Appalachian Pinball Museum
The Appalachian Pinball Museum has a collection of both vintage & contemporary pinball machines as well as video games.
- Play all day for a flat fee.
- Hours vary by season, call for details.
Apple Valley Model Railroad Museum – Historic Train Depot
Apple Valley Model Railroad Museum
650 Maple Avenue
Hendersonville, NC 28792
Hendersonville, NC 28792
The first steam engine puffed up the Saluda Grade to the Hendersonville Depot in 1879. The steam engine needed a “help engine” attached to the rear of the train at Melrose for additional power to push the train up the Saluda Mountain Grade, the steepest mainline standard gauge railroad in the United States. The Carolina Special ran between Charleston, South Carolina and Cincinnati, Ohio from 1911 until 1968. The restored Depot houses a HO scale railroad layout that is highly detailed and is prototypical of Hendersonville, Saluda, Asheville, and Western North Carolina. The Deport features historical artifacts, a Southern Railway caboose and a special children’s exhibit where visitors can operate a Thomas the Tank train in a scenic layout. See the 10ft x 80ft Garden “G” scale layout.
- Open Wednesdays & Saturdays
- Admission is free
- Donations appreciated
- Check website for hours
Biltmore Estate
Biltmore is the largest privately-owned home in America situated on 8,000 acres. It was built by George Vanderbilt and was completed in 1895. Vanderbilt’s 250-room mansion is modeled after a French château. The Estate encompasses the house, landscaped gardens, walking trails, woodlands, restaurants, shops, inn, and an award-winning winery. Located 22 miles north of Hendersonville.
- Reservations required to tour the house.
- Outdoor Adventure Center – hiking, biking carriage rides, horse back riding, fly-fishing, river floats, sporting clays and more.
Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site
Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site
1800 Little River Road
Flat Rock, NC 28731
Flat Rock, NC 28731
Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site is where Carl Sandburg, American poet, historian, author, and lecturer spent the final 22 years of his long and productive life at his estate, Connemara. The home, originally built in 1838, displays the Sandburg’s furnishing as they lived at Connemara from 1945-1968, including Carl Sandburg’s collection of 12,000 books. Tour the home for a small fee, and learn about Sandburg’s life as a writer, journalist, folk singer, social activist and Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and biographer. Visit the barn and descendants of Mrs. Sandburg’s champion dairy goat herd and hike over five miles of trails. Access to trails, grounds, barns and public areas is free.
- Open year-round. Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas & New Year’s Day
- Admission charged for house tour
Cherokee, NC
Located approximately 1.5 hours from Hendersonville is Cherokee, NC, the capital of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, one of only 3 Cherokee tribes recognized in the United States. Often mistaken as a “Cherokee Indian Reservation,” the area, also known as Qualla Boundary, was purchased by the tribe in the 1870s. The land itself is where Cherokee Indians have lived for centuries and is located on the border of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The area is still rich in its ancient customs, culture, history and traditions.
Major attractions include:
- “Unto These Hills,” an outdoor drama that has been performed since the 1950s to tell the Cherokee story — updated to reflect modern day Cherokee life
- The Museum of the Cherokee Indian, which expertly combines traditional museum displays with modern, interactive video displays and full-sensory experiences to share the history and culture of the Cherokee people
- The Oconaluftee Indian Village, where you will and be transported to the 1700s, on an interactive journey through Cherokee lifestyle and history, which includes traditional Cherokee dwellings, work areas, and sacred ritual sites, as well as cultural dance performances, arts and crafts, demonstrations and more
- Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, which offers non-stop entertainment, including gaming tables and slots, dining, live entertainment and more
Hands On! Children’s Museum
We provide children and families with “hands on” educational exhibits and science programs that stimulate the imagination and motivate learning in a fun, safe environment. We believe that our community’s future is determined by the priority we place on our children!
- Open Tuesday – Saturday
- Special Events weekly
- Birthday Party bookings available
Henderson County Heritage Museum
Henderson County Heritage Museum
1 Historic Courthouse Square #4
Hendersonville, NC 28792
Hendersonville, NC 28792
Henderson County Heritage Museum is housed in the Historic Henderson County Courthouse on Main Street. It offers public displays, artifacts, lectures, collections, archives, libraries, demonstrations, and other exhibitions relating to the history, culture and heritage of Henderson County. The museum celebrates veterans of all wars, and has an Civil War Display.
- Open Wednesday-Saturday from 10:00am – 5:00pm & Sunday from 1:00 – 5:00pm
- Admission is Free
Historic Flat Rock Cultural Center Museum
Historic Flat Rock Cultural Center Museum
118 Village Center Drive
Flat Rock, NC 28731
Flat Rock, NC 28731
The Cultural Center of Historic Flat Rock is a museum and cultural center located in the “Old Flat Rock Post Office” building, operated by Historic Flat Rock, Inc. The Center houses Flat Rock artifacts and original furniture from the post office as well as antique furniture manufactured in Flat Rock. It is operated by Historic Flat Rock, Inc.
- Open on Saturdays from 11 am – 3 pm, May – September
- Call to schedule an appointment on other days
- Closed October – April
- Meeting space for lectures, book groups and discussions
Historic Johnson Farm
Historic Johnson Farm is a fine example of a late 19th and early 20th-century farm & tourist retreat. The entire structure was handmade from bricks that were fired on-site from French Broad River mud. Over the years many outbuildings were constructed, including a tool shed/blacksmith shop, barn, boarding house, and a cottage. The property offers historic home tours, nature trails, picnic tables, animals, and 10 historic structures on 15 acres filled with trees in a natural setting. The Heritage Weavers and Fiber Artists have transformed the boarding house into a fiber arts center, which includes weaving, rug hooking, bobbin lace, spinning, or knitting.
- Offers summer day camp for children ages 6-14
- Guided tours of the historic house are available Monday-Friday, call for times.
Mineral & Lapidary Museum of Henderson County
Mineral & Lapidary Museum of Henderson County
400 N Main Street
Hendersonville, NC 28792
Hendersonville, NC 28792
The Mineral & Lapidary Museum features the natural beauty of minerals, gems, fossils and artifacts found in North Carolina, in the United States and around the world. Displays include North Carolina minerals, dinosaur egg cluster, English minerals, fluorescent minerals, geodes, petrified wood & large logs, coral, artfully crafted jewelry, gem stones, Cullinan Diamond replicas and a Henderson County Meteorite, on loan from the Smithsonian, are featured displays. Gift shop is open daily. Geode cracking. Free admission!
- Open Monday-Friday 1pm-5pm and Saturday 10am-5pm (Winter Hours: open Wednesday – Saturday).
- Admission is free.
- Located on the lower level of the Henderson County Genealogical & Historical Society building.
Saluda Historic Depot
- Saluda’s 1903 train station houses a heritage museum highlighting the vital role of the railroad in this mountain town’s history.
- Exhibits include a diorama of the famous Saluda Grade – the steepest mainline standard gauge railroad grade in the United States – and a diorama depicting Saluda’s various railroading eras.
- Railroad artifacts.
- Videos of trains climbing the Saluda Grade.
- Admission is free.
- Scheduled tours are available.
- Open Thursday-Sunday (call for hours)
Western North Carolina Air Museum
The Western North Carolina Air Museum
1340 E. Gilbert Street
Hendersonville, NC 28793
Hendersonville, NC 28793
North Carolina’s first air museum is dedicated to preserving and promoting the flying heritage of the Western North Carolina. It features an impressive collection of restored, replica and vintage airplanes, models, engines, and flying memorabilia, including a few new planes in the collection. The museum is housed in two large hangers, where you will find passionate volunteer pilots that are eager to show you around. You will also find a great Museum Gift Shop with a number of gifts, replicas, toys and books — something for the aviation enthusiast at every age!
- No admission charge
- Call for days and times museum is open
- Advance reservations for groups requested
