Carolina's Holidays & Accommodation
USA, North America
The two Carolina's were a single colony until 1729, when they were named after Charles I of England. The geography is varied, full of mountains, hills, lakes, rivers, and waterfalls, and a very humid subtropical climate which mean very mild winters. There are plenty of historical landmarks and urban landscapes to visit in North and South Carolina, from Charlotte in North Carolina to historic Charleston in South Carolina. For a spectacular historical site, you may want to visit the spectacular Biltmore Estate near Asheville, North Carolina, the largest privately-owned home in the United States, still held in the hands of the Vanderbilt family.
Carolina's Holidays Planner
In North Carolina the geography varies from the Appalachians to the Piedmont Plateau to the Coastal Plateau. Of course, there are the beaches to consider as well. If you want to go climbing or rappelling, you may want to explore the mountains near Boone, or you may want to explore Stone Mountain State Park near Roaring Gap where, in addition to climbing opportunities, you can hike, see waterfalls, and fish in mountain streams. Maybe, as a budding botanist, you will want to try your hand at spotting the Venus Fly Trap in Carolina Beach State Park, or maybe you will want to take a trail ride near Marshall. There are endless opportunities in this beautiful state.
There are two important historical sites to visit: Averasboro Civil War Battlefield Museum and Chicora Cemetery, the site of a battle in the Civil War and the adjoining cemetery where the battle's dead are buried. Others may be interested in the African American Cultural Complex in Raleigh where the contributions of leading innovators in science, business, politics and medicine are explored.
If you want an urban respite after your visit to the countryside, there are plenty of urban playgrounds to explore. Charlotte, North Carolina, otherwise known as the Queen City, hosts the Levine Museum of the New South, a museum chronicling the development of the south since the civil war; and the Discovery Place, a great place for young and old alike to explore scientific displays with hands on exhibits. Also in North Carolina is Raleigh, the City of Oaks, and you can visit the Museum of Natural Sciences and see the only dinosaur in the world with a fossilized heart, or you can visit the North Carolina Museum of Art.
Heading into South Carolina, don't miss Caesars Head State Park which has great hiking and fishing and where you can see thousands of migrating hawks in the autumn. You may also want to visit a living history farm in Kings Mountain State Park near Blacksburg for the experience of a typical 19th century Piedmont Farm with a barn, cotton gin, blacksmith, and carpenter shop. For historians, Camden Battlefield is a site of a famous battle of the American Revolution in August of 1780, or see the ageing Church of the Holy Cross near Sumter, which was constructed out of rammed earth and still hosts a congregation to this day.
The Sea Islands of South Carolina are a chain of tidal islands on the Atlantic that were originally settled by indigenous cultures, but later became the site for many colonial missions by the Spanish. Popular to visit is Edisto Island which remains rustic with some cabins for rent, a salt marsh, beach to visit and some Native American archaeological sites to visit.