Vacation home in Blowing Rock or Highlands NC? (Charlotte, Greensboro: renters, crime)

[sarasota1970]

I am a third generation Sarasota native that has spent my 41 summers in the mountains of WNC. I have very fond memories in Franklin, where my family still spends several months a year finding "peace". When my children were born we started exploring other places, because Franklin felt like a "big town" (though I realize this happened over many years). I wanted the nostalgia of pre-WalMart Franklin. For the last seven years we've been between Highlands & Blowing Rock to fill the void (both have done just that).

So here are my questions:
Currently my children are in elementary school and I know it won't stay that way forever, but I'm prayerful that the vacation home we find will be filled with grandchildren one day. Which community is more child oriented? Here are my thoughts: hiking, fishing, arts, blueberry & blackberry picking, and golfing is available in/around both. Distance to Asheville is about the same from either. Climate/precipitation and elevation seem to be very similar.

Pros/Cons -

Blowing Rock: Tweetsie (+), Grandfather Mountain (+), Linville Caverns/Falls (+), Sugar Mtn/Banner Elk/Beech for skiing (+), close to my husband's sister and her family in Greensboro area (+), less crime (+)...but are those numbers lower simply because there are less residents/tourists annually?
On the down side BR takes 2.5 hours longer to drive from Sarasota, is 196 miles from Canton (where we stop on our way up for a couple days of visiting), and we're thinking that if we rented our home we may have a harder time maintaining the property with potential college-aged guests (nearby Boone) and less income potential?

Highlands: waterfalls (+), close to my family in Franklin (+), 92 miles from Canton (+), Ocoee/Nantahala whitewater rafting (+).

I would love to hear any other pros/cons for these two towns. Anyone know about airport accessibility for the two towns (we drive it, but renters may not)?What about a hospital? Thanks!

[scarlet52698]

Originally Posted by sarasota1970

I am a third generation Sarasota native that has spent my 41 summers in the mountains of WNC. I have very fond memories in Franklin, where my family still spends several months a year finding "peace". When my children were born we started exploring other places, because Franklin felt like a "big town" (though I realize this happened over many years). I wanted the nostalgia of pre-WalMart Franklin. For the last seven years we've been between Highlands & Blowing Rock to fill the void (both have done just that).

So here are my questions:
Currently my children are in elementary school and I know it won't stay that way forever, but I'm prayerful that the vacation home we find will be filled with grandchildren one day. Which community is more child oriented? Here are my thoughts: hiking, fishing, arts, blueberry & blackberry picking, and golfing is available in/around both. Distance to Asheville is about the same from either. Climate/precipitation and elevation seem to be very similar.

Pros/Cons -

Blowing Rock: Tweetsie (+), Grandfather Mountain (+), Linville Caverns/Falls (+), Sugar Mtn/Banner Elk/Beech for skiing (+), close to my husband's sister and her family in Greensboro area (+), less crime (+)...but are those numbers lower simply because there are less residents/tourists annually?
On the down side BR takes 2.5 hours longer to drive from Sarasota, is 196 miles from Canton (where we stop on our way up for a couple days of visiting), and we're thinking that if we rented our home we may have a harder time maintaining the property with potential college-aged guests (nearby Boone) and less income potential?

Highlands: waterfalls (+), close to my family in Franklin (+), 92 miles from Canton (+), Ocoee/Nantahala whitewater rafting (+).

I would love to hear any other pros/cons for these two towns. Anyone know about airport accessibility for the two towns (we drive it, but renters may not)?What about a hospital? Thanks!

I too spent most of my summers as a kid in Highlands, I grew up in Tampa. We now live close to Blowing Rock and I have to say that I think it is better for families here. You have easier access to Blowing Rock now that they have widened 321 and most folks fly in to Charlotte and then drive up. The other airport that some would use would be the Tri Cities. I would think your rental opportunities would be greater here due to the availability to rent to skiers. Most students wouldn't want to live in Blowing Rock due to it being more tourist/family oriented. You would most likely find professionals or seasonal visitors who would want to rent a home in Blowing Rock.

As to maintaining your home, there are a ton of folks in the area that cater to that at reasonable prices. The distance from your family would be an issue however we access to the main highways with Hwy 40 only about a 20-30 minute drive down the mountain.

Having moved from Charlotte I can say the crime here is nil. My only concern are the drivers that aren't used to driving on mountain roads. We seem to have a lot of accidents on certain roadways here.

Good luck in your search!