Simone Jasper is a reporter covering breaking stories for The News & Observer and real-time news in the Carolinas.
Asheville was recognized as a fun — yet affordable — vacation spot.
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If you want to plan a fun trip without breaking the bank, a North Carolina city may be an ideal place to go.
That’s because Asheville ranks No. 9 on a list of top destinations to visit “on a budget,” according to nationwide results published May 19.
The mountain tourist hot spot received the honor from USA Today’s 10Best, which compiles travel-related best-of lists. To create the “wallet-friendly” travel rankings, experts and editors gave their input on lower-cost destinations. Then, readers had a month to choose their favorites by submitting up to one vote per day.
The resulting Readers’ Choice Awards include places that “may help you skimp on the budget, but they certainly don’t skimp on things to do,” 10Best wrote in its report.
Asheville, the only place in North Carolina to earn a spot in the rankings, received nods for its “eclectic downtown area” and nearby mountains.
“Some free things to do around the city include going for a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway or strolling through a multitude (of) art galleries,” the report said.
The list comes after Asheville has earned repeated praise as a place to visit. The city was named a top U.S. summer travel destination and ranked among the best places in the country for people who love food and beer, McClatchy News reported.
This time around, 10Best said the top-ranking place to visit was Memphis, Tennessee. Rounding out the top five:
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