Asheville has a witchy streak that runs from North Asheville's metaphysical shops to the oddities bars downtown and in West Asheville. You can stock an altar, get an aura reading, pick out a statement-size geode, or spend an evening on a ghost tour hearing about the city's darker history. This guide covers the local places worth knowing.
The shops are open year round. Ghost tours run their busiest weeks in October, and some only run in fall, so book those early.
Asheville Raven & Crone
North Asheville, 640 Merrimon Avenue, Suite 207
Asheville Raven & Crone is a practitioner-owned metaphysical shop that calls itself an "Old Age" magic store celebrating all traditions. The shelves hold tarot cards, candles, crystals, incense, herbs, teas and books. The shop also puts together seasonal Sabbat boxes for the Wheel of the Year, and its monthly events calendar has included book clubs, sound baths and craft and ritual nights.
Tip: Sabbat boxes are made in limited quantities, so order early ahead of each Sabbat. You can also shop online any time.
Instant Karma Asheville
Downtown, 36 North Lexington Avenue, and West Asheville, 725 Haywood Road
Instant Karma is a locally owned, woman-operated hippie shop that has served downtown and West Asheville since 1995. It isn't a metaphysical shop first, but it carries plenty of witchy staples: tarot cards, pendulums, gemstones, candles, sage, palo santo and a long wall of incense, alongside tapestries, patches and boho clothing.
Tip: Incense is the shop's specialty, with Satya, HEM and Herb & Earth in a wide range of scents. The West Asheville shop is on the same block as The Low Down, so it pairs well with an evening cocktail.
The Odd
West Asheville, 1045 Haywood Road
The Odd is a dive bar and live music venue that doubles as an oddities museum. Taxidermy foxes and bats, jarred curiosities and animal skeletons fill the room, and murals cover the walls. The calendar books local bands, and the Party Foul drag show takes over on Saturday nights.
Tip: Take a lap around the oddities collection before the show starts, and come early on Saturdays if you want a good view of Party Foul.
Sly Grog Lounge
Downtown, 271 Haywood Street
Sly Grog Lounge is a dive bar, music venue and vintage shop rolled into one room. Local and touring bands fill the calendar, and the bar hosts an open mic most Mondays and an open jam most Wednesdays. It's a loose, creative room for a night that doesn't feel like the rest of downtown.
Tip: The bar's own site calls its hours "less than static," so check the calendar before you head over.
Lazy Diamond
Downtown, 98 North Lexington Avenue
Lazy Diamond is a rock and roll dive bar from the owners of The Double Crown. Concert-poster wallpaper, strings of beer-cup lights and an organ behind the bar set the tone, and Explore Asheville calls it virtually a museum to the city's rock and roll underbelly. DJs spin surf rock, punk and classic rock karaoke, with the occasional live act.
Tip: It's on the same stretch of North Lexington as The Crow and Quill, so the two make an easy downtown pair.
LaZoom Comedy Tours
Downtown Asheville
LaZoom has run comedy bus tours on its purple bus since 2007, and Ghosted is its after-dark haunted comedy tour. The guides tell scary-funny tales of scandal and even murder on Asheville's streets. Ghosted is adults only, for ages 17 and up, and LaZoom's tours depart downtown daily.
Tip: Bringing kids? LaZoom also runs a kids' tour, so save Ghosted for a night out with friends.
Swannanoa Valley Museum
Black Mountain, 223 West State Street
The Swannanoa Valley Museum & History Center leads Haunted History walking tours through downtown Black Mountain's historic district each fall. The tour covers the valley's local tragedies and triumphs, and the ghosts, friendly and frustrated, said to have come out of them. Stops include the Dripolator, Veranda Cafe and the Black Mountain Depot. Tours last about an hour, are recommended for ages 13 and up, and proceeds support the museum.
Tip: Tickets are sold through the museum's events calendar, and people who join the museum pay less. Check the fall schedule early.
The Crow and Quill
Downtown, 106 North Lexington Avenue
The Crow and Quill is a craft cocktail bar filled with antiques and a long wall of spirits: more than 800 whiskeys and over 1,200 spirits, including rare and out-of-production bottles. It has been known for seasonal cocktails and live music since 2014. The entrance is a bit hidden, so look for the lanterns and the "106" over the door. It's a fitting nightcap after a downtown ghost tour.
Tip: Want to learn the craft? The bar runs cocktail classes and books private events.
The Low Down
West Asheville, 723 Haywood Road
The Low Down is a downstairs cocktail bar on Haywood Road, and its occult streak starts at the door: an all-seeing eye on the sign points you down the stairs. Inside there's a cocktail menu, non-alcoholic drinks and a shuffleboard table.
Tip: Look for the eye sign at 723 Haywood Road and follow the stairs down.
Crystals, minerals and readings
- Points of Light Crystals, 391 Merrimon Avenue. A crystal and mineral gallery known for large quartz pieces, amethyst geodes and mineral sculptures, with free parking.
- Enter The Earth, Grove Arcade, 1 Page Avenue. Gems, minerals and fossils, with many specimens from Madagascar, including ocean jasper.
- Zen Ink, 352 Depot Street in the River Arts District. A tattoo studio with a metaphysical shop inside, selling crystals, pendulums, candles and incense, plus tarot readings.
- Auratherapy, Grove Arcade, 1 Page Avenue, Suite 145A. Aura and chakra readings, plus essential oil scents and candles.
Frequently asked questions
Where are the metaphysical shops in Asheville?
Merrimon Avenue in North Asheville is home to Asheville Raven & Crone and Points of Light Crystals. Downtown, Instant Karma is on Lexington Avenue, and Enter The Earth and Auratherapy are inside the Grove Arcade. Zen Ink's shop is in the River Arts District.
Where can I buy crystals in Asheville?
For large specimens and geodes, try Points of Light Crystals or Enter The Earth. For smaller stones alongside tarot, candles and altar supplies, go to Asheville Raven & Crone, Instant Karma or Zen Ink.
Can I get a tarot reading in Asheville?
Yes. Zen Ink offers intuitive and tarot readings at its metaphysical shop in the River Arts District, and Auratherapy offers aura and chakra readings in the Grove Arcade. Book ahead, especially in October.
Are there ghost tours in Asheville?
Several. LaZoom's Ghosted is an adults-only comedy bus tour, Gray Line runs a trolley ghost tour from downtown, Asheville Free Walking Tours goes into Riverside Cemetery, and the Swannanoa Valley Museum walks downtown Black Mountain each fall.
