Greensboro, North Carolina: Where to Stay, Eat, and Experience the Gate City

The Weatherspoon Art Museum, one of the top Greensboro attractions, is located at the University of North Carolina and is home to one of the largest collections of modern and contemporary art in the Southeast. With a particular focus on American Art, the museum’s internationally renowned program includes over 15 exhibitions each year, a variety of educational activities and programs for both children and adults, and quite a few art-based publications.

The museum's collection consists of over 6,000 works and objects representing all the main art movements from the beginning of the 20th century to the present. Featured works consist of paintings by Willem de Kooning, Knox Martin, Eva Hesse, and Andy Warhol, to name just a few. Other highlights include The Dillard Collection of Art on Paper, the Lenoir C. Wright Collection of Japanese Prints, and the Etta and Claribel Cone Collection. Admission is free.

500 Tate St, Greensboro, NC, Phone: 336-334-5770

The Greensboro Science Center consists of three popular family-friendly attractions (an aquarium, a museum, and a zoo), and it is one of the most visited tourist destinations in Greensboro.

The Carolina SciQuarium is the only inland aquarium in North Carolina, and it features a variety of water-dependent animals including sharks, stingrays, eels, otters, an anaconda, and a plethora of fish species. The Greensboro Science Center is one of the best things to do in Greensboro NC with kids. The Animal Discovery Zoological Park is home to a variety of mammals, reptiles, and amphibians, ranging from tigers and monkeys to crocodiles, tortoises, and a rare red panda.

The museum also boasts a selection of first-class exhibits and displays, including a giant 36-foot Tyrannosaurus Rex model, a Herpetarium with live snakes, and state-of-the-art OmniSphere Theater, which has a 40-foot dome ceiling with a 3D screen. The Greensboro Science Center also offers a wide variety of educational programs, science workshops, field trips, and camps for children of all ages throughout the year.

4301 Lawndale Dr., Greensboro, North Carolina, Phone: 336-288-3769

The Greensboro Historical Museum is dedicated to preserving and presenting the history of the Piedmont area of North Carolina, particularly that of Greensboro and Guilford County, and it celebrates the city’s local heritage and culture. The museum is home to a range of exhibitions and displays that document the lives of the people who played an important role in the history of the city, from the Quakers and Scots-Irish to the Native Americans.

Covering more than 17,000 square feet, the museum also provides educational opportunities for adults and students to learn more about the participation of Guilford County in the Civil War, the roots of the Civil Rights Movement, and the rise of textile manufacturing in the South.

130 Summit Avenue, Greensboro, North Carolina, Phone: 336-373-2043

What to do if you are traveling with kids:

The Tanger Family Bicentennial Garden is a beautifully sculpted and maintained public garden for the people of Greensboro to enjoy. Renowned for its magnificent bronze sculptures and traditional annual plantings, the 7.5-acre garden boasts a number of engaging features such as a man-made re-circulating stream that adds a tranquil element to the gardens, a spectacular Sensory Garden, which offers an interactive landscape experience, and a lovely Paver Plaza, where visitors can lend their names to the garden.

A pretty wedding gazebo makes the perfect spot for a bride on her big day, and the Garden offers a variety of educational programs and classes to adults and children. It also organizes community clean-ups and other outreach projects. If you are wondering what to do in Greensboro today, the garden is open year-round, and admission is free.

1105 Hobbs Rd, Greensboro, NC, Phone: 336-373-2199

Miriam P. Brenner Children's Museum (formerly The Greensboro Children’s Museum) is a fun, interactive museum for children, parents, and educators that aims at encouraging children to learn through play.

Exciting exhibitions, immersive displays, and educational presentations inspire children up to 10 years of age to look, touch, feel, and explore in a fun, lively, and safe environment.

Located in downtown Greensboro, the celebrated museum features over 20 permanent hands-on displays, including Our Town, The Health Center, and Edible Schoolyard. The museum also offers a range of educational classes and workshops, as well as special museum programs and summer camps.

220 North Church Street, Greensboro, North Carolina, Phone: 336-574-2898

Attractions for Couples

Formally opened in 1991, The Greensboro Arboretum is a beautifully maintained public garden with over 14 plant collections. It features local and foreign flora varieties and species, exquisite display gardens, and distinctive structural features such as bridges, pathways, a gazebo, and wind chimes. Spread over 17 acres, the garden is a living gallery of greenery, with collections of conifers, climbing plants, hydrophytes, and small trees.

Display gardens include roses, hollies, rhododendrons, and butterflies, while structural features in the garden include the Tanger Family Wedding Gazebo, the Elena Marzulla Bridge, a 23-foot tall trio of oversized wind chimes, and a tranquil viewpoint that provides stunning panoramic views of the gardens. The garden is open year-round, and admission is free.

401 Ashland Dr, Greensboro, NC, Phone: 336-373-2199

Located at the entrance to the city, Gateway Gardens provide a tranquil green space and cultivated garden in which visitors can relax. Spanning 11 acres, this interactive garden is home to a variety of individual gardens and collections, including the Heritage Garden, the Rain Garden, the Great Lawn, and the Michel Family Children's Garden.

Visitors can take advantage of various educational programs, classes, and workshops about the gardens and their history, and they can also learn more about the science of botany. The garden is open year-round from sunrise to sunset, and admission to the garden is free.

2800 E Gate City Blvd, Greensboro, NC 27401, Phone: 336-373-2199

The Pig Pounder Brewery is a local microbrewery that specializes in the production of authentic British beers, including varieties like an English Dark Mild, an Extra Special Bitter, and a classic Milk Stout, for local venues around the city. Visitors can enjoy guided tours around the brewery and learn about the history of the facility and the production of craft beer along the way.

They can also taste some of the brewery’s best products in the state-of-the-art interactive tasting room. Pig Pounder Brewery produces year-round brews such as Mild Mud, Plain Pig, and Boar Brown, as well as seasonal brews like Punk Piggy and Barbie Swine.

1107 Grecade St., Greensboro, North Carolina, Phone: 336-553-1290

Guilford Courthouse National Military Park commemorates the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, which took place in 1781. The battle was the most hotly-contested battle of the Revolutionary War's Southern Campaign and began the campaign that led to American victory in the Revolutionary War.

The battlefield is preserved as a National Military Park and is listed on the National Historic Register of Places. Visitors to the park can explore the area home to a variety of natural ecosystems and landscapes on foot or bicycle or they can explore the Guilford Courthouse National Military Park Museum, which features a range of outstanding exhibits and displays regarding the history and background of the battle.

2332 New Garden Rd, Greensboro, North Carolina, Phone: 336-288-1776