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Articles by J.S. Fletcher
Christmas at Biltmore Adds Sparkle to Holidays
Christmas at Biltmore turns America’s largest privately owned estate into a glittering masterpiece. This season features 67 decorated Christmas trees. The tallest, an impressive 35-foot Fraser fir, stands in the Banquet Hall, one of the Biltmore estate’s 250 rooms. With 14,000+ ornaments, 45,000-holiday lights, 250 candles, 1,000 feet of garland, and 150 traditional poinsettias, Christmas at Biltmore defines “decked out.” And that’s not all.
Kessler Collection’s New Grand Bohemian Lodge Greenville
You know that moment when anticipation strikes and excitement starts to build? We experienced such a moment at the opening of the Grand Bohemian Lodge Greenville, the newest Kessler Collection property. We found the downtown Greenville, South Carolina setting for this Marriott Autograph Collection property, especially intriguing. Architects fitted this head-turner just so on the banks of the Reedy River in popular Falls Park, known for its low–tumbling waterfalls.
Land of Oz in NC Delights 'Wizard of Oz' Lovers
When offered the chance for a behind-the-scenes tour at Land of Oz, a once-beloved theme park in the North Carolina mountains, that was incentive enough to pack and go. I invited my sister Darlene along, reminiscing how long ago we’d sat mesmerized in front of our black-and-white TV. Then we were enthralled by all things Oz, terrified by the Wicked Witch of the West and those flying monkeys. The event also was near my sister’s birthday, so the trip was a win-win.
Things To Do In New Bern, NC: A Delightful Mix of Old and New
Wondering about things to do in New Bern, NC? How to spend a long weekend? These questions were easy to answer, in part, because I (a co-author of this piece) once lived nearby and know the general lay of the land. Upon returning to New Bern, my husband and I found a much revived river city. Among the highlights: exciting culinary offerings a thriving weekend music scene, expanded development along an attractive riverfront, appealing hotels, inns and condos, and boats and more boats.
A Grand Weekend In Savannah at the Plant Riverside District
Add contemporary glitz to historical grandeur by planning a long weekend in Savannah at the waterfront JW Marriott Plant Riverside District. Opened in late 2021, this snazzy spot on Georgia’s Savannah River immerses guests in culture and heritage. The district draws art and music lovers, architecture and history buffs, paleontology fans, and culinary travelers.
Ivey’s Hotel, Charlotte: Luxury With A Bit Of Whimsey
Plush-carpeted hallways with art above The Ivey’s Hotel, located in the heart of Uptown Charlotte, gives meaning to the phrase: Shop ’till you drop. Created out of a former posh department store dating from the early-20th century, this boutique hotel retains the glamour of its namesake. The 47-room boutique property invites kicking back in a style that evokes Parisian glamour. It makes a fine base for shopping as well as exploring North Carolina’s Queen City.
A Perfect Long Weekend in Shelby, North Carolina
It’s easy to spend a perfect long weekend in Shelby, North Carolina, a stop on the North Carolina Blue Ridge Music Trail. This city and surrounding Cleveland County proclaim their musical heritage with the slogan: Carolina’s Land of Rhythm and Roots. During our visit, we found impromptu, staged and open-air performances. But that’s not all this area offers.
Experience Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Without Visiting Italy
We planned our recent visit to Charlotte, North Carolina, specifically to see the Immersive van Gogh Exhibition, which turned out to be unique and enlightening. But while in the Queen City, we added an outing to experience another spectacular art installation just a few miles away: Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel: The Exhibition.
Grand Bohemian Hotel Charlotte Turns Heads in City Center
Grand Bohemian Hotel Charlotte is a stunner located in the heart of Uptown Charlotte. We arrived at our destination to enjoy the city’s art and were fortunate to find dreamy accommodations. The Charlotte hotel is the newest addition (2020) to the Kessler Collection, a founding member of Marriott’s Autograph Collection.We know the Kessler name intimately having stayed in some of their other fab properties in Savannah, St. Augustine, Asheville, and Orlando.
The North Carolina Outer Banks Beckons Romantics
The North Carolina Outer Banks is dear to us since it’s where we met and married, where we built a home, and where we started our romance novel publishing business. We even renewed our wedding vows oceanfront. Romantics at heart, we believe in promoting love. There’s no better place to embrace your amorous side than along the windswept, barrier islands of the Outer Banks, where romantic spots are plentiful.
Immersive van Gogh Charlotte: A New Dimension In Art
You’ve likely seen or read about the Immersive Van Gogh Exhibit sensation that’s traveling to more than a dozen U.S. cities. The nearly year-long Paris show that inspired this version drew two million visitors; other shows have sold out quickly. We had the chance to experience this art phenomenon in Charlotte, North Carolina, and found it so enchanting that we sat through the 35-minute presentation three times to experience it from different vantage points.
Retro Kill Devil Hills Motel Puts Fun in Funky at Outer Banks
https://gettingontravel.com/review-of-junebug-retro-resort-in-north-carolina/We returned to Kill Devil Hills because we love its retro feel. Many baby boomers remember their family vacations included staying at a motel or motor lodge. These popular ’50s and ’60s accommodations sprang up as interstate highways grew, making distant trips driveable. At these roadside spots, parking was easy, rates were good for a family, rooms were nothing fancy but clean, and the pools delighted the kids.
Easing Into Travel: Sanderling Resort at The Outer Banks
Sanderling Resort sits on a slice of land in North Carolina’s Outer Banks. On one side: the tranquil Currituck Sound, with beautiful sunsets and waterfowl galore. On the other: an impressive expanse of Atlantic Ocean, with glorious sunrises and miles of sand and waves. Wind-bent live oaks and scrub pine line NC 12, the winding, two-lane highway to Duck, the beach community that’s home to Sanderling Resort.
Bent Creek Lodge In The Blue Ridge Mountains: A Natural Getaway
When the pandemic ditched plans for a Prague trip to celebrate milestone birthdays for my sister and me, we looked for a closer-to-home destination that met our readjusted goals: exploring nature along with safe accommodations in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Bent Creek Lodge, one of the 18 members of the Asheville Bed and Breakfast Association, fit the bill beautifully. Having sampled four other member inns of the Asheville B&B group, we confidently choose this one.
Engadine: An Unexpected Hideaway Near Asheville
How often have you driven a road never knowing a secluded getaway was simply yards away? Motorists do just that daily on the pastoral two-lane Smokey Park Highway in Canton, North Carolina. Hidden behind trees and a steep hillside rests the rounded porch and cupola of an 1885 Queen Anne Victorian that welcomes overnight guests today. Discovering Engadine Roadside, the sign reads: Engadine Inn, Cabins and Venue We’ve reached Engadine Inn & Cabins.
Beau Rivage Resort & Casino: Discovering Glitz and History in Biloxi
During 2020, Beau Rivage Resort & Casino, like many other properties in the region, experienced several hurricanes on top of growing pandemic concerns. This post, originally published in November 2019, has been updated (see added COVID-19 Update section below) to offer readers more current information.
Explore Reynolda House Museum of American Art
The Reynolda House Museum of American Art is one of the few surviving, well-preserved examples of the American Country House movement. Now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the former Winston-Salem, North Carolina home of tobacco tycoon R.J. Reynolds and his wife, Katharine, is not only an archived tribute to one of America’s iconic families but also one the top museums in the country for American art. Built in 1917, the 64-room Reynolds Mansion was part of a 1,067-acre estate.
The Middle Temple Murder
In this classic piece of detective fiction written more than a century ago, young sub-editor Frank Spargo is about to beget the most popular and enduring protagonist of the genre – the investigative journalist! While almost no real journalist, with one or two outstanding exceptions, has ever fought and outwitted dim police, evil spies, vicious murderers and other criminal ne’er-do-wells or saved the planet, their literary counterparts do so on exponentially increasing occasions.
Jakes Treasure Beach: A Love Letter to Jamaica
Like us, you might think you know Jamaica: Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Negril. All boast beachfront all-inclusive resorts with any kind of activity you can imagine. “Party All the Time” could be the soundtrack of a vacation here. Yet, a totally different vibe awaits if you drive about two-and-a-half hours southwest from Montego Bay’s Sangster International Airport. The view from South Jamaica Our journey takes us over mountains that dominate the central part of the island.
The Montford Point Marines need help
J.S. Fletcher and Kathy M. Newbern Saturday Jul 13, 2019 at 2:28 PM With no official record of those who served from 1942 to 1949, the Montford Point Marine Association has sought to recognize and continue awarding the medal to the families of the men who served but were not recognized. We recently visited Jacksonville, N.C., primarily known for Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, home of the Second Marine Expeditionary Force, which was established as the United States entered World War II.
The Montford Point Marines need help
J.S. Fletcher and Kathy M. Newbern Saturday Jul 13, 2019 at 2:28 PM With no official record of those who served from 1942 to 1949, the Montford Point Marine Association has sought to recognize and continue awarding the medal to the families of the men who served but were not recognized. We recently visited Jacksonville, N.C., primarily known for Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, home of the Second Marine Expeditionary Force, which was established as the United States entered World War II.
The Montford Point Marines need help
J.S. Fletcher and Kathy M. Newbern Saturday Jul 13, 2019 at 2:28 PM With no official record of those who served from 1942 to 1949, the Montford Point Marine Association has sought to recognize and continue awarding the medal to the families of the men who served but were not recognized. We recently visited Jacksonville, N.C., primarily known for Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, home of the Second Marine Expeditionary Force, which was established as the United States entered World War II.
Step Back in Time at Retro Mother Earth Motor Lodge in Kinston, North Carolina
Fun and funky describe the work of love that Kinston, North Carolina, entrepreneur Stephen Hill completed downtown: turning the long-vacant Kinston Mid-Town Motor Lodge into the hip, new yet retro Mother Earth Motor Lodge, where guests who pull up can’t help but smile. The lodge is a new icon in this small, resurgent city in southeastern North Carolina, lately best-known as home to Chef and the Farmer Restaurant of PBS-TV’s “A Chef’s Life” fame before the show wrapped its fifth season in 2018.
Georgia's Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee offers unexpected luxury
Destination: The lovely, lakefront Ritz-Carlton Reynolds, Lake Oconee, promising a respite in nature, a welcoming spa, multiple, top-level golf courses plus several venues offering fine cuisine. Pre-departure prediction: Non-stop rain. Hmm.
JuneBug: Relive Retro Trailer Life in North Carolina
A first glance at photographs of JuneBug Retro Resort in the North Carolina mountains is sure to elicit wide grins. It’s a throwback to a bygone era — the glory days of road travel. The resort’s natural, open-space setting sprouts a half-circle of 10 neatly arranged campers and travel trailers, some of them Shastas, in groovy pastel and primary colors. A few others — sleek, shiny, silver beauties — reflect bright sunlight toward the site’s Blue Ridge Mountains backdrop.
Bascom Center for the Visual Arts Delights Highlands Visitors
Our recent stay at 200 Main hotel in Highlands, located in the North Carolina mountains, put us within walking distance of the much-touted Bascom Center for the Visual Arts, located next to the Nantahala National Forest.
A Passionate Winemaker in the Alsace Wine Region
An excursion from Scenic Cruises’ Scenic Ruby not only put us in the heart of picturesque Mittelbergheim and its lovely half-timber houses but allowed us to meet one particularly passionate winemaker in the Alsace Wine Region. Our guide Frederique Specht, aka “Freddie,” noted our next stop would be the wine tasting. She cautioned us to watch our step as our small group exited the tour van onto a narrow cobblestone street.
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