High Country FOCUS: Family Friendly Attractions
The High Country is one of the most family friendly areas in North Carolina, with people flocking to the area 4 seasons a year to enjoy time with loved ones. Whether you're visiting with children, or are a child at heart, these great area attractions will provide great memories for years to come. Click on the titles for more information.
Blowing Rock Art & History Museum
Experience art and discover history at BRAHM. Located in downtown Blowing Rock, the Museum features year-round exhibits, cultural programs, art, workshops, lectures and is home to the annual Art Antiques Show. Current exhibitions are Romantic Spirits, 19th century paintings of the South from the Johnson Collection; The Sculptor's Voice; and The Picture Man, photographs by Paul Buchanan.
Grandfather Mountain
Anyone who visits Grandfather Mountain discovers a place that inspires awe through natural wonders. You'll never experience the same mountain twice: today you might come face-to-face with an owl, another day you may see rare wildflowers in bloom. There's nowhere else on Earth that you can enjoy such a variety of mountain life in one amazing place.
High Gravity Adventures
High Gravity Adventures is an aerial adventure park with a high ropes course, a Three-Person Giant Swing, and in summer 2017 a zip line canopy tour with a 70 ft free-fall. The aerial courses (one geared towards younger children and one geared towards adults and young adults) have over 75 aerial elements that guests will climb, balance, and swing through from heights of 15 to 50 feet.
Linville Caverns
NC's only show caverns. Entertaining and informative guided tours take visitors along a level walk to see "inside" Humpback Mountain. Affordable family fun that features amazing mineral color, unique formations, an underground stream with native trout, the "Bottomless Pool" and a peek into total darkness.
Tweetsie Railroad
Even in today's high-tech world, there's still a place for old-fashioned fun. As the Carolinas' original family theme park, Tweetsie Railroad is a unique attraction that allows children and families to explore their imaginations and a whole lot more. Tweetsie has amusement rides for all ages and live entertainment throughout the park. And of course, hop aboard our historic steam locomotive for a fun-filled 3-mile Wild West journey through the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Blowing Rock
The Blowing Rock is an immense cliff 4,000 feet above sea level, overhanging Johns River Gorge 3,000 feet below. The phenomenon is so called because the rocky walls of the gorge form a flume through which the northwest wind sweeps with such force that it returns light objects cast over the void. The current of air flowing upward from The Rock prompted the Ripley's "Believe-It-Or-Not" cartoon about "the only place in the world where snow falls upside down." Visible from "The Rock" down the gorge to the southwest are Hawksbill Mountain and Table Rock.
