Day 1
-Hop aboard the LYNX Blue Line light- rail or the Charlotte Trolley. Stop off in Charlotte’s Historic South End neighborhood for boutique browsing and family-friendly dining or journey on to Center City for museums, green spaces, and more.
- Levine Museum of the New South in Center City documents Charlotte’s rich history through the timeless and award-winning exhibit “Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers.” Visitors can relive a civil rights era sit-in at a lunch counter or even stroll down a recreated main street to try on a hat in an early Belk department store.
-Just a few short- blocks away is the Mint Museum of Craft + Design. Regionally renowned for a rich history in crafts, the dazzling collections trace North Carolina’s roots in furniture, ceramics, wood-working, and more.
- Even though a renovation is taking the facility to new heights throughout much of 2009, Discovery Place, one of Charlotte’s most beloved and most visited museums, will remain open to engage and excite young minds. Explore museum favorites like the Aquarium, KidsPlace, Rat Basketball, and Einstein’s Corner.
-Cap the day with a performance- at the NC Blumenthal Performing Arts Center. Whether catching a regional folk artist at the intimate Spirit Square or a Broadway debut at the Belk Theatre, visitors are sure to be entertained.
Day 2
- Reed Gold Mine is the site of the first documented gold find in the United States. Today, visitors can relive the traditions that fueled the nation’s first gold rush and pan to find a treasure to take home.
- Take in the many halls of the Mint Museum of Art, spanning three centuries of creativity. Formerly the nation’s first branch of the United States Mint, North Carolina’s first art museum now houses noted collections from around the world in addition to an impressive collection of American art.
-Relax and enjoy the serenity of Wing- Haven, a unique part of Charlotte’s Myers Park since its creation in 1927. The gardens and bird sanctuary, enclosed on all sides by brick walls, encompass three acres in the heart of a quiet residential neighborhood.
-Take a quick detour and stop by three historic- residences that embody Southern elegance. The Van Landingham Estate in Plaza Midwood, the Morehead Inn in Dilworth, and the Duke Mansion in Myers Park all now serve as special event venues and bed & breakfasts.
-Rock, jazz, classical, reggae, hip-hop…No matter- what’s on your iPod, the area’s variety of venues, which range from neighborhood watering holes like the Evening Muse and Neighborhood Theatre to 20,000-seat arenas like Time Warner Cable Arena, attract musical talent with sounds that satisfy.