Asheville NC

A tradition for many mountain families and visitors. Visitors are invited to watch the lights twinkle over the lake and listen to their favorite seasonal tunes while driving through the magical wonderland. This year’s Festival of Lights will take place nightly from December 2-23, 2025. Sunday through Thursday, from...

EDITOR’S NOTE: Strangeville explores the curious and unexplained stories that have long defined Asheville and Western North Carolina. The region is full of unanswered questions, from old folklore and local legends to eerie encounters, unsolved moments in history, and the true-crime mysteries that still leave people...

BUNCOMBE COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — A local holiday tradition is lighting its way up in Buncombe County once again. Return to Bethlehem is produced by the Asheville-Buncombe Community Christian Ministry (ABCCM) and staged this year at Groce United Methodist Church on Tunnel Road. The experience immerses visitors in the...

Part of a $55 million initiative to support long-term small business recovery across western North Carolina. As part of a recent round of grant awards from NC Department of Commerce, Buncombe County was awarded $979,000 from the Small Business Infrastructure Grant Program for sidewalks in Swannanoa. Using the funds...

Bless your transition into the new year. Reflect on the past year—both its trials and triumphs—while anticipating what the new year will have in store. The first Watch Night or “Freedom’s Eve,” took place on December 31, 1862. On that day, enslaved and free African Americans across the country watched and waited for...

ASHEVILLE, NC (WLOS) — A beloved holiday tradition returns this weekend as the historic Montford neighborhood hosts its 26th Annual Montford Holiday Tour of Homes on Saturday. The self-guided tour invites visitors to step inside a curated selection of homes throughout the neighborhood, each showcasing its own...

Taylor Rice receives pilot offer from a major airline. Over the past four years, A-B Tech graduate Taylor Rice has completed the college’s Aviation Management and Career Pilot Technology degrees, has become a flight instructor, and has acquired sufficient flight hours to qualify as a commercial airline pilot. Rice,...

[Regarding “Mobility for the Many, Not Just the Few,” Nov. 26, Xpress:]. Transit connects lives. To cut access is to cut lifelines. The choice between ridership and coverage comes down to two factors: the shape of the land and the needs of the people. Asheville’s steep hills and scattered neighborhoods make a...

North Carolina holds tight to traditions that other places have let slip away. In a world of plastic-wrapped grocery store meat, a handful of shops across the state still practice butchery the old-fashioned way. These aren’t just stores, they’re places where skilled craftsmen cut, cure, and prepare meat with respect...

HENDERSONVILLE – The Hendersonville Planning Board rejected a controversial development on Haywood Road for a second time after a tense, hours-long public hearing Dec. 11. More than 15 city residents gave public comment in opposition to the development as a packed house responded with derisive laughter and jeers....