Family Travel in North Carolina

Family travel in North Carolina: the 50 state series

Date: September 22nd, 2009 | No Comments

Every week until we run out of states, I plan to post about family-friendly vacation ideas, attractions and events in each one of the US states, taking input mostly from Twitter and Facebook.

Yes, I know how to search for travel ideas on a destination or attraction Web site, but a tweet or a Facebook Wall recommendation is a much more engaging and public way to spread the word.

Please don’t email suggestions to me; that’s nice but it is one-to-one communication. Tweet me and/or Facebook me, so that all of our networks can see what’s cool about your state.

We’re going in alphabetical order but started with the end, so our first state for the series was Wyoming, then we investigated Wisconsin,  West Virginia,  Washington,  Virginia,  Vermont,  Utah, Texas,  Tennessee,  South Dakota,  South Carolina,  Rhode Island,  Pennsylvania,  Oregon, Oklahoma,  Ohio, North Dakota and now we’re moving on to….North Carolina!

Their state tourism organization is on Twitter at @VisitNC, plus there’s a Visit North Carolina blog, a North Carolina Flickr Group for photo-sharing, a Visit North Carolina YouTube channel and here’s the NC Tourism Facebook page.

When I asked for ideas, here’s what came in….

Twitter Travel Tips for North Carolina

***  From the Wilkes County tourism office via @WilkesNCtourism on Twitter  –  [Wilkes] Heritage Museum is a great activity for families. Also 45+ miles of mountain biking trails, 8 sites on NC Birding Trail. Whippoorwill Village - collection of restored log cabins, 1-room schoolhouse, Chapel of Peace (here’s a TwitPic photo: http://twitpic.com/2e0yj)

***  From Barbra Rodichok via @NOCBarbra on Twitter  –  Don’t forget whitewater rafting as part of your visit to the coolest mountain town, Asheville NC!  [More from the Nantahala Outdoor Center - http://www.noc.com/index.php/french-broad.html]

***  From Shannon Lane via @Cajun_Mama on Twitter  –  My family loved gem searching in Cherokee. Found a 3 karat emerald!

***  From Maria Reed via @Maria_Reed on Twitter  –  Great family beach vacations in the Outer Banks! Jockey’s Ridge and Nag’s Head Fishing Pier.

Where I’d take my kids: best US family beach vacations

Date: March 26th, 2009 | 14 comments

If you’re planning a family vacation right now, you might wonder what I’d suggest for the best places to take the kids to the beach.

Everyone has different criteria for an awesome beach. My perfect seashore has warm water, protected/calmer areas for babies and toddlers, enough …

Blue Ridge Road Trip

Date: May 31st, 2007 | 3 comments

Earlier this week I promised a separate post on my little road trip from south to north on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina. Of course, I promised it “early in the week” and it’s now Thursday night — sorry!

I’m home from the North Carolina research trip for …

More family fun in North Carolina

Date: May 26th, 2007 | 2 comments

My article research trip for Automotive Traveler is almost finished (check out the online magazine’s Issue Two, just posted) and here are a few more family-friendly nuggets that I’ve found in this part of North Carolina.

Obviously there are plenty of NASCAR-related …

Let’s go racing in Charlotte, North Carolina….

Date: May 19th, 2007 | 2 comments

I’m going to be blogging sporadically over the next ten days, since I’m in Charlotte, North Carolina busily researching a combination NASCAR/travel article for an upcoming issue of Automotive Traveler.

For transportation, I’m zooming around in a Dodge Avenger, which is sort of a moderately souped-up …