Blue Ridge Parkway: The Ultimate Car Camping Roadtrip

This entryway to Shenandoah National Park is a great place to start your drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway if you’re coming from the north.

This heavily shaded campground sits between two of the more prominent mountains on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Each site has its own picnic table, lantern pole, and fire pit. The campground is fully developed with flush toilets, drinking water, and a dump station. There are 60 sites available for reservation on recreation.gov and 79 sites available on a first-come-first-serve basis.

This campground will have you surrounded by the lush forests of the Blue Ridge Mountains, rolling meadows, and seasonal wildflowers. Nearby, you’ll find hiking, scenic overlooks, fishing, and more. The campground is optimal for car camping with your Luno gear, with most of the sites being drive-up sites. The campground is developed, meaning that it has amenities such as flush toilets, a dump station, and drinking water. Each site is equipped with picnic tables, fire rings, and grills. This campground rarely gets booked up, but it’s a good idea to make a reservation if you can. Reservations can be made at Recreation.gov. There are also 62 first-come-first-serve campsites available if you are unable to make a reservation.

This campground sits amongst rolling hills, forested areas, pioneer cabins, and beautiful hiking trails. This campground is optimal for car camping with your Luno gear, and most campsites are shaded. The campground has 24 sites available for reservation, and 97 sites available on a first-come-first-serve basis. Campsites have picnic tables and fire rings, and the campground has flush toilets, drinking water, and a dump station.

This campground offers lush, green expanses of classic North Carolina forest, and nearby Price lake that is great for fishing, hiking, boating, and more. This campground is fully developed with flush toilets, a dump station, and drinking water. All sites are drive-up, making it optimal for car camping with your Luno gear. There are 75 reservable sites (available on recreation.gov) and 115 sites available first-come-first-serve. Each site has its own grill and picnic table.

This fully developed campground offers amenities such as flush toilets, drinking water, dump stations, and a country store. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring. It’s one of the most popular campground on the Blue Ridge Parkway drive and offers stunning scenery and lush North Carolina surrounding forests. In the summer, the shade of the forests offers respite from the heat. There are 53 campsites available for reservation on recreation.gov and 71 campsites available first-come-first-serve.

Linville Falls trail is about .9-miles out and back and offers beautiful forest scenery, and of course, Linville Falls at the end. The trail is mostly flat and rated as easy. Dogs are allowed on this trail, but must be kept on leash. The trailhead is located at milepost 316.

Located at milepost 176.2, Mabry Mill is one of top attractions on the Blue Ridge Parkway drive. This picturesque watermill is a sight unto itself. Aroun the mill there are short hiking trails, a restaurant, small museum, and gift shop.

This natural bridge in Virginia is known as one of the seven natural wonders of the modern world. The Monacan Native American tribe used to worship it, and it was later purchased by Thomas Jefferson. Artists have been painting and illustrating it for centuries. Now the bridge is a National Historic Landmark. The bridge offers access to trails such as the Cedar Creek Trail, historic sites, and other outdoor recreation such as kayaking, canoeing, and tubing.

Located at Milepost 5.8, this outcropping of rocks is one of the most prominent rock features on the parkway drive. There are a number of hiking trails you can explore. We highly recommend the 2-mile Humpback Mountain trail which will take you to Humpback Rocks and spectacular views.

This stunning natural area has attracted visitors to the region for thousands of years. In 1834, the first inn opened, and made the Peaks of Otter a popular tourist destination. The area has a visitors center, restrooms, water, lots of Fe iking trails, picnicking on Abbott Lake, fishing, historical features such as Polly Wood’s cabin and the Johnson Farm, and more. There is also a hotel here, the Peaks of Otter Lodge, if you need a break from camping.

This historic restaurant has been around for almost 100 years, since it was opened in 1927. The menu serves traditional, hearty Blue Ridge cuisine. Order a family style meal, or personal sized meals. They also have a decent beer and wine list.

This part of the Blue Ridge Parkway road is probably what comes to mind when you think of all the photos you’ve seen of the famous drive. This viaduct is recognized internationally as an engineering marvel, and offers incredible views of both the road and of the Blue Ridge Mountains. You’re gonna want to pull over and snap a photo, probably a few times.

This bridge is one of the top attractions on the Blue Ridge Parkway. From the bridge, you’ll experience 360-degree views of the surrounding mountains from the top of Grandfather Mounain. The Mile-High Bridge is the highest suspension bridge in the United States, and has been drawing visitors since it was built in 1952. The Bridge is 228-feet long and hangs across an 80 foot chasm.

This beautiful orchard is a must-do on any drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway. It’s one of the most visited locations on the drive for good reason. The orchard grows and propagates some of the best heirloom apples you’ll ever have. Enjoy a walk through the Apple orchard, hot apple pie ala mode, and apple picking. The orchard is pet friendly and family friendly. Check their website to see their live music schedule.

This trail is located at Milepost 339.5 on the Blue Ridge Parkway and will take you to one of the more beautiful waterfalls on the route. There are two different routes you can take to get to the falls. The first trail is a 3-mile return trail which is fairly easy with a steady descent to the falls and return climb. The second option is a 3.5-mile loop trail that climbs a ridge above the falls. Both are incredibly beautiful. The waterfall is about 70ft tall!

Asheville is famous for its breweries, but you should really be trying their ciders. The climate near Asheville is perfect for apples and other fruits that are good for making ciders, and their ciders reflect this. Urban Orchard Co. has a couple of taprooms around Asheville. The South Slope location is the largest. You can order flights of cider, as well as single orders. They also have a delicious food menu that reflects flavors that complement the ciders.

The Biltmore Estate is one of the must-do’s when visiting Asheville. If you have the time, you can easily spend a day or two exploring this incredible property. The estate was officially opened in 1895 by George Vanderbilt as his summer home. The home itself contains over four acres of floor space, including 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, 65 fireplaces, and much more. In 1930, the house was opened to the public to become a tourist destination for visitors and residents of Asheville. During WW2, the Biltmore Estate was used as a safe place to store art in the case of mass bombings. Now the Biltmore Estate operates as a hotel, museum, park, winery, and much more. It’s a good idea to book your tickets to visit ahead of time, and to explore the estate’s website to decide what you want to spend your time doing during your visit.

This beautiful national park showcases the most incredible part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia. Highlights include driving the Skyline Drive, the Blue Ridge Parkway, hiking, picnicking, camping, and more. There is plenty to do here - you could spend a day, or a week here, and probably still feel like you want to come back.

Sitting at the southern end of the Blue Ridge Parkway, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a great add on if you have an extra 1-3 days to explore some more.

This modern American restaurant has a daily changing menu and delicious cocktails, with a cool, modern yet timeless Asheville ambiance. The menu utilizes seasonal flavors, hence why it is always changing. Reservations are highly encouraged.

This fine dining restaurant serves incredible food in a clean and comfortable, yet luxurious setting. The menu is small, but delicious, and their wine menu is the same. Reservations are highly recommended, as there are not many restaurants to this standard in the small town of Lexington.

This upscale restaurant has a delicious menu of inspired southern cuisine, with a modern twist. The chef uses local and natural ingredients, and serves them in a historic building. Reservations are highly recommended.

One of the nicer restaurants on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Pigsah Inn Restaurant is attached to Pigsah Inn and offers a fine dining experience for breakfast, lunch, and dinner seven days a week. The dining room is only open to the general public for lunch. Breakfast and dinner are reserved for guests of the inn. Seating is reservation only, so plan ahead! If you don’t make a reservation for the dining room, you can call ahead and order a hot meal to be eaten outside at one of the picnic tables, or to take with you. The dining room is gorgeous, with panoramic windows showing views of the surrounding forest. The menu consists of upscale versions of classic Blue Ridge dishes - appetizers, entrees, salads, sandwiches, and more.

During your visit to Mabry Mill, the Mabry Mill restaurant is an excellent spot to grab a bite to eat. The menu is country style, with hearty breakfasts, lunch, and dinner. We highly recommend the pancakes, chicken pot pie, and blackberry cobbler.

This little no-frills country mart and restaurant might not be the fanciest restaurant around, but it will fill your belly in some yummy classic country food. We highly recommend their homemade sandwiches, and their smoked chicken.