Cheap things to do in Charlotte
Soul food, craft beer and free art: Charlotte without the credit card anxiety.
This is a Charlotte trip built around neighbourhood wandering, cheap plates and the city's genuinely good craft beer scene. You'll move from Uptown's free museums and smoky BBQ joints through NoDa's taco stands and creative spaces to South End's breweries and Asian markets. It suits anyone who wants to eat well and spend little.
Day 1: Uptown art, soul food, smoke
Start at NC's oldest art museum for free-ish culture, fuel up on fried chicken and collards at Mert's, then end the night with Carolina BBQ and wild ales at Fonta Flora.
- 9:30 AM
Salted Melon Market & Eatery
Counter breakfast, coffee and a pastry at this Worthington Avenue market before you head into Uptown.
Map - 10:30 AM
Mint Museum Uptown
NC's oldest art museum, American, contemporary and craft collections steps from the hotel.
Map - 12:30 PM
Mert's Heart and Soul
Soul-food institution on College Street, get the fried chicken, collards and mac for a classic cheap lunch.
Map - 2:00 PM
Romare Bearden Park
Romare Bearden Park is a free, lively green space right in Uptown, great for a post-lunch stroll.
Map - 7:30 PM
Sweet Lew's BBQ
Carolina-style BBQ purist spot, cheap, smoky and traditional, exactly what a thrifty traveller wants for dinner.
Map - 9:00 PM
Fonta Flora Brewery
Wild ales and sours at Fonta Flora's Optimist Hall outpost, lively, affordable and a local favourite for a nightcap.
Map
Day 2: NoDa: tacos, murals, pints
Spend the day in Charlotte's arts corridor: pastries at Amélie's, top-rated tacos at Rinconsito Chilango, a wander through Camp North End's murals and fire pits, then cheap pints at NoDa Brewing.
- 9:30 AM
Amélie's French Bakery
Gloriously eccentric NoDa room, grab a pastry and coffee to kick off the day.
Map - 12:30 PM
Rinconsito Chilango Taqueria
Top-rated cheap Mexican, get the tacos, highest-scored eat on the list.
Map - 2:00 PM
Veterans Park
Small Central Avenue park with a walking loop, handy for walking off the tacos on the way back toward NoDa.
Map - 4:30 PM
Camp North End
Seventy-six-acre former Ford plant turned creative campus with murals, shops, live music, free movies and fire pits.
Map - 7:30 PM
Haberdish
NoDa's Southern supper room: fried chicken, collards and house pickles at fair prices.
Map - 9:00 PM
NoDa Brewing
NoDa's neighbourhood brewery fixture, cheap pints, community vibe, perfect local bar night cap.
Map
Day 3: South End breweries and markets
Affordable sushi near South End, a quiet park, a slow browse of Anh Dao's Asian market, then dinner at Suffolk Punch and a final pint at Triple C.
- 12:30 PM
Yamazaru Sushi & Sake
Affordable Japanese spot in Brookhill, great value sushi close to the South End.
Map - 2:00 PM
- 4:30 PM
Anh Dao Sakura Oriental Market
Vietnamese grocery on South Boulevard; cheap ready-made snacks and sauces worth packing home.
Map - 7:30 PM
The Suffolk Punch
House beers, a full kitchen and a big patio on the Rail Trail; an easy, cheap South End dinner.
Map - 9:00 PM
Triple C Brewing
South End craft brewery with taproom and reputation for quality, part of the South End brewing scene.
Map
Where to stay
Hyatt House Charlotte Center City
Mid-price, right in Center City, and walkable to almost every stop on Days 1 and 2.
Make Charlotte your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App StoreBefore you go
Book ahead
- Discovery Place Science: a few days ahead
- Carowinds: a few days ahead
- Truist Field: a few days ahead
- Bank of America Stadium: weeks ahead
- Spectrum Center: weeks ahead
- Belk Theater at Blumenthal Performing Arts Center: weeks ahead
Skip these
- Rock-bottom motel rates on Sugar Creek, Nations Ford and Independence are a genuine safety and quality mistake.
- Museum of Illusions is fun and franchised but priced like a headline attraction. The Mint, Bechtler and Gantt are free on Wednesday evenings.
- Do not build a night around Queen City Quarter, the old Epicentre. It is mostly chain bars; South End, NoDa and Plaza Midwood are where locals go out.
- Do not expect a historic old town or waste a splurge on a chain steakhouse while Counter- and Rada exist.
The full Charlotte travel guide: when to go, safety, getting around