Moses H Cone Memorial Park is open year-round and sees 225,000 people each year being one of the most visited recreational places on the Blue Ridge Parkway. It offers gorgeous views and 25 miles of wonderful hiking and horseback riding trails around lakes and forests. The Flat Top Manor, the former mansion, is also home to the Parkway Craft Center, where regional artists display their handmade crafts. It also features craft demonstrations during the summer months.

Chimney Rock State Park offers some of the most beautiful mountain scenery with breathtaking 75-mile views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and man-made Lake Lure. It features the famous 315-foot (96m) Chimney Rock. 499 stairs lead up to Chimney Rock. Alternatively, you can take an elevator but check ahead to make sure that the elevator is in operation.

The park also features Hickory Nut Falls, a 404-foot (123m) waterfall, the second highest of its kind east of the Mississippi River.

During their August-to-May playing season, the Municipal Auditorium in Morganton NC hosts concerts, Broadway shows, dance shows and theater. Their atrium also features an impressive ceiling fresco by world-renowned fresco artist Ben Long.