The Henderson County Heritage Museum is located inside the Historic Henderson County Courthouse in…read moredowntown Hendersonville, NC. The building was constructed in 1904 and is a classic revival style. Admission to the museum is free, but they do collect donations. I only explored the first level of the building, but there may be more exhibits on the upper floors. More signage would be helpful. The museum covers local history and military history. They have artifacts and uniforms of all the wars. One room is dedicated to the area's railroad history. The model trains were not working when I was there, though. There is a memorial to "Big Jim", the world's largest pig. Back in 1941, the pig weighed 2415 pounds and was four feet 8 inches tall and ten feet 8 inches long. If you are in Downtown Hendersonville, this museum is worth a visit. There is a small gift shop as well.

Cute museum that was very clean and had a inviting staff plus nice restrooms! The information they…read morehad displayed was great and my whole family enjoyed it. It's free and a nice change from the shopping on main st.

First Fridays in Raleigh offer a great opportunity to check out some of the great things Raleigh…read morehas to offer, among them being the local art studios where you can see the raw art rather than the gallery art. Here you can see the space where the creativity happens but also meet the artists. Located in Glenwood South, Local Color Gallery is an artist owned gallery with at least ten different studios. There's no way you'll leave here without seeing something from nearly every artistic genre. There are studios all over this building: upstairs, downstairs, around corners, everywhere you look. It may look a bit drab from the outside, but when you walk in you'll see a checkered hallway, white walls and colorful paintings. If you stop by expecting to see only paintings, you'll be missing out on the glasswork, jewelry, small ornaments, some clothing, and wall hangings. It might be odd, but the interesting introduction to each of the studios seems to be the business card. Business cards -- those normally plain, unadorned general information introductions, are anything but for the artists here. Each card was a tiny little piece of art by itself but represented its owner's style. They were very eye-catching. As part of the First Friday experience, nearly all studios are open with the artists excited to display their craft or chat with you about their inspirations while they ply you with wine. It can't get much better than that.

Just get lost in a building full of galleries and various genres of expression from local artists…read more It's a warm atmosphere, congenial, and informative. Sometimes they throw in snacks. It's kinda like a party.

If you like sweet muscadine wine, this is the event for you. There are some non-sweet wines but not…read morethe norm for NC. With VIP, you get in 1 hr early to avoid the lines but food does not start till noon with general admission, so you have been drinking for an hour and in need of some food but the lines are ridiculous so you end up paying for food at one of the food trucks. Should open the food tasting stations an hour early to make it more of a VIP experience. Not our type of wines and did not stay long. They did have live music which was decent.

I have actually been coming to this event for years. Normally Great Grapes is mid-late April, but…read morethis year it was moved back to May 5th. I enjoy this event overall. I would say compared to the beer events they have at the Cary amphitheater, the wine festival draws more of an older diverse crowd (beer festival is a big fraternity bro-fest). Ok, so they do have a lot of sweet muscadine wines at this event, and I am not a huge fan of the sweet wines which basically taste like kool-aid with alcohol. I generally like the dry red wines, but when the weather is warm I will venture over to a white or rose. This last time was really warm so I tried a white and a semi-sweet red. I liked the white wine the best which was from Chatham winery in Morrisville. I would say if you are really into wine, you probably won't be impressed with the NC wines at this festival. IMHO California wine is much better as is French wine and I have been to some wine festivals in Virginia with much better wine offerings. North Carolina is known for barbecue, not wine (unless you count Cheerwine) However, If you want to spend a day outdoors in nice weather (usually) and catch a wine buzz while listening to bands then Great Grapes wine festival will be a good time!

This was our first time going and it was really cool! Took advantage of buy one get one free…read moreadmission. We made the mistake of going on a Sunday. Next year, I want to go on Friday since this is a the first day. A perk of going early is being able to buy floor models, which are discounted...they are picked through by Sunday. A lot of super cool booths and information, though. Careful though, that rabbit hole once you get to the garden and patio refinishing services area is real. You'll have your complete dream patio planned out after looking at all the inspiration. Wish they had had more food trucks available since we probably would have stayed longer.

This is a really nice event if you are looking to do any kind of repair or landscaping for your…read morehome. They had many different companies who do roofing, gutters, general handyman work, hot tubs, renovating bathrooms, kitchens. You name it and you would find it here. Exhibitors were nice and not pushy. Lots of sweepstakes to enter. And in a corner of one booth they had free wine, beer and restaurant tastings. Yummy barbecue and delicious dessert from local restaurants. Some of my favorite exhibitors were Uncle Yammy from Greenville area. He has a sweet Sriracha sauce that is to die for. Also the softest sheets made from peach skin. Then these cool brooms made from rubber. And a shout out to the sushi kit man. You were a trip. Definitely a worthwhile show if you are even thinking about any home improvements. I'll certainly go back next year and maybe break down and buy those pillows.

I've been attending the [WRAL] Christmas parade for two years now, and this now 71 year annual…read moredowntown tradition does not disappoint. A couple quick things to note if you plan to attend the parade. Start time is 9:40a, but plan to arrive early if you're driving in as parking and traffic WILL be insane. If you arrive after the parade has started and plan to try to get downtown, use a non-parade walking street. Once parade watchers have found their spot, entire streets will be consumed and foot traffic (especially on Hillsborough) will be next to impossible. The parade begins on Hillsborough Street at St. Mary's crossroad, proceeds to the State Capitol and does a quick 90 degree turn {right onto Salisbury and left onto Morgan} with a final right onto Fayetteville Street and continues to Lenoir Street where it disbands. Central Plaza (the end of Fayetteville) usually has an accumulation of activities including the Ipreo Ice Rink, which kicks off it's grand opening following the parade each year, a BBQ festival and it's possible you'll even find some historic Christmas Carolers. The 1.4 mile parade route includes everything from floats [both grounded and in the sky] to marching bands, non-profit groups, beauty queens and of course Santa Clause comes to greet all at the end. You'll be entertained for 2.5 hours with both traditional and Raleigh original parade marchers. The big question most people have about this parade is, why does it take place pre-Thanksgiving? But the tradition dates back to the year os 1939 to an idea thought up by downtown Raleigh shop owners to drum by business for the holidays. We're not about the break this long standing tradition today and I personally love a parade to kick off Christmas season rather than Black Friday! And, if you're not able to make it downtown for the parade, you can watch it from 10a-12p on both WRAL-TV & UNC-TV the day of the parade (but little tip: you can also stream it from the WRAL website following the parade as well!) Overall, the Raleigh Christmas Parade makes for a great family or individual activity. It will get you in the holiday spirit and the only negative for some might be the enormous crowds that it draws in.

Arrive early if you want a good seat, the Raleigh Christmas Parade is extremely popular! The parade…read morestarts promptly at 9:40AM and lasts approximately 2.5 hours. I have not been in years so it was good to bring back childhood memories and attend the 73rd Annual Raleigh Christmas Parade.

I have been to several of the Triangle Brass Band's concerts, and all of them have been very…read moreenjoyable. They perform in various venues around the area. The programs have been very varied, ranging from classical to jazz and swing, with a few marches thrown in for good measure. This is definitely a fun way to spend an afternoon or evening!

My friend and I were told about Crazy Camp Music Park by a bar patron at Bull McCabes and it…read moresounded interesting enough to cross town and check it out. Hidden in plain view below cosmic cantina, I have never noticed the small sign even though I walk by practically weekly. Walking in we were greeted by the faint smell of incense in the entry way. walking through the sleeping bag curtain, the main room is very cool, decorated with log benches, rope swings, log see-saws and a simple wood bar giving the ambiance of a camp bon fire sing-along. What makes this bar so interesting is it operates like a continuous open mic with various guitars, bass, and drum set available for anyone to play music and jam along. they broadcast the music live online so that you can listen to the recordings the next day.

CCMP is one of my most favorite places in Durham! I…read morefrequented this cozy little jam room/pub as a Dukie and thoroughly enjoyed every single visit. They have a set-in stage with a drum-kit, selection of lead and bass guitars and a pretty decent audio setup, open to all visitors. You write your name on a whiteboard and wait for your turn to jam with some of the best non-professional musicians in Durham. Even otherwise, you can walk in with a bunch of friends and start playing your own music any time. Something that makes this place extra special is the fact that it is open only on Fri and Saturdays, between 9pm-2am. Extras: candle light setting-indoor wooden swings-park benches- open bar and a bartender who is an amazing drummer

We recently held out daughter's wedding reception at the Country Club at Wakefield Plantation and…read moreit was a truly wonderful experience. Courtney was wonderful and helped us through all of the details and planning as well as managing the timeline on the day of the event. She recommended an excellent DJ (Royal Lewis) and made other excellent sugestions without any pressure. She worked hard to make sure the event exemplified my daughter's vision and was kept within budget. The food was delicious and portions were generous. The room was beautifully arranged. The staff could not have been more helpful. Our guests continue to compliment the event. It was truly a beautiful day.

Great place to hold a corporate event. Had meetings in the main conference center which is very…read morecomfortable. Then we had lunch up on the balcony of the second floor, The surrounding area is very nice but it's June and its HUMID! Wished I would have showed up earlier yesterday when the corp guys played this course.