Asheville Anniversary Trip!
Cody and I celebrated 2 wonderful years of marriage on Valentine's Day and took a weekend getaway trip to Asheville the following weekend! My mom drove up from Columbus, Georgia, and Cody's mom and bf drove down from Columbus, Ohio to watch baby Sawyer while we were gone. It was the first time leaving our little boy overnight, but we knew he was in good hands and hitting the New Belgium Brewery when we got there definitely helped ease my nerves! I bought this book for Cody a few Christmases ago and we based our itinerary on it - I am so glad we did because these were excellent recommendations!
This brewery was beautifully set in the foothills of North Carolina, and when we got there, there were so many people hanging out, playing corn hole, and doing tastings. It is such a fun hangout spot for the locals and visitors. We took a tour where we learned about the brand and their brews and even got to sample a few along the way! I highly recommend this tour for anyone visiting Asheville! If you go in the late afternoon or early evening, it is a great place to catch the sunset while sipping a delicious drink! Make your reservation here.
We ended the night with pizza and a movie at Asheville Brewing Company. We hadn't been to the movies since June so this was a nice treat! The movies are $4 and we got there about 30 minutes before showtime and Cody got the last ticket! Luckily they don't sell EVERY seat so they let me get a ticket too :) I highly recommend this place, and hope to go back in the spring so I can try their seasonal Brewnicorn Unicorn Beer! For more info about this amazing old theater turned restaurant/brewery/theater click here!
Saturday morning we spent at The Biltmore House. Guess who brought her camera charger, charged her battery overnight, took the battery off the charger, and packed the camera and lenses in her bag WITHOUT THE DANG BATTERY? Yep. That would be me. Can you see the pain behind my eyes in this pic? Cody made it better by telling me that we would just have to come back again to visit which I gladly agreed! This place is AMAZING, and the people who lived here were pretty amazing people too. If you go to Asheville, this is a MUST do. Click here for info on this amazing estate.
Not only did we go to the house, but we also hit Antler Village for some delicious lunch at Bistro and a quick visit to the winery. Bistro had the shortest wait and the food and drinks were so good - I highly recommend the mushroom swiss burger!
We had been hearing what beautiful architecture The Grove Park Inn had so we hopped in an uber and hit there before heading to downtown Asheville. The GPI did not disappoint. The building is beautiful with huge stacked stones inside and out, and the fireplaces were amazing - literally so big you can stand inside of them! The views on the back veranda are breathtaking too. Cody loves architecture and the mountains so this place was definitely a sweet spot for him! We both agreed that next time we are here we will be staying at The Grove Park Inn and also hitting up their spa which recently underwent a $25 million renovation! To see more of GPI and their amazing spa click here. Also, if you plan on booking a spa day make sure to do well in advance as I hear they book up months in advance!
The next stop was The Battery Park Book Exchange and Champagne Bar. Wait, what? Yes! The English major in me was so so excited! An old book store that also sold champagne? Oh they have beers and espresso too as well as a selection of snacks and desserts! I could have sat in that store for hours. I grabbed a sipping chocolate and Cody grabbed a beer and espresso because he can, and we went upstairs and sat and people watched. This place, like many places in Asheville, is pet friendly. Dogs, champagne, espresso, chocolate, books...what more does one really need? After finishing our drinks we browsed their extensive book collection and I found a beautiful copy of Gone With The Wind. The sweet woman took it out of the glass case for me and I about fell over when I realized it was a SIGNED copy! It was a little out of our price range but she let me hold it and get a picture with it because she could tell how special I thought it was. Now we may or may not be on a hunt for a signed copy of GWTW that is in our price range :D
The sun was getting ready to set and my blondest bestie Nicola had recommended we check out Sky Bar. Sidenote - for all you wanderlust souls out there, she has an amazing blog detailing all her travels! Check her out at Bon Vonage Babe! Sky bar was the perfect place to view the sunset as it went down in to the mountains. The live music was great to listen to as we sipped fun cocktails too!
We found out a neighborhood couple was in Asheville this weekend too so we met up with them at another rooftop spot before hitting one more brewery! It was nice to spend time with friends and meet their friends too! We had a wonderful evening!
Day 2 outfit details: Coat / Top - actually a dress! Old, similar here / Leggings / Boots / Bag / Necklace
This was the perfect ending to our trip - we had such a nice time recharging as a couple! Since having Sawyer, its been very easy to slip into total parenthood, which is a good thing for Sawyer, but it also has made us have to make more conscious efforts to remember to not be just mommy and daddy, but husband and wife. I am so thankful to our moms for helping watch our little boy so that we could have a nice anniversary getaway!
What vacations have you taken or do you plan to take this year?
Much love,
Kristin