Welcome to the Tar Heel State -- where the scenery is breathtaking, the hamlets brim with artisans and history, and the golfing is fabled.

These days, helicopters can deposit travelers at places that off-terrain vehicles fear to tread. After viewing killer wildlife on an African safari, you can celebrate with caviar and Champagne in a preassembled tent suite. Close your eyes, point to nearly any place on a map, and you’ll find the latest and greatest anti-whatever-ails-you spa package. But for a destination that’s down-home and authentic, head to western North Carolina.

Locals say the small towns of the Appalachian Mountains are some of the Old North State’s best-kept secrets. Here, it’s all about simpler times. A hard day’s work ends with time in a front porch rocking chair. Neighbors are like family and strangers are like long lost friends. Old-timers still tell ghost stories to enraptured children sitting around crackling fires.

Not one sightseeing minute will be wasted, even in the driving, thanks to breathtaking views along the Blue Ridge Parkway and the small roads that vein these valleys and mountains. Blink, and you’ll miss the unspoiled action of small burgs like Hot Springs, Waynesville and Dillsboro.

DILLSBORO

This walking town -- just two blocks long -- is best enjoyed by daylight. As Herb Nolan, the town’s lone employee, says: “They roll the sidewalks up at 8 p.m.”

Sleepy town though it may be, Dillsboro is worth a visit, because among its 235 residents are artists and craftsmen, potters, glassblowers, silversmiths and leather workers. Visitors are encouraged to tour the studios, meet the artisans and watch them work.

At Riverwood Pottery, the husband-and-wife team of Brant and Karen Barnes throw pots, oil lamps, mugs and guitar slides. Then there’s the stained-glass studio of Riverwood Menagerie, KMR Handweaving, Treehouse Pottery and M.J. Jewelry.

The town also is the departure point for the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad train. On the scenic 53-mile ride, which crosses 25 bridges, you’ll also see what’s left of an engine that figured in the train-wreck scene in 1993’s “The Fugitive,” which was filmed here.

Before leaving Dillsboro, barbecue lovers should stop in for ribs at Dillsboro Smokehouse. It may seem an odd place for celebrity sightings, but the walls are plastered with letters from famous folks such as Tommy Lee Jones and Harrison Ford. Barbecue is a noun in North Carolina, and it’s almost a crime to visit the state without trying it.

HOT SPRINGS

You can ask the townsfolk what keeps people coming back to Hot Springs, a town at the junction of the French Broad River and the Appalachian Trail, but don’t expect a concrete answer.

“There is something about Hot Springs that can’t be explained, but people visit one time and feel compelled to come back,” said Heath Anthony White of Huck Finn Rafting Adventures.

Perhaps it’s because a river runs through it. Or perhaps it’s because the town is home to natural hot springs that are thought to contain healing properties. Native Americans discovered the hot springs, and in the early 1800s a resort was created. People flocked to “take the waters” for everything that ailed them.

Visitors still laze in the waters, but Hot Springs is also a haven for outdoor enthusiasts. The Appalachian Trail -- the 2,175-mile footpath that runs from Georgia to Maine -- makes a stop here, and the town is surrounded by Pisgah National Forest’s half-million acres. Just try to check your BlackBerry while headed over a Class III rapid or as you hurtle yourself off Cody’s Cliff into the cool mountain waters. For the less adventurous, there are easy, unguided float trips.

Don’t miss the Bridge Street Cafe & Inn, where local musicians play regularly.

Perhaps the best testament to the lure of this tiny mountain town is one group of unusual visitors. Early in the last century, the federal government interned captured German merchant sailors in the area. Postwar, many returned to vacation at Hot Springs.

WAYNESVILLE

Downtown is a bustling combination of mountain charm and sophistication. On one street, you’ll find handmade crafts; around the corner, a bottle of 2000 Chateau Petrus for the bargain price of $3,800.

Stop in at the Wall Street Book Exchange, on Wall Street, naturally. On shelves full of old hard-bound books, it’s possible to find a mint-condition classic like “Gulliver’s Travels” or “Madame Curie” for $3.

A block’s walk will land you in Bob and Kathy Lang’s Home Tech Kitchen Shop, where you can stock up on picnic accessories.

Pick up a fresh turkey sandwich with cranberry chutney from Patio Bistro & Coffee Shop and a bottle of wine from Classic Wine Seller. Then drive on Blue Ridge Parkway until an idyllic lunch spot reveals itself.

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travel@latimes.com

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(BEGN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

LUXE LODGINGS

Living it up like the Vanderbilts

As back-to-basics as a North Carolina mountain vacation can be, modern luxury is not lost. Here are a few places where you can kick back in style.

HIGH HAMPTON INN In the picturesque town of Cashiers, the inn is on a 1,400-acre estate. Its guest rooms have no telephones or televisions. But don’t let its simplicity fool you. High Hampton Inn has a spa, golf, serves afternoon tea, and guests must dress for dinner (coat and tie for men, no jeans). The activities are nature-driven; the “pool” is actually a 35-acre mountain lake. The inn is open from April to December. A no-tipping or service-charge policy applies.

1525 Highway 107 S., Cashiers; (800) 334-2551, www.highhamptoninn.com. Doubles from $284.

INN ON BILTMORE ESTATE

The Biltmore Estate epitomizes North Carolina wealth, and the Inn on Biltmore Estate offers a chance to stay where the Vanderbilts played. (Biltmore House is the historic home of George W. Vanderbilt and is one of America’s largest private homes.) The inn draws on the Biltmore’s own gardens, livestock and winery in its cuisine. The estate receives nearly 1 million visitors each year. The Biltmore vineyards, historic horse barn and outdoor activity center are also on property within walking distance of the inn. As one guest said, “They should charge for this view.”

1 Approach Road, Asheville; (828) 225-1600, www.biltmore.com. Doubles from $189.

GROVE PARK INN RESORT & SPA The resort dates to 1913. Its 120-foot lobby has 24-foot ceilings, and its elevators are enclosed in the chimneys of two massive 14-foot stone fireplaces. Those with a penchant for decadence should request the Gatsby-themed guest room and the Chef’s Table nine-course dinner. For dessert, try the Carolina Mud Pie Wrap of warm fresh-water mud, essential oils, lotions and warm stones, found in the Spa at Grove Park.

290 Macon Ave., Asheville; (800) 438-5800, www.groveparkinn.com. Doubles from $325.

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Kelly Gray

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Mosey the mountains

THE BEST WAY

From LAX to Asheville, N.C., Continental, Delta, Northwest and US Airways have connecting service (change of plane). Restricted round-trip fares begin at $418.

WHERE TO STAY

Squire Watkins Inn, 657 Haywood Road, Dillsboro; (800) 586-2429, www.squirewatkinsinn.com. The inn, built in 1880, is a nod to the days when guests were received at friends’ country homes. Only four guest rooms and a cottage. Doubles from $99.

Mountain Magnolia Inn and Retreat, 204 Lawson St., Hot Springs; (800) 914-9306, www.mountainmagnoliainn.com. This 1868 home of Col. James Rumbough, one of Hot Springs’ early settlers, features six guest rooms, a guest house and Fowler’s Bend, converted from a turn-of- the-last-century general store to living quarters. Doubles $95.

WHERE TO EAT

The Jarrett House, 100 Haywood St., Dillsboro; (800) 972-5623, www.jarretthouse.com. Huge family-style portions of local trout, chicken, biscuits and old-fashioned vinegar pies. Dinner entrees $13.95 to $14.95. Open April through December.

Dillsboro Smokehouse: 403 Haywood Road, Dillsboro; (828) 586-9556. Hickory-smoked barbecue, ribs basted in Southern peachy barbecue sauce, $3.95 to $13.95

Bridges Barbecue Lodge, U.S. 74, Shelby; (704) 482-8567. Get a single-serving tray of chopped barbecue with slaw and hush puppies for $5.40. Open Wednesdays through Sundays.

Patio Bistro & Coffee Shop, 26 Church St., Waynesville; (828) 454-0070, www.patio-nc.com. Picnic cuisine, including sandwiches and wraps with side dish, $5.95 to $7.95.

THINGS TO DO

Huck Finn Rafting Adventures, 158 Bridge St., Hot Springs; (877) 520-4658, www.huckfinnrafting .com. Rafting $30 to $65, unguided float trips $10 to $35.

Chimney Rock Park, Highway 64/74A, Chimney Rock; (800) 277-9611, www.chimneyrock park.com.

Great Smoky Mountains Railroad, 119 Front St., Dillsboro; (800) 872-4681, www.gsmr.com. Fares from $49.

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TO LEARN MORE

North Carolina Division of Tourism, 301 N. Wilmington St., Raleigh, NC 27699; (800) 847-4862, www.visitnc.com.