Cherokee, NC

Not too long ago while in Cherokee, North Carolina for a short stay, I scoured the internet for FREE things to do while in town. Cherokee is such a charming town, but there is very little about it on-line that doesn’t involve dollar signs.

🙁 $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ 🙁

I found some websites that listed things such as “watch butterflies mate” and “wade in a creek” as some of the very few things that actually were free to do.

We took 2 of our 3 boys with us though, so I thought there should be a list of FREE THINGS TO DO IN CHEROKEE, NC listed on-line somewhere that was real and serious!

Here are the things that we found that were free to do:

  • Take pictures with the many bear statues along the main streets in Cherokee FOR FREE.wpid-IMAG1040.jpg
    Photo Bomb
    Photo Bomb
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    You get the picture 🙂

  • You can also take pictures with the other various statues FOR FREE:

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  • You could take pictures of other odd things you see FOR FREE!

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See a sign written by Yoda
See a sign written by Yoda
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Watch trout swim

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Okay, seriously now, all fun aside –

  • Another FUN and FREE thing to do in Cherokee, NC is to visit the Oconaluftee Islands Park!

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Here, you can listen to the talking trees (they speak Indian or English only), wade in the stream, feed the local ducks & geese, and walk through a bamboo forest.
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  • There’s a nearby waterfall that you can visit for FREE also named Mingo Falls. wpid-MING-FALLS-NC.jpg

Now, I could list the other things that are free like: connecting with nature, taking a stroll, etc. but the focus of this article is FREE things to do in Cherokee, NC and honestly – this is it.

There are other websites out there that will list for you the other free stuff like watching someone trout fish, but I wanted to list engaging activities that the kiddies will want to do that were free. I wish there were more things, but this is it in a nutshell. Everything else has a price tag attached to it. If you’re into spending $ you could go visit the casino or have your picture taken with an Indian. (But don’t take the kids to the casino, they have new rules now that literally just went into effect. Your kids practically can’t leave the room now 🙁 and the pool is still under renovation.)

That’s all folks!  🙂

8 comments


  1. LOVE your blog! Just made my morning and because of you and one other blog I visited, my wife is going to have to “wipe the smile off my face!” Thanks a lot for that!!! No, seriously I mean it!
    I’m going to HAVE to follow your writing, after all, EVERYBODY needs a guilty pleasure and having too much fun should make a person feel guilty —- or, very, very healthy!
    I’ll bet there are a LOT of healthy people out there who haven’t had to take daily medications because of you!! Keep it up and break the pharmaceutical companies!!! Okay, maybe not, not everyone appreciates great humor!! Love it, love it, love it!
    To quote the father of a currently popular family on TV, it makes me “happy, happy, happy!”
    God bless for using such a God-given gift! It truly is a ministry (service) to so many!
    Proverbs 17:22, “A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit dries the bones.”


    • Thank you Pastor Roland. I appreciate the encouraging words 🙂 I don’t always write humor though, so some posts may make you sad 🙁 Thank you for reading 🙂


    • This post was scheduled to post today, but I guess there was a glitch and it partially published the other day. Sorry about that Don! 🙂

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