Tag: Asheville

One year on a family visit to Asheville, Lizzie Whitcher fell in love with Biltmore—so much so that she studied floriculture at Texas A&M with hopes of eventually working at the estate. Soon after, she made that dream a reality. In addition to managing decor for events, her team of 10 designers directs the installation of more than 100 trees, hundreds of thousands of lights, and thousands of feet of garland for Christmas at Biltmore.

The Omni Grove Park Inn & Spa welcomed back the National Gingerbread Competition this year after Hurricane Helene forced a cancellation in 2024. The celebrated holiday tradition returned stronger than ever, with 235 entries representing 25 states across the country—the most in the event's history.

When Hurricane Helene carved a path across the Southeast last September, it left what may be its deepest marks in western North Carolina. Here, tourism is king, pouring billions into the region’s economy, and Asheville’s unrealized fall season saw an estimated $584 million washed away. But today, six months removed from the devastation, Asheville and western North Carolina are welcoming visitors.

Ditch the luxe-lodge mountain aesthetic and opt for something, well, radically different at Asheville’s stylish new hotel the Radical. When transforming the property into an upscale 70-room hotel, the new owners chose to embrace the building’s history and hired local artists to further embellish the exposed-brick walls in the guest rooms, lobby, and other common areas with vivid, graffiti-style murals.

Ponce City Market is widely known for its support of local art and artists. Its next pop-up gallery, however, has a particularly special meaning. Titled Love Asheville from Afar, the month-long exhibit will help Asheville artists gain reach and sales after the devastating loss of their physical spaces and financial well-being due to Hurricane Helene. One hundred percent of the proceeds will go toward artists affected by the hurricane.

Asheville—the little mountain town that could—has leveled up. Long a quirky haven for artsy farmers (and farming artists), the North Carolina city has in the last few decades developed a cultural scene all its own. Nearly everything in Asheville, from food to music, art to beer, is touched by the Appalachian roots that run deep ’round these parts, but a playful approach to old traditions abounds in the shadow of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Governed by the maxim “we make baseball fun,” the Savannah Bananas have sold out every game since their founding in 2016. Following their own eccentric brand of play, dubbed “Banana Ball,” the team eschews anything that could make the sport feel sluggish.

Called the “King of Shrubs,” the rhododendron loves high altitudes; it’s the national flower of Nepal and a familiar sight in the Southern Appalachians, where blossoms of white, pink, red, and purple paint the tallest slopes in the eastern United States.

After a year of cancelled plans, missed holidays, and Zoom toasts, it’s time to dream big again (well, almost). If congratulations are in order, these Southern destinations offer the perfect setting to celebrate (or do over!) life’s milestones and special occasions.

Although she now calls New York City home, actress Bellamy Young says she’ll always be a Southern girl at heart.