I have been traveling to TRI since 1980. I married a Lee County, VA gal and still have relatives in VA and Kingsport. My brother-in-law works at the Bristol Motor Speedway and could arrange a tour. We typically fly into TRI, AVL or TYS, depending on price. In terms of preferences, I rank them in the same order. It's a beautiful corner of Tennessee with close access to VA, NC, and KY. There are more things to see/do than you might expect.