One of my closest friends and college roommates (sorry about that dorm room, Em) chose to celebrate her bachelorette weekend in Asheville, North Carolina. It was my first time visiting and I must say, it far surpassed all of my expectations! There are definitely some must-dos in the “Paris of the South.”
Although Asheville can be quite difficult to get to, it is worth all of the effort. We stayed outside of the city in a beautifully renovated barn that had both quirky characteristics and the modern luxuries a group of ten girls needs. It allowed us to have some true quality time together and made the trip that much more memorable for us. However, I would not recommend staying outside of Asheville if you don’t have solid transportation. Uber did not operate around our little countryside chateau!
Our first stop on Friday was to the stunning Omni Grove Park Inn. The property has some of the most jaw-dropping views of the famous Blue Ridge Mountains, which are part of the Appalachian Mountains range. We grabbed drinks at the Great Hall Bar and immediately headed outside on the Sunset Terrace to enjoy the scenery. We also decided to dine outside at Edison, one of the hotel’s newer (and more casual) restaurants. Everything from drinks to dinner was perfect, and our service at dinner was exceptional. That being said, the vibe of the Grove Park Inn is exactly what you would expect: very rustic, but also classic and elegant. Based solely off of the experience we had, I would certainly add the Grove Park Inn on my list of places to stay in Asheville. They have an award-winning subterranean spa on site that sounds like the only excuse one needs to visit.
Friday night was our designated girls night out, so we hit downtown Asheville after a few digestifs š (shout out to Shane)! Our waiter helped us decide where we might want to spend our evening, explaining to us that most of the bars downtown are technically concert halls and often feature live bands. We were mainly wanting to dance and let loose, so we decided to trade the music hall bars for more of a “club” atmosphere.
The following bars were on our hit list:
– SkyBar, a rooftop bar that is short on space, but a good way to start the night
– Scandals, a gay bar featuring drag shows
– Athena’s, like most of the nightclubs here, fun but small
– Nightbell, a speakeasy atmosphere featuring craft cocktails
– Room Nine, also called Club Nine by a lot of the locals
We ran out of time before we could make it to all five, but if you’re looking for a similar experience, I would suggest visiting any and all of these Asheville spots.
XOXO Hannah
BATB 