My wife and I will be taking our new born (3 months) as well as his grandparents to Boone NC for a long weekend at the end of the month. We are staying between Boone and Banner Elk for 4-5 days. We are looking for recommendations (away from as much of the crowd as can be reasonably expected) for hikes, swimming holes, outdoor activities, breweries, places to see while in the area. Thanks in advance!

Dining recommendations are always accepted and appreciated as well!

This post was edited on 7/14/23 at 12:56 pm

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Posted by Tiger31

Baton Rouge

Member since May 2004

382 posts

Posted on 7/14/23 at 1:36 pm to PolarPop5

Julian Price Park and Moses Cone Park are right on the outskirts of Boone off the Blue Ridge Parkway. They both have a number of trails and nice lakes to visit. I would recommend using AllTrails to find trails that are best for your group. You can search by city and see full descriptions and pictures of the different trials.

I would highly recommend visiting Blowing Rock. It is a great mountain town with shopping, restaurants, and a nice playground in the middle of town. It is right next to Boone. The Town Tavern is a good restaurant in Blowing Rock. There is a waterfall trail in Blowing Rock, Glen Burney Fall Trail, that is nice. It is on a constant decline on the way out and incline on the way back so not sure if that is something your group would be interested in.

I know you said away from crowds but Grandfather Mountain and Tweetsie Railroad are really nice places to visit. Grandfather Mountain is a private mountain off the Blueridge Parkway. Laurel Creek Falls is another nice waterfall area to stop at.

In Boone make sure you stop at the Mast General Store, it is a required visit while in Boone. Macado's is right across from Mast and is good for lunch. Tons of specialty sandwiches. Dan'l Boone Inn is a popular restaurant in Boone that does family style meals. Red Onion Cafe is also good. Stick Boy Bread Company is really good for breakfast, coffee, doughnuts and pastries.

Beautiful area, enjoy your trip.

This post was edited on 7/14/23 at 1:42 pm

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Posted by Warheel

Member since Aug 2011

2065 posts

Posted on 7/14/23 at 3:16 pm to PolarPop5

Lost Province Gastropub in downtown Boone. Brew their own beer and food is good

Appalachian Mountain Brewery, cool place to hang out

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Posted by 3oliv3

Member since Aug 2016

692 posts

Posted on 7/14/23 at 5:48 pm to Warheel

I really liked the pizza from the truck at Appalachian Mountain Brewery. Crispy and fresh toppings.

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Posted by tigeroarz1

Winston-Salem, NC

Member since Oct 2013

3382 posts

Posted on 7/14/23 at 6:54 pm to PolarPop5

I like hanging out in Blowing Rock and Banner Elk more than Boone. Blowing Rock is a nice little town with a few restaurants and shops. It also has a nice little brewery. Banner Elk is even smaller. AMB in Boone has a great IPA. Grandfather Mountain has a “mile high swinging bridge” and is easily accessible from a car. There’s more difficult trails if you choose. Other than that just ride up and down the Blue Ridge Parkway. Especially hit the Linville Viaduct. I think there’s also some caves you can tour.

There are also a couple of wineries that are nice to visit. One is on a stream.

This post was edited on 7/14/23 at 6:56 pm

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