Tourism
Our much anticipated community events draw visitors from surrounding areas. You will always find a friendly welcome and an opportunity to enjoy good fun, food and entertainment! Make plans to join us for these annual events.

• Vashti 4th of July Celebration

• Chamber of Commerce Street Dance and Car Show – 1st Saturday in August, for more information, call 828-632-8141

• Hiddenite Festival and Celebration of the Arts, 4th Saturday in September, for more information, call 828-632-6966

• Lions Club Fair – one week in October

• Taylorsville Hometown Apple Festival – 3rd Saturday in October, for more information, call 828-632-4451

• Taylorsville Tour of Homes – 1st Tuesday in December, for more information, call 828-632-8141

• Alexander County Christmas Parade, 1st Saturday in December, for more information, call 828-632-8141

• Merry Christmas the Stony Point Way – 2nd weekend in December

You'll want to check out our other Event Calendars for happenings throughout the year! There is always something special happening in Alexander County and we invite you to be a part of it!

Alexander County offers endless opportunities for spending time with those most important in your life...your family! Picnic at Matheson Park, gather a treasure of books at the library, get into shape at the YMCA, enjoy a show at the Auditorium or take a class at the Hiddenite Center and then go shopping!

Alexander County offers a wide variety of restaurants. From steaks to BBQ, fish camps to coffeehouses, you will find all that your palette desires! For a complete and up to date list of restaurants, events, and attractions, please visit our tourism website at www.VisitAlexanderCounty.com for more details.

Recreation
Alexander County residents enjoy a variety of recreational activities. The Catawba River and Lake Hickory offer opportunities for fishing, swimming, and boating.

The Alexander County Recreation Department operates several public parks that offer outdoor activities such as tennis, softball, football, basketball, horseshoes, volleyball, jogging, walking, picnicking, and children’s playgrounds. Additionally, the Department sponsors a wide variety of organized sports teams for children and adults. Several private recreational facilities that offer motor sports, paint ball and swimming are also located in the county.

The Hiddenite area offers rock hounds the year- round opportunity to dig for precious stones such as emeralds, sapphires, garnets, smoky quartz, tourmaline, clear quartz, aquamarine, sillimanite, monazite and rutile.

The H & H Arena hosts two annual national circuit rodeos, in addition to several other horseback and western related events. The arena is also home of the Happy Trails Cowboy Church that meets weekly on Monday nights.

The Brushy Mountain Golf Club in Taylorsville is an 18-hole championship course with year-round golfing, special tournaments and exciting golfing events. Rivercrest at Oliver’s Landing is an 18-hole championship course that features rolling fairways, unique design characteristics and undulating greens. Both courses have a practice putting green, practice range, full service pro shop and PGA professionals on site to help with your golf games.

The Town of Taylorsville offers a seven-acre park featuring play equipment for preschool and youth, swings, volleyball area, a 2,000 – foot walking path and restrooms. Lighted walking tracks are located at Bethlehem Elementary, East Alexander Park and Alexander Central High, Salem Park, and Old Wittenburg School.

Hickory Cove Bible Camp is a beautiful facility surrounded by Lake Hickory offering Christian camping retreats for all ages and providing programs for spiritual and physical growth.

The Bethlehem community joins together the first Thursday evening of December to light the Bethlehem star. This is an excellent way to begin the Christmas festivities.

The Alexander County YMCA in Taylorsville offers fitness classes, karate, a complete gym and sports programs.

The Senior Center of Alexander County, a 4,000 square foot facility, offers programs that promote an active lifestyle and enhance the lives of the senior population.

Cultural Opportunities
The Hiddenite Center/Lucus Mansion serves as the cultural and arts center of the county. The Hiddenite Center is housed in the three-story Victorian mansion of James Paul Lucas. The Lucus Mansion offers visitors the opportunity to enjoy touring the first-floor Victorian house museum, the rotating arts and crafts exhibits on the second floor, and the extensive doll collection on the third floor. The mansion is open to the public daily. The Hiddenite Center’s educational center hosts a variety of concerts, dinner theaters and cultural performances as well as family and civic functions.

The new Alexander Central Auditorium is a 956-seat auditorium located on the campus of Alexander Central High School. This facility provides a series of cultural performances, enrichment experiences for the region;s school populations, and other concerts and events sponsored by presenters and community organizations.

Alexander County is host to two annual festivals that draw many creative people to the county. The Hiddenite Celebration of the Arts is held the fourth Saturday in September, and the Taylorsville Hometown Apple Festival is held the third Saturday in October.

The Alexander County Library, with branches in Taylorsville and Bethlehem, houses a collection of 62,589 books. Video collections and music collections are also available for loan. Visit the Alexander County Library web site.