Charlotte

Best things to do in Charlotte

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   1. Carowinds

   • A full day
   • Tickets needed
   • Families
   • Active
   • Adults

   A 407-acre amusement park that straddles the North Carolina and South Carolina state line, with more than 60 rides. Fury 325 is billed as the world's tallest and fastest giga coaster. Carolina Harbor is a 26-acre water park.

   Tickets and passes are sold online. The page we read gave no season dates or daily hours, so check the park's calendar. SCarowinds, a Halloween event with horror themes, runs on select nights in autumn and is not aimed at young children.

   7,652 readers a month

   Sources

   • Six Flags, Carowinds
   • Wikipedia, Carowinds

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   2. Lake Norman

   • Half a day
   • No booking needed
   • Families
   • Couples
   • Active

   The largest man-made body of fresh water entirely within North Carolina, about 15 miles north of Charlotte. It was created between 1959 and 1964 by the Cowans Ford Dam.

   4,918 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Lake Norman

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   3. NASCAR Hall of Fame

   • 2 to 3 hours
   • Tickets needed
   • Families
   • Adults
   • Rainy day
   • No car needed

   A hall of fame for the motorsports organisation NASCAR that opened in Charlotte on 11 May 2010. It honours drivers, crew chiefs, owners, broadcasters and other figures.

   The site lists it as open Wednesday to Monday, 10am to 5pm, with tickets bought online. Check the current schedule.

   2,871 readers a month

   Sources

   • NASCAR Hall of Fame
   • Wikipedia, NASCAR Hall of Fame

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   4. Uptown Charlotte

   • 2 to 3 hours
   • No booking needed
   • Couples
   • No car needed
   • Rainy day

   The central business district, also called Center City, split into four wards by the crossing of Trade and Tryon Streets. It is the largest business district in the Carolinas.

   1,839 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Uptown Charlotte

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   5. U.S. National Whitewater Center

   • Half a day to a full day
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Families
   • Active
   • Adults

   An outdoor centre of about 1,300 acres beside the Catawba River with more than 50 miles of trail. Activities listed on its site include whitewater rafting and kayaking, ziplines, climbing, ropes courses, mountain biking and hiking.

   Its site says a waiver is required and passes are sold online. We did not find entry or parking fees or reservation rules, so check before you go.

   1,132 readers a month

   Sources

   • U.S. National Whitewater Center
   • Wikipedia, U.S. National Whitewater Center

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   6. Reed Gold Mine

   • 2 to 3 hours
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Families
   • Active

   The site of the first documented commercial gold find in the United States, in Midland, Cabarrus County. It is a National Historic Landmark.

   The sources we read do not give opening times or ticket details. Check before you go.

   817 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Reed Gold Mine
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   7. Mint Museum

   • 1 to 2 hours per museum
   • Check entry rules before you go
   • Couples
   • Adults
   • Rainy day
   • No car needed

   A cultural institution made up of two museums in Charlotte, Mint Museum Randolph and Mint Museum Uptown, with collections of art and design from around the world.

   The sources we read do not give opening times or ticket details. Check before you go.

   594 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Mint Museum

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   8. NoDa arts district

   • 1 to 2 hours
   • No booking needed
   • Couples
   • Adults

   A popular arts district in the North Charlotte neighbourhood, centred on North Davidson Street and 36th Street, about two and a half miles northeast of Uptown. It was formerly a textile manufacturing area with mill workers' homes.

   527 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, NoDa

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   9. Freedom Park

   • 1 to 2 hours
   • No booking needed
   • Families
   • Couples
   • Active

   A 98-acre park at 1900 East Boulevard between the Dilworth and Myers Park neighbourhoods, centred on a 7-acre lake. It is about 3 miles from Uptown.

   502 readers a month

   Sources

   • Wikipedia, Freedom Park (Charlotte, North Carolina)

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    10. Bechtler Museum of Modern Art

    • 1 to 2 hours
    • Check entry rules before you go
    • Couples
    • Adults
    • Rainy day
    • No car needed

    A 36,500-square-foot museum of mid-20th-century modern art in Uptown, part of the Levine Center for the Arts. The building was designed by architect Mario Botta.

    The sources we read do not give opening times or ticket details. Check before you go.

    491 readers a month

    Sources

    • Wikipedia, Bechtler Museum of Modern Art

Just missed the list: Discovery Place Science (11th by readers; an Uptown science museum with an IMAX Dome); Crowders Mountain State Park (12th by readers; a 5,217-acre state park with climbing cliffs)