Charlotte Convention Center – Experiences

Charlotte, North Carolina, welcomes nearly 48 million visitors annually, making it one of the top 10 most visited cities in the U.S. With such a large influx of tourists each year, Charlotte has a ton of activities and attractions. The city of Charlotte as a whole is quite large. However, Uptown Charlotte is just over two square miles, and there is a lot packed into this relatively small section of the city.

The Charlotte Convention Center is located in Uptown Charlotte. This convention center brings a lot of visitors to this section of town. If you’re visiting the Charlotte Convention Center, you’ll want to take a day to explore what makes the Queen City a great destination for travel.

The good news is that the area around the Charlotte Convention Center is generally walkable. However, there may be some places that are faster and easier to reach by public transportation. Guests can use the Lynx Blue Line Light Rail, CATS or Sprinter bus services, and bike or rideshare services to get around the city.

 

Morning

Noon

Night

 

Morning

To get your day up and running, you need a delicious and filling breakfast. One of the best places to get that is Crispy Crepe. It is located in South End Charlotte, and when using the Lynx Blue Line Light Rail, it is only 13 minutes away from the Charlotte Convention Center.

Crispy Crepe has a unique beginning. The chef and owner, Said Gomaa, started this eatery because his wife, a French Canadian, found it difficult to find good breakfast food similar to what she enjoyed in Québec. Whether it is a signature crepe, waffle, panini, pastry, or drink, Said wants to amaze his customers with exceptional quality. With many organic ingredients, this is a great place for those who are health-conscious or vegetarian.

For breakfast, you may want to try a crepe, especially given the name of the establishment. They have savory crepes that contain eggs and bacon or sweet crepes with chocolate, fruits, and cinnamon.

If one of their many crepes aren’t appealing to you, they have Liège waffles, which are made in the European tradition of cooking the waffle with brioche-style dough and pearl sugar. The waffles are fluffy and sweet, making them perfect on their own or enhanced with toppings. If you want more than just a waffle with syrup, you can try the cookie butter waffle or one with banana and butterscotch.

When you’re finished with breakfast, you’ll want to use a ridesharing service to get to the Carolinas Aviation Museum within 15 minutes. This is the farthest you will be from the Charlotte Convention Center all day. It is located next to the Charlotte Douglas International Airport, so if you flew into Charlotte, this area probably looks familiar.

The Carolinas Aviation Museum was founded in 1992, and it highlights innovations in aviation. It started with aircraft and artifacts specific to North and South Carolina aviation history, but now the museum also hosts military, commercial, and civilian aircraft and items from over the years.

One of the major exhibits is the US Airways Flight 1549 “Miracle on the Hudson.” A few other exhibits guests will see are Cessna 150L, Supersonic Flight, Piedmont DC-3, and Ercoupe. With over 50,000 guests a year, the aim of this museum is to not only teach but to inspire those to follow their dreams and aspirations.

 

Noon

Your next stop will have you go back toward the Charlotte Convention Center. Like you did on your way to the museum, you will want to use a ridesharing service to get to Uptown Charlotte. It will take about 16 minutes to reach Romare Bearden Park.

Charlotte Convention CenterThis park was named in honor of Romare Bearden, who was an artist from Charlotte. This urban park was a $10 million project aimed at improving the community by providing a space for social and physical well-being. It is now a well-known landmark and major gathering point for many events.

This five and a half-acre park contains a few distinct areas you will want to see. One area is called “Paris Memory,” which is a walkway that was made to resemble one in Paris. Bearden spent a portion of his life as an artist abroad in Paris. The next area is called the “evocative spine.” This walkway is meant to reference how Bearden created artwork by evoking moments from his childhood. Then there are Madeline’s and Maudell’s gardens, which are for the gardens Bearden’s grandmother and mother kept. Finally, there is the Childhood Muse Plaza. This plaza has a large interactive fountain and is one of the most well-known features in the park.

For lunch, walk two minutes around the block to a local favorite called Green’s Lunch. They serve up various hot dogs, hamburgers, sandwiches, and grilled cheeses for a couple of bucks.

Steps from the Charlotte Convention Center is the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture, which is where you will be going after lunch. You will walk 10 minutes from Green’s Lunch to reach this museum. The entire center is an impressive 46,500 square feet.

The outside architecture of the building is eye-catching. It was inspired by the Myer Street School, which was located in the old Brooklyn neighborhood. There is also influence from the biblical term “Jacob’s Ladder.” The outside stair configuration of the ladder on the building demonstrates the importance of education in relation to the advancement of the African-American community. The colors of the building are reminiscent of the Underground Railroad and textiles from Western Africa. Altogether, it is a symbol of education, hope, advancement, and enlightenment.

The Harvey B. Gantt Center is a place to view music, dance, theater, literature, film, and art created by the African and African-American communities. The center aims to create engagement and conversation. One of the cornerstone collections guests will view at the museum is the John and Vivian Hewitt Collection of African-American Art. This collection contains over 50 pieces by artists such as Romare Bearden, Margaret Burroughs, Jonathan Green, Jacob Lawrence, Elizabeth Catlett, and Henry Ossawa Tanner.

 

Night

Charlotte Convention CenterLeaving the vicinity of the Charlotte Convention Center, the first stop of the night is Free Range Brewing. There are two options for how to get to this brewery from the Harvey B. Gantt Center. The first is to get a ridesharing service, which will take about 10 minutes. If you would rather continue using the light rail, you can take that to the brewery instead, but it will take almost a half hour.

Brothers Jeff and Jason Alexander started Free Range Brewing from their love of beer. Now they aim to use the brewery to create community, foster creativity, and gather family and friends. The beers are constantly rotating here, as they aim to have something new for guests to try any time they visit, so come in with an open mind and palate.

Once you’ve had your fill of unique brews, as previously mentioned, you can either use ridesharing or the light rail to get back to Uptown Charlotte. You’ll be having dinner at Alexander Michael’s, which is a locally owned American Tavern.

The food here is typical pub fare. Depending on your craving, you could try one of their sandwiches, like a Buffalo chicken or Rueben. They also serve London broil as a sandwich or an entree. Other entrees include blackened catfish, chicken marsala, shrimp marsala, and various kinds of pasta. There is even an option to make your own pasta dish or sandwich. Save room for dessert to try one of their cakes or brownies.

From Alexander Michael’s, you have the option to either walk 20 minutes or take a two-minute drive over to the AvidXchange Music Factory. To give some perspective, this venue is two miles from the Charlotte Convention Center. This is an excellent place to end your night because you will have a few different options to choose from.

The first option is a pizzeria and bar called 8.2.0. They have multiple bars that all have craft cocktails, a wide selection of beers and wines, as well as high-end bourbon and whiskey. Along with having multiple bars, there are live event rooms with soundproof walls, so you may end up catching a live show. Additionally, there is a karaoke lounge. Charlotte actors host the karaoke lounge shows, which makes the shows that much more unique.

The same couple that owns 8.2.0 also owns VBGB. They specialize in craft beers and have over 30 beers on tap. If karaoke isn’t your thing, you might like VBGB better. They have a large patio area that has a variety of activities that pair perfectly with that brew, such as giant Jenga, Connect Four, ping-pong, board games, and cornhole.

Want to dance the night away? Stop at World Night Club or Club One. If you’d rather just relax at a bar, a cool choice is Wet Willie’s. They serve specialty adult frozen drinks.

Charlotte Convention CenterLive shows are available at the AvidXchange Music Factory as well. Inside the Music Factory, you can find live music at The Fillmore, The Underground, Fountain Plaza, and The Charlotte Metro Credit Union Amphitheatre. Live comedy shows are an option at The Comedy Zone. Of course, if you want to see a live performance, you should plan and book ahead of time.

Whether you’re ending your night with a laugh, playing a game and enjoying a drink, or dancing and singing, you’re bound to have a great time. Uptown Charlotte has so much to offer its visitors, and this is only a taste of what you can do. When you are visiting the Charlotte Convention Center, make sure you set aside some time to take a day and explore.