8 Best Sights in Charlotte, North Carolina

With an 8,000-square-foot exhibit, Cotton Fields to Skyscrapers: Charlotte and the Carolina Piedmont in the New South, as a jumping-off point, this museum offers a comprehensive interpretation of post–Civil War Southern history. Interactive exhibits and different "environments"—a tenant farmer's house, an African American hospital, a bustling street scene—bring to life the history of the region. Changing exhibits highlight current events and seek to engage the community in discussing historical events critical to Charlotte. Parking is free in the adjacent Seventh Street Station garage. Bring your parking ticket to the museum for validation.

With five stories and 145,000 square feet of space, this is a must-see for art lovers. Expect rotating special exhibits as well as permanent collections of American and contemporary work, plus craft and design. Be sure not to miss the museum's dramatic atrium, which houses a 60-foot-tall glass curtain that offers views of the surrounding cityscape.

Use your ticket stub for free entrance to the Mint Museum Randolph (good for two days). Admission is free at both Mint Museums on Wednesday 5–9 pm.

This 150,000-square-foot megamuseum has enough going on to intrigue even non-NASCAR fans. A complete visual overload, the racing palace features historic race cars, an enormous theater, and countless rotating exhibits highlighting the achievements of NASCAR's finest. Hands-on activities take visitors behind the scenes to see how the entire industry prepares for race day each week. Practice a pit stop, walk through a full-size NASCAR Sprint Cup hauler, and actually sit behind the wheel in one of eight iRacing simulators.

Architecture fans should make time for a trip to see one of the city's most striking buildings. Designed by César Pelli, this structure rises 60 stories to a crownlike top. The main attractions are three monumental lobby frescoes by the world-renowned local painter Ben Long—their themes are making/building, chaos/creativity, and planning/knowledge. Also in the tower are the North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center and the restaurants, shops, and exhibition space of Founders Hall.

With the famed Firebird sculpture out front, there's no way you can miss this staple of Uptown's art scene. Covered in mirrors and colored glass, Niki de Saint Phalle's 17-foot birdlike creature is just a taste of what the Bechtler has to offer inside. The rotating collection might include Warhol's pop art, Giacometti's dark sculptures, and ceramics by Picasso. Founded by the Swiss-born Andreas Bechtler, the museum highlights his family's love affair with art, as well as their deep connections with many of the artists on display. The small museum is spread across three compact floors—allow about an hour to fully experience the collections.

Check the museum's calendar of after-hours concerts in their popular Jazz at the Bechtler series.

Allow at least two hours for the aquariums, the three-story rain forest, "Nose-to-Nose" live animal shows, and the IMAX Dome Theater. Lie on a bed of nails, conduct experiments in the interactive labs, or get in touch with your inner innovator as you create shoes from garbage. Check the schedule for special exhibits.

Charlotte's popular old neighborhood began as a political subsection created for electoral purposes in the mid-1800s. The architecture and sensibility of this quiet, homespun neighborhood provide a glimpse of life in a less hectic time.

Historic Brooklyn, as the once-thriving African American neighborhood here was known, is long gone, but this celebration of black art, history, and culture serves its memory well. The exhibits change frequently, but you can always see John and Vivian Hewitt's collection of African American visual art, including those of Harlem Renaissance–famed and Charlotte-born Romare Bearden.