Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Centers 

Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Centers offer information, recreation and education to travelers. Along the 469 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway are several visitor centers in both Virginia and North Carolina. Each offer a variety of opportunities as you travel along the parkway.The visitors centers are a great place to stop, relax and take a break. The centers are also a great place to learn more about the parkway. The different visitors centers offer everything from picnic areas, bathrooms, campgrounds, exhibits, hiking trails, movies, music, shopping, snacks and drink plus more. These visitor centers also offer craft demonstrations,music events, exhibits, historical and cultural information about the local, hiking trails, wildflowers, amphitheater, books, arts and crafts, and much more.

 

Here are just a few of the many Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Centers and what they offer as you travel along the BRP in Virginia and North Carolina.

BRP Visitor Centers in Virginia

On the Blue Ridge Parkway at Milepost 85.6 – 90.9 in Virginia is the Peaks of Otter. The visitor center offers restrooms, water, and an amphitheater. It is open May through October. Postcards, books,and other items are available in the shop.This visitors center features an exhibit on wildflowers, birds, and animals of the Blue Ridge. Nearby is the Peaks of Otter Lodge and Abbott Lake. The lake is 24-acres and there is a one-mile loop trail to enjoy the beautiful scenery.

At Blue Ridge Parkway Milepost 161.1 – 176.1 is the popular Virginia visitors center of Mabry Mill with the Rocky Knob Visitor Center and Campground.
Mabry Mill has hiking, camping, hiking and picnicking. Maby Mill is one of the most-photographed structures along the Blue Ridge Parkway.

At Blue Ridge Parkway Milepost 213 is the Blue Ridge Music Center. The Blue Ridge Music Center is a state-of-the-art performing arts facility. It was built to preserve and promote the historic music of Virginia and the Blue Ridge mountains. Open from June through October the music center provides performances that exhibits music of the region at the 3,000-seat outdoor amphitheater. There is also an indoor theater for films and smaller performances and a shop for instrument construction.

Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Centers in North Carolina

At Blue Ridge Parkway Milepost 238.5 – 241 is Doughton Park Visitor Information Station and Park Store and Brinegar Cabin. Brinegar Cabin has craft demonstrations, over 30 hiking trails, campgrounds, and a picnic area.

Northwest Trading Post at Milepost 258 on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina offers a variety of craft items, books, pamphlets, snacks and souvenirs at the store. It’s a great place to see and buy regional arts and crafts and food gifts made in North Carolina’s northwestern counties.The trading post has food, drink, and handmade crafts from over 500 artisans in 11 NC counties.

Along the Blue Ridge Parkway at Milepost 382 is the Folk Art Center, Visitor Center and Park Store. The Folk Art Center has traditional and contemporary crafts of the Southern Appalachians. The center is home to the Southern Highland Craft Guild’s Allanstand Craft Shop, exhibitions in three galleries, a library, an auditorium, and a bookstore and Parkway information desk. Guild artisans demonstrate a variety of arts and crafts in the Folk Art Center lobby. here are daily craft demonstrations from March through December. The Folk Art Center near Asheville in North Carolina is a great place to buy parkway souvenirs or shop for unique hand-crafted treasures from southern Appalachian crafters.

At Blue Ridge Parkway Milepost 384 is the Parkway Visitor Center and Park Store. This visitors center has information that covers the entire 469 miles and history of the Parkway. The Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Center in Asheville, NC shows an award-winning film and has interactive exhibits on the natural, cultural, and recreational resources of the parkway and the region. The center has I-Wall, a 22-foot interactive map of the entire Parkway providing multi-media information on places to visit on and near the Blue Ridge Parkway. Enjoy exhibits that spotlight the region’s natural and cultural diversity, economic traditions and recreational opportunities.The movie The Blue Ridge Parkway-America’s Favorite Journey is a great way to get learn about the Blue Ridge Parkway and what it has to offer.

These are just a few of the many Blue Ridge Parkway Visitor Centers that are located along the Blue Ridge Parkway. Each offer a wide variety of opportunities. A quick bathroom break, a picnic lunch, a long hike, a snack, shopping, educational pamphlets, music, crafts, local food and much more is available as you travel the parkway and explore the Blue Ridge mountains of Virginia and North Carolina. Make sure to stop at one or more of the many Blue Ridge Parkway Visitors Centers.

Take a look at the Blue Ridge Parkway Visitors Center at Moses Cone Manor! Just one of many great places to stop along the parkway!