We came for a jiu jitsu tournament in Hendersonville and found unexpectedly good dim sum in Asheville. We brought the dogs. Chimney Rock was worth every step. That’s the honest version of this trip.
We came to western North Carolina for a jiu jitsu tournament in Hendersonville — my son’s first — and stayed at the Crowne Plaza in Asheville for a few days afterward. We brought the dogs, which the Crowne Plaza accommodates. We hiked Chimney Rock. We found dim sum that had no business being as good as it was in a mountain city in North Carolina. We stopped at Bojangles on the drive because you stop at Bojangles when you’re in the Carolinas. Asheville surprised us, which is what Asheville does to most people who arrive without expecting much.
Is Asheville Right for Your Trip?
The honest answer from someone who came for a tournament and stayed for everything else.
Chimney Rock State Park
The 315-foot granite monolith 25 minutes from downtown Asheville. Elevator through the rock to the summit. The view down Hickory Nut Gorge with Lake Lure below is one of the best in North Carolina. Worth every step.
Search HotelsThe Restaurant Scene
Asheville has one of the best restaurant scenes in the South relative to its size. James Beard nominees, serious breweries, unexpectedly good international food. Don’t underestimate it. The dim sum alone is worth knowing about.
Search HotelsBring the Dogs
Asheville is one of the most dog-friendly cities in the South. The Crowne Plaza accepts pets. Downtown Asheville has dog-friendly patios throughout. The Blue Ridge Parkway trails welcome leashed dogs. Plan accordingly.
Search RentalsLake Lure — 25 Minutes
Lake Lure is 25 minutes southeast via US-74 through Hickory Nut Gorge. The drive through the gorge is part of the experience. Do both — Asheville for the city, Lake Lure for the mountain lake. The two together make a complete western NC trip.
Lake Lure GuideThe Trip
We came from Lake Lure — a few days at the lake first, then drove the 25 minutes through Hickory Nut Gorge into Asheville. The gorge drive alone is worth doing: the granite walls rising on both sides, Chimney Rock visible above the treeline, the road following the Rocky Broad River through the canyon.
The Crowne Plaza Asheville is the anchor property for this trip — a full-service hotel in a city that otherwise runs heavily to boutique inns and B&Bs. Pet-friendly, well-located, the right base for a few days of exploring. We had the dogs with us throughout and Asheville handled that without any difficulty — dog-friendly patios are the norm rather than the exception downtown.
The tournament was in Hendersonville — about 25 minutes south of Asheville. My son’s first jiu jitsu competition. Hendersonville is a pleasant small city in its own right, apple country, the downtown has good shops and restaurants, worth a half day even without a tournament reason to be there. Bojangles on the drive back to Asheville is not optional. It’s the Carolinas. You stop.
Chimney Rock State Park
The 315-foot granite monolith that rises above Hickory Nut Gorge — 25 minutes from downtown Asheville, reachable through the same gorge drive that connects Asheville to Lake Lure. The elevator cuts through the rock face to the summit. The view is extraordinary.
Hickory Nut Falls — a 404-foot waterfall on the property — is one of the tallest in the eastern United States. The trail to the base of the falls is accessible and worth doing. The summit trail above the elevator gives views down the length of Hickory Nut Gorge with Lake Lure visible in the valley below — the same lake where Dirty Dancing was filmed, which gives the view an extra layer of recognition for anyone who grew up watching that movie.
Check the weather before going. The elevator closes in lightning and heavy rain — and the summit trail is exposed. A clear day at Chimney Rock is one of the great free-adjacent experiences in western NC. A rainy day is a muddy hike with no view. Check chimneyrockpark.com before you go.
The Food Scene
Asheville has been building a serious restaurant scene for two decades — driven by the same creative energy that makes it one of the most arts-focused small cities in the South. James Beard Award nominees have come out of Asheville kitchens. The brewery scene is significant. And there is, unexpectedly, genuinely good dim sum.
Asheville Brewing Company
The beloved local brewery — multiple locations, good food alongside the beer, a social gathering point for locals and visitors alike. The kind of brewery that earns its place in a city rather than just occupying space in it.
Red Ginger Dimsum & Tapas
Award-winning dim sum and tapas in downtown Asheville near Pritchard Park — open since 2016, voted best Chinese restaurant in local reader polls multiple consecutive years. The concept is an open kitchen serving made-to-order small plates rather than traditional rolling carts. Siu mai, har gow, scallion pancakes, Szechuan wontons. Asheville has no business having dim sum this good. It does anyway. Worth seeking out specifically.
Bojangles
Not a restaurant recommendation — a cultural one. Bojangles is the Carolina fast food institution: fried chicken and biscuits, sweet tea, the specific thing you eat when you’re driving through the Carolinas. Stop at least once.
Asheville After Hurricane Helene
Hurricane Helene made landfall in September 2024 and caused catastrophic flooding throughout western North Carolina — Asheville and the surrounding mountain communities were among the hardest hit. The recovery has been ongoing and remarkable.
Asheville’s downtown core and most visitor-facing businesses are operating. The French Broad River corridor sustained significant damage. Some beloved restaurants and businesses did not survive. The recovery has been driven largely by the community itself — the same independent, creative energy that built Asheville’s reputation in the first place has been applied to rebuilding it.
Visiting Asheville now is an act of support as much as tourism. The city needs visitors. The restaurants, hotels, breweries, and art galleries that survived need the business. And the Asheville that exists after Helene — resilient, community-driven, still extraordinarily beautiful — is worth going to see.
Before you go: Check current conditions at exploreasheville.com — the tourism bureau is actively updating information about which businesses are open and what to expect. The situation continues to evolve as recovery progresses.
Search Asheville Hotels and Rentals
The Crowne Plaza is the full-service pet-friendly option. Asheville also has excellent boutique inn and B&B inventory throughout the historic district. Vacation rentals give more space for families and groups.
Quick Reference: Asheville North Carolina
| Category | The Answer |
|---|---|
| Airport | Asheville Regional (AVL) — direct flights from major East Coast cities |
| Must see | Chimney Rock State Park — 25 min southeast, check weather first |
| Pair with | Lake Lure — 25 min through Hickory Nut Gorge |
| Pet friendly | Yes — Crowne Plaza accepts pets, dog-friendly patios throughout downtown |
| The food scene | One of the best in the South relative to city size — James Beard nominees, serious breweries |
| The surprise | Genuinely good dim sum |
| The Carolina must | Bojangles on the drive — non-negotiable |
| Hurricane Helene | September 2024 — downtown and most businesses operating; check exploreasheville.com |
| Best season | October for fall foliage — Hickory Nut Gorge in peak color is extraordinary |
| Hendersonville | 25 min south — apple country, good downtown, worth a half day |
We came for a tournament and stayed because Asheville earned it. The dim sum was better than it had any right to be. Chimney Rock was worth every step. The dogs were welcome everywhere. And the city — still recovering, still rebuilding, still entirely itself — was one of the better surprises of that particular trip through the mountains.