Experience beautiful North Carolina from your home.

Are you lucky enough to call The Gate City home?

Living in Greensboro, North Carolina comes with many advantages, including quick access to scenic natural areas, cultural hot spots, and some of the best dining and shopping in the state. While we’re all adapting to this new normal and practicing social distancing, some of those familiar favorites might feel farther away than normal. However, you can still experience your corner of beautiful North Carolina from home!

Today, we’re sharing a few ways your family can soak up all the character and charm of our city, right where you are.

Take a Virtual Park Tour

Greensboro parks might be closed for now, but that doesn’t mean you can’t tour the Gateway Gardens or get up-close-and-personal with local wildlife!

Every day, the Greensboro Parks and Recreation Department goes live on its Facebook page to give viewers a virtual tour of one of the city’s natural areas. On-site activities vary from crafting sessions and at-home fitness classes to nature lessons and garden strolls.

If you’re missing your favorite walking trails or picnic spots, this is an ideal way to escape. There’s even a virtual egg hunt that the whole family can check out! Search for #enhanceexpandconnect on Facebook to discover more.

Camp in Your Backyard

One of the bright spots of social distancing has been rediscovering the simple pleasures of home. Some of those might be right in your backyard! Until we can all go to the campground again, why not take advantage of that camping gear in the basement, and host an outdoor family night?

Make s’mores over a makeshift firepit, take turns telling stories, and fall asleep together in a tent under the Triad sky. When you live in Greensboro, you don’t have to travel far to experience the natural wonders our beautiful state of North Carolina has to offer.

Go on a Scavenger Hunt

While you’re sheltering in place, it’s still a good idea to get plenty of fresh air. After your backyard campout, start the morning with a scavenger hunt!

Make the experience complete by creating a map that leads the kids around the yard and encourages new discoveries. You can even weave in alphabet letters and sight words to make the activity part of your homeschool lesson for the day! This list of indoor and outdoor scavenger hunts will keep the entire brood entertained, rain or shine.

Plant a Garden

Instead of focusing on the amenities being taken away during this season, plant something with your family and discover the hope of new growth! This is a perfect time to plant a simple backyard garden and teach your children the enjoyment that comes with watching life sprout up from the ground.

New Garden Landscaping and Nursery is still open, operating under adjusted hours. It’s also offering remote ordering and curbside pickup options. Plan a visit and stock up on all the vegetables, herbs, shrubs, seeds, and plants you need to turn your yard into the ultimate growing zone.

Take a Scenic Drive

Remember when Sundays were synonymous with scenic drives? Over time, we’ve moved away from that tradition but if there was ever a time to bring it back, this is it.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation has compiled a guide to the most beautiful drives in the state, broken into the mountain, piedmont, and coastal plain regions. From the Hanging Rock Scenic Byway to Football Road, many are accessible from Greensboro’s network of highways and side roads.

Buckle up the family, pack plenty of snacks, and go for a drive. While most attractions are closed, you can still roll down the window, turn the music up and rediscover why it’s called a joy ride.

Visit the North Carolina Zoo Online

The North Carolina Zoo is only a short 40-minute drive from Greensboro. While the facility is temporarily suspending operations, it’s opening its doors to virtual tours.

At any time, you can log in to watch as elephants, black bears, snakes, gorillas, and more participate in the zoo’s annual springtime EGGStravaganza, where they search for tasty goodies inside colorful paper eggs! You can also pre-register to participate in a weekly Zoo Classroom program. This is a one-hour, in-person broadcast for K-12 students that airs Thursday at 1:00 p.m. EST.

Other virtual programs at the zoo include biologist Rob Nelson’s “Untamed Science” series as well as the zoo’s own distance learning series, “Living With Nature”.

Find an Open Trail

The parks and trail systems in Greensboro are unlike any other in the state. Many of ours are interconnected and weave into one another, including Country Park, Battleground Park, Bur-Mill Park, and others.

While indoor recreation centers, as well as museums and cultural centers, remain closed, city-operated trails and greenways are still open from dusk to dawn, daily. The same goes for most neighborhood parks. This means that a relaxing and mind-clearing stroll might be closer than you think.

Of course, remember to practice the six-foot social distancing rule while you’re running, walking, or hiking! Most lakes and regional parks, including Lake Brandt, Lake Townsend, Barber Park, Keeley Park, and others are open from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily.

Fishing is still permitted at these sites, though pier usage is limited to 10 people at a time. This article shares all the updates on closures and openings as of April 22.

Let’s Enjoy Beautiful North Carolina From Home Together

While we’re experiencing this time apart, Greensboro residents, business owners, and students can still connect in new and unique ways. From virtual garden tours and zoo visits to off-the-beaten-path parks and trails, there’s still plenty to do and discover in beautiful North Carolina.

We’re in this together, and we can’t wait to see your beautiful smiles again soon! If you need anything from our office during this time, don’t hesitate to contact us today.