April showers haven’t begun yet color is blooming in the Blue Ridge Mountains and areas around Asheville, N.C. Last fall I made a quick trip to one of my favorite American cities and caught a glimpse of fall color and can only imagine the gorgeous palette Mother Nature is painting this time of year.
In case you can’t be in Asheville, together we can watch the Appalachian landscape bloom petal by petal with the time-lapse video below.
Weekly Spring Bloom Report
Planning a spring trip to Asheville to catch the blooms? The folks with the Asheville Convention & Visitors Bureau will work with attractions and naturalists throughout the area to compile tips and adventures in bloom on this special page. Use this information to book a travel package coinciding with Biltmore Blooms to view regal red tulips, learn which hike has blooming wildflowers and the most colorful drive with popping flame azaleas.
8 Amazing Secret and Not-So-Secret Gardens in Asheville
During the late 19th century Frederick Law Olmsted, father of modern American landscape architecture, was hired by George W. Vanderbilt to design a grand landscape for America’s largest home, Biltmore Estates. Since then, mountain horticulture has been important to Asheville’s culture and here are just eight must-see gardens to visit.
- Quilt Garden at the North Carolina Arboretum — an Appalachian point of pride takes garden form
- Biltmore Shrub Garden — a veil of purple wisteria crowns a meandering path to the famed Walled Garden
- Gentling Garden — a 15-acre private garden that you have to see to believe, appointments only
- Botanical Gardens — a 10-acre wood enclave in central Asheville with 600 native wildflower species
- Curve Studios Garden in the River Arts District — a formal garden with artistic flare and an industrial edge
- Bonsai Exhibit at the NC Arboretum — tiny trees that mimic the spring glory of their forest cousins
- Zen Garden in The Spa at Grove Park Inn — rake away stress in this subterranean rock garden
- Craggy Gardens along the Blue Ridge Parkway — dark pink rhododendron crown craggy balds in this scenic wild garden
Of course there are more than eight amazing gardens, I just don’t have room to list them all. See all the botanical viewing opportunities here. Here’s a list of spring drives and if you’re into hiking, check out the options for spring mountain trails.
Asheville Spring Travel Packages
I was so excited to learn earlier in the week Allegiant Air will be offering non-stop service between Tampa Bay and Ashville beginning in June. I wish there was more time in the day for me to make a trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains but I’ll just have to wait.
If you’ll be heading to the mountains, take advantage of these fun spring travel packages:
- Petal Hunter Travel Package — a wildflower guide, gourmet picnic and the Blue Ridge Parkway
- Forage for Fungi — experience “find dining” with an epicure of the obscure
- Wildflower Hike in a Bag — a mountain cabin and everything you need for a flower-filled excursion
- Biltmore Blooms — explore a festival of flowers with these Biltmore travel deals
While In Asheville Don’t Miss…
Once in this Appalachian town, be sure to head to the Asheville Visitor Center to learn what’s happening, find deals and do a little shopping – if you don’t have time during your stay. I picked up some Asheville cookbooks which I gave as gifts for Christmas, handcrafted pottery and delicious sweet and spicy barbecue sauce from 12 Bones Smokehouse. I also jumped on the Gray Line Trolley and hopped on and off throughout the tour.
I recommend breakfast or lunch at Tupelo Honey but be prepared to wait. As in an hour or so wait. The food’s that good. There’s plenty of chic, funky and unique shops around to easily pass the time.
Don’t forget to explore the Western North Carolina Cheese Trail during your Asheville vacation.
OK, who’s in for heading to Asheville this spring? Or if you’ve been, what do you love about Asheville?
