Asheville area familiarity driving tour

[Jim Truman]

Greetings,

My wife and I will be in Asheville next week for a few days celebrating a friend's birthday. We're staying an extra day so that we can explore the area as a possible retirement location. If we like the area we'd consider looking for a small property we could purchase now and rent it out until we retire.

It may be a difficult question but I'm looking for some suggestions on where to explore in order to get a feel for the area. 

We're staying in Black Mountain and also one night in Weaverville so we'll see those 2 towns. We'll also see Asheville itself and I plan on at least driving through Hendersonville and Brevard.

Outside of the downtown areas, are there any places you suggest we check out for potential housing? We'd like to be close to the downtown areas (10-15 min) and don't need a large lot. A Condo is fine. The more mountainous area the better. I don't know if it's really possible but our budget would be around 250k. A walkable downtown with local breweries, coffee shops, restaurants, etc. 

We're in the very early stages and aren't even sure Asheville will be the right area for us so I don't need specific properties, just general areas to explore to get an idea of what the options are around the area. 

Thanks