Tour companies offer package tours that include the Carolinas and Georgia. Most tours include airport transfers, admission to tour attractions, meals, and accommodations. Be sure to ask whether your tour is included under the USOTA consumer-protection guarantee (in case of bankruptcy or insolvency).
Adventure Depot, 200 Yellow Mountain Rd., lies in Cullowhee (tel. 800/903-4401; www.adventuredepot.net) and offers the state's most diversified cross-section of activities, including white-water kayaking, canoe tours, llama trekking, horseback riding, rappelling, biking tours, and fly-fishing, among other adventures. Most packages are 2 days and 2 nights with 1 more day of optional adventures; longer packages are also available. The town of Cullowhee lies in the Blue Ridge Mountains 4 miles off Route 64 and 8 miles from the town of Cashiers.
Barrier Island Kayaks (tel. 252/393-6457; www.barrierislandkayaks.com) offers instruction and guided day trips to the barrier islands of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Visit such destinations as Bear Island and Cape Lookout. Day-trip prices range from $35 to $80. Daily equipment rental for outdoors enthusiasts is an additional charge.
Nearly Perfect Tours (tel. 704/481-9415) is a western North Carolina mountain tour company specializing in custom tours of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The company will design a tour to fit your interests -- whether history, music, mountain culture, architecture, or old general stores. It also offers a North Carolina wineries tour in the Charlotte area. Full-day tours are priced at a rate of $125 daily, and tours have five or fewer participants.
The region's leading tour operator, Mid Atlantic Tour & Receptive Services (tel. 800/769-5912 or 540/665-1939; www.midatlantictours.com), features all-inclusive customized individual group tours. Tours usually begin at 3 days and 2 nights. Destinations include the Outer Banks, Old Salem, and the western mountains.
