Skip to content

Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.

Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.

Monday, September 23, 2024
Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences
Sep 23 @ 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Big Ivy Community Center

CORE Programming

 

Buncombe County Parks & Recreation is proud to offer Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences (CORE) programming, which consists of free and engaging activities geared towards youth ages 5-15. CORE travels to parks and community centers around Buncombe County. The program takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences
Sep 23 @ 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Sandy Mush Community Center

 

CORE Programming

Buncombe County Parks & Recreation is proud to offer Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences (CORE) programming, which consists of free and engaging activities geared towards youth ages 5-15. CORE travels to parks and community centers around Buncombe County. The program takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Tuesday, September 24, 2024
Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences
Sep 24 @ 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Bent Creek Community Park

CORE Programming

Buncombe County Parks & Recreation is proud to offer Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences (CORE) programming, which consists of free and engaging activities geared towards youth ages 5-15. CORE travels to parks and community centers around Buncombe County. The program takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Creative Facilitator Training
Sep 24 @ 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Story Parlor

Story Parlor and Inward & Artward present: an interactive 18-week program on how to create and facilitate unique offerings rooted in the intersection of the creative process, personal stories, and the human condition. Tailored for folks interested in starting a new and fulfilling career path, or simply wanting to deepen and/or refresh their approach to holistic creative facilitation.

Guideposts Include:

  • Identifying creative blocks, obstacles, and breakthrough strategies for self and others

  • How to create and conduct creative-based groups, workshops, classes, and retreats

  • Teaching philosophy and ethics

  • The intersection of mindfulness and the creative process, and how to implement into facilitation

  • Nurturing a sustainable creative lifestyle, personally, professionally, and instructionally

  • Tools to excavate personal stories and ways they can be used for healing, transformation, and creative bounty

  • Marketing, business planning, and logistics

  • Two one-on-one creativity coaching sessions

Early Bird pricing through March 31 | $1600
Regular price effective April 1 | $1850

Class dates include Tuesdays from 6:30-9:00pm
5/14, 5/21, 5/28, 6/4, 6/11, 6/18, 6/25, 7/9, 7/16, 7/23, 7/30, 8/6, 8/13, 8/20, 8/27, 9/10, 9/17, 9/24
Some classes will be conducted over zoom; Final three meetings will go till 9:30pm.

Before registering, prospective participants must first submit the below application. Next steps will be provided thereafter.

Thursday, September 26, 2024
Standup Comedy Contest Pageant Fall 2024
Sep 26 @ 7:00 pm
Pulp Lounge

Hosted by Hilliary Begley from Netflix & Amazon Prime!

Cocktails available while you laugh the night away to some of the area’s best Stand Up Comics in a ridiculously fun adult environment!!
Free snacks while availability lasts! You may bring your own food in (no drinks)!

Participants are WINNERS of three standup contest 9/05, 12 & 19. Pageant Winner gets title and grand cash prize. Audience votes thru ballot!
Free snacks and outside food allowed.
9/5 winner Zandra Johnson
9/12 winners tied Roman Fraden & Jordan Julius
9/19 winner tba
Plus a wild card. This show is more than just great standup! Contestants must vie for the title through games.
Audience votes thru ballot. More info contact Michele at [email protected]

City Dance
Sep 26 @ 7:30 pm
Landmark Hal

Beginner’s workshop lesson at 7:30 P.M., then 8-11 P.M. Contra Dance with Country Waltzing at the break and the final dance. This is a partner dance but it’s not necessary to come with a partner. We have different live bands and callers.

Saturday, September 28, 2024
Birding
Sep 28 @ 8:30 am
Lake Julian Park

Birding: For the birdwatchers, there will be monthly bird excursions at Lake Julian Park. The birding events will occur at 8:30 a.m. on the last Saturday of every month from March through October. These events allow participants to enjoy the beautiful sights and sounds of various avian species in Buncombe county. Fun fact: Lake Julian Park is home to a successfully paired eagle couple that has raised at least 6 eaglets over the past 3 years! Admission is free. Pre-registration is required. 

2024 DuPont Forest Festival
Sep 28 @ 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Dupont State Forest

On National Public Lands Day, Saturday September 28, 2024, Friends of DuPont Forest will host the 6th annual DuPont Forest Festival, an event celebrating the adventure and beauty of DuPont State Recreational Forest. 

The DuPont Forest Festival is a free, family friendly event open to the public. It is a celebration of  the Forest and the diverse user groups who enjoy it.

We’ll have a mix of drop-in activities, demonstrations, group tours, and hikes, all perfect for outdoor enthusiasts of all ages. Our number one goal for the Forest Festival is to teach people to love the Forest. Along with having fun, the activities will weave in education about  reducing impacts to the Forest, waterfall safety, trails that serve multiple types of recreationalists  and Forest conservation.

Each event will be led by an expert volunteer and representative from our partner organizations.”

  • Forest Festival activities include: 
  • Family nature walks
  • Kids and community yoga
  • Kids bike clinic and ride
  • Group rides
  • Orienteering event
  • Face painting
  • Smokey Bear
  • History tours
  • Fly fishing demonstration 

AND MORE!

Artists + Writers Coffee
Sep 28 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Saturday, October 5, 2024
Artists + Writers Coffee
Oct 5 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Saturday, October 12, 2024
Artists + Writers Coffee
Oct 12 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Tuesday, October 15, 2024
Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences
Oct 15 @ 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Bent Creek Community Park

CORE Programming

Buncombe County Parks & Recreation is proud to offer Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences (CORE) programming, which consists of free and engaging activities geared towards youth ages 5-15. CORE travels to parks and community centers around Buncombe County. The program takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Saturday, October 19, 2024
Sandburg Home Tour Free Days
Oct 19 all-day
Carl Sandburg Home Historic Site
  • On several days throughout the year, tours of the Sandburg Home are free! Advance reservations are not available for tour free days. Tickets will be available first come, first serve on the day of, from the Visitor Center/Park Store in the Sandburg Home.
  • Saturday, March 23, 2024 (First Saturday of local school spring break)
  • Saturday, June 15, 2024 (Sandburgs’ wedding anniversary)
  • Saturday and Sunday, October 19 and 20, 2024 Weekend closest to Carl Sandburg Home NHS October 17, 1968, Anniversary)
Creative Writer’s Workshop: Panning For Gemstones
Oct 19 – Oct 20 all-day
Story Parlor

What do you do when you find you’re facing an insurmountable pile of unfinished creative work? An entire digital archive of ‘maybes?’

To use an Appalachian metaphor, you pan your dirt for gemstones.

This workshop explores what it means to run creative writing through an objective sieve. It provides a framework for tackling the current pile of unfinished work, as well as addressing the indefinite ‘maybes’ of tomorrow.

Learn to sift your mounds of incomplete material, develop self-editing skills, readjust your critical lens, and polish, refine, and complete your precious pieces.

Among peers and in the safety of a validating creative space, writers can anticipate the delight of creative collaboration, the usefulness of constructive feedback, and the thrill of showcasing the rarity and purity of their finest gemstones.

Artists + Writers Coffee
Oct 19 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Sunday, October 20, 2024
Sandburg Home Tour Free Days
Oct 20 all-day
Carl Sandburg Home Historic Site
  • On several days throughout the year, tours of the Sandburg Home are free! Advance reservations are not available for tour free days. Tickets will be available first come, first serve on the day of, from the Visitor Center/Park Store in the Sandburg Home.
  • Saturday, March 23, 2024 (First Saturday of local school spring break)
  • Saturday, June 15, 2024 (Sandburgs’ wedding anniversary)
  • Saturday and Sunday, October 19 and 20, 2024 Weekend closest to Carl Sandburg Home NHS October 17, 1968, Anniversary)
Monday, October 21, 2024
Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences
Oct 21 @ 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
Sandy Mush Community Center

 

CORE Programming

Buncombe County Parks & Recreation is proud to offer Community Outreach and Recreational Experiences (CORE) programming, which consists of free and engaging activities geared towards youth ages 5-15. CORE travels to parks and community centers around Buncombe County. The program takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Thursday, October 24, 2024
City Dance
Oct 24 @ 7:30 pm
Landmark Hal

Beginner’s workshop lesson at 7:30 P.M., then 8-11 P.M. Contra Dance with Country Waltzing at the break and the final dance. This is a partner dance but it’s not necessary to come with a partner. We have different live bands and callers.

Saturday, October 26, 2024
Birding
Oct 26 @ 8:30 am
Lake Julian Park

Birding: For the birdwatchers, there will be monthly bird excursions at Lake Julian Park. The birding events will occur at 8:30 a.m. on the last Saturday of every month from March through October. These events allow participants to enjoy the beautiful sights and sounds of various avian species in Buncombe county. Fun fact: Lake Julian Park is home to a successfully paired eagle couple that has raised at least 6 eaglets over the past 3 years! Admission is free. Pre-registration is required. 

Artists + Writers Coffee
Oct 26 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Homegrown Halloween Market
Oct 26 @ 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
Smith Mill Works

Join us for family-friendly day of creativity and community supporting local artists, makers and farmers and their handmade and homegrown treats!

Explore one of our haunted greenhouses, participate in a family friendly DIY Halloween wreath making activity, peruse the Asheville Tool Library Yard Sale and enjoy delicious and healthy food from the Pasta and Prana food truck and more at the:
SMITH MILL WORKS HANDMADE HALLOWEEN MARKET on SAT OCT 26 from 11-3.

Saturday, November 2, 2024
North Carolina Writers Network Fall Conference
Nov 2 – Nov 3 all-day
DoubleTree - Biltmore

Registration is now open for The North Carolina Writers’ Network 2024 Fall Conference. The conference will open on Friday, November 1, with a keynote address by Ron Rash, author of The Caretaker, Serena, and The World Made Straight.

The Fall Conference takes place November 1-3, 2024 at the DoubleTree Asheville in Biltmore Village. The organization’s biannual conferences are hosted in different North Carolina cities each year. The last time the conference took place in Asheville was 2019. This weekend event, designed to deepen meaningful connections among attendees, is a three-day celebration of North Carolina’s literary craft with talks, workshops, panels, and resources.

Join over 200 other writers and literature enthusiasts!

The conference welcomes attendees to experience two sides of literary craft: the evolving publishing environment for North Carolina writers, as well as craft technique that makes good writing endure through the ages. Ron Rash will be joined on the conference faculty by more than three dozen award-winning and acclaimed writers, editors, and publicists leading classes on the craft and business of writing.

Artists + Writers Coffee
Nov 2 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Saturday, November 9, 2024
Artists + Writers Coffee
Nov 9 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Wednesday, November 13, 2024
Celebrate Cozy Season with Local Author Ashley English
Nov 13 @ 6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Black Mountain Library

We are delighted to host a series of workshops with Ashley English, author of books on topics ranging from raising chickens to canning & preserving, and from hosting potlucks to homemade health & wellness products. Get a jump start on holiday gifting. FREE! Refreshments will be served.

NC Writers Network & The Brandy Bar host “In the Company of Writers” series with Kathy S. Bowers & Lee Stockdale
Nov 13 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
The Brandy Bar + Cocktails

The North Carolina Writers Network and The Brandy Bar + Cocktails present
KATHY SMITH BOWERS & LEE STOCKDALE as next in their series “In the Company of Writers.”
The program offers a series of personal and conversational dialogues featuring guest writers/poets followed by an open mic forum that occurs the 2nd Wednesday of each month. These inspirational gatherings will elucidate and entertain those attending. The guest author speaks from 7-8 PM with an open mic from 8 -9 PM. The Chicago blues music of “Hollywood Johnny Cosgrove” (accompanied by Charlie Wilkinson) welcomes you, continues during intermission, and closes the evening. Sign-ups for the open are available at the entrance.
Cathy Smith Bowers, a former Poet-Laureate of North Carolina, lives in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

NC Writers Network & The Brandy Bar host “In the Company of Writers” series with Kathy S. Bowers & Lee Stockdale
Nov 13 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
The Brandy Bar + Cocktails

The North Carolina Writers Network and The Brandy Bar + Cocktails present
KATHY SMITH BOWERS & LEE STOCKDALE as next in their series “In the Company of Writers”
The program offers a series of personal and conversational dialogues featuring guest writers/poets followed by an open mic forum that occurs the 2nd Wednesday of each month. These inspirational gatherings will elucidate and entertain those attending. The guest author speaks from 7-8 PM with an open mic from 8 -9 PM. The Chicago blues music of “Hollywood Johnny Cosgrove” (accompanied by Charlie Wilkinson) welcomes you, continues during intermission, and closes the evening. Sign-ups for the open are available at the entrance.
Cathy Smith Bowers, a former Poet-Laureate of North Carolina, lives in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Friday, November 15, 2024
Winter Lights
Nov 15 @ 6:00 pm
North Carolina Arboretum

Winter Lights is a spectacular open-air walk-through light show made from over one million lights! Located at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville, North Carolina, this year’s event features favorites like the famously tall 50-foot lighted tree and the Quilt Garden, along with enchanting new details designed to delight and surprise. All prices are per vehicle. No pets allowed.

Winter Lights features live entertainment nightly and food and beverages from the Bent Creek Bistro, the Cocoa Shack and the Cocoa Cabin! Open nightly from 6:00 – 10:00 p.m.

Saturday, November 16, 2024
Artists + Writers Coffee
Nov 16 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center

Saturdays from 10:30 AM – 12 PM

TFAC Pavilion (park/enter at rear of building)
Free drop-in event
Winter Lights
Nov 16 @ 6:00 pm
North Carolina Arboretum

Winter Lights is a spectacular open-air walk-through light show made from over one million lights! Located at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville, North Carolina, this year’s event features favorites like the famously tall 50-foot lighted tree and the Quilt Garden, along with enchanting new details designed to delight and surprise. All prices are per vehicle. No pets allowed.

Winter Lights features live entertainment nightly and food and beverages from the Bent Creek Bistro, the Cocoa Shack and the Cocoa Cabin! Open nightly from 6:00 – 10:00 p.m.