PGA Tour's Biltmore Championship in Asheville to Debut in September
After eight decades, the PGA Tour returns to the Land of Sky with the inaugural Biltmore Championship in Asheville, set for Sept. 17-20 at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove in Arden. As part of a four-year agreement, Biltmore Estate and Explore Asheville will serve as co-title sponsors for the event, part of the FedExCup Fall. The 7,167-yard Jack Nicklaus-designed course, which appears on Golf Digest's list of NC's best, sits in a valley that borders Pisgah National Forest and the Blue Ridge Parkway on former farmland laced with streams and mountain laurel woodlands. The PGA Tour's last Asheville stint ended in 1942 with the Land of Sky Open, which ran for four years with Ben Hogan winning the final three. The new event is expected to draw more than 100 players and thousands of spectators.
Penguin Point Nears Completion at Sylvan Heights Bird Park
Critically endangered African penguins will become part of the Sylvan Heights Bird Park experience this fall with the opening of Penguin Point. As part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums' Species Survival Plan, Penguin Point will be home to 16 members of the charismatic species with the first phase opening Oct. 17. The new exhibit area will feature habitat and viewing area, a dive pool, and a behind-the-scenes area for penguin care. Sylvan Heights, which opened in 2006, is home to the world's largest collection of exotic and rare waterfowl as well as parrots, toucans, flamingos and other exotic birds from around the world. The 28-acre campus includes gardens and natural areas with a mile of mostly paved paths. Located in Scotland Neck, Sylvan Heights is about half an hour's drive from I-95 near Roanoke Rapids.
Land of Oz Returns with New, Well-Loved Immersions
Good news for L. Frank Baum fans: The magical experience returns to Beech Mountain with the 2026 Homecoming Season at the Land of Oz, which sat out last season in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. The comeback, which began in June with a new "Tea With Dorothy and Aunt Em" experience, continues Sept. 11-13, Sept. 18-20 and Sept. 25-27 with Autumn at Oz, which re-creates the twister and Dorothy's adventures on the Yellow Brick Road, a ¾-mile pathway paved with gold-glazed bricks. The Land of Oz theme park opened in 1970 with Debbie Reynolds and daughter Carrie Fisher making the scene. It closed after the 1980 season. Click here for a complete history of the park and its revival through Autumn at Oz.
NASCAR Cup Series Racing Returns to North Wilkesboro
After its 2023 revival and triple turn as NASCAR All-Stars Race host, historic North Wilkesboro Speedway returns to the Cup Series lineup with the Window World 400 on July 18. Sponsored by the locally based company, it will be the storied short track’s first NASCAR points race in 30 years. Part of NASCAR’s inaugural 1949 season, the track hosted Cup events until 1996 (Jeff Gordon won the final race). With a resurrection effort that included a Dale Earnhardt Jr.-organized cleanup for an iRacing scan, the track captured new glory with the All-Star Race and sparked driver calls for a points event. In other Cup Series action: Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord will host the Bank of America 400 on Oct. 11. And in other racing news, the famed Rockingham Dragway will host its first National Hot Rod Association national event in September. NHRA Nationals at The Rock take place Sept. 25-27 as NHRA celebrates its 75th anniversary season.
Carolina Museum of the Marine Sets Opens in Jacksonville
Lejeune Memorial Gardens in Jacksonville has welcomed a new signature attraction with the June 8 opening of the Carolina Museum of the Marine. Paying tribute to North and South Carolina Marines and Sailors, the 25,000-square-foot museum invites visitors to “meet the Marine” through the personal stories of 43 Marines and Sailors. Exhibits span World War II through Vietnam and the Global War on Terrorism up to contemporary times. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune was established on May 1, 1941, as an amphibious training facility. Paths through the 5-acre Lejeune Memorial Gardens lead to the Beirut Memorial, the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Montford Point Marine Memorial and the 9/11 Memorial Beam from the World Trade Center.
Titanic Comes to Life in Charlotte With an NC Element
"Titanic: The Exhibition," an immersive experience from Imagine Exhibitions, is docked at the Park Expo & Conference Center in Charlotte until Labor Day to chronicle the story of what was the world's most luxurious ship. Upon entering, guests receive a boarding card to trace a real passenger’s journey before stepping into re-created cabins to experience life on board. From there, they proceed through galleries showcasing more than 300 artifacts from the Titanic and other White Star Line vessels and eventually discover the ship's resting place 2.5 miles down on the ocean floor. The journey concludes at a memorial wall, where guests reflect on the 1912 tragedy and learn the fate of their assigned passenger. The Charlotte experience, which follows stops in Chicago, Dallas, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles, includes “Titanic’s Connections to the Carolinas,” a gallery recounting the initial telegraph distress message, which was received at the Cape Hatteras U.S. Weather Bureau Station on the Outer Banks. The ship sank three hours later.
'Luminere' Enhances the Biltmore Experience With Light, Sound, Stories
Biltmore adds an extra glow with “Luminere,” a light, imagery and sound experience that unfolds as day turns to dusk on the Asheville estate. Made in collaboration with the experiential design studio Klip Collective, “Luminere” reimagines the façade of the 250-room Biltmore House and the estate’s renowned gardens as a dreamscape of color, motion, sound and storytelling. On select evenings, guests embark on a self-guided journey through outdoor settings. With a series of projections on the front of George W. Vanderbilt’s mansion, milestones in the 8,000-acre estate’s history come to life. Scenes inspired by Biltmore’s architecture, landscapes and legacy are set to an original score by Julian Grefe. Artisan picnics on the grounds, craft beverages served in the garden and curated menus in estate restaurants enhance the experience. “Luminere” runs through Oct. 18.
Trolls Take Up Residence in NC Cities
Raleigh, High Point and Charlotte have become the forever home of the largest North American collection of Danish recycle artist Thomas Dambo’s celebrated troll sculptures with the creation of seven outsize figures. At Raleigh’s Dix Park, the awakening began with five trolls crafted from natural and reclaimed materials that are connected via storyline to one each in High Point and Charlotte, which come with a quest to find The Grandmother Tree. The NC seven join more than 150 other Thomas Dambo sculptures that have transformed public spaces, forests and greenways across five continents and attracted a devoted following that pursues the artist’s global Trollmap.
National Trust Recognizes NC Furniture Craftsman Studio
The Thomas Day State Historic Site in Milton is among 13 new additions to the list of Historic Artists' Homes and Studios, a program of the National Trust. Day (1801-1861), a free Black cabinetmaker, was known for his blend of Greek Revival, Gothic and Italianate influences and his bold, original forms. With help from the enslaved people on his property and free artisans living with him, Day became the state's largest furniture maker in the 1850s. The site tells the story of his life and craft within the broader history of free Black life in the antebellum South. More examples of Day's work, which is part of the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the NC Museum of Art, can also be seen at Milton Presbyterian Church, the Richmond-Miles History Museum in Yanceyville, and the restored Historic Magnolia House in Greensboro, a former Green Book site whose guest list included James Brown, Ike and Tina Turner, Jackie Robinson and James Baldwin.
47 NC Restaurants Featured in MICHELIN Guide American South
Charlotte’s Counter- tops the list of NC restaurants recognized in the inaugural MICHELIN Guide American South, which was unveiled Nov. 3. In addition to the star rating for Counter-, Colleen Hughes of Charlotte’s Supperland received a Michelin Exceptional Cocktails Award, and Counter- and Asheville’s Luminosa earned Green Stars for their inspiring visions. Luminosa also received a Bib Gourmand designation for good food and good value as did Mala Pata and Sam Jones BBQ in Raleigh; Prime Barbecue in Knightdale; Little Chango and Mother in Asheville; and Lang Van in Charlotte. Find an interactive map with all 47 restaurants and descriptions at VisitNC.com. The Guide covers Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Atlanta as well as North Carolina.