily.

Mon-Sat 10AM-5PM and by appointment

Asheville Herb Festival

The largest herb festival in Southeast, offering herb plants, herbs, books, soaps, herbal crafts, vinegars, medicinal herbs, lotions, tinctures, teas, dried flowers, herbal baked goods, and herbal gifts. Held each May.

Free

Asheville Lyric Opera

Productions of opera, operetta, and musicals, performed in the company’s home, the Diana Wortham Theatre.

Asheville Symphony

Presents seven full orchestra concerts a year at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium in the Asheville Civic Center.

Biltmore Estate Carriage & Trail Ride Barns

Lessons, guided trail rides, shows, clinics, and camps. Must pay entrance fee to Biltmore estate.

Blue Ridge Parkway

Some of the most beautiful (and abundant) waterfalls can be reached via the Blue Ridge Parkway. Park your car on any Parkway overlook and there will most likely be a trail nearby. Popular spots include Mount Pisgah (15 miles south on the Parkway), Graveyard Fields (25 miles south on the Parkway), Craggy Gardens (24 miles north on the Parkway), and Mount Mitchell, the eastern United States highest mountain (35 miles/1 hour drive north on the Parkway). The Parkway intersects Asheville at US 25, US 70, US 74A & NC 191.

Blue Ridge Pride

A forum for building community and to honor the many facets of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender family.

Botanical Gardens at Asheville

A half-mile loop across streams, through meadows, and over a woodland ridge to a wildflower cove with an authentic log cabin. Just three miles north of downtown beside the University of North Carolina at Asheville.

Open from dawn to dusk·Free

Diane Wortham Theatre

Located within the Pack Place Education Arts and Science Center on Pack Square, the theatre offers live performances of music, theatre and dance by nationally touring artists and professional regional arts groups.

Downtown After Five

Held the third Friday of each month from May through September, featuring free outdoor local music and plenty of shopping and eating opportunities.

Daily 5-9PM·Free

Eating Asheville Tours

Eating Asheville’s walking food tour leads you through an orchestration of the finest and most delicious sights and tastes that the city has to offer. Join us for a tour of the city’s unique food culture. Inquire about our walking brewery tours of downtown Asheville!

$47 per person

Electro Bike Tours

Pedal with ease to the Basilica of St. Lawrence, Botanical Gardens, Grove Park Inn, Pack Square, and more on this guided two-hour electric bike tour of Asheville. Also, check out the Bike n Brew Ride!

$45 per person

Ghost Hunters of Asheville

Ghost Hunters of Asheville offer three separate 90-minute ghost tours covering different aspects of historical, haunted Asheville. Guests enjoy free use of ghost-hunting tools and paranormal photographs are guaranteed.

Adults $17, children age 8-14 $9, under age 8 free

Great Smokies Craft Brewers Brewgrass Festival

Over 30 American breweries showcase more than 100 different beers, along with music from national and regional bluegrass musicians. Held each September.

Daily noon-7PM·$40

Herstory Asheville: A Tour that Tells the Rest of the Story

Come hear tales of the famous, the infamous, and the unsung heroes of the female persuasion in engaging detail. This 90-minute walking tour covers the history of downtown while spotlighting the women who helped shape Asheville. Tours leave daily from The Old Kentucky Home, Julia Wolfe's former boarding house at Thomas Wolfe Memorial. Reservations required.

Adults $18, children $10

Historic Trolley Tours

Sightsee Asheville aboard a vintage Trolley. Fully narrated, covers all major points of interest in Asheville including: the Grove Park Inn, Biltmore Village, the Grove Arcade, the Montford Historic District, the downtown shopping and restaurants district, the Thomas Wolfe Memorial, the Asheville Museum and Art Gallery district, the Asheville Chamber and Visitors Center.

Adults $19, children $12, special group rates available

LaZoom Comedy Tours

LaZoom Comedy Tours is "A Tour with a Twist!" You'll get all of the facts plus loads of fun. Your costumed tour guide will take you and your family on a 90 minute adventure covering all of the points of interest. This isn't your grandma's tour (but she can still come).

Adults $25, seniors $21, young adults $15, children $12

Lake Eden Arts Festival (LEAF)

Twice each year, multicultural music and arts non-profit event held at scenic Camp Rockmont, in nearby Black Mountain.

Lutheridge

Faith-based outdoor camp and conference center located between Asheville and Hendersonville. Lutheridge offers a variety of summer programs for elementary to high school aged youth and hosts retreats and conferences from fall to spring. Lutheridge is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

Montford Holiday Tour of Homes

A yearly tour of holiday decorated homes in Asheville's oldest historic neighborhood on the second Saturday of December. Enjoy Shakespearean actors and homemade baked goods during the tour. Located down the street from Asheville Visitors Center.

$20

Montford Park Players

Free Shakespeare and other classic plays held at the Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre in Montford.

Moogfest

Electronic music festival honoring the late innovator Bob Moog, inventor of the Moog synthesizer. Held on Halloween weekend.

$150-200

Mountain Dance and Folk Festival

Mountain fiddlers, banjo pickers, dulcimer sweepers, and dancers. Held the first weekend in August.

$20/night adults, $10/night children, 3-night package $54

North Carolina Arboretum

A 434-acre facility with a Visitor Education Center, state-of-the-art greenhouses, beautiful gardens, and walking trails.

April to October: 8AM-9PM, November to March: 8AM-7PM·Parking is $8 per personal motor vehicle

North Carolina Stage Company

Asheville's only professional theatre. Voted Best Local Theatre by readers of Mountain Xpress for four years running. Winner George A. Parides Award for Outstanding Professional Theatre, North Carolina Theatre Conference. NC Stage Company has something either in rehearsal or performance 49 out of 52 weeks.

Organicfest

A festive day of live music, organic food and drink, organic and green goods, and fun activities for kids of all ages.

Daily 10AM-6PM

Pisgah National Forest

Much of Western North Carolina is covered by national forest, making it a hiker’s paradise. For maps or information on great places to hike, call the National Forest Service.