Visit Johnston County, NC

We’ve done a few blog series before: Meet the Makers, JoCo Has Talent, recipes, and others. But, with the opening of the Old North State Food Hall (ONSFH), the county welcomed 10 new “mini” restaurants at once in 2022. Anyone who has dined at ONSFH knows that each vendor has their own cuisine and aesthetic, plus independent and locally owned owners. So, we thought we’d do a series of blogs about the wonderful places, people, and food to be found at the nation’s first roadside food hall.

The Ava Gardner Trust and Legacy Talent and Entertainment, in collaboration with Breakfast at Dominique’s, are thrilled to share the release of the Officially Licensed Ava Gardner Signature Coffee Blend! This is a perfect collaboration for the Ava Gardner Trust because it authentically speaks to something Ava Gardner truly enjoyed, a great cup of coffee.

In the recipe section of our website we have a few classic holiday traditionally Southern recipes. Feel free to try them out and add them to your own holiday meals.

You don’t want to miss Smithfield, which has had a boom in retail establishments over the last year. Whether for Shop Small Saturday on November 26th, or throughout the season as you make your list and check it twice, be sure to stroll and shop Historic Downtown Smithfield.

The Ava Gardner Festival was a huge success this past October, with over a thousand visitors attending the full weekend of events celebrating Ava’s 100th year. The focus now for the Centennial Committee is Ava’s actual birthday month of December. Ava was born December 24, 1922, and here’s a look ahead to the things happening during the month of December.

There are a lot of new and wonderful things happening with the Johnston County Heritage Center. I sat down with Director Todd Johnson recently to discuss the history of the county’s Heritage Center, its expansion into a new space, and what visitors and residents can expect to see now and in the future.

I'm much more focused on the lesser-acclaimed vegetable of the fall season- the sweet potato. Versatile. Savory and Sweet. Filling. Served as a side dish or dressed-up as a dessert.

Clayton Piano Festival returns this year to its normal activity…with a twist. It will feature both live performances and hybrid live and online events, in order to maximize its reach. The fall season includes four events.

Benson Mule Days, Selma Railroad Days, and the Clayton Harvest Festival are three of the more popular and larger fall events in JoCo. Learn more about the events, activities, and entertainment you can enjoy at all three of them.

The 22-23 JCVB Marketing Plan is live on our website! Read the entire plan to be in-the-know regarding all the concepts, creative, and campaigns the bureau has planned in the coming fiscal year.

If you were at all like us, during the COVID shutdown, you decided it was a perfect time to enjoy more of the great outdoors. Just imagining a long stroll, a quest for unique wildlife, or a peaceful river trip was enough to get your spirits up, and, in turn, your credit card out. But now that you’ve bought new recreational gear to embrace your outdoorsy lifestyle, where are the best places in JoCo to utilize them?

Governor Roy Cooper announced recently that in 2021 domestic visitors to Johnston County spent $255.47 million, which is an increase of 40.5% from 2020 data. These findings are prepared by the US Travel Association and commissioned by Visit North Carolina, a unit of the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina.

In this blog we welcome JoCo Brewing to the trail, and share more about how owners Jonny and Selina Shwonik got started and how they plan to grow JoCo’s 4th microbrewery.

The last time I wrote a blog about Clayton's Revival 1869, in 2017, they were a brand new business with a wonderful vision. Considering they’ve just recently celebrated their 5 year anniversary, it seems timely to talk about that fully realized vision and the future that owner’s Mike Stojic and Maleah Christie have in mind.

Look for awesome artwork in Downtown Clayton! View a map on our website with the 22-23 sculpture trail locations.

Look for awesome artwork in Downtown Clayton! View a map on our website with the 22-23 sculpture trail locations.

On May 2nd and 6th, as part of a larger celebration of National Travel & Tourism Week, the Johnston County Visitors Bureau (JCVB) and various partners will visit the North Carolina welcome centers on I-95. The event is part of the 39th annual National Travel and Tourism Week (NTTW).