On a hot summer day, there’s nothing quite like stepping into a cool mountain river or swimming beneath a beautiful waterfall. Here in Western North Carolina, we’re fortunate to have countless creeks, cascades, and natural pools where families can cool off while enjoying some of the most beautiful scenery in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
As residents, we’ve spent over 16 years visiting and swimming at these places with our family and friends. Many became favorite summer destinations while our children were growing up, and they remain the setting for some of our best family memories.
The swimming holes below are our personal favorites, selected from years of firsthand experience. They range from easy roadside stops and family-friendly wading areas to natural water slides, deeper pools, and swimming holes beneath waterfalls. Each offers something different, and we’ll help you decide which ones are right for your next mountain adventure.
Updated: 7/28/2026 - Updated with new swimming holes and information.
Our Personal and Local Picks
Midnight Hole, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
We're NC mountain locals,and have been visiting waterfalls and local swimming holes as a family for over 16 years. While our kids are all grown up now, we had a blast hanging out on hot summer days at these wonderful swimming holes.
While there are certainly many more, these are our top picks for the very best NC swimming holes.
Sliding Rock
One of the most popular natural water slides in the US and definitely the most popular in North Carolina is Sliding Rock.
Near Brevard, NC, in Pisgah National Forest, Sliding Rock has been a popular swimming and sliding destination for many years.
You'll slide down a 60 foot long smooth rock waterfall and plunge into a deep pool of cool, but refreshing water.
Sliding Rock has a large parking area, bathrooms, and multiple observation areas. During the prime summer months, lifeguards are also on duty.
Sliding Rock is a brief walk from the main parking lot and easily accessible. There is a small fee during the summer.
Bust Your Butt Falls - Highlands, NC
Located right next to Highway 64 near Highlands, NC, Bust Your Butt Falls is a very popular summer swimming hole and waterfall.
The waterfall is a gently cascading fall, with a significant amount of water, allowing swimmers to not only swim in the large and deep pool at the bottom, but you can also slide down the waterfall itself.
The falls are roadside, and there is a medium-sized parking area that is roadside you can use. Additional parking is located at a couple of locations on the other side of Highway 64 as well.
There are several trails that lead down to the base of the falls and to the area above the falls. It's a beautiful area, and a really nice swimming hole.
Graveyard Fields - Lower Falls
One of our favorite NC swimming holes is Lower Falls in Graveyard fields.
Lower Falls (or second falls) is a simply gorgeous water fall with a swimming hole below it. The swimming area is surrounded by many large rocks that are ideal for jumping off and into the crisp and cool water.
Graveyard Fields is located just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, east of Waynesville NC and south of Asheville NC.
Lower Falls is a moderate 1-mile hike from the parking lot. Even if you don't plan to swim, Graveyard fields and specifically Lower Falls is a wonderful destination to see and enjoy.
Skinny Dip Falls
Update: We're leaving this one on our list, but the Skinny Dip Falls swimming hole, as most knew it, is gone. There is still a small waterfall and a few pools here, but there are better swimming hole options in the area.
Skinny Dip Falls suffered massive damage because of the severe flooding from Tropical Storm Fred in 2021.
Midnight Hole
Hurricane Helene Impact: The entire Big Creek area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, including Midnight Hole is currently closed because of damage
Another very popular swimming hole with a very tall "jump off rock" is Midnight Hole, in the Big Creek Section of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Midnight Hole has a small beach area that is ideal for young kids to play in, deeper water for older kids, and two enormous boulders that older children, teens and even adults can jump down from.
Midnight Hole is a very popular destination in the summer. On a typical weekend, there are usually 40-50 people swimming and jumping from the rocks. Just be careful. The rocks and the climb up to them can be very slick. There are no lifeguards on duty and you are a long way from any medical facilities.
While you're there, walk the extra 1/2 mile up Big Creek trail to Mouse Creek Falls, a small but beautiful waterfall.
Mill Shoals Falls at Living Waters
Located along Highway 215 in Balsam Grove, Living Waters is home to one of our favorite places to cool off during the summer. Mill Shoals Falls and French Broad Falls sit side by side, with Shoal Creek and the North Fork of the French Broad River coming together in the rocky swimming area below. The two waterfalls, historic red mill, and surrounding forest make this one of the prettiest swimming holes in Western North Carolina.
We’ve visited and swam here with our family and friends for many years. There are plenty of large rocks where you can relax, along with shallow areas for wading and deeper spots where older children and adults can swim. It’s a wonderful place to spend a warm summer afternoon enjoying the waterfalls and cool mountain water.
It’s important to know that Living Waters is privately owned and serves as a religious retreat. The owners generously allow the public to visit the waterfalls and enjoy the swimming area. Please be respectful of the property, obey all posted signs, pack out everything you bring, and avoid disturbing retreats or other activities taking place during your visit.
There are no lifeguards, and water levels and currents can change considerably following heavy rain, so always use caution and supervise children closely.
Looking Glass Falls
Probably one of the most famous waterfalls in Western North Carolina is Looking Glass Falls.
Looking Glass Falls is a popular tourist stop because it's a stunning waterfall, that is both easy to access and visible from the roadside. This is a great waterfall to visit for those with accessibility needs.
A very short paved walkway from the parking area allows easy access to the falls. Looking Glass Falls is not only a popular waterfall, but the area below the falls is also a popular NC swimming hole for kids and adults.
The area below Looking Glass falls isn't really deep, so you'll be wading more than swimming, but either way, spending time in the water below the 60 foot tall rushing waterfall is an experience to enjoy and remember.
Deep Creek Tubing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Hands down, our favorite family summer water destination is Deep Creek, in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Located just outside Bryson City NC, Deep Creek offers waterfalls, many wading areas, wonderful trails, and best of all, one of the best water tubing spots in the Blue Ridge Mountains. If our kids had their choice, this is where we would spend every weekend during the summer months.
Prior to entering the park, you can rent tubes from several vendors. Once there, you can enter the creek and start tubing anywhere.
People looking for a more relaxed tubing experience should enter the Deep Creek just past the bridge that crosses the creek.
Those looking for a more "white water" experience hike up a little further to the furthest point where you can begin tubing (just below Indian Creek Falls).
We highly recommend tubing in Deep Creek. It's an experience you won't soon forget.
Sunburst Swimming Hole
Sunburst is a popular family swimming hole for locals and tourists near Bethel, NC, in Pisgah National Forest. This popular NC swimming hole has a rope, a jumping rock, a small beach area, and lots of wading areas for younger and smaller children. It's one of the many swimming holes near Waynesville NC.
On Highway 215, at the bridge that crosses the Pigeon River and just past the Sunburst camping area. Parking is available alongside Highway 215. It will be hard to miss, especially on weekends in the summer.
Turtleback Falls
Turtleback Falls is one of three waterfalls you can see along a stretch of the Horsepasture River in Nantahala National Forest. Turtleback Falls is the second falls and is a popular swimming spot and water slide. The falls are roughly a 1.5 mile hike and 3 mile round-trip.
Turtleback falls is really only recommended for teens and adults that are strong swimmers. If water is flowing heavily over Turtleback falls, you'll want to avoid swimming, as currents can carry you too far downstream and over the 150 foot tall Rainbow Falls down river.
Even at low water levels, the currents here can be strong, so be smart and know your limits. If you're going to attempt sliding down, we recommend you bring a pair of good quality water shoes to keep you from slipping.
Hooker Falls - Dupont State Park
Hooker Falls is the fourth waterfall along Little River, which passes through Dupont State Park near Brevard NC.
The pool below the 11' tall Hooker Falls has become a popular swimming hole due to its ease of accessible and because of the calm waters below the falls.
From the Hooker falls parking lot, it's only a short 1/4 mile hike along a gravel road to the falls. The calm waters at the base of the falls make this a safe and fun swimming hole that is popular with families.
Hooker Falls is also one of the most popular swimming holes in Western NC, so be prepared for crowds during the summer months.
While tempting, we do not recommend walking on top of the falls or jumping off the falls. People have been injured here due to the slick rocks above.
Secret Falls
As the name implies, this is not a well-known waterfall and swimming hole, and is very secluded. As a result, few people know about it, offering more of a private swimming hole that is great for families.
Secret Falls is a 50' tall waterfall on Big Creek near Highlands NC and part of the Nantahala National Forest.
The hike to the falls is a 1-mile round trip and is considered easy to moderate. The trails are well maintained and there is access to the top of the falls and the swimming hole at the bottom.
