Last week, we drove down to Pigeon Forge, TN and Asheville, NC for a mini-vacation before summer ended.
One of our favorite couples to vacation with had rented a few Airbnbs for a vacation (five full days) and invited us to tag along. They planned to split the trip into two legs - first up Tennessee, and North Carolina second. It was a much needed vacation from all the craziness 2020 has brought upon us, but also a reminder that there's so much to see within driving distance of DC! I'm happy they planned this because I'm not sure I ever would have picked these places to go on my own. We loved the mountains in Tennessee, and the small town spunk of Asheville.
Below you can see a few key takeaway tips, and the activities we did during the week! What did we miss in Pigeon Forge and Asheville that we should do next time?
How to get there from DC
Both Pigeon Forge and Asheville are about an 8 hour drive from DC. So a bit too far for a weekend, you'd definitely want to go for a week at least. We drove the entire 8 hour drive down after work on a Monday, which was tiring, but worth it since it meant we would get a full day on Tuesday. The other couple had opted to leave Sunday night, grab a hotel in Roanoke, VA, and then finish the drive Monday morning, so you have some options!
We also pretty much exclusively stopped at Sheetz gas stations to fill up the tank and use the bathrooms, since their bathrooms were large and clean. Bless the Sheetz during Covid.
On the way out of Asheville, we got some great views of the sun rising over the mountains as well!
What to look for in Airbnbs
The Airbnb in Pigeon Forge was a picturesque mountain cabin, complete with a pool table, hot tub, and grill. We spent a lot of time on the deck looking out into the mountains and starry sky. But no mountain cabin is complete without the treacherous, steep, one-way, gravel road. Be cognizant of this when booking cabins, as it seemed this was common in the area, and our small sedan could barely get up the driveway without the traction light coming on.
The Airbnb in Asheville was a small apartment over a real estate office, so not exactly picturesque, but perfect location for walking to downtown Asheville. Location was key here since it meant we could all partake in drinking activities at the local breweries, and we wouldn't have to take Ubers during Covid.
Gatlinburg & Pigeon Forge
While the boys chose to golf 18 holes at Gatllinburg Golf Course, us ladies decided to explore Gatlinburg. We did a little golfing of our own, mini-golfing that is, which was neat since it was on the side of a mountain.
We also rode the SkyLift, sitting in our own T-bar ten feet apart from other guests, to the iconic SkyBridge. The SkyBridge is the longest pedestrian suspension bridge in North America. Beware if you're not fond of heights, but it was pretty surreal to walk over the glass panel portion of the bridge and feel the swaying from the wind!
We were hungry from walking around the town all day, and the boys were hungry from golfing in the sun all day, so we drove through crazy Pigeon Forge and had local beer, wings and burgers from Great Smoky Mountain Brewery.
Ramsey Cascades Hike
We trekked the Ramsey Cascades Trail, 8 miles round-trip and over 2,000 feet in elevation, to a beautiful waterfall in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The waterfall was pretty spectacular to see in Tennessee. It was well worth the hike. We packed some sandwiches, snack bars, and a ton of water for the hike, plus had big juicy steaks to grill when we got home to celebrate the day.
Things to Note:
Difficulty: This hike is considered strenuous. There were lots of big boulders to climb up and tree roots to trip you up.
Start Before 11am: You'll want to start early for this hike. The waterfall is the perfect turn-around spot to sit down and enjoy lunch, so you don't want to be eating too late. Also, our hike ended up being about 6 hours round-trip, so starting later than 11am means it could start getting dark by 5pm depending on the time of year you go.
What to Bring: In addition to several liters of water, snacks, and a hearty lunch, bring a beach towel! The waterfall is dangerous and slippery, but there is a stretch you can carefully wade over to snap some great photos and eat lunch on flat rock. The water is freezing, and I know that no one likes getting their shoes wet, so a towel will help dry off your bare feet once you've passed through the water.
Blue Ridge Parkway
One of the most spectacular parts of the trip, and an activity of its own, was driving the Blue Ridge Parkway between Pigeon Forge and Asheville. Of course there's a shorter drive between the two, but opting for the scenic route is the way to go.
We drove from Gatlinburg to Cherokee, NC along Route 441, which provided stunning views through Great Smoky Mountains National Park. From Cherokee, we drove the southernmost portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway until we had to hop off for the Asheville exit. Definitely make sure to stop at a few of the scenic overlooks to take in the views.
Asheville Breweries
Asheville is known for it's craft breweries, so definitely come ready to sip!
We started our Asheville leg of the trip at Wicked Weed Brewing Pub since we arrived a few hours before we could check into the Airbnb. It was the perfect place to start since they had delicious food, funky beers, and excellent service. It was raining but Wicked Weed has awesome covers over all of their outdoor tables, so we were able to stay completely dry.
Hillman Beer is out of the way from downtown, but it had the group's favorite beers. We stopped there for a quick flight before our tickets to the Biltmore Estate and wish we could have stayed longer.
We then dedicated an entire day to brewery hopping. We started the morning off in West Asheville where we could drive and park before doing too much drinking. In West Asheville we hit All Sevens Brewing/Westville Pub and Archetype Brewing. All Sevens had your standard pub style brews, while Archetype donned industrial warehouse vibes and had a cool beer finding app. We tried to stop by New Belgium, however they're popular of course and had a long waitlist, so we opted to skip over it in favor of more local beers.
We drove back to our Airbnb and were able to walk to the remaining breweries. In downtown Asheville we tried Catawba Brewing, Green Man Brewery, Burial Beer Co, and Twin Leaf Brewery. All of the breweries had about 15-20 minutes wait times, but they were worth it (Burial Beer even let us drink canned beer in line). We had take-out at Catawba from their next door neighbor, Buxton Hall BBQ, and some great sandwiches on the roof at Burial Beer Co for dinner.
Biltmore Estate
The Biltmore Estate is the must-see in Asheville. It's a historic chateau-style mansion, and one of the largest privately-owned homes in the U.S. It was built for the famous Vanderbilt family and still operates as family-owned today. Tickets are on the pricier side, but well worth it for the chance to experience the majestic house and gardens and natural beauty of the mountains that surround it.
Besides the house itself, there are little shops and food carts in the old horse stables. The gardens are not to miss, and lead to a greenhouse and garden shop. Once you leave the house and garden area, drive down to Antler Hill Village & Winery (still on the property). The winery tastings require reservation, but if you just want to buy and open a bottle and snack on the cheese board, you can do that without one!
We ended up with 2:30pm tickets to the Biltmore House, which worked out perfectly with our itinerary of brunch beforehand and a late dinner afterwards.
Things to Note:
Estimated Time Spent: 4 hours
Buy Tickets Ahead: When we went, there were timed-entry tickets to visit the house. When we went to book our tickets on Thursday night, the only options left for us were Friday after 2:30pm and Saturday after 5pm. Book early.
Get the Audio Tour: There are no plaques or signs that you can read when you're in the house, so the audio guide is imperative.
Bathrooms: While there are 43 inside the house, none of them are available for your use, so make sure to use the ones in the shop area before entering!
Mask On: Make sure to wear your mask the entire time in the house!
Asheville Eats
The first night in Asheville, we were hungry for some burgers and fried chicken sandwiches, which we got at Packs Tavern, along with some delicious ice cream.
We had brunch at *the* Tupelo Honey, southern comfort food famous for brunch and supper. I love sweet breakfasts, so I got the pecan pie French toast which hit the spot, but that chicken and biscuit dish looked amazing too. This location is the *original* Tupelo Honey, although lucky for me, there's one in Arlington, not too far from DC!
The second night, we got dinner at The Market Place, which had healthy, locally sourced, farm-to-table cuisine. Loved the cocktails here, the food, and the cozy vibes.
We had to finish up the trip at French Broad Chocolate Lounge, with chocolate ice cream and mousse!
Comments