Travel To Florence: What To Do In The Evenings In The City

BY  Sibashree Sep 20, 2023

Does Tennessee have a beach? No, it does not.  For the longest time, I have been planning a long beach holiday. And something or else will always turn up ruining the plan.  The kids have their exams and there are family commitments. So, our beach vacation was always limited to Douglas Lake or Cherokee Lake.  However, I had done my research on the closest beach to me and this time, we had a long weekend.  So our road led to Sullivan’s Island, the closest beach to Knoxville, TN. Having said that, there are many beaches near Knoxville TN.  For example, Myrtle Beach in South Carolina is one of the most popular ocean beaches near Tennessee. We also have Folly Beach in South Carolina and Oak Island in North Carolina.  In today’s Tour and Travel blog, we will talk about the beaches close to Knoxville TN, and tell you why they are most suitable for the ultimate Tennessee beach vacation. What Is The Closest Beach To Knoxville Tennessee?  Our journey to the closest beaches to Knoxville TN will start from Sullivan’s Island, as promised.  However, before taking you on a tour of these beaches, I wanted to share the best time to visit the closest beach from Knoxville TN.  Knoxville primarily has two tourist seasons. You can visit the closest beach to Knoxville, TN between March and June and September to November.  So, let’s begin the ultimate Knoxville beach journey. Here we go!  1. Sullivan’s Island, South Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 380.4 Miles Travel Time: 6 Hours I was looking for ocean beaches within 6 hours of me, and I found out Sullivan’s Island. It is a barrier island with an area of around 8.91 km².  Further, Sullivan’s Island, the closest beach to TN, stands out with its local history. It has Fort Moultrie, built in 1776 and it still tells the story of how it protected the city from the cannonball attacks of the warships.  Moreover, Sullivan’s Island is important in the history of literature. Edgar Allan Poe was stationed at Fort Moultrie between November 1827 to December 1828. 2. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 412 Miles Travel Time: 6 Hours 46 Minutes Sitting in Knoxville, I was looking for beaches within 7 hours of me. I found the name of Myrtle Beach in South Carolina.  Myrtle Beach is nothing short of a fantasy island and it was once the hub of pirates. Further, Myrtle Beach is associated with the Indigenous people and roaming ghosts.  A visit to Myrtle Beach is incomplete without exploring the Ripley’s Aquarium of Myrtle Beach. Further, you must spend some time at the Myrtle Beach State Park, and Myrtle Beach Pinball Museum.  3. Folly Beach, South Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 383 Miles Travel Time: 6 Hours 35 Minutes  Folly Beach, one of the closest beaches to Knoxville, is the ultimate destination to stay, eat, play. and explore!  Further, life on Folly Beach revolves around outdoor activities. From a casual stroll on the beach to more adventurous activities like surfing, boating, kayaking, and biking, Folly Beach offers you the opportunity to enjoy the best beach vacation.  Moreover, Folly Beach is a wonderful melting pot of modern entertainment and exploring wildlife. You can attend the Annual Folly Festivals and take part in birdwatching and exploring wildlife.  Blu Restaurant And Bar, Bert's Market, and Bounty Bar are some popular places to eat on Folly Beach.  4. Kiawah Island, South Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 396.5 Miles Travel Time: 6 Hours 30 Minutes Kiawah Island with a majority of marshland, is located at a distance of 6 hours and 16 minutes by car from Knoxville.  To emphasize the adventure, let me tell you that the beach is often used for native wildlife watching! Several locations across the beach are perfect if you are looking for wildlife spotting! The two locations popular for this purpose on the beach are Canvasback Duck Pond and Marsh Island Park. What’s more, there are two scenic observation towers in Kiawah where you will get a 360-degree view of the sea and land!  If you are a hiker or like to bike, this beach is perfect! They have natural paths for these types of adventures. For accommodation, there is a private 2nd story deck that you can rent to enjoy some stunning ocean views.  There is one popular restaurant called Jasmine Porch where you can splurge on good food, especially the Low-country favorites such as shrimp and grits, she-crab bisque, fresh seafood, po’boys, and burgers! 5. Isle Of Palms, South Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 383 Miles Travel Time: 6 Hours 30 Minutes There is a playground for children, so this is the perfect destination if you have kids.  There is also a picnic area, so if you plan to spend the whole day out, you can go to this beach. For accommodation, there is a single-family cottage which is well decorated! Food is another important part of the vacation, so I suggest the Sea Biscuit Cafe! Try out the seafood omelets, shrimp, and gravy because these are the low-country options. 6. Hilton Head, South Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 411 Miles Travel Time: 6 Hours 32 Minutes You have to visit this beach for the best sunsets across the water! In a distance of 6 hours, 26 minutes from Knoxville, the coastal paradise is someplace to be visited.  If you are planning on staying the night, there is a resort rental that you can book. You can enjoy the outdoor and indoor pool, a tiki bar, etc. You must catch the coastal area food, especially crab cakes, sandwiches, shrimp, grits, and salads.  7. Oak Island, North Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 441.5 Miles Travel Time: 7 Hours 14 Minutes If you are looking for a scenic beach, Oak Island is the place to visit for all adventurous activities.  Water sports are quite famous here, along with that, you can see Fort Caswell, used in the 1800s and 1900s. This is one of the beaches near Knoxville TN! You will take 7 hours and 8 minutes to reach the beach and can visit the island lighthouse, which is situated just beside the fort.  There is a perfect walk to enjoy Oak Island Nature Center at the beach, so if you are a nature lover, you know where to go! Further, adventures such as kayaking are the thing to do as an outdoor adventure sport. Many family homes and rentals are at a distance of the March beach, providing incredible views across the beach. If you visit the beach, you must try out scrumptious food items such as steak, chicken, and pasta, apart from the delicious seafood. 8. Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina Distance from Knoxville: 442 Miles The beach is a little farther from Knoxville, TN, as it takes about 7 hours and 23 minutes.  There are three beaches in Wilmington: Kure, Carolina, and Wrightsville. All the beaches qualify as some of the best beaches near Knoxville. Apart from common activities such as shopping and dining, there are interesting activities to perform, such as going on catamaran cruises, visiting the History Museum, and attending fairs and seasonal festivals. The Fred and Alice Stanback Coastal Education Center organizes educational programs and treasure hunts for children.  IIn terms of food, you will find some of the best cheeseburgers at this closest beach to Knoxville, TN! If you are a picky eater, you will find various options, from steaks to seafood platters. 9. Kure Beach, North Carolina, Closest Beach To Knoxville, TN Distance from Knoxville: 449.5 Miles Travel Time: 7 Hours 30 Minutes The beach at Kure is beautiful, apart from the North Carolina Aquarium, which is situated at Fort Fisher.  Significant features are located at the beach, such as a nature play area, an adventure reef, and touch tanks. This beach is located at a distance of 7 hours and 31 minutes.  Apart from the beach, you can also visit places such as the historical site of the Civil War Museum, the Fort Fisher State Site, beach cruises, a dog park, and a playground in front of the beach. You cannot miss the food such as burgers, sandwiches, seafood and pasta! I am already drooling! 10. Tybee Island, Georgia: Closest Beach To Knoxville, TN Distance from Knoxville: 434 Miles Travel Time: 7 Hours The beach is located at a distance of 6 hours and 55 minutes by road from Knoxville. Some of the place’s main attractions are the restaurants and the quaint little shops.  The beach is popular for people finding their relaxing haunt near Tennessee. Considering, it is the closest beach to Tennessee! It is a low-key beach situated just outside of Savanah! Apart from relaxing on the beach, you can also access different amenities in Savanah, such as museums, historic architecture, upscale shops, ghost tours, and other attractions perfect for family outings. Beautiful rentals are close to the beach and a 1-minute distance from where you can enjoy some stunning visuals.  The food available in and around the place is quite popular! One such restaurant is located near the waterfront called Bubba Gumbo. The seafood Gumbo is their signature dish! You can also order fried fish, jambalaya, burgers, and crab cakes. They also popularly serve shrimp. 11. Simon’s Island, Georgia: Closest Beach To Knoxville, TN Distance from Knoxville: 491.2 Miles Travel Time: 7 Hours 32 Minutes The beach is situated at a distance of 7 hours and 42 minutes from Knoxville, TN! The beach Oasis is a perfect place to relax, especially with all the amenities present to make your life easier.  The Neptune Park Fun Zone here is for family attractions. You can also find a store to rent accessories for water sports restaurants, and several shops provide you with good food and the necessary equipment for the beach vacation, such as sunscreen, sunglasses, and others. There is one family beach rental along with its private swimming pool. The rental can host a family, which is pretty close to the lighthouse.  You cannot miss the delicious food available on this closest beach to Knoxville, TN! Once such a restaurant opens, Porch offers fried catfish, shrimp, and fried chicken. Read Also: Top 8 List Of National Parks In North Carolina – Travel Guide Closest Beach To Nashville – Top 10 Beaches You Can Visit Top 10 Beaches In Gloucester In Massachusetts – Travel Guide The Perfect Getaway: Discovering The Closest Beach To Disney World!

BY  Sibashree Sep 11, 2024

Kobuk Valley National Park is surreal! Have you ever thought to meet sand dunes in the Arctic Circle? The unique geology of the park makes it possible. That’s not all! The Great Kobuk sand dunes stand here, along with the remains of the North American continental glaciers.  Three of the sand dunes in this national park are active or alive. The Great Kobuk Sand Dunes, Hunt River Dunes, and Little Kobuk Sand Dunes here cover a mesmerizing 20,000 acres of area in the park.   Today, hiking through these dunes is one of the most popular activities in the Kobuk Valley National Park.   While it is visually unusual or unexpected to see sand dunes in an Arctic National Park, you also need to understand that the Arctic region gets very little rainfall every year. So, this is also a desert region.   “Sand dunes in the Arctic landscape are not what you would expect. Since most people associate sand dunes with a hot desert environment, it is a visually unusual thing to see. In fact, what most people don't realize is that the Arctic is also a desert with very low levels of rainfall.”   - Christian, a Kobuk Valley National Park Worker  Having said that, how the sand dunes came to be here, and the experience of exploring them will be a great thing to discuss in this article.   This Is How The Kobuk Valley National Park Became The Land Of Sand Dunes   https://www.instagram.com/p/BWatGdVFuis/ Much of Alaska, including the Kobuk Valley National Park, falls in the Tundra region. Tundra, the coldest of the biomes, gets only around 150 to 250 mm of rainfall and snowfall yearly1. So, the national park has less rainfall than some of the most well-known deserts in the world.   Further, the sand dunes in the Kobuk Valley are as old as the Ice Age. Now, as the mighty glaciers moved forward and made a retreat, the rocks beneath got ground. Now, the blowing wind transported the sand into the empty and ice-free Kobuk Valley. The sand dunes in the park are up to 150 feet high, and they are the biggest, high-altitude, and most importantly, “active sand fields”  in the earth.   In The Land Of The Great Kobuk Sand Dunes  https://www.instagram.com/p/BgmZYDdAA_r/ Are you in the Sahara? No, you are around 35 miles above the Arctic Circle and still find the largest active sand dune field in the world. Today, it is a popular backpacking, hiking, and camping destination in the National Park. You must attend the Northwest Arctic Heritage Center to learn more about the outdoor pursuits in the land of sand dunes.  Let’s quickly look at why the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes is a preferred destination for camping, hiking, and backpacking.  The sand is steady enough for the landing of an aircraft with wheels.  You can put up your tent on any level surface.  Also, you can hike in any direction.  Further, you can board a float plane and reach the Kobuk River. From there, you can take a backpacking tour for around two miles and reach the dunes.  You must visit the Kotzebue Visitor Center if you have plans to take this backpacking journey to and from the Kobuk River.   There is no marked route for hiking.  In summer, the temperature in the sand dunes can reach up to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Also, fall is the season to see caribou migration here.   However, there’s more to it! Let’s learn about the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes as relics of the Ice Age and how life thrived here.   Great Kobuk Sand Dunes: The Relics Of The Ice Age   https://www.instagram.com/p/BYwfdMYlr-0/ To know about the formation of the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes, we must go back to the Ice Age. Around 28000 years ago, glaciers in the mountains formed. I have already discussed how the glaciers ground the rocks and wind deposited them in the Kobuk Valley.   Further, approximately 14000 years ago, the glaciers made a massive retreat. As a result, there were 200,000 acres of sandy land formation on the river banks. Complex holocene activities and geomorphic preservations keep the sand dune field at the Kobuk Valley National Park active or alive. Along with the Kobuk Valley, small lakes in the park have also accumulated sand over thousands of years.   However, most of the landscape today is occupied by the vegetation of the national park, and the sand dune area consists of only 20,000 acres. The vegetation found here consists of the following varieties.  Wild rye  Grasses  Sedges  Kobuk locoweed  Wildflowers blooming occasionally  These species grow on the shifting sand, and they function as stabilizing agents. You can see shrubs, lichens, mosses, and algae following this vegetation. Finally, there are spruce, birch, and aspen trees covering the landscape.    The slopes of the Kobuk Valley sand dunes are the only place where Kobuk locoweeds grow. These plants belong to the pea family, and they are known for their purple flowers. If you want to see these flowers, you must visit the park in late June and July.   The inland dune field of Kobuk Valley National Park is surrounded by boreal forest.   Humans And Wildlife In The Great Kobuk Sand Dunes  https://www.instagram.com/p/Cv0EhpdLsJ5/ It’s amazing to see the Western Arctic Caribou walking through the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes. Fall and spring are the migration seasons for these animals. The north of Brook Range is the caribou herd’s calving ground, and they migrate to and from this place.   As the caribou herds pass through the sand dunes, their footprints remain in the ground for the longest time. According to National Park Service data, around 250,000 caribou pass through this national park annually.   No wonder that the Kobuk Valley National Park is one of the “last great migrations” remaining in the world. The table below gives you a brief idea about the animals and birds in the sand dunes.  Birds Sharp-shinned Hawk Golden Eagle Bald Eagle American Wigeon Northern Pintail Rough-legged Hawk Marsh Hawk Mammals Caribou Wolverine Muskox Snowshoe Hare Moose Gray Wolf Grizzly Bear Beaver Arctic Fox American Pine Marten Amphibians Wood Frog Fish Longnose Sucker Salmon* Northern Pike Alaska Blackfish Alaska Whitefish Humpback Whitefish Alaskan Stickleback Ninespine Stickleback  Human history in the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes is at least 8000 years old. They lived by the Kobuk River and were mainly focused on fishing, hunting, and trapping for survival. It is fascinating to visit the thousand-year-old hunting camps on the edges of the sand dunes.  The golden and shifting Great Kobuk Sand Dunes are located a few miles away from the Kobuk River. Further, the sand dunes soar up to 100 miles in the air.   Kobuk Valley National Park Is Also The Land Of Iñupiaq Subsistence  https://www.instagram.com/p/BWdjyOBl_Lw/ Human life, which started in the Great Kobuk Sand Dunes 8000 years ago, is still thriving with the mantra of subsistence. The Iñupiaq people here use the available natural resources to fulfil their physical needs and safeguard their spiritual and cultural requirements.   For example, they depend on caribou and salmon to feed themselves and their dogs. At the same time, caribou skin hide is extensively used to make parka jackets to combat Arctic winter. They also make mukluks or boots using reindeer skin to walk through the snow.   Further, the local people made baskets using birch and willow. Moreover, in darkness, caribou tallow or seal oil were the only ingredients to light up their stone lamps.   Irrespective of the trade with the coastal communities, the “customary, traditional and non-commercial” use of natural resources is still important in the park.   Iñupiat Ilitqusiat And Respecting The Ecosystem   https://www.instagram.com/p/CzjboNfsc4Y/ Aboriginal people in the Kobuk Valley National Park are committed to passing on their values from generation to generation. The Iñupiat Ilitqusiat value asks them to transfer the knowledge and skill of hunting and everything about life.  In addition, this transfer of knowledge helps to make the most of various seasons and subsistence opportunities. For example, the caribou season comes to this park after the salmon season.   Earlier, Noatak Valley was the destination for these people during the caribou season, and even today, some families move to Noatak Valley. Again, summer camping around the Kobuk River is common for fishing, especially catching salmon and whitefish.   Summer is also the season for harvesting berries and wild greens for the local people.  If you want to learn about the local people and their values, you must be respectful and understand their seasonal activities as a part of their subsistence practices.   Overall, the Kobuk Valley National Park is not just a place to see sand dunes and wildlife. It is a tapestry of human lives depending on nature.   Things To Know Before You Visit The Kobuk Valley National Park   For me, the sand dunes and Iñupiaq subsistence practices are the most fascinating things in the Kobuk Valley National Park. However, keep the following information handy if you are to pay a visit anytime soon.   Mode of Transport: Authorized air taxis from Kotzebue or Bettles  Visitor Center: Northwest Arctic Heritage Center  Entrance Fee: Free  Permits Required:  Commercial Use Authorization or CUA for commercial activities, Research Permits, Filming and Photography Permits  Activities to Do: Boating, fishing, camping and backpacking, hiking, flight-seeing and exploring nearby attractions  Best Time to Visit: June to July   Area: 1,750,000 Acres  Established: 2nd December, 1980  Number of Visitors: 17,616 (2023) (National Park Service Data)  Snowfall, downpours, and extreme weather conditions can occur in any season of the year. So, follow the instructions shared at the visitor center and keep your gear ready for survival!  

BY  Arnab Aug 16, 2023

People often walk by five-star establishments when they are on their vacation and they never think to themselves that this could be the right kind of accommodation choice for them. They wrongfully think that it is outside their budget and so they continue to enjoy a lesser holiday experience when it comes to where they stay for the duration of their holiday time. What many people don’t seem to realize is that when you stay in five-star accommodation, you get to experience something that you have never tried before and in many cases, you end up saving yourself money because of all of the amenities that are offered to you. There are a number of luxury 5-star resorts in the Maldives that you really do need to check out this year because maybe it’s time to take your holiday experience to a completely new level so that you can enjoy the many benefits that can be enjoyed when staying in such accommodation. You also need to take into consideration that you haven’t traveled in some time due to the pandemic and so there is a lot of money burning a hole in your pocket that needs to be spent. Appearance is everything - We all know that providing the best first impression every single time is incredibly important in business and in our day-to-day social lives. This is why these resorts take first impressions very seriously indeed and you will notice many beautiful designs when you arrive from the reception area where you are greeted with a cocktail to the many areas around the resort itself. Exceptional service is provided - The service that you receive at a luxury resort is something that you have never experienced before and the staff there is highly qualified in order to be able to provide you with personal care. It’s likely that you will receive a welcome drink on your arrival and maybe even a complimentary bottle of wine in your room. There will always be someone close by to provide you with any food and beverages that you and your family might want. They provide amazing beds - Part of going on your yearly vacation away from your job is so that you can properly relax and get the best night’s sleep that you’ve ever had. These resorts invest heavily in their beds and many have commented that they are like sleeping on a cloud. You may find it difficult to pull yourself out of the bed the following morning because it is so comfortable and when you do, you get to enjoy a delicious coconut drink. Every possible item that you could possibly need will be there for you and all resorts come with free Wi-Fi that is provided throughout the grounds and big screen TVs in the rooms to keep the kids happy. All of the toiletries that you need in the bathroom will already be there for you and there will be a number of restaurants and bars for you to enjoy. There is a lot more to a five-star experience in a top-quality resort. Read Also: Why A Hotel Is The Right Choice For Your Accommodation Find Your Dream Membership With A Cost-Saving DVC Resale This Is The Best Time To Visit Iceland & These Are The Things You Should Do!