Asheville: Gardens and Crafts in the Southern Highlands


Sponsored by Federated Garden Club of CT




Join us for an exciting trip to Asheville to experience famous gardens and gorgeous crafts.  This trip includes round-trip airport transportation, round-trip airfare on Continental Airlines, daily breakfast, 5 lunches, 3 dinners and all admission per itinerary.    
 
Deopsit of $350.00 due by March 29th!  Don't miss out!



Join us for our five day spring trip to the glorious mountain town of Asheville.  Our trip will appeal to gardeners as well as lovers of asrts and crafts. We visit a broad range of exciting sites in dramatically beautiful settings in one of the most scenic destinations in America.  The trip highlight is a day at the elegant Biltmore Estate and its 75 acres of formal gardens, designed by Frederick Olmstead.  We have private tours of the Asheville Botanical Gardens and the showcase gardens of the North Carolina Arboretum, and visit the Cherokee Museum, the Folk Art Center at the Southern Highland Craft Guild, and an artists' cooperative gallery.






1.  Thursday, May 31     Botanical Gardens
Our private motor coach will pick participants at the railroad stations in Hartford, New Haven and Greenwich for our Continental Airlines non-stop flight from Newark airport at 10 am.  We arrive at noon, enjoy lunch and visit the Botanical Gardens at Asheville. The plant collections focus on plants native to these Southern Appalachian Mountain areas and include a large variety of trees, shrubs, wildflowers, herbs, grasses, and aquatic plants, apporximately 700 species in all.  Within the ten acres that comprise the Gardens, a walking trail forming a half-mile loop leads visitors across bridges spanning streams, through meadows, and over a woodland ridge to a wildflower cove.  We stay at the Asheville Ramada Plaza for four nights.  The hotel has a swimming pool.  We have a relazing dinner at the hotel. (L/D)



2.  Friday, June 1     Biltmore Estate
This exciting day at the extraordinary Biltmore Estate begins with a self-guided tour of the French Renaissance-style chateau built in the 1890s by the grandson of the railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt.  America's largest home boasts 250 rooms, with priceless art and antiques.  After lunch we are guided through the stunning gardens designed by Frederick Law Olmsted.  From the "genial" Shrub Garden to the formal Italian Garden, and the fragrant collection of 2,300 roses, the gardens are simply extraordinary.  We continue to the Smith-McDowell House, for a tour of this National Register property which was once the home of a Confederate Major, and friends of the Vanderbilts.  We enjoy dinner at a local restaurant. (B/L/D)



3.  Saturday, June 2     Arboretum Gallery
We visit the North Carolina Arboretum, nestles in one of the most beautiful natural settings in the United States, located within the 6,300-acre Bent Creek Experimental Forest and surrounded by the 480,000-acre Pisgah National Forest.  The Arboretum boasts several showcase gardens, a Quilt Farden, a Stream Garden, a Spring Garden, a state-of-the-art greenhouse and a Bonsai collection.  There will be time to enjoy roses of every color and size at the annual Asheville Blue Ridge Rose Society Exhibition.  We return to Asheville for lunch and a visit at the Blue Spiral 1 Gallery which presents the works of Southeastern artists and object makers in an elegant, spacious gallery spanning three floors. (B/L)



4.  Sunday , June 3     Cherokee Heritage
We travel along the Blue Ridge Parkway to The Museum of the Cherokee Indian which tells the story of the Cherokee people.  Here the Cherokee community presents its perspective on its history and culture in an exhibit which takes the visitor from 11,000 years ago to the present.  We stop at the Qualla Arts and Crafts Co-op which sells quality Cherokee crafts including meticulously made baskets, pottery and jewlery.  We visit Talking Trees at Oconaluftee Island Park which gives voice to the trees through audio instillations on a walking trail around the island.  Traditional Cherokee religion believes that all living things are out relatives and can speak to us in a spiritual sense.  We return to Asheville to explore the unique shops and galleries.  This evening's farewell dinner will be at the Grove Park Inn, a landmark 1913 Inn, built of massive boulders. (B/L/D)



5.  Monday, June 4     Market and Crafts
After breakfast, we check out of the hotel and visit the Farmers Market to enjoy the atmosphere and character of the area.  There are displays of high quality mountain crafts, jams, jellies, preserves, sourwood honey, and dozens of other farm fresh items.  At Jesse Israel & Sons Garden and Nursery Center you will enjoy strolling through their colorful facility that includes a greenhouse full of tropical plants, ponds, full of water plants, bonsai, and a forty-foot waterfall.  We continue to the Folk Art Center located on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The Center is the home of the Southern Highland Craft Guild, the second oldest artisans' guild in the United States representing over 800 craft people.  The Flok Art Center offers a special opportunity to experience Appalachian culture and craft through the exhibitions and craft shops.  We depart for the Asheville airport for our non-stop Continental Flight at 5"05 pm, and arrive at Newark 7:27pm.  Our motor coach will drop participants at the three locations in Connecticut. (B/L)





This engaging experience includes:

  • Round-trip airport transportation
  • Round-trip airfare
  • hotel accomodations
  • Daily breakfast
  • 5 lunches
  • 3 dinners
  • Admissions per itinerary
PROGRAM PRICES  
Per person (double occupancy) from New York: $1599.00  
Single Supplement: $200.00