The best vacation spots are ones that others don’t know about. Sometimes the seclusion of these areas will be ruined once they become feature stories on popular search engines. However, there is one place that not even the ‘travel beat’ writers for
are aware of. It’s a place in western North Carolina and its called Lake Lure.
Many people think Dirty Dancing was filmed in upstate New York. This is where the movie takes place, but it’s not where it was filmed. Dirty Dancing was filmed on Lake Lure. You can even rent the actual cabin that they ‘stayed’ in. It will be several hundred dollars per night, but it’s a lifetime experience and something you can tell your friends and family about.
There are many other reasons to visit Lake Lure. The simplest reason is that it’s one of the most beautiful manmade lakes in the United States. High cliffs protrude over the lake in some areas, which makes for a picturesque scene. You can enjoy one of these spectacular views as you swim in the lake at Lake Lure Beach. This beach will get a little crowded during the weekend when it’s peak season, but if you go during the week, you might be one of only ten to twenty people on the entire beach. And if you’re traveling with family, this beach has some advantages over other beaches. One is that there’s a general swimming area and a kiddy swimming area. If you have an infant or toddler, this will allow you to swim in a designated section without older kids running and splashing around you. Another neat feature is that they have two water slides that end in the lake; the lines are never long. There is a tiny splash park, so if your kids like to catch water from fountains or have buckets of water poured on their heads every few seconds, this is the place for them. There is also a Water Wars section, which is a game where you catapult water balloons from your station to your opponent’s station.
Overall, Lake Lure Beach is probably one of the least crowded and most entertaining beaches in the country. Other sites in the area include Chimney Rock Park, Chimney Rock Village, Asheville, and Hendersonville.