Find the best things to do in Asheville, North Carolina!
Asheville is a funky and beautiful town nestled in western North Carolina. It is close to the gorgeous Blue Ridge Parkway and to the Cherokee entrance of Smoky Mountain National Park. Probably best known for the Biltmore Estate right in town, Asheville has plenty of other great things to do!
Trek downtown to find eclectic shops, an amazing culinary scene, tons of art galleries, craft breweries, and live music everywhere. Or explore outside the city for beautiful hikes and overlooks along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Follow along as we share the best things to do in one day in Asheville!
Getting There
Because of the central location, you can easily take a day trip to Asheville from any of the surrounding towns. It is less than an hour’s drive coming from Cherokee and Maggie Valley in the west, an hour from Spartanburg, SC in the south, and under 2 hours if you are staying near Charlotte, NC or Knoxville, TN.
Of course, there is so much to do we recommend spending more than just one day here. There are so many cute Bed and Breakfasts in the area to choose from, as well as a few smaller hotels and inns. The Asheville airport is less than 20 minutes from downtown and makes for a quick way to get here if you are out of state.
Find the best deals and reviews for hotels in Asheville at Tripadvisor here!
How to spend a day in Asheville
Asheville is a large city with several distinct sections, so we have divided up your itinerary accordingly. If you only have one day to spend in Asheville, choose one region and really explore that area. Then you can choose another part of Asheville to check out on a return trip!
Downtown Asheville
Downtown Asheville is so unique, you could spend an entire day walking through the city checking out all the sights. Most of the places we love downtown are just steps from each other. Basically your day in downtown Asheville looks like this: eat, drink, walk and shop, eat again, more drinks, more walking, repeat. See why we love this place? 🙂
Find a central location to park if you are driving into the city. There is metered street parking as well as covered parking garages every few blocks or so, and they are inexpensive. Downtown Asheville is best seen on foot!
Eat in one of the many restaurants
Asheville is definitely becoming a foodie town, and we love it. There are hundreds of great local restaurants in town and we can attest that every one we’ve stopped at has had amazing food. Here is a great list of 40 of Asheville’s most unforgettable restaurants from an Asheville local! Two of our favorite restaurants we listed below, but we try to enjoy a new place on every trip to Asheville.
If you only have a day to enjoy downtown Asheville, we recommend starting at Tupelo Honey for a hearty breakfast before sampling all of the local craft beers! The location in central downtown is perfect, and with super tasty Bloody Marys, amazing homemade biscuits, and incredible upgraded Southern style food, it is a great brunch spot.
We became hooked when we visited their Denver location, and they have locations popping up all over the country as well as other locations around Asheville.
Tip: Get some of their homemade blueberry compote to take home, you won’t regret it!
Mellow Mushroom has been one of our favorite pizza places for a long time. It is right in the middle of some really cool shops so you can pop in, grab a specialty pizza for lunch, and continue your walking tour of Asheville. If you haven’t tried it yet, you really should. You won’t go back to regular pizza again!
Note: They also offer gluten free pizza 🙂
Visit the breweries
Of course we have to mention checking out the local craft breweries, because this is “Beer City”! Asheville has the second highest number of breweries per capita in the country after Portland, Maine. Every time we go we try to check out a new one (or two). Most are within walking distance from one another, with just enough time in between to grab a snack!
Go boutique shopping
Downtown Asheville has so many independent stores, gift shops, and boutiques, selling clothing, antiques, souvenirs, books, and specialty items you don’t know you need until you see them (I’m looking at you, planter-shaped-like-a-cat’s-head). You can window shop here all day and still not see everything. Along the way you will see community gardens, tons of street art, and might even catch some live music!
For a full list of shops by category, check out this page on the Explore Asheville site. Or just start in the center of downtown after having breakfast at Tupelo Honey and begin to wander your way up Lexington Avenue and then back down Broadway.
Some of our favorites:
- L.O.F.T. – Cute and unique home items
- Mast General Store – Large outfitters store
- Anthropologie – Gifts, home decor, amazing candles
- Urban Outfitters – Clothing, accessories, home decor
- Green Mother Goods – Super eclectic shop, cool vintage items
The Biltmore Estate in Asheville
Asheville is famous for being the setting of the iconic Biltmore Estate. If you have more than a day to spend in Asheville, we highly recommend planning a visit to the estate and grounds including the gardens and winery. Sitting on 8,000 acres, you could spend all day here and still not see the entire place! Located less than 20 minutes from downtown, touring this huge chateau is one of the number one things to do when visiting Asheville.
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The Asheville River Arts District
The River Arts District in Asheville is an art lover’s dream. This chain of real estate located along the French Broad River just southwest of downtown was previously an industrial zone. Now over 200 artists can be found in the rejuvenated historic buildings, creating everything from watercolor and oil paintings to pottery, photography, metal, glass, and more.
Various coffee shops, breweries, and restaurants are scattered throughout the district as well. Besides shopping for art, some of the artists offer live demonstrations outside of their working studios and even art classes. So lace up your walking shoes and plan a day filled with sipping, walking, and shopping, surrounded by art!
Drive The Blue Ridge Parkway
Any trip to Asheville should include a partial drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway, a beautiful two-lane winding road that starts in Cherokee, North Carolina and ends in Virginia. This breathtaking drive has overlooks, waterfalls, stone bridges, and hikes, and is known as America’s favorite scenic drive. And it is completely free!
There are 4 entrances to the BRP in Asheville. We suggest starting at the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center near downtown Asheville to choose your path, either head southwest towards the Smoky Mountain National Park, or northeast towards Beech Mountain and Blowing Rock. The parts of the parkway nearest Asheville have some of the highest peaks in the US east of the Mississippi River!
Driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway has breathtaking views in every season, but we personally think the best time to visit is in fall. The colors change at every turn and are so bright they don’t look real!
State and National Parks Close to Asheville
- Lake Lure and Chimney Rock State Park – See where part of Last of the Mohicans was filmed, just 40 minutes southeast of Asheville
- Smoky Mountain National Park – About an hour drive brings you to the most visited National Park in the US!
- Mount Mitchell State Park – The highest point east of the Mississippi River is less than an hour from Asheville along the Blue Ridge Parkway
- Grandfather Mountain – Drive along the BRP to this iconic park with outdoor animal habitats and a mile high swinging bridge!
More things to do around Asheville
- Enjoy a relaxing experience inside a Salt Cave – Relax and recharge your mind and body, either as a date night or with a small group
- Go on a brew bicycle tour – With Pubcycle you can take an Asheville pub tour or trivia tour with a tour driver on a BYOB motor-assisted “beer bike”
- See a show at the Orange Peel – Right next to Wicked Weed brewing, the Orange Peel is an iconic spot (named one of the top five music venues in America by Rolling Stone magazine) with concerts scheduled almost daily
- Enjoy a comedy tour of Asheville, or even a haunted ghost tour – Asheville was founded in 1784, there has to be some spirits hanging around here!
- Enjoy a craft cocktail from one of the rooftop bars downtown – Y’all know I love a rooftop bar, and being surrounded by mountains really makes these views extra special. (Featured photo for this post was taken from Hemingway’s Cuba rooftop bar)
I absolutely love writing about Asheville! Every visit makes me fall more in love with this amazing city, and I always leave with a list of new things to explore.
No matter the season, Asheville is absolutely stunning. Whether you’re into hiking or leaf-peeping, or want to experience the magic of the holidays, there’s something for everyone here. Don’t forget to sign up below to join us on our adventures and check out our other “best of” posts!
Happy travels!
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Great post! Thanks so, so much for showcasing our rooftop bars and unforgettable restaurants lists! We appreciate it — and are so glad you enjoyed them/found them helpful. We are certainly eating and drinking our way through Asheville. We love Biltmore Estate and the breweries you mentioned too. We travel to Florida often (we lived there for 8 years) and will definitely be checking out your posts and advice. We just got back from sunny (and hot) Key West.
We’re heading to Key West next March! Isn’t it crazy how hot it is still in December?!
This is on my bucket list so I pinned it for later. My sister told me about this town because of the arts and crafts. Of course, I would love to see the Biltmore and check out the breweries as well.
Ashville looks so beautiful and artsy. I did not know that they have so many breweries, but would love to spend a few days and do a lot of tastings. The parks look perfect too.
I first heard about Asheville from my cousin who visited and fell in love with the city several years ago. She made me want to go there but I still don’t find my way there. I didn’t realize that the Biltmore Estate is located there. Everything about it looks impressive!
You should definitely try to make it to Asheville one day soon, it is such a fun place!
I’ve never been to North Carolina when in the USA. Asheville looks so pretty and there are clearly many great things to do here. Hope I visit one day!
Thanks for sharing, what a cool town I would love to go there for a brewery tour!
I have been to a Mellow Mushroom restaurant before, and it is quite tasty! Also, the Baltimore mansion looks like a castle – would be interesting to visit and see it up close and in persnon.
It feels like a castle when you are walking through it too! Especially during the holidays! 🙂
We’re planning a visit to Ashville this summer..thanks for all the recs..esp restaurants.
There are so many good restaurants downtown that you can’t go wrong!
I didn’t know about the Biltmore winery until your article. Sounds like a fabulous weekend, especially the scenic drive!
I have been wanting to visit here!! I take this as a sign that I need to!
It’s definitely a sign 🙂
Asheville looks like a great place to spend a weekend! I’d especially like to visit Burial Beer Co., and the other breweries, and drive along the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway and check out the hikes!
Yesss the Blue Ridge Parkway is heaven!!
oh Biltmore looks delightful – definitely looks like a real treat during Christmas!