Whereas the main target of this weblog submit is day journeys from Charlotte, the locations that made my listing beneath are spots I chosen that I feel would tremendously attraction to households. They’re spots we’ve visited with our boys that we’ve beloved and lots of of them are locations we’ve returned to time and time once more all through the years.
Additionally, to make my listing beneath, the places needed to be inside a two hour drive of the Charlotte space, although most are nearer to a 60-minute (or much less) drive. With three youngsters within the combine, we all know our boys aren’t up for a ton of time within the automotive for a single day journey so I capped the drive time beneath at two hours since that’s roughly the factors Ryan and I’ve in our heads relating to an out-and-back journey we’ll do with our children in a single day. I hope one thing beneath pops out at you the subsequent time you’re in search of one thing enjoyable to do with your loved ones!
Essential observe: Availability to go to a number of the beneath locations could also be impacted by the devastation attributable to Hurricane Helene. I didn’t need to take away these particular locations from this listing as they’re fantastic locations to go to, however please be conscious of closures and observe journey advisories from Western North Carolina.
For the sake of group, I’m going to share our favourite day journeys categorized by year-round locations we love to go to anytime and seasonal day journeys so you’ll be able to skip forward to day journeys which may attraction to you primarily based on the season we’re at the moment in and what you’re hoping to do!
12 months-Spherical:
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North Carolina Zoo (Asheboro, NC)
Distance from Charlotte: 1 hour, 25 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman Space: 1 hour, 35 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: North Carolina Zoo
The North Carolina Zoo is our household’s favourite native zoo and by sq. footage, it’s the most important zoo in the USA! You’ll stroll loads (about 5 miles) and also you’ll additionally see loads while you go to this zoo. It’s clear and superbly landscaped with massive habitats for the animals, some play areas for younger youngsters and many attention-grabbing animals to see. Our youngsters love the Africa part of the zoo probably the most!
Additionally, for any native buddies, I need to take a second to share what I feel is the last word “zoo hack” Ryan and I found associated to the North Carolina Zoo after many, many visits. Prior to now we’ve at all times parked on the the Africa entrance because it’s at all times loads much less crowded however the structure of the zoo means we’re both strolling all the way in which throughout the park again to our automotive on the finish of our go to or ready in an extended line for the tram. We now park in North America however use the “Connector Path” to stroll a mile to the Africa entrance to purchase our tickets and enter the park. This works SO properly since a fast one-mile stroll isn’t daunting at first of a zoo go to after which while you’re performed on the zoo, you’ll be able to stroll proper out to your automotive after concluding your time within the North American portion of the zoo. I can not suggest this sufficient! It made the entire journey seamless from a logistical standpoint.
Distance from Charlotte: 50 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman Space: 60 minutes
Examine our household’s experiences right here: Dan Nicholas Park + Tenting at Dan Nicholas Park + Fall Tenting at Dan Nicholas Park
Dan Nicholas Park is such a gem! Costs at Dan Nicholas Park are like a stroll again in time and every thing from tickets to experience the prepare and carousel to tickets to Rowan Wild, the small nature facility positioned inside the park, are solely $.50-$2.00. The gem mining at Dan Nicholas Park can be a serious spotlight for our boys (this isn’t $1 — haha!) they usually love sifting by numerous sand to seek out large gems, a big shark tooth and different surprises. We selected Dan Nicholas Park because the spot for our first household tenting journey for a myriad of causes and can’t suggest it sufficient to those that like to camp with younger youngsters. Our boys had the most effective time exploring and strolling across the lake, fishing, in search of turtles, freaking out over all of the little ducklings and catching and releasing frogs and toads.
Distance from Charlotte: 1 hour, 35 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman Space: 2 hours
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Riverbanks Zoo
The Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, South Carolina is one other fantastic zoo inside driving distance of Charlotte. It’s an particularly enjoyable one to go to in the summertime months, because the Waterfall Junction space of the zoo has an enormous splashpad space full with a tree home, dinosaur dig zone and open discipline best without spending a dime play for the children. As you’d count on, the zoo has plenty of animal reveals however we particularly love the brand new aquarium and reptile conservation heart. It’s fairly massive and residential to numerous cool reptiles, amphibians, fishes, invertebrates and birds which our boys beloved!
Distance from Charlotte: 65 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman Space: 60 minutes
Chase visited the Catawba Science Heart on a discipline journey final yr and got here again raving about it, so I figured the youthful boys would love it as properly and all of us had a blast once we visited the science museum over the summer time. It has plenty of hands-on reveals, good for curious youngsters, in addition to animal habitats, a freshwater aquarium and a planetarium. There’s a really small outside play space however a lot of the science heart enjoyable is positioned indoors, making it an ideal day journey for a chilly or wet day.
Distance from Charlotte: 45 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman space: 50 minutes
Learn our household’s expertise: A Day Out with Thomas
For anybody with toddlers, I extremely suggest planning a visit to the North Carolina Transportation Museum round their annual A Day Out with Thomas weekend occasion. (Dates change yearly however are shared properly prematurely, so hold a watch out!) The occasion was an enormous hit with our toddler-aged boys and presents an actual prepare experience, video games, actions, meals and household enjoyable. The entire occasion positively exceeded our expectations and we simply spent greater than three hours watching our boys play with prepare toys, run by a hay maze, pop giant-sized bubbles, experience mini Thomas the Trains and play blow-up basketball, baseball, soccer and soccer.
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Patterson Farms (Mt. Ulla, NC)
Distance from Charlotte: 50 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman space: 40 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Patterson Farms
Patterson Farms has slightly little bit of every thing and, relying on while you go to, additionally presents some enjoyable seasonal actions. (We’ve performed strawberry choosing within the spring and visited their pumpkin patch within the fall!) It’s straightforward to spend a number of hours at Patterson Farms feeding cattle, happening tractor rides, finishing barnyard bingo playing cards for little prizes, meandering by a corn maze within the fall and extra. With a lot to do for younger youngsters and households, it’s one in all our favourite locations to take the boys and a spot we go to a least a few times a yr. One vital observe: Patterson Farms is a discipline journey scorching spot, so typically it may be slightly loopy should you’re there when discipline journeys are there as properly. If you happen to’re hoping for a much less crowded expertise, it is likely to be value a name earlier than your go to.
Distance from Charlotte: 50 minutes
Examine our expertise: Lake Norman State Park
Lake Norman State Park is, arms down, our favourite place to hike that’s fairly near Charlotte. It’s 10,000 occasions much less crowded than the extremely common Crowders Mountain State Park and nonetheless presents stunning views and superior trails. We have a tendency to stay to the Lake Shore Path, a 5 mile loop that gives tons of little lookout factors over attractive Lake Norman. There are many elevation modifications and whereas I wouldn’t say it’s a straightforward hike, it’s not too strenuous both. We regularly see deer alongside the path and it’s very dog-friendly!
Distance from Charlotte: 45 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman space: 25 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise: Carrigan Farms
Carrigan Farms is a fifth-generation household farm our household loves visiting at totally different occasions of the yr for various causes. Within the spring, it’s a hot-spot for strawberry choosing. Within the late summer time/early fall, it’s an important spot for apple choosing. In October, they provide pumpkin choosing of their pumpkin patch. I’ve additionally heard nice issues about swimming within the quarry on the farm’s property in the summertime months and now that our boys are slightly older, it’s one thing we’re hoping to do as a household subsequent summer time!
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Stone Mountain State Park (Roaring Hole, NC)
Distance from Charlotte: 1 hour, 35 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman space: 1 hour, 20 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise: Mountaineering Stone Mountain
If you happen to get pleasure from climbing, making a day journey from the Charlotte space to Stone Mountain State Park is properly value it! The paths on the Stone Mountain Loop are extremely properly maintained and should you park within the Higher Trailhead Lot and veer left on the path to hike clockwise across the loop, you’ll certainly be challenged! We love climbing the loop on this path since you’re pretty remoted from the views till you attain the summit making the “large reveal” really feel particularly gratifying! You’ll see waterfall views and end your hike feeling very completed! We’ve additionally performed this hike with the boys however approached the expertise slightly in another way should you’d wish to examine that have right here: Mountaineering Stone Mountain with Youngsters.
Winter:
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Tweetsie Christmas (Blowing Rock, NC)
Distance from Charlotte: 2 hours / Distance from Lake Norman space: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Tweetsie Christmas
Tweetsie Railroad is a wild west-themed journey park however for a number of weekends in late November and most of December, it transforms right into a winter wonderland, full with a vacation prepare experience on an actual steam engine, enjoyable rides for youths, the chance to fulfill Santa and Mrs. Claus and extra. The spotlight for our household was the prepare experience however we additionally beloved the Christmas village and took benefit of a number of the rides whereas wandering round, sipping scorching cocoa and having fun with the twinkling lights and vacation music.
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Polar Specific on the North Carolina Transportation Museum (Spencer, NC)
Distance from Charlotte: 45 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman space: 50 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Polar Specific
Nabbing tickets to The Polar Specific on the North Carolina Transportation Museum is insane. Getting 5+ tickets collectively on the prepare is subsequent to unimaginable until you scope out tickets within the summertime and purchase them in June. I had my act collectively sufficient to get tickets for our crew final vacation season and oh my gosh I now perceive why tickets on this festive prepare are so coveted. The Polar Specific on the North Carolina Transportation Museum was top-of-the-line vacation actions we’ve performed collectively as a household. The prepare automobiles are fully decked out in vacation decor and the expertise consists of scorching cocoa, a bell for every baby from Santa, a cease on the North Pole and many vacation cheer and singing alongside to Christmas carols.
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Snowland at Nice Wolf Lodge (Harmony, NC)
Distance from Charlotte: 25 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman space: half-hour
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Nice Wolf Lodge
The chokehold this place has on youngsters, I’m tellin’ ya! Our boys freaking loveee Nice Wolf Lodge with some severe depth. They suppose it’s one of many coolest locations on the planet and for the previous a number of years in a row, we’ve made it a degree to guide a room in early December as a result of we love visiting our native GWL throughout the vacation season however day passes can be found should you’re trying to make a day journey out of it! Through the vacation season, Nice Wolf Lodge is adorned with snowflakes and twinkling lights and the boys get the largest kick out of the pretend snowfall that occurs a number of occasions a day within the foyer. It’s additionally enjoyable to have entry to a waterpark in the midst of winter and we love benefiting from the winter and Christmas-themed actions that happen all day lengthy. And I can not neglect to say MagiQuest which is our large youngsters’ absolute obsession and the explanation we simply stroll 5+ miles inside the lodge every time we go to GWL!
Spring/Summer season:
Distance from Charlotte: 1 hour, half-hour / Distance from Lake Norman space: 1 hour, 35 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Jellystone Golden Valley
If your loved ones enjoys outside enjoyable, Jellystone Golden Valley is such a gem! You should purchase day passes to Jellystone on sure days, making it such a enjoyable spot for a special occasion journey from the Charlotte space. We’ve spent quite a few weekends at Jellystone and suppose the best possible time to go to is in the summertime months as a result of you’ll be able to take full benefit of the pool and water playground (SO enjoyable for youths) and the enormous blow-up impediment course on the lake. Jellystone additionally presents gem mining, fishing, a mountain coaster, climbing, laser tag, playground enjoyable, arts and crafts actions, in addition to tennis, gaga ball, volleyball and basketball courts and a mini lake zipline. My essential tip: Hire a golf cart!!! Our boys loveeee exploring Jellystone by golf cart and it makes it a lot simpler to get round and uncover all of Jellystone’s gems!
Fall:
Distance from Charlotte: 65 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman Space: 50 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Alpha & Omega Corn Maze
This place is a lot greater than a corn maze! It’s child heaven and the sort of place you’ll be able to simply spend full day. There’s a purpose we return each single yr! Along with a corn maze (that’s legitimately difficult!), Alpha & Omega has a ton of actions for youths to get pleasure from, together with rubber duck races, pumpkin launches, pig races, a mud monitor for large tricycles, mini prepare rides, corn pits, wagon rides and leaping pads. They provide meals on property if you wish to keep for lunch or dinner and it’s large enough that even on the busiest days it by no means feels too crowded.
Distance from Charlotte: 1 hour, 20 minutes / Distance from Lake Norman Space: 65 minutes
Examine our household’s expertise right here: Perry Lowe Orchards
Perry Lowe Orchard is a sixth-generation apple orchard positioned within the foothills of North Carolina. It has probably the most fantastic household really feel and presents all kinds of scrumptious apples for choosing — even Honeycrisp! The situation makes you are feeling such as you’re within the mountains with out the necessity to drive 2+ hours and our boys completely beloved taking part in on the leaping pad, tube slide and playground. Ensure you attempt the apple cider slushies and apple fritters!
Query of the Day
Charlotte-area buddies, do you’ve got any enjoyable scorching spots you’d suggest for anybody trying to plan a family-friendly day journey from the Charlotte?
