Area Attractions
Linville Ridge and its surrounding areas offer an abundance of things to see and do. Discover what the North Carolina High Country has to offer below or click here for our concierge’s list of 101 Things To Do during your stay at Linville Ridge.
Antiquing
With an abundant culture of traditions and grounded roots, the High Country is home to many antique enthusiasts, both locals and tourists. From upscale antique-chic to utter roadside rustic, you can find antiques cruising to and from Blowing Rock to Banner Elk.
Appalachian Summer Festival
Since 1984, the Appalachian Summer Festival has become one of the nation's largest regional multi-arts festivals, with over 26,000 people in attendance each year. The chamber music and annual arts festival is held every July on and around the campus of Appalachian State University. The event features an eclectic mix of music, dance, theatre, visual arts and film. For the last decade it has been consistently named one of the "Top Twenty Events in the Southeast" by the Southeast Tourism Society.
An Appalachian Summer Festival
Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts
733 Rivers Street
Boone, NC 28608
828.262.4046 phone
www.appsummer.org
Blowing Rock
Blowing Rock is North Carolina’s Oldest Travel Attraction with a beautiful short scenic walk where the wind blows continuously. The walls of the Johns River Gorge form a flume through which the Northwest wind sweeps with such force that it will return light objects thrown over the edge.
The Blowing Rock
432 Rock Road
Post Office Box 145
Blowing Rock, NC 28605
828.295.7111 phone
www.theblowingrock.com
Blue Ridge Parkway
The Blue Ridge Parkway is a 469-mile recreational motor road that protects the cultural and natural features of the Blue Ridge while connecting Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains National Parks. Designed as a “scenic drive,” the Parkway provides both stunning scenery and close-up looks at the natural and cultural history of the mountains.
Fishing
North Carolina offers over 5,700 miles of streams and 38,000 acres of lakes for both warm water and cold-water fishing. Some waters are stocked, while others support wild fish populations.
Grandfather Mountain
Grandfather Mountain is “Carolina’s Top Scenic Attraction.” Standing 5,964 feet above sea level, it is the highest peak in the Blue Ridge Mountain Range. Cross the mile-high swinging bridge for the thrill of your life.
Grandfather Mountain
2050 Blowing Rock Highway
Post Office Box 129
Linville, NC 28646
828.733.2013 phone
www.grandfather.com
Grandfather Mountain Highland Games
Grandfather Mountain is “Carolina’s Top Scenic Attraction.” Standing 5,964 feet above sea level, it is the highest peak in the Blue Ridge Mountain Range. Cross the mile-high swinging bridge for the thrill of your life.
Grandfather Mountain
2050 Blowing Rock Highway
Post Office Box 129
Linville, NC 28646
828.733.2013 phone
www.grandfather.com
High Gravity Adventures
Get harnessed up and climb your way through 75 different aerial challenges ranging from 15-50 feet off the ground. Whether you are a seasoned adventurer or in need of an introduction to the vertical world, High Gravity Adventures ropes course has it all!
High Gravity Adventures
215 Tweetsie Railroad Road
Blowing Rock, NC 28605
828.386.6222 phone
www.highgravityadventures.com
Hiking
The mountains of western North Carolina offer hundreds of waterfalls and miles of hiking trails. We highly recommend exploring the abundance of public land this area has to offer.
Horn in the West
Horn in the West is an outdoor drama produced every summer since 1952 in Boone, North Carolina that depicts the life and times of the early settlers of the mountains of western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee. It covers a time period during the American Revolution, between the Battle of Alamance in 1771 and the Battle of King’s Mountain in 1780.
Horn in the West
591 Horn in the West Drive
Post Office Box 295
Boone, NC 28607
828.264.2120 phone
www.horninthewest.com
Horseback Riding
A great way to enjoy the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains is on horseback. Several stables and outfitters offer guided horseback rides through the area. You will follow trails that lead to waterfalls, through streams or along scenic ridges for panoramic vistas of mountains and lakes. Perhaps you are interested in riding instruction and training on Hunters and Jumpers take advantage of the variety of equestrian activities in the area which are fun for the whole family.
Silver Peake Equestrian
Equestrian Instruction
5300 West Highway 421
Wilkesboro, NC
336.927.5378 phone
Lees-McRae Summer Theatre
Lees-McRae Summer Theatre in Banner Elk plans a season filled with music and memories for the whole family.
Lees-McRae Summer Theatre
Post Office Box 128
Banner Elk, NC 28657
828.898.8721 phone
828.898.8709 box office
Linville Caverns
Located at the base of Humpback Mountain in the beautiful Linville Valley lies a natural wonder, Linville Caverns. After remaining a secret for centuries, the caverns have been opened for safe and convenient public touring. These natural limestone caverns feature guided tours showing spectacular stalactite and stalagmite formations.
Linville Caverns
19929 Highway 221
North Post Office Box 567
Marion, NC 28752
828.756.4171 phone
www.linvillecaverns.com
Linville Falls & Linville Gorge Wilderness Area
The Linville Gorge, near the town of Linville Falls, NC, is the deepest and one of the most rugged and scenic gorges in the Eastern United States. Nicknamed the Grand Canyon of the East, it is protected by the 12,000-acre Linville Gorge Wilderness Area, one of the first to be included in the National Wilderness System with the passage of the Wilderness Act in 1964. Located off the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Linville Falls drop a total of 90 feet in a multi-level cascade and can be viewed from several overlooks along two trails that lead from the Linville Falls Visitors Center. Open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Mile Post 316.3 on the Blue Ridge Parkway
Mast General Store
The Mast General Store opened in 1883 and quickly grew in reputation for carrying everything from “cradles to caskets.” Even today, you’ll still find shelves packed with all you might need for life in the 19th century and most of this one.
Mast General Store
North Carolina 194
Valle Crucis, NC 28691
828.963.6511 phone
www.mastgeneralstore.com
Movies
It takes about thirty minutes to “head to town” and catch a movie. Buy movie tickets in advance, find theater show times, view trailers, read reviews and more about the Regal Boone Cinema by clicking below.
Regal Boone Cinema
210 New Market Street Centre
Boone, NC 28607
828.262.3330 phone
Click Here to View Movie Listings
Old Hampton Store
Old Hampton Store & Village is located at the foot of Grandfather Mountain and just minutes from Linville Ridge. The general store and gristmill, circa 1920, features homemade jellies, pickles and apple butter, country ham; freshly ground cornmeal, grits; and country crafts. Located inside the store is Uncle Lee’s Barbeque. Enjoy good vittles and Bluegrass music in an atmosphere that beckons old time country fun. Next door is 87 Ruffin Street, a gallery featuring southern folk art, pottery, wood carving, blacksmithing, weaving, blown glass and jewelry.
Old Hampton Store
77 Ruffin Street
Linville, NC 28646
828.733.5213 phone
www.oldhamptonstore.com
Snow Skiing
There are two major contenders for a North Carolina ski trip: Beech Mountain and Sugar Mountain.
Sugar Mountain is a longtime favorite with families and is the largest ski area in North Carolina. There are 115 skiable acres and 20 runs, along with seven lifts, including one triple, four doubles, and two surface lifts. The terrain park has its own surface lift. There is also snowshoeing, tubing, and ice skating available.
Located in the mountains of western North Carolina, Beech Mountain boasts a base elevation of 5,505 feet above sea level, making it the highest ski resort in eastern North America. With 15 slopes and 10 lifts, Ski Beech has terrain for beginners and the seasoned expert.
Sugar Mountain
1009 Sugar Mountain Drive
Sugar Mountain, NC 28604
828.898.4521 phone
www.skisugar.com
Beech Mountain Resort
1007 Beech Mountain Pkwy
Beech Mountain, NC 28604
828.387.2011 phone
www.beechmountainresort.com
Tanger Outlets – Shoppes on the Parkway
Shop your favorite name brand and designer factory outlet stores and find great savings.
Tanger Outlets
278 Shoppes on the Parkway Road
Suite 33
Blowing Rock, NC 28605
828.295.4444 phone
www.tangeroutlet.com/blowingrock
Tweetsie Railroad
Since 1957, thousands of visitors to Tweetsie Railroad have enjoyed a “blast from the past” as they visit a western town, hop aboard a historic steam locomotive for a 3-mile trip around the mountain, pan for gold, enjoy toe-tapping music and dancing, visit the animals in the petting zoo and take in the beautiful mountain scenery.
Tweetsie Railroad
Highway 321
Post Office Box 388
Blowing Rock, NC 28605
828.264.9061 phone
www.tweetsie.com
Valle Country Fair
The colors, flavors, sights and sounds of harvest season in the Blue Ridge Mountains all come together at the Valle Country Fair in scenic Valle Crucis, North Carolina. What started out as a fundraiser for a little country church, has grown into an annual overgrown bazaar that attracts thousands and raises money for a number High Country charities.
Valle Country Fair
NC 194 across from Holy Cross Church
& the Valle Crucis Conference Center
Valle Crucis, NC 28691
828.963.4609 phone
www.vallecountryfair.org
Virginia Creeper Trail
The Virginia Creeper Trail stretches 35 miles from Abingdon, Virginia through Damascus, Virginia to the North Carolina state line near Whitetop, Virginia. Open to hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding, this former rail bed passes through the backcountry of Southwest Virginia. The Virginia Creeper Trail is rich in beauty and regional history and will provide a memorable adventure.
Woolly Worm Festival
Banner Elk, North Carolina is famous for the annual Woolly Worm Festival, which is held the third weekend of October. The late Charles Von Canon stated, "The Wooly Bear caterpillar has 13 brown and black segments that correspond to the 13 weeks of winter. The lighter brown a segment is, the milder that week of winter will be. The darker black a segment is, the colder and snowier the corresponding week will be,” For decades, local farmers have relied on the winning worm of heat after heat of hard-fought races up a 3-foot piece of string, to predict the severity of the coming winter.
Whitewater Rafting
Whitewater rafting is an activity your whole family or group will enjoy and no experience is required. North Carolina offers a wide variety of rivers for rafting.
Ziplining
Zip down the side of a mountain at speeds up to 50 mph! The High Country is home to several popular ziplining courses that safely allow you to zip through mountains.
Hawksnest Ziplining
2058 Skyland Drive
Seven Devils, NC 28604
828.963.6561 phone
www.hawksnestzipline.com
Scream Time Zipline, by EBL, LLC
380 US Highway 321
Boone, NC 28692
828.898.5404 phone
www.screamtimezipline.com
