The 27th annual Taste of Scotland Festival will be held June 19-21 at a variety of locations around Franklin.

The festival is a celebration of the heritage brought to these mountains, that of the Scots and Scots-Irish, along with celebrating the historic relationships with the Cherokee.

The annual Front Street Arts & Crafts Show will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 13, in downtown Dillsboro.  

Dozens of booths lining Front Street will display handmade items from regional artists and crafters.

The 2026 Smoky Mountain Yoga & Wellness Festival will be held June 19-21 on the Folkmoot Friendship Center Campus in Waynesville.

Celebrating whole-body wellness with 38 classes and workshops, this second-annual event has grown into a full weekend of yoga, but also sound and somatic therapy, kirtan, qigong, hooping, empowering workshops, hiking, forest bathing and more. 

Two Days of Mountain Culture, Craft, Food, and Live Music – With Exciting New Experiences for 2026

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. — The mountains are calling, and the Appalachian True Heritage Festival is answering. Organizers are proud to announce the return of this beloved celebration to the heart of Downtown Waynesville, gathering community members, cultural bearers, artisans, musicians, and storytellers for a two-day immersion in the rich history and living traditions of Western North Carolina. 

I only met Bob Weir once. It was backstage at the long gone Gathering of the Vibes music festival located on the shoreline of the Long Island Sound in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It was the summer of 2009 and I was 24 years old, myself an aspiring journalist for a now-defunct music magazine. 

The Summit Charter School Foundation announced that the 2025 Cashiers Festival of Trees will open on Friday, Nov. 28, at 370 Mitten Lane in Cashiers. The festive fundraiser — accessible both in person and online — will run through Saturday, Nov. 29, with doors open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

Experience the rich traditions of Appalachian Mountain life at the annual Mountain Life Festival, happening Sept. 20 at the Mountain Farm Museum, located just behind the Oconaluftee Visitor Center in Cherokee. 

Since their formation in 2018, The Brothers Gillespie have become one of the must-see rock acts emerging from Western North Carolina and greater Southern Appalachia. A sonic blend of Americana, indie and folk stylings, the quintet remains steadfast, inspired and, more importantly, hungry for what’s just beyond the horizon of their intent. 

Tara Pruett’s running journey emerged from a rough childhood. The art of running, the sport itself — with its life lessons and camaraderie within its vast community of athletes — became a beacon of safe harbor and personal resolve for Pruett. 

In a move that will raise some eyebrows and just as many questions, the decades-long dance festival put on by Folkmoot USA in Waynesville has quietly been eliminated.