What to Do in Asheville, NC: A 4-Day Insider Friend Getaway Guide
- Updated: 04/07/2024
- Janice
For friend groups who love the outdoors, great food, good brews, and accessible art—Asheville, North Carolina, with its temperate climate, ample lodging options, and an easy-to-get-to airport, offers a nearly perfect year-round destination for girls or guys getaways.
My group of Oak Park, Illinois friends, all members of the same lady business book group, chose to visit Asheville for these reasons, and our inside connection—one of our own moved to the town several years prior. It was high time for a visit.
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Planning for our June reunion trip took place over several months. Determined to share the best of Asheville, our friend and local, Annie, single-handedly set out to give us an incredible weekend while nudging us to fall in love with her new hometown. See what we did over our four-day friend trip—which also happened to be vegan-friendly—below.
Day 1: Arrival, Bike Tour, & Brewery
- Arrive at Asheville Regional Airport on a direct flight from Chicago, pick up our Enterprise rental car and drive into town.
- Eat outdoors at the excellent vegetarian and vegan restaurant Laughing Seed Cafe.
- Join The Flying Bike for their 3-hour group e-bike tour of Asheville.
- Drive to our Serenity Now home rental in Fairview, NC. Pick up a friend at the airport along the way.
- Head to nearby Whistle Hop Brewery in Fairview to enjoy drinks and dinner from the Deli Volv food truck on their sprawling lawn.
- Stock up on snacks at the Fairview Food Lion for the weekend.
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The first day of our Asheville ladies’ getaway was one of those rare, flawless travel days when the travel gods (or goddesses) granted beautiful weather, delay-free travel, and the chance to fit in all activities we hoped to do without once feeling rushed. I joined two friends, from our group of six, on a direct flight from Chicago to Asheville. We landed at the Asheville Regional Airport on time, disembarking into the outdoors on a set of boarding stairs into the late morning summer sunshine as if on a tropical vacation.
The small airport made retrieving our bags—we had to check our carry-ons due to our small aircraft (United Express) and reduced bin space—and picking up our rental car a breeze. From the airport, we quickly made our way—about a 25-minute drive—into Asheville in time for lunch.
There are several ways to up your rental car game. Learn how in my article, “15 Tips for How to Raise the Bar on Car Rentals” and in “Rental Car Insurance: When You Need It & When You Don’t.” Though, if you have a friend, who is a people-person like my friend, Swati, who charms anyone she meets, bring them to the rental car counter—this helps too.
Lunch at Laughing Seed Cafe
For lunch, we had our hearts set on going to Chai Pani, a James Beard award-winning Indian street food restaurant offering several delicious options for our friend Swati, a devoted vegan passionate about her food. Facing an hour-and-a-half wait—popular Chai Pani does not take reservations—we had to put our Indian street food fix on hold until day two.
Instead, and to be on time for our bike tour in two hours, we headed around the corner and down Asheville’s historic Wall Street, a narrow one-lane pedestrian-friendly roadway lined with cafes and restaurants, to go to Laughing Seed Cafe. Here, we found global-inspired vegetarian and vegan fare and outdoor tables available with no wait.
Our lunch was outstanding. Although I am not vegan or vegetarian, I am a dedicated and non-discriminate lover of all good foods. And the Garden Seven Sammy sandwich I ordered with no additions from the Laughing Seed did not disappoint. Perfectly toasted whole grain bread that was as crisp as it was chewy, bookended with balanced layers of beets, hummus, and fresh greens.
My friends ordered the Buffalo Tacos—one of the most recommended dishes on Yelp—and the Spinach Pesto Manicotti, where the “noodles” were zucchini. We celebrated our first vacation meal with an iced tea toast and a shared slice of perfectly moist and delicious vegan carrot cake.
E-Bike Tour with The Flying Bike
After lunch, we returned to our parked car at a metered spot just beyond the shops, outdoor market stalls, and cafes lining Battery Park Avenue. From there, we drove five minutes to The Flying Bike—owned by friends of Annie’s—to catch the start of our three-hour Downtown Asheville Electric Bike group tour.
For more detail about the tour, check out “How to Find the Best Asheville, NC, Bike Tours & Paths,” where I share a review of the experience, a short video, and provide information about other bike tour options in Asheville and the surrounding area.
If you are looking to add more things to your want-to-do Asheville list, check out this list of the city’s 10 best attractions.
Staying in Fairview, NC at a Yonder Rental (Serenity Now)
Once the tour wrapped up and we said our goodbyes to our guide and made our way to our rental, Serenity Now, near the town of Fairview, a 25-minute drive south of Asheville, with a pit stop at the airport to pick up another arriving friend. After navigating backroads and maneuvering the steep access driveway to our rural mountain rental, we arrived at our four-bedroom, four-bathroom home.
If you are driving outside of Asheville, and especially if you are staying out of town as we did, you may not be able to rely on cell service for navigation. My carrier is Verizon, and I did not have service along several parts of our drive to our Fairview rental.
Knowing you may be affected similarly, plan to download a digital map. See how to download a Google map to your phone in this how-to video I created. Find more driving and road trip tips in my article, “Enjoy the Ride: 12 Tips for Better Family Road Trips.”
Our oversize rental, managed by Yonder, a luxury North Carolina vacation property management group, was immaculately clean, uncluttered, and well-stocked. With three bedrooms—one of them a massive main bedroom with a sitting room—and a separate bunk room, it can sleep up to 12 comfortably. The home was perfect for our group of six (originally a group of seven, but one friend sadly had to cancel last minute) as everyone got their own bed—no sharing!
Add three full baths, one half-bath, and a wrap-around deck ringed by trees concealing the mountain view visible just beyond. And all for a fraction of the price for similar properties in or closer to town.
Given the lodging priorities of our group, our Fairview rental, even considering its distance (25-minute drive) from Asheville, offered the ideal vacation accommodation for the six of us. However, other rentals and inns closer to town could provide a better fit for your group. Explore Booking.com or VRBO for more in-town Asheville options.
Drinks & Food Truck Dinner at Whistlehop Brewery
After ogling our house deck and amenities, we dropped our bags and headed out to drive 10-minutes away to Whistlehop Brewery and its featured food truck in Fairview for a drink and dinner. Entering the sprawling brewery grounds in the soft light on a clear June evening was a pleasure.
The brewery offers a multi-tiered lawn, complete with mini golf, petanque, plus play areas for kids of all ages, making it an ideal place for families and friends to gather. My group claimed an open picnic table and headed up to the main brewery building, passing live music on our way to order our brews from the takeaway window.
With our award-winning beers in hand, we headed back to our table. Once settled, we pulled our cellphones out to order dinner online via the QR-code menu from Deli Volv, the food truck on rotation at the brewery that evening.
Although it took a fair amount of time for our food to be ready—30 to 40 minutes—this is hardly a hardship at Whistlehop, where waiting means listening to live music, spending time outdoors with friends, or grabbing one more flavorful brew.
However, after a time, the food did come, and the Port Royal sandwich I ordered on homemade bread with smoked turkey paired nicely with my beer. My friend, Anne, who regularly and brilliantly checks for specific dish recommendations from the restaurants she patronizes on Yelp, ordered the Gustaio Italiano and announced after quickly eating it all before anyone could snag a taste—that it was excellent.
Another friend ordered the Amoretti Cookies and Cream and raved about these. And fortunately for Swati, there was even a tasty seitan-chickpea vegan option cheekily named—Satan’s Miracle. After drinks and food, we stopped at the Food Lion grocery store that was open until 11 PM and located just down the street to stock up on snacks for the weekend. Then, with a perfect first day completed, we drove back to our spacious rental to crash.
Day 2: Hiking, Rooftop Bar Tour & Indian Street Food
- Head to the Green Sage Cafe south location for breakfast and coffee.
- Hike the Wildcat Rock Trail.
- Join a 3-hour Rooftop Bar Tour.
- Explore Asheville, and visit Battery Park Book Exchange.
- Enjoy Indian Street Food at James-Beard award-winning Chai Pani.
- Walk around Asheville. Eat vegan ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s and The Hop at the S&W Market Food Hall & Tap Room.
How to use this map: In the map header, click the square tab to the left of my logo or click the enlarge frame to the right to view detail. You can save the map to “Your Places” on Google Maps by clicking the star next to the map name. Or you can share it by clicking the share icon.
Breakfast at the Green Sage Cafe & Hiking the Wildcat Rock Trail
We started day two early to fit in breakfast and a hike—so we could be back in Asheville in time for our afternoon rooftop bar tour. For breakfast, we drove 20 minutes west of our Fairview rental to grab food at the vegan-friendly Green Sage Cafe south location closest to Arden. I ordered a large breakfast sandwich and a coffee-to-go, which with a few snacks later in the day—kept me satisfied until I had the chance to share in appetizers at our bar tour later.
After enjoying breakfast outdoors, we piled into our two cars heading east, driving toward Fairview and past it to the Wildcat Rock Trailhead, a 30-minute ride. For more detail about hiking the Wildcat Rock Trail, check out my article “What You Need to Know to Hike the Wildcat Rock Trail,” where I share an overview of the trail, tips for your visit, and what I loved most about it.
Asheville Rooftop Bar Tour
Sweaty and satisfied with the hike, we returned to our Fairview rental to freshen up before heading to Asheville for our Rooftop Bar Tour. Both Annie and I had been looking forward to this tour. Annie had heard about it and seen it around town, and I was impressed by its high ratings. Unfortunately, I found the experience underwhelming.
Coming from Chicago and having lived in New York—I have been to rooftop bars several times. So, it turned out that for me, going to a hotel roof to enjoy a cocktail and an impressive view did not feel like it needed to be a guided activity. However, if visiting rooftop bars feels more like a novelty, you might agree with the many guests who adore this experience.
To help you decide if booking a tour is right for you or your group, I share a breakdown of its pros and cons below. The tour positives include guided group transportation to three Asheville rooftop bars paired with half-size specialty cocktails at each stop, with a mini-history overview of the Asheville area.
On the flip side, the tour negatives include a high price (above $80 per person) for what you get, being stuck at a location if you do not love it, and average storytelling. Although the included half-size cocktails were tasty and varied, the tour did not include any snacks or food, which we had to order and pay for separately.
Additionally, I was not a big fan of our second rooftop bar stop—the Pillar at the moderate Hilton Garden Inn. With uninspiring decor, a middling menu, and an average view, the Hilton felt more like a cookie-cutter overnight airport hotel and not special enough to be included on a showcase tour. And though the storytelling and city history overviews were a nice touch, I had heard many of the same stories the day before with The Flying Bike, who told them better while on-site at the actual historic locations.
The bottom line, this tour makes for a solid and easy outsourced group activity. Though for others who find the tour pricey or prefer to explore the Asheville rooftop bar scene without a guide or set schedule, I recommend heading to centrally located Capella on 9, the rooftop bar at the AC by Marriott.
At Cappella on 9, you can enjoy a modern-meets-mountains aesthetic, an excellent view—ideal for group photos—and an innovative drink and food menu. We loved the full-flavored blistered shishito peppers with just the right amount of kick as a nice accompaniment to our drinks. And if you decide to come here, arrive on the earlier side to grab a table—they do not take reservations.
Or, if you want to continue with a self-guided rooftop bar tour of your own, check out this article for the best rooftop bars in Asheville on the Explore Asheville website.
Dinner at Chai Pani & Vegan Ice Cream
After wrapping up our last rooftop bar stop at Hemmingway’s, we put our name in at nearby Chai Pani. We used the wait time to explore Battery Park Book Exchange and stroll up and down the market stands on Battery Park Avenue. After a 45-minute wait, we scored an inside table at Chai Pani and loaded up on delicious street food, small plates, and thali dishes bringing home the leftovers to our rental.
After dinner, we stopped for vegan ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s and The Hop at the S&W Market Food Hall & Tap Room, with a stop at Pritchard Park to check out the Friday night drum circle before heading back to Fairview and bed.
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Day 3: Biscuits, Waterfalls & Tacos
- Enjoy a late breakfast at Biscuit Head South.
- Spend the day leisurely hiking the Triple Falls Trail Loop at the DuPont State Recreational Forest and swimming at High Falls.
- Eat dinner at the White Duck Taco Shop.
- Walk along the French Broad River.
- Stargazing—planned but canceled due to weather at the Lookout Observatory at UNC Asheville.
How to use this map: In the map header, click the square tab to the left of my logo or click the enlarge frame to the right to view detail. You can save the map to “Your Places” on Google Maps by clicking the star next to the map name. Or you can share it by clicking the share icon.
Brunch at Biscuit Head & Hiking the Triple Falls Trail Loop
After a busy day two, we enjoyed a more leisurely morning, taking our time before heading out for breakfast and hiking and swimming at the DuPont State Recreational Area. For brunch—it was too late in the day to call it breakfast—we made our way to Biscuit Head South—another excellent Annie restaurant recommendation.
The accommodating menu—which included several vegan and gluten-free options—allowed us to order biscuits to each of our specific tastes. I ordered the biscuit with shiitake and black pepper gravy with a Pennycup iced coffee, satisfyingly topping the meal off with a few cinnamon sugar biscuit donuts dusted in powdered sugar.
From Biscuit Head, we drove 40 minutes south to the DuPont State Recreational Forest to park at the Hooker Falls Access Area, which connects with the Triple Falls Parking. Learn more about this trail here.
White Duck Taco Shop & Strolling the French Broad River
After our hike, we returned to our rental, cleaned up, relaxed, and then headed back into Asheville to enjoy global-inspired tacos outdoors along the French Broad River at the White Duck Taco Shop. The nice thing about tacos and a group is that with a bit of sharing, it is easy to sample nearly the entire menu—which we did. My hands-down favorite food, and perhaps the best of the entire trip, which was already trending excellent, was White Duck’s Chicken Tikka Masala taco topped with crispy chickpeas.
Technically, I am not sure you can call this fusion food a taco. However, whatever its classification, I enjoyed every morsel of its savory and perfectly textured taco-like deliciousness. After dinner, we strolled along the French Broad River, catching a glimpse of evening primroses open along a pollinator garden. It was another great day.
Day 4: Yoga, Brunch, Salt Cave, & Art
- One-hour in-house yoga session held under the trees on our rental deck with Caitlin, the yoga instructor with Asheville Wellness Tours.
- Check out from our Airbnb rental, Serenity Now.
- Breakfast at an outdoor garden table at Liberty House Cafe & vegan takeout from Pulp & Sprout Juice Bar & Vegan Cafe.
- Relax and rest in a salt cave at Asheville Salt Cave.
- Head to the River Arts District (RAD) to visit Annie’s mom at her studio—Selene Plum, in the open-to-the-public Riverview Station building.
- Explore Foundy Street and the Marquee.
- Return the rental car and fly home. Goodbye Asheville. We had so much more we wanted to do!
How to use this map: In the map header, click the square tab to the left of my logo or click the enlarge frame to the right to view detail. You can save the map to “Your Places” on Google Maps by clicking the star next to the map name. Or you can share it by clicking the share icon.
Usually, the last day of a trip is never my favorite. Typically, these days feel rushed and transport heavy, with too much of the getting-there or back part of travel and not as much fun. However, since the Asheville airport is close to town, and our return flight was not until the evening, this last day was an exception. It also helped that today was our Zen day—yoga, brunch, and a salt cave meditation rounded out with culture and art with a visit to the River Arts District.
Private Yoga Class with Asheville Wellness Tours
We began the day at 8 AM with an in-house all-level yoga session booked with Asheville Wellness Tours, which offers off-site classes and guided hiking trips. Our excellent instructor, Caitlin, taught our most and least experienced group members equally well, adjusting poses and direction as needed.
We held the class outside under the trees overhanging the wrap-around porch of our rental. Holding tree pose never felt so right—or so peaceful. After class, feeling limber and energized, we split for a quick clean-up of ourselves and our rental to check out by 10 AM.
Brunch at Liberty House Cafe & the Asheville Salt Cave
Once packed, we drove back to town for a delicious outdoor garden breakfast at Liberty House Cafe. As with many other Asheville eateries, we ordered at the counter, claimed a table, and waited for our food to arrive. I chose the flavorful Liberty quiche with smoked gouda, broccoli, and grape tomatoes, paired with Vietnamese cold-brewed coffee.
The only downside to the excellent food at Liberty House was it was light on vegan options. Luckily, though, neighboring vegan cafe Pulp & Sprout is a half block down the street. And it offered an alternative for Swati to find some delicious vegan treats to bring over and enjoy with us.
Contented with yet one more delicious meal in Asheville, we made our way up the block for more satisfaction and relaxation at the Asheville Salt Cave.
We booked a 45-minute community salt cave session—a group meditation session in a room packed with 30 tons of pink salt from floor to ceiling. Picture being in a crystal womb, and you will have the right idea. Since we were the only ones to book our midday Sunday session—my group had the room to ourselves. After a brief guided meditation, we settled in on our floor bolsters or cots. Most of us napped or tried to still our minds while we soaked in the quiet, the stillness, and the mineral benefits.
Learn more about the Asheville Salt Cave, its other services (e.g., hammam, massages, etc.), and the benefits on its website.
Asheville's River Arts District
Blissed out after our session, we next headed to visit Annie at her home to see where she lived. From there, we continued onto the River Arts District to meet up with Annie’s mom, an artist at her Selene Plum studio at Riverview Station.
After our visit, we walked around the back of the Riverview Station to stroll Foundy Street and the Marquee, browsing market booths and admiring gallery displays before heading to the airport and our flight home. It was the perfect end to an outstanding ladies’ trip.
Related Reading
If you are traveling to the Asheville area or love going on getaways with friends, check out these related articles to help you get the information you need to plan your best trip.
Or view my North Carolina book list, including guidebooks, biographies, histories, and fiction set in place in “The Best Books to Read Before an Asheville Trip,” below.
Additional Trip Planning Resources
To further help you with travel planning, I share my go-to resources for every trip below.
Google Flights. My first research stop for affordable flights for every trip. Learn why here.
Google Hotels. Use its “Where to stay” button to discover the best neighborhoods to base your visit.
Booking.com. For hotel and rental bookings, I appreciate its flexible cancellation, candid user reviews, discounts, loyalty program, and easy-to-use interface.
Viator, Get Your Guide, & Airbnb Experiences. Quickly find and book highly-rated tours and activities on these sites.
Google Travel Things to Do & Google Maps. Find more things to do in your destination on Google Travel, then record where you want to visit on a custom Google Maps list.
AllTrails. Love to hike? Me too. I religiously use AllTrails to discover hiking and biking trails and download its offline maps to manage my hikes.
Guide Along. 5-star self-guided audio tours that are GPS-compatible for US road trips and national parks. We loved the Glacier National Park tour.
Insure My Trip. I never travel internationally without trip insurance. Learn why here. My preferred place to shop and compare policies is InsureMyTrip.com.
Plus, check out the 15 travel apps I use on trips, my preferred guidebooks, and my free customizable travel itinerary template, downloadable in four file formats.
About the author: Janice Moskoff is a travel writer and blogger who loves hiking, exploring the world, and reading. She writes to inspire travel-loving families, adult friends, and couples on her blog, Gather and Go Travel. Check out her bio, learn how she became a blogger, and discover how to work with her. Sign up for her monthly Discovery Newsletter to get her latest travel recommendations and how-to’s.
Love to travel? Sign up for my monthly Gather & Go Travel Discovery Newsletter and get a free trip budget calculator.
Affiliate Disclosure: Some of the links on this page may be affiliate links, and at no additional cost to you, I earn a commission if you make a purchase. I only recommend products and companies I use. And the income goes to keeping the site community-supported and ads minimal.
Welcome to Gather and Go Travel, a blog inspiring families, adult friends, and couples to explore US and international destinations and to get outdoors. I am Janice, an experienced traveler to over 50 countries and a travel writer, book lover, and blogger. Learn more about me, read our story, and how to work with me.
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