Plan a weekend visit to Raleigh three ways: on a budget, spending a bit more, or when the getaway calls for a splurge.
BUDGET
Getting there: Frequent sale rates of $59 one-way available on midweek trips finished by mid-May; nonstop, AirTran or Delta.
Stay: Candlewood Suites Crabtree, located 10 minutes from downtown, is adjacent to the Crabtree Valley Mall and Adventure Landings park with fun family activities (adventurelanding.com). Suite amenities include a full kitchen, complimentary Wi-Fi and triple-sheeted bedding. Advance purchase rates from $72 for studio suites to $85 for a one-bedroom suite; 4433 Lead Mine Road, 919-789-4840, www.candlewoodsuites.com.
Eat: Stop for lunch at 18 Seaboard, a contemporary American grill. Find unique seasonal lunch menus (cornmeal-crusted flounder with pistachio-lavender grits, green tomato butter and apple-onion compote, $14) and a nice selection of starters and sandwiches from $5-$12. Dinner entrees from $14-$28; 18 Seaboard Ave., 919-861-4318, www.18seaboard.com.
Experience: First Friday is one of Raleigh's most popular evening escapes. Partake in the art, music and dining scene in the "City of Oaks" on the first Friday of every month. A self-guided tour winds through galleries, art studios, alternative art venues, museums, antique stores and boutiques; www.godowntownraleigh.com. Get around the downtown area on the free circulator bus service, or the R-Line -- hybrid electric buses running every 10-15 minutes. The Raleigh Rickshaw Co. connects five downtown districts and the historic neighborhoods (drivers work for tips); 919-623-5555, www.raleighrickshaw.com.
MODERATE
Getting there: One-way rates from $80 require a 21-day advance purchase; nonstop, AirTran or Delta.
Stay: Renaissance Raleigh North Hills is within walking distance of elegant shops and fine dining in North Hills, Raleigh's Midtown. On-site is an indoor pool, and guests have passes to a Gold's Gym next door. Weekend rates start from $169 per night; 4100 Main, 919-571-8773, www.renaissanceraleigh.com.
Eat: The awarded Second Empire Restaurant & Tavern (AAA Four Diamond, for one) has a setting inside the restored 121-year-old Dodd-Hinsdale House located downtown. Posh dining rooms have 14-foot ceilings and expansive windows. First courses from the dreamy winter menu are $13-$16; $25-$35 entrees ($10-$27 Tavern menu choices); 330 Hillsborough St., 919-829-3663, www.second-empire.com.
Experience: The Greater Raleigh area is home to eight breweries and three wineries. Most offer free tours, require no reservation and provide samples. Try Carolina Brewing Co. (30 beers on tap), Big Boss Brewing Co. and Aviator Brewing Co. and the smaller Boylan Bridge Brewpub with nicely varied pub fare (www.boylanbridge.com). Urban Chatham Hill Winery (www.chathamhillwine.com) charges a $10 tasting fee. Find a cozy lounge, a wine bar, bistro, tapas, hip bands and velvet rope clubs at www.raleigh.com/nightlife.
SPLURGE
Getting there: Walk-up business class rates start from $355; nonstop, AirTran or Delta.
Stay: The AAA Five Diamond Umstead Hotel and Spa has been named the No. 10 best large-city hotel in the U.S. and Canada in Travel + Leisure's 16th annual World's Best Awards 2011. The 12-acre retreat features its own art collection, the AAA and Forbes five-star awarded Herons Restaurant and a 14,000 square-foot spa with men's, ladies and coed relaxation lounges including sauna, steam and meditation garden. Nightly rates from $259; 100 Woodland Pond Drive, Cary (12 miles west of Raleigh), 1-866-877-4141.
Eat: Walk through bank vault doors to enter the Mint, housed in a former bank building in the Fayetteville Street area (a hip dining and entertainment district). Small plates $13-$20; larger $23-$37 and $35 for a three-course menu; 219 Fayetteville St., 919-821-0011, www.themintrestaurant.com.
Experience: Through Jan. 22, catch the "Rembrandt in America" exhibit at the North Carolina Museum of Art -- the largest collection of original Rembrandts to have ever been shown in America. Admission to the museum's permanent collection and Museum Park is free; $18 per adult for the Rembrandt exhibit. The museum's ongoing John James Audubon Birds of America collection features all 435 hand-colored prints; 2110 Blue Ridge Road, 919-839-6262; www.ncartmuseum.org.
Clara Bosonetto is a retired travel consultant.
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