To me, part of the charm of Asheville is its downtown's walk-ability so we always try to stay within walking distance of downtown. That way we don't have to worry about driving/parking when enjoying all the great bars and restaurants.

Here's a good site for hiking options close to town:

http://www.romanticasheville.com/hiking.html

Great website. Any suggestions on where to stay and eat?

Where to stay: I like the Haywood Park Hotel. Right downtown and easy access to everything there.
Where to eat:
Market Place
Fig
Table
Corner Kitchen
Limones
Red Stag Grill
Grovewood Cafe
In nearby Weaverville
Stony Knob and Welbred Bakery
Best ice cream in town is at Ultimate Ice Cream

Have fun. It's a great town. Stop in at the park offices for suggestions on hikes along the Blue Ridge.

Haywood Park is the best location. The Renaissance Asheville is another good choice. Likely cheaper would be the Four Points Asheville which is a slightly longer walk, but not much. Depends on how much you want to spend.

It's been a couple years, so I'm hesitant to recommend restaurants, but have had good meals at Limones and Market Place. Beers at Jack of the Wood are always a must.

Thanks for the quick replies. I'll go look now. We plan to get our reservations before this weekend. Do we need reservations for the restaurants? Guess I can check their websites.

That will be busy season, so I'd bet you'd want to reserve for dinners(maybe a week in advance), especially on weekends.

There are some great Bed & Breakfasts within walking distance to town for a really wonderful experience.

How are you coming to Asheville? and for how long. Lexington will be a 5 or 6 hour drive from Asheville.

If you do not know, Asheville has been voted Beer City USA 4 years on a row. Here's the top 10 beer cities in the US.
http://www.beerinfo.com/index.php/pages/BeerCityUSA2012.html

Your saw our trip report. We loved where we stayed!

Recently spent a few days in Asheville. We stayed at the Hilton in Biltmore Park Town Square and enjoyed the experience. Lots of places to eat and shop. Barnes and Nobles next door to hotel and Starbucks there. It is approximately a 15 minute drive into Asheville. However, if we return we will stay at the Haywood Park Hotel since it is in the historic center of Asheville. You could check out the websites and decide which would best meet your needs.

www.biltmorepark.com

www.haywoodpark.com

Happy travels!

Thanks for all of the information. Trying to get reservations at Haywood Park Hotel. I got called in to work all weekend and didn't get them made.
We will be driving from Starkville to Chatanooga for our first night. Then up to Asheville for 3 nights to see the views, waterfalls, and downtown. Our next night will be on the road depending on what we want to see. We will be at the Griffin Gate Marriott in Lexington for Friday and Saturday.
Any "do not miss" sights and restaurants would be appreciated. The Market Place looks good

Got the reservations at Haywood Park Hotel. Also, at Hampton Inn & Suites Chatanooga/Downtown in Chattanooga, TN.

The only American to work at El Bulli (very famous, now closed in Spain) has a place that is fabulous! Curate' is open for tapas and such and we loved it! I would definitely recommend going there. We also love to eat at Bouchon for the mussels and other good french country food. We sometimes stay at Grove Park Inn for the spa and drinks in the bar area....at least make a trip up there to see the hotel - it is really pretty interesting. Have a great trip!!

One more thing. Brevard is a great little town that is nearby and it has amazing hiking nearby for waterfalls and beautiful scenery!

If you have time on your quick stop in Chattanooga perhaps you could check out the Bluffview Arts District for the old homes, lots of interesting sculptures and sit in the courtyard and have a latte and pastry at Rembrandt's. Try to take a walk (or run) on the bridge across the river. It has benches where you can sit and relax and enjoy the views. Your hotel is on one side of the bridge with lots of other hotels, the aquarium and other attractions plus lots of chain restaurants. Across the bridge you find more quaint shops, donut shop, combo used book store and art gallery and a few places to eat that are not chains. They also have a free hop on hop off bus that will take you all around the area and worth a ride just to see what you might want to see. The Hunter Museum is in the Bluffview district and we enjoyed it, but with your short time there you might want to skip. I assume you are only spending one night. You will find all of this area very walkable. Have fun!!!!