I think three full days is probably enough. One to walk around town, shop, drink beer, etc... One to see the mountains and hike/kayak, and maybe one to check out the Biltmore and/or Grove Park Inn. Getting a drink on the back porch of the Inn watching the sunset over the mountains is not to be missed.

After that you should be good. Maybe if you can do 4 it would be worth it so you won't be rushed but probably not necessary.

And, the drive in winter is nice too - probably less so than in other seasons but still fine. Not bleak IMO.

NP here, sorry to hijack, what's the Asheville drive like in Winter (late Dec) still pretty or just bleak?

Anonymous wrote:Asheville is great but if you have four days two will pretty much be spent in the car. What about Charlottesville?

This is my current internal debate regarding Asheville. Planning to go for Spring Break. Will drive down 81 to get there, and take two days to drive back via Blue Ridge Parkway. So how many FULL days should we stay in Asheville (we're foodies/beer geeks/hikers/kayakers) in addition to the driving day? Three, or four?

Asheville is great but if you have four days two will pretty much be spent in the car. What about Charlottesville?