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Travel Matters | by Stephen & Andie
  • Itineraries

A Perfect Day In Downtown Asheville, NC

February 16, 2021 4

Asheville is a popular little city in western North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains. Full of quirky charm and character, historic architecture, and a vibrant arts scene, many people call downtown Asheville “the Portland of the South.” 

Asheville appears on many travelers’ lists, and there are some unique reasons to visit.

Why Asheville Tops So Many Lists

The Biltmore Estate. Built by George Washington Vanderbilt II in the 1890s as the family’s country house, the Biltmore Estate remains the largest privately-owned residence in the U.S. 

The atrium inside the Biltmore Estate and one of the gardens full of colorful blooms

©Andie Mills

“Beer City, USA”. With more than 25 craft breweries in Asheville and dozens more nearby, it is frequently named one of the top craft beer cities in the country.

Character. Music and art have always played a large role in Asheville’s identity, and the city fully embraces its own eccentric, artsy vibe. In fact, there’s a Friday night public drum circle in downtown’s Prichard Park to prove it. 

Location. As mentioned, Asheville is in the Blue Ridge Mountains at the confluence of the French Broad and Swannanoa rivers. It’s not far from the Blue Ridge Parkway, which runs all the way from Virginia to Cherokee, North Carolina and is famous for its scenic beauty.

What To Do In Asheville

Now that we’ve given some context to the draws of Asheville as a whole, we’d like to point out that downtown Asheville is relatively small, very walkable, and you’ll be able to see the highlights within just one day. 

Here’s how we spent our perfect day in downtown Asheville:

Getting Caffeinated At High Five Coffee

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A post shared by High Five Coffee || AVL⭐️NC (@highfivecoffee)

We love coffee. Like, a lot. We also love supporting local businesses when we travel. The more mom-and-pop, the better. High Five Coffee’s three locations in Asheville serve up Counter Culture Coffee, which is roasted in Durham, NC. We swung by the Rankin Avenue location to kick off our day of exploring downtown.

Asheville Walking Tour: The Urban Trail (Part 1)

Stephen stands in downtown Asheville, NC near the art museum and in front of bronze statues of pigs and turkeys

©Andie Mills

One of our favorite ways to get to know any city is on foot, and Asheville has a self-guided walking tour called the Urban Trail. You can use this interactive map to find all thirty stops throughout downtown. Some are at buildings but most are art installations, all comemmorating people, places, and events in Asheville’s history. Some can be easy to miss if you’re not paying attention, which makes it all the more fun!

Lunch At Mellow Mushroom

a woman sips her drink inside of a covid dining bubble outside of a restaurant in downtown Asheville

©Stephen & Andie

Halfway through the trail, we stopped for a lunch break. We west-coasters had never heard of Mellow Mushroom, and by the funky looks of it we’d assumed it was a local mom-and-pop shop. Turns out it’s a chain with over 150 locations! Its hippy vibe carries over to the menu, with names like Holy Shittake, Veg Out, and the one we got – Kosmic Karma. BTW, the pesto swirl was a fantastic touch!

Side note: Since we were visiting in early 2021, this was our first time eating in a covid bubble!

Asheville Walking Tour: The Urban Trail (Part 2)

We used the Urban Trail as our guide through Asheville, scoping out not just the historical stops and art installations along the way, but also the many cute shops, restaurants, and even street buskers in the city. The trail is urban after all, so why not take your time to embrace all it has to offer? Speaking of the trail, does anyone know where the heck stop #28 is??? According to the map it should be somewhere alongside the fire station and is a plaque set in brick. We even stopped a couple of firefighters to ask where it was, and they had no idea. Oh well. Moving on.

Sipping Chocolate at French Broad Chocolate Lounge

Stephen and Andie pose outside of downtown Asheville's French Broad Chocolate Lounge with a sign that reads "Chocolate is our Love Language."

©Stephen & Andie

No day of exploration and food would be complete for us without some chocolate to cap it all off. Even more decadent, some sipping chocolate at downtown Asheville’s French Broad Chocolate Lounge! The company was started by a couple who moved to Costa Rica and bought an abandoned cacao plantation.

They opened the first cafe there and became self-ordained “chocolate missionaries.” After they sold that business they came to the U.S. and opened this one. They make everything right in Asheville, at the French Broad Chocolate Factory. Do yourself a favor and pay them a visit. We promise, your mind will be blown.

A Perfect Day in Downtown Asheville

We had a wonderful day exploring Asheville and indulging in our three favorite things: coffee, pizza, and chocolate. (If we had just stayed for dinner and sushi, it would have been the perfect day!) 

As an aside, since our visit was during “Covid times” in February of 2021, there were some things we weren’t able to check out this time around. The River Arts District, the Asheville Art Museum (at Pack Square, where the Urban Trail begins), and both the Community Theatre and Fine Arts Theater are all on our list for when it’s safer to visit indoor establishments. 


For more things to do in Western North Carolina, click these links:

  • Nina Simone: Honoring A Legend
  • 3 Easy North Carolina Waterfall Hikes To Do With Dogs Near Asheville

And for an easy road trip just a bit more west, there are plenty of things to do in Chattanooga!

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Tags:citiesNorth AmericaNorth CarolinaplanningUnited States
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4 Comments

  1. Best Things To Do In Chattanooga, TN says:
    March 29, 2021 at 2:27 pm Reply

    […] Asheville […]

  2. Nina Simone: Honoring A Legend says:
    March 30, 2021 at 3:43 pm Reply

    […] Looking for another great day-trip in Western North Carolina? Take a look at what a Perfect Day In Downtown Asheville can be like! […]

  3. What To Do In Charleston, South Carolina says:
    December 10, 2021 at 9:06 pm Reply

    […] Asheville […]

  4. How To Spend 48 Whirlwind Hours In Vintage “Vegas, Baby!” | Travel Matters says:
    June 15, 2022 at 11:41 am Reply

    […] Asheville […]

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Today we explore the Amazon jungle by night. Our flashlights reveal plenty of creepy crawlies, including unusual insects, cute frogs, a variety of spiders – including a bizarre one that looked like a robot, and Andie got her wish when we saw not one, but two tarantulas! Stephen was relieved to not run into any snakes, but later that night he was jolted awake by an an uninvited “guest” in our bed!

Only 2% of the #Amazon Jungle is in Ecuador, and part of that is in the #Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, which is where we visited during our Ecuador trip. It was our first visit to the world's largest rainforest, and we already can't wait to go back and see more!

This is the sixth video in our first-ever international series! Quito, Ecuador was the first international trip we took together back in 2011. Eleven years later, it’s where we filmed our first international series and first drone footage for our channel! 

We spent two weeks in Ecuador this time, including Quito, day-trips to Mindo and Cotopaxi National Park, the Amazon, and one of our top-3 bucket list destinations: the Galápagos Islands! 

If you’ve missed our previous Ecuador videos, you can catch up on the series here:
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VLOG no. 69

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📍LOCATION: Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve, Ecuador, South America

✦ PLACES VISITED IN THIS VLOG: 

Cuyabeno Dolphin Lodge
https://www.cuyabenodolphinlodge.com/

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CHAPTERS:
00:00 Intro
00:28 Lagoon Swimming
01:00 Caiman Search
01:38 Baby Snake
02:30 Claustrophobia
02:43 Night 2
03:58 Venus & Sunset
04:18 Nightwalk in the Jungle
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06:27 Another Tarantula!
07:03 IT WAS IN OUR BED!

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THE JUNGLE at NIGHT | Ecuador Travel Vlog | Ecuador Series, ep. 6
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TRAVEL, FOOD, CULTURE, CLIMATE
Follow Our Mission to See ALL 50 STATES! 🇺🇸 🚐

Stephen & Andie | Travel Stuff
Oregon’s got #mood for days! Oregon is state no Oregon’s got #mood for days!

Oregon is state no. 22 in our mission to see ALL 50 STATES (plus DC & Puerto Rico)! Our first sleep and first morning of #vanlife was in Astoria, then we headed to Cannon Beach and were bowled over by the foggy views of majestic Haystack Rock. 

👉 LINK IN BIO 👈 to see more of the beautiful Oregon coast in our latest vlog, “First Night In Our Van!”

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#traveloregon #cannonbeach #oregoncoast #cannonbeachoregon #oregon #haystackrock #travelmatters #all50states #vanlife
We fell in love with Oregon! Swipe 👉 to see why We fell in love with Oregon! Swipe 👉 to see why!

After buying our Sprinter in Portland we headed for the Oregon coast to spend our first night in her in Astoria. The next day we explored town and also made our way to Cannon Beach. Both were nothing short of stunning! Our drives through the state just got more and more beautiful and we couldn’t stop thinking how grateful and excited we are to be new #vanlifers. 

This is going to be an amazing year!

📷 Our first coffee on our first morning after our first night sleeping in our campervan. 📍Astoria.

📷 Isn’t she lovely? 😍 That’s Haystack Rock behind Andie. You might recognize it from movies like Point Break and GOONIES! 📍Cannon Beach.

📷 Having too much fun watching a pile of giant sea lions sleeping peacefully. 📍Astoria

📷 Loving our lives! 📍 Cannon Beach

👉 Link in bio 👈 to see all of this and more in our latest vlog “First Night In Our Van!”

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#oregon #oregoncoast #astoria #cannonbeach #haystackrock #lewisandclarkrvpark #vanlife #sprintervan #sprintervanlife #all50states
Hello #vanlife! 🚐 We’re so excited to finally Hello #vanlife! 🚐 We’re so excited to finally share this news with you – we bought a camper van! *Join us at 12:15pm EST today (Monday)* for a live chat during the Premiere of our new vlog, where we spill the tea.

After months of behind the scenes planning and hunting, we settled on this beauty at the end of October: a 170” wheelbase, high top Sprinter, located in Portland, OR. In this video we fly to the Pacific Northwest to make the purchase and begin our two and a half week, cross-country journey from Portland back to North Carolina. But not before grabbing a rainy day lunch at one of Portland’s food cart havens – Cartlandia. Some hot grits from Grits Gone Wild warm us up to send us on our first outing in our new home on wheels.

We couldn’t be more excited, and this trip already kicks off our mission to see all 50 states (plus DC and Puerto Rico!). You’ll be seeing this cross-country trip, plus another month-long run in her over the holidays –  all in our upcoming vlogs!

Now — any guesses what we named her? 
Hint: any fans of the movie Role Models? 😜

PLACES VISITED IN THIS VLOG:

@gritsgonewildpnw 

#cartlandia

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#sprinter #sprintervan #sprinter2500 #campervan #vantravel  #vanlifers #roadtrip #roadtrippers #travelmatters #travelvloggers #UStravel #USAtravel #youtubers #DIY #Ace #kissmyvanthia #vanlifeusa
$150 train ticket from New York to… New York? $150 train ticket from New York to… New York? 

We REALLY loved our first time doing some train travel in the U.S. together! We rode the Hudson River Rail aboard the 20th Century Limited – the last two remaining, fully restored, 1940s train cars from what was “The Most Famous Train In the World” in its day. 

Our journey took us from Penn Station in Manhattan up to Albany and back. 

Sit back and enjoy the views! 👉 Link in bio 👈 to see the vlog!

📷 1: on the platform in Albany

📷 2: Penn Station, NYC

🎥 3: enjoying the VIP lounge at Penn Station pre-boarding

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#newyork #traintravel #hudsonriverrail #20thcenturylimited #1940s #vintagetrain #hudsonriver #travelmatters #travelvloggers #youtubers
California sunsets just hit different. 🌅 We we California sunsets just hit different. 🌅

We were Angelenos for literal decades and we still can’t believe how many iconic places in California we took for granted and never visited! Morro Bay is just one of them, and we’re SO STOKED that a recent cross-country road trip (big announcement on that front soon!) took us right past the area. Naturally, we looked at each other, said “Morro Bay?,” and turned the 🚐 around to head back just in time for a gorgeous sunset. 

Now we’re even more determined to hit all the spots that we took for granted and we’ll always find excuses to make our way back through Cali! Yosemite, Redwoods, Death Valley – we’re talking to you! 

What other spots do we need to hit? Shout ‘em out in the comments!

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#morrobay #sunset #centralcoast #SLO  #SanLuisObispo #california #southerncalifornia #daytrip #roadtrip #californialandmarks
We saw ALL THE MANATEES today! This was our second We saw ALL THE MANATEES today!
This was our second attempt at @bluespringstatepark within a couple weeks. We saw zero manatees the first time, and committed to returning after spending some time in Southern Florida. Turns out, we happened upon some manatees in the marina @evergladesnps, but the water was so murky we could only see parts of them… if they surfaced. 

Today was the day we got to return to Blue Spring. The weather was much cooler this time (great conditions for spotting manatees in the springs), and when we pulled up to the entrance, the sign read “MANATEE COUNT *288*” For context, there was no count on the sign for our previous visit, so… YAY! 

Can’t say exactly what OUR manatee count was, but we easily saw dozens in a short amount of time – from adorable little babies to giants! The water was crystal clear. It was so serene – watching them graciously glide through, only occasionally making a splash. Hearing that beautiful sound when they surfaced for air. Today was an AWESOME day, and we’re so thankful that we had the flexibility to come back and spend some quality time with these beautiful, unique creatures. 🥰

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#manatees #bluespringstatepark #centralflorida #orlando #florida #therealflorida #wildlife #statepark #bluespring #bluesprings #manateestatepark #bluespringmanatees #travelmatters #travelvloggers
Is this seat taken? Nothing says “classic New J Is this seat taken? 
Nothing says “classic New Jersey” like Asbury Park! We visited the boardwalk for the first time this summer as part of our DIY food tour of New Jersey. 

A killer coffee roastery? ✅
Cereal pancakes? ✅
Disco fries? ✅
$27 milkshake??? ✅

LINK IN BIO to see all that, plus a unique Jersey twist on “the slushee” in our latest vlog, now live on YouTube! 

This is state #20 in our mission to visit all 50 states (plus DC & Puerto Rico) - join our adventures! 

PLACES VISITED IN THIS VLOG:
@buddysjc
@roastd.coffee
@thetopsdiner
@coneywaffleasburypark

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#newjersey #asburypark #newjerseyfood #foodtour #jerseycity #fortlee #jerseyshore #travelvlog #travelmatters
As you set your goals for 2023, don’t be afraid As you set your goals for 2023, don’t be afraid to be the orange fish. If an idea or dream scares you or feels too different, it’s probably the one you should go for!

We spotted these guys while snorkeling in the Galápagos Islands. See the full vlogs on our YouTube channel. LINK IN BIO!

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#fish #schooloffish #galapagos #galapagosislands #ecuador #travelmatters #travelvloggers #wildlife #conservation #underwatervideo #snorkeling🐠 
#newyeargoals #lifegoals
We saw so much cool wildlife in the Galapagos! See We saw so much cool wildlife in the Galapagos! See the full vlogs on our YouTube channel. LINK IN BIO!

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#galapagos #galapagosislands #ecuador #travelmatters #travelvloggers #wildlife #conservation #sealion #bluefootedbooby #tortoise #frigate #iguana #crab #fish
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