Lifes a Beech!

Beech Mountain, North Carolina

First trip of 2021! To be honest, I did not think this would have been possible but I am glad it worked out and I was able to embark on a much-needed winter vacation. As I was planning this trip with my friends, I was looking for something easy and affordable. We decided on North Carolina! Specifically, Beech Mountain and was pleasantly surprised.

Beech Mountain is a small town within the Blue Ridge Mountains. It is about 2 hours away from Charlotte which is where we flew in direct from Miami. Such a lovely town and exactly what I needed to disconnect for a bit.

We rented our car from Alamo at the airport ( pre-booked ), and we took off through the winding roads up the mountains to check into our Airbnb. I hadn't stayed in an Airbnb in quite some time so I was a little nervous due to the pandemic. Our Airbnb was the absolute cutest and exactly how it was depicted on the site. It was clean, although we did an extra wipe down of course. Debbie, our host, was so communicative and the best part was that it was located exactly next to Beech Mountain Ski Resort's ski in and out.

Click here to check it out.

The day we arrived, we did some grocery shopping for the weekend and then went to Beech Mountain Ski Resort to pick up our ski lift pass and our ski and snowboard rentals. At Beech Mountain Ski Resort, they allow you to pick up your rentals the day before after 4pm. This is convenient especially if you are staying next to a ski-in and out and do not have to go all the way to the resort to pick up your gear. I had pre-booked our reservation and rentals on their website, which made it easier to show up and get checked in.

Tip: Ski lift passes during weekdays are cheaper. ( We skied on a Friday )

For dinner, we ate at Fraziers, a mile high tavern. It was pretty empty due to the pandemic, but I can tell this place had some fun nights in the past. Afterward, we settled into the Chalet, which in fact did not have any WiFi, but it did have tons of board games to choose from. We went with Scrabble.

The following day, we skied and I also attempted to snowboard again. ( I hadn't since I was 18 )

The slopes at Beech Mountain were great! They had slopes for just about anyone and plenty of ski lifts to take you to each run. At the bottom of the slopes, they have Beech Mountain Brewing Co. Taproom and Grill. Perfect place to take a break from the slopes, "warm" up with some beer, and grab some food. After my failed attempt later in the day with my snowboard, we returned our gear and went to the Chalet to make some dinner and S'mores.

On our next adventure in NC, we fueled up for a hike of Grandfather Mountain at Banner Elk Tavern. Their breakfast was delicious and the area was even cuter. We originally planned an extensive hike to the famous bridge of Grandfather Mountain, but could not go due to the weather, but we were able to do a smaller hike at the lower end of the mountain. The trail was a bit of a challenge but we made it through and we paused quite a bit to take some photos. Afterward, we went to Grandfather Mountain Winery! Best decision.

Upon entering the winery we fell in love. The winery is situated next to a beautiful creek with tables and chairs to just sit, unwind and drink some wine. This is a great place to take in the natural beauty of the mountain. The wine was reasonably priced and you can order a bottle or by the glass. If you are with some friends, you must do a bottle, it's only natural. I highly recommend stopping by enjoying a couple of hours there.

( Side note: We met some great people there, which is something I had been longing to do for a while. For a split instance, the world seemed normal. )

Our last day consisted of just eating. We packed up our car and checked out of our Airbnb and went to Freds General. Freds General has a little bit of everything since it's the only convenient store on Beech Mountain. On the bottom floor, they have a breakfast spot. After eating there for a while, we headed to Boone to eat once more before our 2-hour drive to the airport. We ate in a place called The Local. Food was delicious, the company was even better and my Spicy Bloody mary made me see stars. The perfect end to a short girls trip.