Planning a Trip

Getting There

North-south routes through Charlotte are I-85 and I-77; I-40, a major east-west highway, crosses I-77 some 40 miles to the north. Contact the AAA through the Carolina Motor Club, 9433 Pineville-Matthews Rd., Ste. A, Pineville, NC 28134 (tel. 704/541-7409).

Charlotte-Douglas International Airport (tel. 704/359-4000) is served by American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com); Air Canada (tel. 888/247-2262; www.aircanada.com); Continental Airlines (tel. 800/525-0280; www.continental.com); Delta, Delta ASA, and Delta Comair (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com); Northwest Airlines (tel. 800/225-2525; www.nwa.com); United Airlines (tel. 800/241-6522; www.ual.com); US Airways and US Airways Express (tel. 800/428-4322; www.usairways.com); and Lufthansa (tel. 800/399-5838; www.lufthansa.com), among others.

The daily Amtrak (tel. 800/USA-RAIL [872-7245]; www.amtrak.com) service to Washington, D.C., and Atlanta through Charlotte both depart in the early-morning hours.

Greyhound (tel. 800/231-2222; www.greyhound.com) offers regular service to Charlotte. The bus station is at 601 W. Trade St. (tel. 704/375-3332).

Visitor Information

Contact the Charlotte Convention & Visitors Bureau, Visitor Information Center, 330 S. Tryon St., Charlotte, NC 28202 (tel. 800/231-4636 or 704/331-2753; www.visitcharlotte.com), open Monday to Friday from 8:30am to 5pm and Saturday from 9am to 3pm. Charlotte Transit (tel. 704/336-3366; www.charmeck.org) can furnish local bus-route and schedule information.

Special Events

In late April, Springfest is a 3-day festival held in uptown Charlotte. The streets come alive with music and other entertainment, and street vendors dispense a wide variety of foods. For 6 full days in mid-September, the Festival in the Park in Freedom Park celebrates regional arts and crafts.