EMBRACE THE SEASON

Local business and tourism advocates have been wrestling with a post-Helene narrative of a devastated Western North Carolina, with some faring better than expected and others reporting serious losses. 
Hurricane Helene did not hit the counties west of Asheville as hard as it did other places in WNC. 
The miscommunication of the scale and scope of Helene damage in WNC threatened the local tourism industry and dealt serious damage to many of the businesses in its service area, according to Mici Canales, marketing director of Visit Smokies, formerly Smoky Mountain Host. 
“When the public sees headlines or social media posts – whether from personal or professional accounts – describing WNC as ‘destroyed’ or ‘unsafe,’ often paired with images of Bat Cave or Lake Lure, the effect blankets the entire 30.4% of the mountains that is the Smokies subregion, even though large portions remain open and thriving. For small businesses that suffered no physical damage but depend on tourism, this broad-brush portrayal is devastating,” Canales said. 
VistNC shared data from the summer of 2025, which describes a sluggish 2025 summer season statewide, with hotel and motel room nights for June and July down 1%, with home rentals remaining flat from 2024. 
For 2025 in the mountain region, VisitNC described demand for hotel rooms as up 6%, with home rental demand down 14%. Public relations content manager Suzanne Brown said this could be a little misleading, as VisitNC believes the hotel room uptick to be from recovery and evacuee business seen in early 2025. For June and July, hotel demand is down 1% and home rental demand is down 15% from 2024, though Brown noted that home rental supply is down as well. 
Brown said travel professionals nationwide are seeing declines.
VisitNC introduced a new tagline for Western North Carolina, “rediscover the unforgettable,” as part of a campaign to rebuild the tourism industry post-Helene. Gov. Josh Stein has helped by visiting the region and encouraging travel, said Visit NC Executive Director Wit Tuttell. 
Canales said businesses can cooperate to help one another. “When businesses collaborate, the whole region wins. A single attraction or restaurant can bring visitors through the door, but it’s the network of experiences – lodging, dining, shopping, outdoor adventure, and cultural heritage – that encourages people to stay longer, spend more and return often. By lifting each other up rather than competing in silos, our businesses reinforce the identity of the Smokies as an outdoor mega center and cultural destination, driving broader recognition and elevating the entire Smokies subregion in Western North Carolina as a must-visit destination.”
She added that Visit Smokies was working to facilitate those connections and mutual support, saying that the entity was working with VisitNC’s “rediscover” campaign to launch its own “Rediscover the Smokies” campaign. 
“All of these opportunities are actively communicated with our member network, ensuring that businesses are consistently included in the broader story we are telling about the Smokies,” Canales said. 
She recommended that county chambers, local tourism offices, organizations and nonprofits align their messaging with Visit Smokies’ to help build a unified front and further boost the message that the region is open. 
VisitNC’s website hosts a travel advisory map, which provides real-time data on what’s open and closed. To date, there are no towns or tourist destinations closed to the west of Asheville. Travel advisories remain only for portions of Interstate 40 and the Blue Ridge Parkway. Macon County and its neighbors are all welcoming visitors.

Highlands looks for a strong leaf season
Johanna Fein, executive director at the Highlands Chamber of Commerce said she believes Highlands will see a uptick in business during leaf season.
“It’s a popular time of year,” said Fein. “It was a little slow the early part of the year, but we had a strong summer.”
Highlands is known for its summer season that offers a vast number of entertainment options as well as the natural beauty and mild summer climate. The spectacular change in colors during leaf season brings people back for the fall.
“People plan vacations and visits to Highlands around leaf season,” said Fein. “We get the calls – ‘what day is peak day?’ We all know it is beautiful from start to finish.”
While the summer started slow, Fein said Highlands was spared from the brunt of Hurricane Helene.
“We were very fortunate,” said Fein.
Fein said it has been challenging as people still think of Western North Carolina as a whole and believe we had significant damaged. “We had one road closure that was back open in early January. We still get calls asking about road conditions and if everything is open,” said Fein. 
With the Highlands Heritage Jamboree set for Sept. 27 followed by the peak of leaf season in October, Fein anticipates a great year end for  businesses in the  Highlands area.
“People are going to embrace Western North Carolina this fall,” said Fein.

- Shelby Powell
reporter@thefranklinpress.com

Rachel Hoskins contributed to this story