Things to do / Travel Guide
The tours in the southern Appalachian Mountains are almost always history-based. They'll give you a better feel for the region's strengths, when this or that building was built and why. For nature, you'll find the tours grouped in the Shenandoah and the mountains in western North Carolina; for history you'll find them relating to the Civil War or to the region's larger cities - Charlottesville, Asheville, and Knoxville. They're mostly walking tours.
Western Virginia Tours
In western Virginia, the main tour operators are Old Virginia Tours, which transports visitors by van to different sites for walking tours. They discuss nature as well, but mostly concentrate on history. In this regard, nearly everything is covered, in the Shenandoah as well as in and around Charlottesville. If you're interested in the Civil War battlefields of Piedmont or Cross Keys, they'll have plenty to tell and act out. If you're interested in Monticello or Montpelier, you can take tours of up to half a day in length.
The city of Staunton can also be taken up at length, and they can also give tours of Luray Caverns. Appomattox Court House, where the Civil War was concluded, can also be visited. The shortest of these tours are 1.5 hours, the longest are five hours. There's a lot of fluidity to these tours, so you can request changes, or for them to pick you up from a certain location. They're based near Staunton, in Raphine.
Both Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and James Madison's Montpelier can be elucidated by the experienced guides running these historical sites. Both inside the houses and outside are toured; you'll receive explanations of how the houses were built, where the furniture came from, the personal habits of the presidents, and stories relating to their respective houses. They also talk about the lives of the houses' other residents, including those of the African American slaves. The tours last around an hour, then you can wander around a little bit.
Western North Carolina Tours
Most of the tours in this part of the region are based out of Ashville. First on anyone's list for a tour around here must be Biltmore Estate, which is the largest privately-owned residence in the U.S. Built by George Vanderbilt in the twilight years of the 19th century, to be similar in appearance to the great French castle-mansions in France's Loire Valley. With so much space within and without, you can bet a tour at this edifice will be stunning, to say the least.
A really good Asheville tour, done in 70 minutes, is the trolley tour. It departs at least four times a day from the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce, and once you buy a ticket you can get on and off the trolley as many times as you want. Along the way the guide speaks about such attractions as Grove Park Inn, the Thomas Wolfe Home and Museum, the Historic Grove Arcade Building, and Biltmore Village.
You can find plenty of walking tours in Asheville, to visit City Hall and the downtown area, plus the neighborhoods of Montfort and Chestnut Hill. Other tour companies can pick you up from your hotel or bed and breakfast.
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