OUT OF TOWN
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA
A series of online guides to days away from New Orleans.
The Queen City has historically had a lower tourism profile than some of its Southern peers. If you’d have asked me to tell you all that I knew about Charlotte before I went there, it would have been a short conversation. After 48 hours in town, though, I left with a sense of a city stepping up to compete with the best of them. A thriving downtown, emergent arts and nightlife districts and a growing culinary scene are all making Charlotte more and more attractive as a weekend getaway. This know-nothing Brit even got his first exposure to NASCAR, though having tried to drive one of the race cars (virtually, that is), I’ll happily admit that I'm probably not going to be troubling the professional circuit anytime soon. Below are a few suggestions - mostly tried and tested personally - for a weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Charlotte, NC
Flight time from New Orleans: 2 hours
Direct flights from New Orleans: American Airlines
Drive time from New Orleans: 10hrs 30 mins
Average citywide hotel room price: $120 per night
The Queen City has historically had a lower tourism profile than some of its Southern peers. If you’d have asked me to tell you all that I knew about Charlotte before I went there, it would have been a short conversation. After 48 hours in town, though, I left with a sense of a city stepping up to compete with the best of them. A thriving downtown, emergent arts and nightlife districts and a growing culinary scene are all making Charlotte more and more attractive as a weekend getaway. This know-nothing Brit even got his first exposure to NASCAR, though having tried to drive one of the race cars (virtually, that is), I’ll happily admit that I'm probably not going to be troubling the professional circuit anytime soon. Below are a few suggestions - mostly tried and tested personally - for a weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Charlotte, NC
Flight time from New Orleans: 2 hours
Direct flights from New Orleans: American Airlines
Drive time from New Orleans: 10hrs 30 mins
Average citywide hotel room price: $120 per night
places to stay
I stayed at the JW Marriott Charlotte in downtown Charlotte. This 381-room property opened in August 2021.The hotel boasts a rooftop bar & pool with city skyline views, the Spa by JW, and fantastic dining options, some of which we’ll explore. As soon as you’ve dropped your bags, welcome yourself to town and survey downtown with a craft cocktail at the hotel’s Aura Rooftop Bar. The rooftop is pretty swish - it’s framed by lush botanical landscaping, and the soft lighting looks especially good as the sun sets. They serve some savory bar bites if you’re hungry, and the Burnt End Lollipops, Chicken Satay and Spicy Shrimp Lettuce Cups are all great. I don’t typically take spa treatments, but just this once I plumped for a slice of indulgence and booked a Five Senses 50-minute massage at the Spa by JW. It’s far too fancy a place for the likes of me, but the staff are nothing if not polite, and deliver tea, treats and a welcoming atmosphere.
things to do
From the JW Marriot, it’s an easy couple of minutes’ walk through downtown to the Mint Museum (500 S Tryon St), established in 1936 as North Carolina’s very first art museum. The huge building is home to five stories of art, specializing in 19th-century landscape paintings and a wealth of craft and design objects. It’s always moving to see original Rothko paintings, and there’s some exceptional glass and metal sculptures in the Craft & Design section.
Growing up in England, my knowledge of NASCAR was essentially zero, and even after moving to the States, it wasn’t a sport that I’d learned much about. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to at least familiarize myself with an American institution, so I strolled over to the NASCAR Hall of Fame (400 E M.L.K. Jr Blvd). Within an hour of walking around the beautifully-presented exhibits (mostly real-life racing cars), I’d already settled on a favorite driver, the late Alan Kulwicki. I don’t know, he seemed like a scrappy competitor, what with no sponsor, a limited budget and only a racecar and a borrowed pickup truck. What can I say? I love an underdog. Easily the most exciting part of the museum is the driving simulator, which is impressively realistic. I don’t mean to boast, but I did compete in a race with ten other visitors and did not come last. In your face, seven-year-old kid.
I hopped on the Light Rail to get back to downtown from sightseeing excursions. I loved the fact that I hadn’t needed to use a taxi to get anywhere. Living in New Orleans, I’m used to walking and it’s great that Charlotte is equally compact and has good public transport options.
If I’d had one more day, I would have struck out for some reviving greenery such as that at The Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden or Crowders Mountain State Park or even (hangover pending) the U.S. National Whitewater Center. With an afternoon flight, though, the best I could do was a quick jaunt around parts of the Little Sugar Creek Greenway. This is a 19-mile network of trails, parks, and streams in and around the city, and it’s a lovely spot for some last-minute fresh air, and if you’re a runner or cycling enthusiast, there’s space for those things as well. I had a great waterside walk and saw some sweet puppies before I had to hightail it to the airport, so…mission accomplished.
Growing up in England, my knowledge of NASCAR was essentially zero, and even after moving to the States, it wasn’t a sport that I’d learned much about. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to at least familiarize myself with an American institution, so I strolled over to the NASCAR Hall of Fame (400 E M.L.K. Jr Blvd). Within an hour of walking around the beautifully-presented exhibits (mostly real-life racing cars), I’d already settled on a favorite driver, the late Alan Kulwicki. I don’t know, he seemed like a scrappy competitor, what with no sponsor, a limited budget and only a racecar and a borrowed pickup truck. What can I say? I love an underdog. Easily the most exciting part of the museum is the driving simulator, which is impressively realistic. I don’t mean to boast, but I did compete in a race with ten other visitors and did not come last. In your face, seven-year-old kid.
I hopped on the Light Rail to get back to downtown from sightseeing excursions. I loved the fact that I hadn’t needed to use a taxi to get anywhere. Living in New Orleans, I’m used to walking and it’s great that Charlotte is equally compact and has good public transport options.
If I’d had one more day, I would have struck out for some reviving greenery such as that at The Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden or Crowders Mountain State Park or even (hangover pending) the U.S. National Whitewater Center. With an afternoon flight, though, the best I could do was a quick jaunt around parts of the Little Sugar Creek Greenway. This is a 19-mile network of trails, parks, and streams in and around the city, and it’s a lovely spot for some last-minute fresh air, and if you’re a runner or cycling enthusiast, there’s space for those things as well. I had a great waterside walk and saw some sweet puppies before I had to hightail it to the airport, so…mission accomplished.
eat and drink
Dean’s at the hotel does a very decent breakfast if you want to ease into the day, the Smoked Salmon Bruschetta coming with caper-whipped cream cheese or maybe the Smoked Ham & Fontina Omelet or Cheesy Truffle Eggs will turn your head? If you want to nose out and join the locals, then The Famous Toastery (330 S Tryon St) and the RedEye Diner (210 E Trade St) both do a great job and are eminently walkable.
A change of scenery for lunch is easy, thanks to that excellent Light Rail, which delivered me to South End for lunch. It’s currently one of the city’s most dynamic neighborhoods, with lots of dining and entertainment options popping up. There’s a host of newish craft breweries, casual pubs and the like, and I liked the look of The Suffolk Punch, which combines a brewery, café, taphouse and coffee bar. My refueling choices: Fried Jumbo Chicken Wings, their SPB Burger made with Irish beef, and a RoseBerry Mule cocktail.
I was feeling a little bit drowsy after that big lunch, so I stopped into The Market at 7th Street. This farmers’ market and food court has a ton of tempting dining options, but I was here for coffee at Not Just Coffee, which more than one person had raved about. It was suitably reviving, and after a ten minute walk later, I was back at the hotel.
I was going to eat dinner at Haymaker, a fine dining restaurant that touts upscale Appalachian food, but I wanted to try a couple of places, so I made it a multi-venue affair. I downed a couple of cocktails and inhaled the house-made pickles and heirloom cornmeal hush puppies here, and then hotfooted it to The Cellar at Duckworth’s, an underground gastropub, for some pork steamed buns and chargrilled oysters in their subterranean, old-timey barroom. Reports also suggest I had the stout-infused Nutella Cheesecake, which to be honest does sound like me.
For diner at the hotel you have two tempting choices, Dean’s Italian Steakhouse or Caroline’s Oyster Bar. Dean’s is a classic American steakhouse with Italian influence and ambience enough to feel like a scene in a Scorsese movie. I could see the steak and homemade pasta dishes being prepped in the show kitchen, and the cuts of beef hit the spot. Caroline’s draws on the seafood flavors of North Carolina’s coastline, and has a bright patio, as well as indoor space. There’s a fantastic raw bar with a choice of regional shellfish, or you can just drive into their huge seafood tower with shrimp and crab. Stand-outs for me were the Crab Hush Puppies and the Halibut Fish and Chips.
There are some great nightcap options, not least Alexander Michael’s (401 W 9th St), a tavern-style joint located in the historic Uptown. There’s a European pub look to the place, and if you’re a beer fan, there’s a raft of local brews on tap. For a more cocktail-focused menu, head to The Cotton Room (144 Brevard Court), a speakeasy-style bar that’s not too self-important if you’re more of a domestic beer/shot of Fireball kind of drinker. Expect cocktail classics alongside modern twists and the bar’s own daily specials.
A change of scenery for lunch is easy, thanks to that excellent Light Rail, which delivered me to South End for lunch. It’s currently one of the city’s most dynamic neighborhoods, with lots of dining and entertainment options popping up. There’s a host of newish craft breweries, casual pubs and the like, and I liked the look of The Suffolk Punch, which combines a brewery, café, taphouse and coffee bar. My refueling choices: Fried Jumbo Chicken Wings, their SPB Burger made with Irish beef, and a RoseBerry Mule cocktail.
I was feeling a little bit drowsy after that big lunch, so I stopped into The Market at 7th Street. This farmers’ market and food court has a ton of tempting dining options, but I was here for coffee at Not Just Coffee, which more than one person had raved about. It was suitably reviving, and after a ten minute walk later, I was back at the hotel.
I was going to eat dinner at Haymaker, a fine dining restaurant that touts upscale Appalachian food, but I wanted to try a couple of places, so I made it a multi-venue affair. I downed a couple of cocktails and inhaled the house-made pickles and heirloom cornmeal hush puppies here, and then hotfooted it to The Cellar at Duckworth’s, an underground gastropub, for some pork steamed buns and chargrilled oysters in their subterranean, old-timey barroom. Reports also suggest I had the stout-infused Nutella Cheesecake, which to be honest does sound like me.
For diner at the hotel you have two tempting choices, Dean’s Italian Steakhouse or Caroline’s Oyster Bar. Dean’s is a classic American steakhouse with Italian influence and ambience enough to feel like a scene in a Scorsese movie. I could see the steak and homemade pasta dishes being prepped in the show kitchen, and the cuts of beef hit the spot. Caroline’s draws on the seafood flavors of North Carolina’s coastline, and has a bright patio, as well as indoor space. There’s a fantastic raw bar with a choice of regional shellfish, or you can just drive into their huge seafood tower with shrimp and crab. Stand-outs for me were the Crab Hush Puppies and the Halibut Fish and Chips.
There are some great nightcap options, not least Alexander Michael’s (401 W 9th St), a tavern-style joint located in the historic Uptown. There’s a European pub look to the place, and if you’re a beer fan, there’s a raft of local brews on tap. For a more cocktail-focused menu, head to The Cotton Room (144 Brevard Court), a speakeasy-style bar that’s not too self-important if you’re more of a domestic beer/shot of Fireball kind of drinker. Expect cocktail classics alongside modern twists and the bar’s own daily specials.
Do you have a place that you love in Charlotte that we missed? Feel free to let us know, so that we can add it as a reader recommendation! Email us