Bike charleston! Maybe check out the ordinary or we thought two borough larder was worth the drive...

No checking out the art and music scene in Asheville? Such a vibrant arts community. Great hiking around there and outdoor recreation: climbing and rafting.
Asheville has great food from white duck taco to dough to curate and the food trucks have some very tasty food!
I'm sad to see you aren't checking out Louisville ky. Foodie destination, interesting history. Most overlooked "southern" city by visitors. It's something to behold at derby time, but worth a visit outside of that time-- especially the 21c hotel.

This post was edited by NashvilleBuild42 on Mon, Feb 10, 14 at 2:21

I love the mountains around Asheville so much and the lakes/rivers are stunning. It's a great place to go rafting if you're into that.
Tea at the Inn at Biltmore is fabulous. And all the restaurants are great. And horseback riding while at Biltmore.
Bike in Charleston.

I found Williamsburg to be touristy but we enjoyed our student led tour of William and Mary.

For Charleston, I would check in to the ferry ride to Fort Sumter. The ride is picturesque and the monument is well done.

Charleston and Savannah both have popular, hands on low country cooking classes. 700 kitchen in Savannah is great. Savannah sightseeing might be a bit dull for your kids, especially after Williamsburg and Charleston. The cooking class would be a good break from all the old buildings.

In Cumberland, check out Gogo jewelry for your girls. It should be displayed at the Inn. She makes really interesting things from natural items she finds on the island.

Asheville

Rezaz Mediteranean Cuisine
another vote for White Duck Taco but be sure to check hours
Sunny Point Cafe for breakfast - nothing will give you a better feel for West Asheville, then ask your wait-person for suggestions on music venues for that evening - they'll know
I'm probably the only person who doesn't love Lake Lure - that whole area just depresses me
Dupont State Forest for the easy hiking, gorgeous waterfalls and seeing places in the movie Hunger Games.
Drive a section of the Blue Ridge Parkway, America's most visited nat'l park. My son works for the Nat'l Parks system (Yellowstone, Mt Ranier, Sequoia/Kings Canyon, Joshua Tree....) and he was blown away. Make a stop at Craggy Gardens,
North Carolina Arboretum

Savannah

The Pink House (you must have the Shrimp n Grits), gorgeous, historic home/restaurant

I second Dupont Park.
Twelve Bones- Barack and Michelle stopped by on their visit to Asheville. Pick up a bottle of their BBQ sauce.
So many nice and quaint restaurants downtown. I don't think you can go wrong if you pick one at random.

You really are ambitious! Now I see what you mean by 6 flights each! :)

Ellendi,
Thanks. Good to know, it's actually more fun to pick on a whim! Yes, pretty much all of our vacations are like this. We have had vacations with a dozen flights and more . We relax enough at home!
DLM,
My BIL and SIL have a second home on Lake Lure, so we are meeting them there. She is a painter, too, so can certainly advise on the art scene. Will look into the Blue Ridge Parkway, thx!
DH and I are allergic to shellfish, alas!
Deee,
I had to laugh; how can historic Williamsburg not be touristy? Thanks for the jewelry tip, that would be a nice keepsake for the girls. Funny, a number of people have dissed the Fort Sumter trip; I will have to investigate further what they didn't like about it. It's okay if Savannah is a bit dull, we will need a day or so of downtime anyway!
Bumble,
Won't March be too cold for rafting?
Nashville,
I didn't expect anyone to say add another stop! I have been to L'ville a few times; it did not strike me as a tourist destination, really, so I didn't even think of it.
My BIL and SIL can show us around Asheville, they have a vacation place there. Thanks for the restaurant tips!

mtnrd - LOL about your Williamsburg comment. I was trying to be polite. For us, the Fort Sumter trip is good combination of harbor tour and history. We have always had beautiful weather when we go so that probably helps.. It probably isn't too much fun if it is rainy or chilly.

Sorry! Yes, March is cold! The Grove Park Inn in Asheville is really interesting and historical and also a great place to eat.
Imo, the actual downtown of Asheville is dumpy and uninteresting unlike Charleston.
But I could spend all my time at Biltmore eating and traversing the gardens, farms and house.

Huntsville Alabama ... The NASA Rocket museum.

Luray Caverns is not that far from Charlottesville.

Another southerner here who has been to all your listed sites. I am probably in the minority, but I would not put a huge amount of time into Biltmore. Then again, we had friends who lived there and I have been many times. You are going one of the seasons though where you probably won't do the gardens, etc. Although depending how late in March you go, it could be warmish. As others mentioned, there is so much more in Asheville to see and do. It's a very artsy area - lots of little shops, studios, etc. and cafes.

I agree about not doing the Ft. Sumter tour, but if weather permits I'd definitely do a Harbor Tour. You will see Ft. Sumter on that tour, but you'll see so much more.

DLM gives some great sites to visit - we enjoy more of the outdoor type activities. Great hiking in the Asheville area and if you were to visit the Smokey Mts., even more so, but again, March is probably not the best time. Definitely drive the Blue Ridge Parkway. Even if it's chilly, you will enjoy the sights and will be warm in the car.

Charleston is kind of busy to bike, in my opinion, but if you were to stay on one of the surrounding islands, biking is the norm there. Many people like to bike/walk across the newer connector bridge going in to Charleston.

I also agree about the Pink House in Savannah. The Midnight in the Garden tour is good, especially if any of you have read the book. The old cemetaries there are interesting.

For New Orleans - definitely FOOD. The WWII museum is interesting. Of course there will be some things in the area you do not want your children to see, but fascinating sights, buildings, etc.

I'm not a big plantation person although we've visited several. However, that's probably a good idea if the weather is on the cool side. I agree with whoever mentioned that the state parks in many of the states you are visiting are great!

tina

We loved the ghost tour in New Orleans, especially because we learned lots about the history of the city during the walk.

While in Charlottesville, you might enjoy strolling the grounds of UVA - beautiful place!

Another vote for The Pink House in Savannah -- eat downstairs in the pub -- have the best she-crab soup!

Charleston and Savannah -- go on The Ghost Tours! So Fun

In Charleston --pick up a tour bus at The Visitors Center -- but first look across the road for "39 Rue de Jean" -- an excellent lunch spot plus near to the Museum.

Same comment about Williamsburg being touristy, but that is to be expected. Do try to take some of the walking tours at night if you can. The kids, since they are older, would enjoy too. There is a ghost tour that is great and one that talks about criminals and scoundrels or something like that. Lots of fun. The carriage ride can be fun too.

Ditto the comment about driving part of the Blue Ridge parkway. I don't think you'll be close enough to Highlands, but it's a wonderful couples getaway. And ditto all the restaurants at Biltmore. I can't recall all the restaurants at Charleston but there are many good ones without the stuffy atmosphere, especially around the coast and outlying towns.

Mtn- sorry. I wasn't suggesting you add a city this stop. Many people seem to use your travels as inspiration for their own. So, I thought I would recommend Louisville. It is too often overlooked when people think southern cities to visit. While I love derby time in the city with its pageantry and excuse to party, I'd rather visit in the spring or fall. It has seen a resurgence in last 5-6 years with NuLU, great contemporary art galleries, new innovative restaurants with a growing national rep as a foodie destination , great park system, waterfront development, nearby horse farms, bourbon trail, etc.

Now back to your questions. Bliss and biga in San Antonio are great but May verge on stuffy to some. Maybe la Gloria? Or Luke? Or pulled pig sandwiches at the luxury?

Nashville,
LOL, good. And while I don't think I personally inspire anyone, fair to say that someone who is planning a trip might find the info on Lou-uh-vul helpful! And thanks so much for the restaurant info!

Outside, We are fine with a little bit of touristy. I really want to see Monticello, and figure we would throw in one day in Wmsburg, too. The ghost tours sound fun!

Teacats, Yum, thanks. It's going on my spreadsheet! ( I keep a spreadsheet with things to do and places to eat in each city).

Thanks Best, and Gail.

Gray, I will look into that, my kids have never seen caverns, and that would be fun.

Lazy, I can't add any more cities to our list, alas.

Dee, maybe we will make Fort Sumter based on the weather ...

Bumble - well, i guess one person's dumpy downtown is another's artst downtown, yes? I will defer to SIL and BIL on that ...

Tina, I like the harbor tour idea, thanks. Interesting how opinions differ here. Personally I think I/we will find the Biltmore more interesting than the city, since we have seen plenty of small, artsy cities, kwim?
Biking the connector bridge sounds like a cool idea!

Thanks again everyone. If any NOLA folks are on, chime in!

My favorite artist place in Asheville is the New Morning Gallery in the Biltmore Village area (located outside Biltmore), that area is charming.

If you have time, the University of Virginia is a hop, skip, and jump from Monticello and, of course, a Jefferson site. Fun to see E.A. Poe's room there, too.

I agree you should go to Williamsburg. Tourists abound, but the folks manning the shops stay in character and are wonderful. William and Mary is at one end of the town, so easy to walk through the campus. You are also only 10-15 minutes from Jamestown (1st permanent English settlement) which is also fascinating for kids.

Thanks, Bumble.

Cyn, I will definitely go to UVA. Jamestown is another great idea.

I'm glad someone mentioned UVA and William and Mary. We began including nearby college visits with our family trips from around the time our oldest was 11. I think it does two things. First, children are much more convinced by the concrete than the abstract, so it goes a long way toward keeping them on track for a top college. Second, between school calendar requirements and teens' activities, the limited number of days you have available for college visits later can be frustrating.

I think you will enjoy the Biltmore estate. The workings of a very large house are always interesting, and in particular the Bilmore's kitchens, laundries and food storage were far ahead of their time. The Biltmore wines are really coming along! The winery is a stable newer source of revenue / upkeep for the estate, so I try to support them by keeping their Riesling on hand for DD, who loves it. Their wines are average but inexpensive.

The arts community in Asheville is more of an arts and crafts community, IMO---nothing wrong with that but not a mature art scene by any stretch of the imaginiation. Asheville's real identity is that of a small to middling size college town. It's charming and there are some very lovely residential areas and fine hotels (Biltmore Forest, Grove Oark Inn, etc) but probably nothing you have not seen elsewhere.

Check out what is happening at the Civic Center or the US cellular center, now that it has been sponsored and branded. They host events as diverse as college basketball and the Asheville Symphony. Also in that general area is the Flat Rock Playhouse (state theater of NC) and the home of poet Carl Sandburg, both of which are fun and interesting.

We also have family in that area, my nephew is a boarder at Asheville School, and I grew up spending summers in Arden (back in the day when we could ride on the Biltmore property!), and so we're still up there a fair bit, and our favorite breakfast place is still Tupelo Honey :-)

A good restaurant in Williamsburg is Blue Talon Bistro.

Campus tours of UVA and William and Mary can be interesting. Certainly the Rotunda, gardens and original rooms lining the quad at UVA should be seen, especially if you're going to Monticello. And since Mr. Jefferson was a student at W&M, you should check out the oldest building on the W&M campus, designed by Christoper Wren.

I'm sure it's probably on your agenda already, but in NOLA you have to have beignets and coffee at Cafe du Monde. The French market can also be nice, and there is a riverboat dinner cruise on the Mississippi that can be enjoyable if the weather is nice. And there is great food everywhere! I love NO! There are a couple of plantation homes to tour fairly close to downtown (you'd have to drive maybe 30 min.?) And the Garden district area is nice to stroll around.

I really enjoyed walking Savannah, I didn't pay attention to if it was bike friendly or not, but it's pedestrian friendly.

I didn't read all the responses, so apologies if I duplicate.

At Biltmore, we did the Architecture Tour (got to go on the roof and other cool places that are off limits) and the Butler's tour. Fun to see all the hidden spots.

I think there is a Drum Circle in Asheville once a week, maybe Fridays? Not sure exactly. My dh & ds are going down in March to go hiking.

If you happen to be going through Greenville SC while down there, you will love the downtown area. I've never seen so many good restaurants in one place. And they have music on the river every night I think. At least it seemed to me they did.

Have Fun!!

Sweettea (of course!)

Suero, KSWL, Bestyears, thank you all so much!

My mouth is watering looking up those restaurants!

For those of you who mentioned plantations in New Orleans, which one(s) and why?

thanks!

We have been to NOLA multiple times-one of my favorite food cities! One year we did the river road plantations between there and St. Francisville, and then stayed in St. Francisville for a couple of days. There are several plantations there, too. I seem to remember visiting Audubon's home there, too. Oak Alley is the most famous plantation on the trail.

Here is a link that might be useful: River Road Plantations

Some of the closest plantations to NOLA would Destrehan Manor, Oak Alley , San Francisco and the Houmas House. I've not been to the SF, but have the other 3. Like texanjana I have toured many of the plantation homes on the River Road to St. Francisville. Some are more touristy, some are bed and breakfast. They all have their own stories, they're unique in history and if you appreciate history I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. I love the stories and I love to see them all. If you're going to go up the the River Road I could tell you some of my favorites, but if you're just staying local around New Orleans, I think you enjoy Oak Alley, Houmas House and Destrehan.