Our First Anniversary Trip

This year, for our anniversary, we decided to take a vacation to Asheville, North Carolina. Since neither of us had ever been there, this was the first vacation we took where we were both experiencing a new place at the same time. Additionally, we especially needed a nice relaxing vacation after my sister's wedding and moving! So, we were both pretty excited!

Of course, I did some research to find out the big things that we should add to our itinerary, so we were prepped and ready to go! For some reason, we were both expecting Asheville to be very similar to Charleston. Maybe its because they are both in the Carolinas; who knows.... but we soon found out, that it is very different form Charleston.

Day 1: We arrived in Asheville on Friday afternoon. I feel like the normal thing to do is arrive to your vacation destination on a Saturday or Sunday, however, there were several things we wanted to do on Friday and Saturday morning. So, we decided to start our trip on Friday. Every Friday night the Asheville Drum Circle happens in Pritchard Park. We thought this would be pretty interesting. And boy, was it interesting! Accompanying the drum circle was a mosh pit, which appeared have the potential for rowdiness. That's all I'm going to say about that. It was funny, yet a bit uncomfortable.

Day 2: We wanted to do a walking tour like we did in Charleston, and discovered Asheville By Foot. Kevin, our tour guide, was very knowledgable about both historic and current Asheville life. We walked all over downtown getting our feet wet for the remainder of our trip! We loved it, and I would recommend it to anyone going to Asheville!

Day 3: OUR ANNIVERSARY. On this day we drove the Blue Ridge Parkway. We started in Asheville (obviously) and made several pit stops traveling north. Some highlights included Craggy Gardens, Linn Cove Viaduct, Linville Falls and Gorge, and Mt. Mitchell (the tallest mountain east of the Mississippi River). Additionally, we went on a short hike, had a picnic, visited 3 National Park visitor's centers, and browsed the Folk Art Center.

Day 4: This day included the biggest tourist attraction known to Asheville: the Biltmore Estate. I'm not sure what exactly I expected, but this mansion is so amazing! We enjoyed an audio tour of the house, a lunch in the courtyard, and wandering around the Biltmore Gardens. Afterwards we drove over to Antler Hill Village to shop, eat some ice cream, visit the Biltmore Museum, and go on the winery tour. It was a good day, and definitely worth the ticket price!

Day 5: This was a complete relax day, which was unquestionably needed! First, we got a Couple's Massage (4 thumbs up). Then we swam and laid by our hotel pool for a few hours. Last, we enjoyed a little shopping at Asheville Outlets.

Day 6: We explored downtown some more on day 6. First, we walked through the Grove Arcade, stopping in several local shops. Next, we ventured over to the Basilica of St. Lawrence, one of only 82 Basilicas in the United States. As the day progressed we made our way to the Thomas Wolfe site and museum. Thomas Wolfe is a famous Asheville author. Last, we went to the French Broad Chocolate Factory and Tasting room. Very interesting place and very strong chocolate!

If you decide to visit Asheville, maybe you could use this post as a guide. We had a great time on our anniversary trip! CLICK HERE to see the accompanying video!