Charlotte Rental Car Discounts

Charlotte Attractions and Things to See

Charlotte is the biggest city in the state of North Carolina, and an important financial center, as well as the second biggest banking center in the country after New York City, with the country's biggest financial institution, the Bank of America, calling it home. It has the Carolina Panthers in the National Football League, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, the National Whitewater Center, the Charlotte Bobcats of the NBA and is nicknamed the Queen City, since it was named in honor of the German Princess Charlotte of Mecklenburg, which is how the county would derive its name, since she would become the queen consort of the British King George III, just a year before the city would be founded. It sits halfway between the Appalachian Mountains and the Atlantic Ocean, between Washington, DC and Atlanta, Georgia, a number of miles east of the Catawba River and southeast of Lake Norman, the biggest man-made lake in the state.

Like so many of the cities of the original thirteen colonies, it has a magnificent history, with outstanding historical attractions that will keep you and your family busy for weeks, especially with all the numerous adventure and explorations that are available to you. It is nicknamed the City of Churches because it has churches that belong to the Methodist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Episcopalian, Lutheran and Baptist religions. One fantastic story about the area, occurred in 1799, when a young 12-year-old Conrad Reed found a magnificent sparkling 17 pound rock that the family would use as a doorstop, until three years later, a jeweler would come and offer them $3.50, since he realized it was almost solid gold. That would start the first gold rush in the new nation, that would continue through the 19th and early 20th century that would lead to the creation of the 1837 Charlotte Mint. It would be the leading gold mining state in the country until 1848, when gold was discovered in Sutter's Mill, California.

The city has a wonderful performing arts venue that includes the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra and Opera Carolina that perform at the North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center. It has a plethora of museums that include; the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, the Mint Museum of Craft and Design, the Billy Graham Library, the Mint Museum of Art, Carolina Aviation Museum, the McColl Center for Visual Art, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Fire Education Center and Museum, the Light Factory, the Charlotte Nature Museum in Freedom Park, the Levine Museum of the New South, Charlotte Trolley Museum in the historic south end, the Historic Rosedale Plantation, the Discovery Place, Harvey B. Gantt Center for African American Arts and Culture and the Discovery Place KIDS-Huntsville.

The city has an excellent road system, the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport that is the 8th busiest in the nation, and ninth busiest in the world, with many domestic airlines and three Amtrak routes.

Charlotte is a city of culinary delights that will satisfy any palate or taste, that include "don't miss hole-in-the-wall joints" with fried pickles that will have you coming back for more to the French inspired fine dining with fabulous panoramic views of the city or the farm-to-fork eating establishments that serve the freshest foods around. There seem to be more restaurants than could be listed here or anywhere else for that matter, so when you come to visit, be sure to bring an appetite that never quits.