Inn on Main Street

The Inn on Main Street is an eco-friendly and romantic getaway near Asheville and the Biltmore Estate in quaint, artsy Weaverville.

Guests may enjoy mountain views during breakfast on the back porch, or watch hummingbirds and butterflies feast on the flowers erupting from around the koi pond.

Cafes and galleries are only two blocks away. Also within walking distance are a scenic mountain lake with exercise trail and a nature park.

The inn features five rooms in the main house, and two rooms in a cottage joined to the house by huge porches. All have private baths, three with whirlpool tubs. Five have gas fireplaces.

A full hot breakfast including ingredients from the inn's organic gardens is served between 8 and 9:30 a.m. Afternoon refreshments on the porch are a favorite time for guests to share ideas on things to see and do.

Owners Dan and Nancy Ward, who come to innkeeping from careers in journalism and special education, can help you find the right shops, restaurants, hiking trails or outfitters to make your mountain stay memorable. They have Biltmore Estate tickets on hand, and offer spa, rafting and girlfriend getaway specials.

Our Eco-friendly Philosophy

If there is an overriding theme at Inn on Main Street, it would be to embrace the healthy basics while focusing on your comfort. We make all our foods from scratch, including our muffins and breads. Our breakfasts normally are vegetarian, but we often serve turkey sausage or bacon to those who want breakfast meats.

We avoid using cleaning chemicals, deodorizers, fertilizers and pesticides, choosing instead to clean with natural and biodegradable cleaners like vinegar, citrus oils and baking soda. We've adopted the Green Hotels philosophy, which means we'll forgo changing towels and linens as often if that is your choice, thus saving water and reducing wastewater.

We cook with our own organically grown herbs and vegetables whenever possible, and buy from local organic farmers when we can.

Our in-room soaps, shampoos, conditioners and body lotions are organic and natural. Our soaps are hand made locally.

Our home is smoke-free, though we keep ash trays outside to accommodate smokers.

In consideration to guests who are sensitive to allergens, we do not accept pets. We do not even use potpourri. We will remove down pillows from your room on request.

We hesitate to call our breakfasts gourmet, since that has become such a cliche among bed and breakfasts. But our meals are indulgences, a full and satisfying experience you'd normally expect at a nice restaurant.

Each meal begins with our private-roast coffee, tea, and juice, with fresh fruit and made-from-scratch muffins served family style. Then we bring you homemade bread, made that morning or the night before, along with an individual serving of the day's entree. Our entrees range from frittatas, a sort of open-face Italian omelet, to baked apple French toast, omelets, stuffed crepes, eggs Florentine, fancy pancakes, quiche and even some creations of our own.

We gladly adapt the entrees and muffins to accommodate special diets, including vegetarian breakfasts, vegan breakfasts and diabetic breakfasts. If the entree doesn't suit you, we always have cereal available. If you are on the Atkins Diet, our breakfast may not be appropriate. However, we can accommodate high-protein diets on weekdays.

When the weather permits, and that's most of the year, we serve breakfast on the back porch, where you can watch the sun rise to the adoration of the birds and flowers.

If you can imagine our valley as a pendant, then Asheville would be an Art Deco gem held by a setting of blue-green mountains. It's easy to think of Asheville and Western North Carolina in artistic terms. Arts and crafts have been a way of life here since woodcarvers and quilters used their creativity to supplement farm income. That tradition lives on in the rich handiwork of area artists for sale at the Folk Art Center and dozens of galleries. It's greatest manifestation is in the Biltmore Estate, America's largest home and an icon of the Gilded Age. Manmade creativity blends perfectly with the mountains' natural outdoor attractions, including Chimney Rock Park

Performing arts thrive as well. Take in the latest run of regional drama in Asheville, Mars Hill, Flat Rock or Cherokee.

Asheville and surrounding villages are artwork themselves. Fine craftsmen and architects outdid each other in the days of opulence and speculation at the dawn of the last century. The Great Depression ended the boom, but the buildings lived on, escaping the urban renewal that brought a sameness to America's other cities. In Asheville, you can walk the Urban Trail and learn more about the rich history of our city, from drover crossroad to the era of the grand hotels to today's colorful cosmopolitanism.

These mountain downtowns offer unique opportunities for shoppers. Fine arts and crafts, antiques and a delicious assortment of restaurants are all clustered in central business districts.

In the case of Weaverville, the rich assortment of attractions include Preservation Hall, a crafts gallery and restoration hardware shop; Mangum and Miya galleries; and fun dining at Blue Mountain Pizza, Weaverville Milling Company, Jack of Hearts Pub, Stoney Knob Cafe, Well-Bred Bakery and Cafe and Bavarian Restaurant. You can learn more about what's happening in our town at visitweaverville.com and at myweaverville.com.

Indulge your taste buds. Asheville has some gourmet specialties, including mountain trout cooked 47 ways, Southern barbecue and some of the finest microbrew beers in the Southeast. But the gastronomic attraction here is the diversity of dishes to be found, ranging from curry and couscous to Caribbean to aged steaks. As in Europe, dining in Asheville is an event where one lingers to enjoy the flavor and texture of life as well as dinner. For a sampling of the best dining, consider taking the Asheville Food Tours.

Savor the contrasts. Snack on sushi before giving clogging a try at Shindig on the Green. Try on the latest hiking boots before the opera. Dine at a cool sidewalk table, then burn the calories off dancing at a steamy nightclub. There's a good reason that both Modern Maturity and Rolling Stone called this the place to be.

For a calendar of upcoming events, visit ExploreAsheville.com.

To learn more about local attractions, visit RomanticAsheville.com, AshevilleNC.com and AshevilleNow.com. Also see AshevilleGuidebook.com with exerpts from the Ultimate Guide to Asheville and the Western North Carolina Mountains by Lee Pantas, the "Best Selling Guidebook To Asheville & The Western North Carolina Mountains." To learn more about North Carolina attractions, see North Carolina Division of Tourism.

Our GPS coordinates: 35.69290, -82.56020.

Be aware that GPS and mapping programs give incorrect directions about a third of the time. Try to use our directions or compare them to those provided by your GPS. To get here:

From the East, West or South, take I-40 or I-26 to I-240 at Asheville. Take I-240 to exit 4A downtown, taking you toward Weaverville on U.S. 19-23 north, soon to be I-26 West. Get off at the fourth or fifth exit, for New Stock Road, exit 21. Turn right at the end of the exit ramp (light), then almost immediately left at the stoplight. That is Merrimon Avenue. Go about a mile on Merrimon, heading north (also is called Business 19) until you pass a small lake on your left. About four blocks past the lake, turn right onto Grove Street and drive up the hill. Turn left at the top of the ridge onto Main Street. We are just a few yards down on the right, at the corner of Main and East. Turn right onto East Street and park in back.

From the Northeast, take I-81 south to I-26 East (formerly I-181 south) at Johnson City, TN, and take I-26 East to Weaverville exit 18, the one that follows Flat Creek Road. That puts you onto north Main Street. Take Main Street through town, past the business district. We are a long block past the fire station and town hall on the left, at the corner of Main and East streets. Turn left onto East Street and park in back.

From the Blue Ridge Parkway, get off near Milepost 375 at Bull Gap. That puts you onto Ox Creek Road. Follow the signs pointing toward Weaverville and the Vance Birthplace. After about four miles, Ox Creek Road ends at Reems Creek Road. Turn left and drive about 3.5 miles until you see a Balcrank plant on your left. Turn at the next right, which is Main Street. We are about a half mile up on the right, at the corner of Main and East streets. Turn right onto East Street and park in back.

From the Biltmore Estate, turn left as you leave the gate onto McDowell Street, which becomes Asheland and ends at Patton Avenue. Turn left onto Patton Avenue and stay in the right lane when it becomes a part of the interstate highway. Get off at the first exit, directing you toward Weaverville, Mars Hill and UNCA on U.S. 19-23 North. Get off at the fourth or fifth exit, for New Stock Road, exit 21. Turn right at the end of the exit ramp (light), then almost immediately left at the stoplight. That is Merrimon Avenue. Go about a mile on Merrimon, heading north (also is called Business 19) until you pass a small lake on your left. About four blocks past the lake, turn right onto Grove Street and drive up the hill. Turn left at the top of the ridge onto Main Street. We are just a few yards down on the right, at the corner of Main and East. Turn right onto East Street and park in back.