Downtown Asheville Art District
Downtown Asheville Art District
Downtown Asheville Art District
4.5
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 6:00 PM
About
This listing is for Asheville's downtown art galleries. A group of art galleries and museums within a walk-able area centered around Pack Square located at the intersection of Biltmore Avenue and Patton Avenue. Not to be confused with the river arts district, an area some distance from downtown with artists studios.
Duration: More than 3 hours
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Neighborhood: Downtown Asheville
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
536 reviews
Excellent
278
Very good
172
Average
52
Poor
21
Terrible
13
DMBJMB
23 contributions
Apr 2022
The homeless are on every street corner.
Very disturbing to see so many mentally ill people roaming around with out any help. Junkies were doing drugs in the city square.
What absolutely awful and depressing place to visit.
Very disturbing to see so many mentally ill people roaming around with out any help. Junkies were doing drugs in the city square.
What absolutely awful and depressing place to visit.
Written April 7, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lila Navarro
Hendersonville, NC658 contributions
Mar 2023 • Couples
The city is dirty and not a lot to do. The homeless, druggies, drunks and just really bad vibe especially at night. Also, the city is overpriced. The galleries are ridiculously expensive and the art is not all that.
Written March 8, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
StatesideDC
9 contributions
Dec 2022
The Asheville Art museum has an interesting collection, housed in a beautiful building. Well worth a visit. Be sure and go to the roof top sculpture garden for the view. One of the nicest regional museums I've visited
Written December 29, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Wanda R
Greenfield, WI734 contributions
Apr 2021
We loved it. We are in our 60's and felt safe. Parked on the street. Got proficient using my credit card in the meters. Downtown was clean. Buildings well maintained. Architecture was great. Lots of older buildings being used and maintained. Plenty of great galleries. Wonderful restaurants. Make sure you have a reservation for the really popular ones. We were never approached by panhandlers. We were downtown 3 out of 4 days in Asheville. I would definitely go back again. I have no idea what goes on late at night. One night we were down there until 7 PM. Felt safe. Really really enjoyed our experience. It was clean. We felt safe. Looking forward to coming back again!!
Written May 3, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hannah
2 contributions
Oct 2022
Downright DEPRESSING. Unless you like seeing needles, trash and graffiti on every open space.
Don't go after dark unless you have a carry permit.
This is not a 'hip' or 'edgy' town. it is on the verge of become South Detroit.
Don't go after dark unless you have a carry permit.
This is not a 'hip' or 'edgy' town. it is on the verge of become South Detroit.
Written November 28, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
burbankgirl
Chandler, AZ163 contributions
Dec 2021 • Friends
it pains to say that downtown Ashville was beyond disappointing. Have been hearing for years what a wonderful artsy, liberal, Foodie haven town Asheville is. Traveled across country try to see it. Felt unsafe. Dirty town in decline. Unfortunate problems with a homeless and addict population. Sirens nonstop. My guess is the town has been hurt economically by the Pandemic. I found no art anywhere other than the Benjamin Walls Gallery. I did not know of the river district even though I searched for galleries in Asheville. Anyways, I hope it's glory days return. The locals deserve better.
Written December 24, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
2disland
Madison, IN223 contributions
Jul 2020
Downtown Asheville is a great place to spend the day strolling through the streets while discovering numerous shops and galleries. It seems like there is another street filled with places to visit at every turn. We spent the afternoon exploring, but know we missed some places.
Written August 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
FiveGsplus9
Oviedo, FL395 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
Fun walking among the many art stores. WARNING…RAD district map NOT drawn to scale. It was a one MILE walk from one zone to another. Looked like just a few blocks on the map. Two mile round trip walking just to get back to our car!!
Written July 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SurfSandArt
Ormond Beach, FL41 contributions
I loved many places in Asheville. This area, not as much.
The area is quite small, which is fine. The sidewalks are narrow and so are the streets, which is also fine. Hipsters abound, and that's okay.
What I object to (and I feel ashamed of admitting) is the 20 something street kids. They obstruct the sidewalk, smoke, spit, beg and worse, have poor dogs with them. As an artist I'm pretty bohemian, but this is just rude. Asheville could take a tip from Charleston or any other charming small city and find some way to assist these individuals and/or regulate panhandling and make this charming area even more pleasant.
The area is quite small, which is fine. The sidewalks are narrow and so are the streets, which is also fine. Hipsters abound, and that's okay.
What I object to (and I feel ashamed of admitting) is the 20 something street kids. They obstruct the sidewalk, smoke, spit, beg and worse, have poor dogs with them. As an artist I'm pretty bohemian, but this is just rude. Asheville could take a tip from Charleston or any other charming small city and find some way to assist these individuals and/or regulate panhandling and make this charming area even more pleasant.
Written August 19, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Brittany L
Locust, NC3 contributions
Nov 2018 • Couples
My husband and I planned a long weekend getaway in Asheville. We initially planned to book a room downtown, but decided against paying $300-500/night and opted for a less expensive hotel nearby on Tunnel Rd. VERY glad we did because when we did visit downtown Asheville on our last day. Out of the maybe 45 mins total we were walking on the streets, we were stopped twice by (what appeared to be) homeless pan handlers begging for "change". Since we don't carry cash, I offered to purchase the first some food. He told us there was a pizza hut "around the corner" and just wanted a slice of pizza. Never visiting here, I obliged only to find out he was meaning the Mellow Mushroom restaurant. I've never even been to Mellow Mushroom, so I thought surely we could get the man some food at a decent price. Come to find out they don't offer slices on the weekend, but they do have expensive calzones and full pizzas. We offered to buy him a calzone and a drink. Of course, he asked for a beer. At this point, I just wanted to get out of there, so I said sure, paid the $22 and left. Continuing our walk, we started keeping our head down because as the evening goes on, more and more panhandlers come out and they're NOT shy! With my head down, I noticed one (assuming homeless) man with no shoes as I was walking by and immediately broke down and started crying. I told my husband and insisted we go back and see if we could buy the man shoes. Mind you, downtown Asheville has NO reasonably priced stores where shoes are less than about $100, but since it was sure to be below freezing that night I didn't care. He was someone's son. We went back, but when I got a better look at the gentleman, I noticed that the rest of him seemed very well kept (hair styled, clothes decent, nice, expensive bag and guitar on his shoulders and he seemed to be "dressed up", as in like he was playing the part of a hippie homeless guy.) He definitely looked different than the actual homeless people we saw sleeping on the benches down the road prior. For this reason, we kept walking. We visited a few shops on our way to our dinner reservation that boasted with $45 pair of gloves. These shops were even out of our price range. Our dinner reservation was at Tupelo Honey. We had never visited this location, only the one in Charlotte as that is where we live near. Close to the restaurant is a mini "park" area in the middle of the intersection where most of the (again, assumed homeless) gathered and pan handled. This is where the second panhandler approached me, this time a female who was begging for "change" and claimed she is 4 months pregnant and hungry. I told her I was very sorry, but did not have any cash on me. She told me I could buy her some food and looked over her shoulder in the direction of Tupelo Honey, which was the only food option nearby where we were standing. I apologized again and kept walking. She didn't follow us, but I could tell she was annoyed we didn't offer to buy her dinner. At this point it hit me that these people stay in this area and have pretty expensive taste. It makes sense why they stay in that area. Not only is it a huge tourist spot, EVERYTHING is very overpriced! And I'm pretty sure they're well aware of this! We saw a couple of police officers drive by, but they are absolutely not concerned with the heavy presence of panhandlers harassing tourists. The City of Asheville should be ashamed. When we got back to the hotel, I looked it up and there are MULTIPLE homeless shelters and resources for people needing help in the area. I beat myself up for not offering the "pregnant" panhandler an Uber ride to the nearest Women's shelter, but I have a feeling that's not her game. I'm writing this review to let people know that downtown Asheville is NOT family friendly! I would NEVER bring my child here. The walk back to our vehicle (good luck finding parking anywhere near where you're trying to go, btw!) was scary! It was super dark and the "homeless" presence doubled in the time we were having dinner. I will not return, nor will I recommend coming to downtown to anyone in the future. The City needs to do a better job redirecting these folks from panhandling uptown. There are resources in place to help the people who WANT to be helped. But while these people are getting their expensive freebies, there's no reason to move out.
P.S. I've read a good bit of similar reviews and a good bit of people infuriated by them because they were being "judgemental" and "not embracing the diversity". Well, as you read, I did not judge, I offered to help, until I saw the trend with my own eyes. Diversity doesn't bother me a bit, it's the fact that dowtown is NOT somewhere I'd be willing to take children and be harrassed every block that I walk. This is my personal opinion and experience of downtown and I hope it will be useful to someone considering visiting.
P.S. I've read a good bit of similar reviews and a good bit of people infuriated by them because they were being "judgemental" and "not embracing the diversity". Well, as you read, I did not judge, I offered to help, until I saw the trend with my own eyes. Diversity doesn't bother me a bit, it's the fact that dowtown is NOT somewhere I'd be willing to take children and be harrassed every block that I walk. This is my personal opinion and experience of downtown and I hope it will be useful to someone considering visiting.
Written November 24, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I will be visiting in the area and want to do a day trip to the downtown area of Asheville, are there any outdoor benches along the wall? I'll have a person with some mobility issues. Also is there parking in the downtown area? Thank!
Written July 27, 2022
I am a single mom of three active boys 13,8,2 traveling alone to get away for a bit. Where is the best place to stay in asheville and also is the biltomore good for them to visit?
Written June 5, 2020
Dear Cindy,
Thank you for your question. The Downtown Asheville Art District Tripadvisor page pertains to art galleries, museums and other cultural institutions in the central downtown of Asheville.There is a wonderful website that you can visit which should be able to answer your questions. Please visit the exploreasheville web site for an extensive overview of what Asheville area has to offer.
Written June 6, 2020
How do I get a map of the Downtown Asheville Art District? I need to print it no later than Monday night, July 23. The website that promised to have one either doesn't have it or it is more difficult to figure out how to get it than I am prepared to deal with.
Written July 22, 2018
We got a map in the downtown area at many of the shops!
Written July 31, 2018
what businesses or museums are located here
Written February 16, 2017
The downtown art district which is a easily walkable area has mostly commercial galleries that show a very diverse selection of art. Exhibiting a wide range of art. They range from local to regional to national and international artists being shown.
The river arts district has gallery spaces that are generally run by the artists.
Written February 26, 2017
Is the art district open in Janurary? Jan 2 to be specific? What is the exact address?
Written November 3, 2016
There are two arts districts in Asheville, one downtown and the other along the river, which are actually areas with heavy concentrations of galleries, studios and workshops. Hard to say if the respective vendors will be open on the second, but you can get more information on the areas, the individual sites, maps, walking tour guides and lists of vendors by googling "Asheville Arts District". Lots to choose from there. Both areas also have lots of great restaurants.
Written November 3, 2016
Is Asheville worth an extended weekend visit for a couple from the New York City area who seek some Southern culture and charm?
Written July 6, 2016
Most definitely. The slower vibe of Asheville contrasts that of the Big Apple. Nestled in the Blue Ridge mountains, an air of relaxation and beauty abounds. Artists flock to the region, creating a quirky, unique arts district. The locals are friendly and are happy to share information about the local treasures. Just a few miles away Transylvania County has over 300 waterfalls to hike to from roadside vistas to deep woods bushwhacking. Be sure to pick up Kevin Adams' waterfall book if a nature escape is in your plans. Float down the French Broad or Davidson Rivers in a tube or kayak or spend a day ziplining through our forest canopies. If you are into the beer scene, then you've come to the right place. Asheville is the up-and-coming location for specialty crafted brews. Don't want to go it alone, then take a beer tour. The Biltmore state offers five-star dining as well as many hiking trails, segways, and off roading adventures. Be sure to stop at Biltmore Village directly across from the estate for lunch and boutique shopping. Every type of restaurant is at your fingertips from fine French cuisine at Bouchon, tappas at Zambras, health & vegetarian dishes at The Early Girl Eatery to countless others. If you want to get your hands dirty, many of the artists in the River Arts District (RAD) offers day classes from painting to pottery or glass working. Be sure to stop at the Woolworth Walk on Haywood Street to enjoy the best quality arts and crafts from local artists. Enjoy!
Written July 6, 2016
We are really looking forward to visiting Downtown Asheville. We've heard so much about it. We have only 2 days in the area and aren't sure which day to plan for seeing the Arts District. Would you suggest Saturday or Sunday. I know some of the galleries are closed on Sunday, but have also heard it is really quite crowded on Saturdays. Any suggestions you can offer would be most appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Written May 9, 2016
Asheville-crowded is not Atlanta-crowded. Ever been to a National Park on a holiday? It's like that -- just a few more people than usual, but they are polite and aware that sharing the experience is part of the experience. One of the best things about Asheville is the people.
Written May 23, 2016
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