Discover Pisgah National Forest: Your Ultimate Guide to Stays and Adventures

Pisgah National Forest is a must-visit for nature lovers! With its abundance of waterfalls and hiking trails, all my outdoors lovers will be in paradise! Below I’ve created the perfect weekend itinerary including where to stay and three different hikes to check out.

Where to Stay Near Pisgah National Forest

I stayed in Henderson, South Carolina, about a 25 minute drive from the forest entrance. You can definitely stay closer but I was looking for something that wasn’t too expensive and had a pool/hot tub to enjoy after a long day of adventure. Skylaranna is a pretty new hotel, built in 2021. While they do have a hotel with rooms that sleep 2-4 people, what drew me to this place was the cabins behind the hotel. They offer cabins with a full kitchen, two patios, two queen beds and a sleeper sofa. The spiral staircase going to the second floor definitely made me a little nervous, but overall the place was gorgeous!

Just a few flights of stairs from our cabins was a firepit, a large pool and hot tub. They do have a restaurant and spa on site, however I did not personally experience either of those.

Trails to Explore

Spend Friday and Saturday exploring the forest and trails, then spend the rest of the day relaxing in the hot tub at night and watching the stars.

Waterfalls

Only five minutes apart, you have to visit Sliding Rock and Looking Glass falls. Both are just a short walk from the parking lot to the falls. Looking glass is a gorgeous 60 ft waterfall that you can view from the platform above or you can walk down a few flights of stairs to go to the base of the fall. You can swim at the base of the falls, however the water is pretty chilly.

Sliding rock is a 60 ft natural waterslide that plunges you into the 8ft pool at the end. The water here is also very chilly, staying around 55F year around. This area can get extremely busy, so it’s best to visit before noon or after 4pm.

looking glass falls in pisgah national forest

Lookout Tower

Fryingpan Mountain Lookout Tower is not technically in Pisgah National Forest but is just five minutes outside the entrance, on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Follow the .75 mile trail to the top, then take the five flights of stairs to the top of the tower. This trail is not the best for those afraid of heights, but the views from the top are worth it! On a clear day you can see for miles in every direction!

Explore Asheville

Henderson is only a short 20 minute drive from Asheville so explore the town a bit before heading home on Sunday. Start the morning off with brunch at Biscuit Head, a casual but tasty brunch spot. They have 3 locations in the Asheville area, but they get pretty busy so consider getting there early to miss the rush.

After grabbing brunch, head to Lexington Avenue, which is home to over 200 shops. They have a variety of stores from clothing stores and souvenir shops to candy stores. If you like blown glass pieces, you have to stop by Lexington Glassworks to check their amazing pieces they have. All the pieces are made in shop and you can actually watch them work while you are there!