Are you looking for your next family getaway? Have you heard of Sugar Mountain before? What about Banner Elk? No?! Well, you are in for a treat. Sugar Mountain is located in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina.
You can plan to have a blast skiing, snow tubing, ice skating, hiking to waterfalls, and exploring caverns. These are just to name a few of the fun activities that await you. Come check out what my family got into on our weekend getaway to Sugar Mountain.
Table of Contents
Stay
There are many places to stay on Sugar Mountain, but we chose to stay on the tippy-top! To be honest, the building itself is a bit of an eye sore. It definitely adds an industrialized look to an otherwise beautiful mountain landscape.
However, with naturalistic feelings aside, the views are unbeatable. You are sleeping in the clouds, literally! Being able to watch the ski slopes out of your window is not a bad perk either.
Sugar Top Resort is personally-owned condos that are rented out through airbnb and vrbo. The resort and amenities are basic, but everything you need to have a good experience. There is an indoor pool on-site, which is a nice bonus for the kiddos.
The biggest issue with “sleeping in the clouds” is the parking situation. Being on top of a mountain makes parking options limited, who would have thought?
Aside from dropping off your bags, you have to park on a lower level and ride a shuttle back up. The lot is less than half a mile from the condos, so not a huge inconvenience. The shuttle was timely, and this was not a deal breaker for us.
Experience
With the kids being 5 and 3 we were not brave enough to take on skiing or snowboarding. We hope to go back and experience that when they are a bit older.
To access the ski resort, skating rink, and tubing hill you enter at the bottom of the mountain.
Pro tip: if you don’t want to venture up the mountain for lodging with a view. Then there are many places to stay in the Banner Elk area at the base of the mountain.
Snow Tubing
Like most activities, the crowds get thicker throughout the day. We opted to go for the first snow tube of the morning. This also helped us snag a close parking spot. We are all about avoiding crowds if at all possible. I’m sure we are not alone here, right?
We arrived early bought our tickets and hung out in the pro shop until it was our time to tube. The shop is in between the tubing lanes and the ice skating rink. It provides shopping and a sandwich-style restaurant. Which is nice for a bite in between adventures.
The kids loved our time snow tubing. Living in central NC, our snow adventures are few and far in between. Creating this core memory for them warmed our hearts. My son requests regularly to return to ‘go sledding’.
Ice Skating
This was both of my kids’ first experience ice skating. They were little pro’s! Even my 3-year-old, as you can see in this reel, was determined to figure it out. May we all have his determination in tackling things we don’t know how to do!
We were fortunate enough to have this US Olympic size rink pretty much to ourselves. To read more about making this experience a reality check out Ski Southeast.
Linville Falls
I found my love for hiking when I became a new mom. I had a high level of excitement that my kiddos were now old enough to join us. Our experience was a little icy, as you can see, but we made it! Good thing we practiced ice skating the day before ; P
The hike itself is super easy with no elevation. There are a few different trails that lead to waterfalls. However, the icy path to the one was enough for my son. If you want to hike more than a mile with a three-year-old I highly recommend a backpack carrier.
Linville Caverns
Have you ever explored an underground cavern? A cool thing to mark off the ole bucket list. There is an added bonus that the drive from Linville Falls there is beautiful.
Don’t make our mistake, purchase the tickets before you go. They sell out quickly. The trip was not a total loss. Thanks to the scenic drive, the public bathrooms, and the on-site rock bed. Kids always love to climb rocks, right?!
Linville Gorge
Off to our next adventure, a little off-road expedition. A bumpy dirt road will take you up a mountain to the Linville Gorge Overlook. The overlook is a must-see. The hike out is short, flat, and paved. Appropriate for all ages and is handy cap accessible.
Judging by Tilley’s face she might have thought it was a bit high, what do you think?
Food
Us foodies are going to let you down on this trip! Since we rented a condo we had a full kitchen and chose to keep it simple. The kids were zonked after our big snow day so we cooked a frozen pizza.
The only recommendation we have is The Pedalin’ Pig BBQ, that we noshed on after our hiking adventure. It was a fun environment with good eats.
However, I will not leave you hanging. In general, Banner Elk has great local mom-and-pop restaurant options. Varieties in cuisine and fun environments!
Takeaway
This is but a snippet of opportunities that lie in wait for you in the greater Sugar Mountain/Banner Elk area.
Did I mention, Grandfather mountain is right around the corner? Oh, I forgot to tell you about Linville Winery! Way to bury the lead, Katie!
I’ll keep it short, there are many wineries and breweries in the area to check out. So make sure you do!
Travel gives us an opportunity to escape the day-to-day routine. Our kids enjoy that break as much as we do.
What’s really cool is they have no expectations. They will love whatever you feel is appropriate. Especially if it is an activity that lights you up! Those sweet little nuggets feed off our energy. Pretty cool, huh?
Thank you for joining our virtual expedition. I hope it will serve you well on yours!
If you are feeling overwhelmed because you don’t have the time to research and plan out this trip to meet your specific likes and desires, I can help! Think of me as your research assistant.
With my knowledge of the area, I can quickly put together a plan that works for your family personally. All you will have to do is book the reservations I find for you.
Message me if you are interested in learning more. Currently, planning prices are very low but spaces are limited.
If you are a master planner, perfect! I invite you to join along on our future adventures by signing up to be my travel buddy. You will start off receiving a guide to help you get your next trip booked quicker!
Until next time, keep planning your biggest dreams.
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