Unique Experiences

Item Description

The Destination

THE NORTH CAROLINA ARBORETUM

Asheville, NC

Host: George Briggs, Executive Director

The Experience

Your visit for up to four will include:

• A private tour of The North Carolina Arboretum with Executive Director, George Briggs.
• Catered lunch for four on site with George Briggs.

Just as our experience of nature is intimate, visitors to The North Carolina Arboretum connect with plants in personal ways that are as diverse and rich as the land itself. Whether you enjoy strolling through gardens, exploring exhibits, enriching your mind, or hiking and biking, the Arboretum offers activities for all ages, including a 434-acre natural treasure with 65 acres of cultivated gardens and 10 miles of hiking and biking trails. Engaging indoor and outdoor exhibits that cultivate connections between people and plants and one of the finest, most unique bonsai collections in the United States at the Bonsai Exhibition Garden as well as an innovative Production Greenhouse and Operations Center.

As Executive Director since its founding 25 years ago, George Briggs has led the establishment, design, and programming at the 434-acre North Carolina Arboretum. He organized the 1st World Botanic Gardens Congress in 2000; has served as Chair of the North Carolina Heritage Garden Tourism Task Force; President of the American Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta, now known as the American Public Gardens Association (APGA); Trustee of the National Center for Plant Conservation; in advisory capacities for Longwood Gardens, Callaway Gardens, Mars Hill College and Montreat College; and authored the textbook "Indoor Plants" and numerous articles in professional and trade journals.

Special recognition and awards include:

• The Frank B. Turner Award (2008)
• Election into the Council of Fellows of the American Society of Landscape Architects (2007)
• American Public Garden Association Service Award (2006)
• Honorary Membership in the Garden Club of America (2006)
• A national "Environmental Hero" award by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (2006)
• The AHS Great American Gardener Professional Award winner (1998)

Mr. Briggs spent six years as Director of the Nebraska Statewide Arboretum system at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, following six years as an Assistant Professor of Horticulture at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. He holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from the University of Virginia, where he was one of four Thomas Jefferson Fellows, and undergraduate degrees in Business Administration and Horticulture from Vanderbilt University and Virginia Tech, respectively.

Item Special Note

• Best time to visit: There is something to see year round, however, the fall foliage is at its peak in mid-October. The azaleas, rhododendron, and spring bulbs give off spectacular color throughout the spring season.
• Conditions/limitations for this item:  Tour to be arranged at a mutually agreeable time subject to host’s availability by October 31, 2017.