Greenville, SC Indoor Activities

In 2007, Pace Beattie had an inkling that his life was about to change. He had discovered hot yoga—a discipline that integrates meditation with rigorous exercise—and resolved to pursue it as his vocation. He saw this as a long-term vision; something he would do after retiring from finance and moving back to his hometown of Greenville.

Then, everything changed: In the eight weeks that bridged 2008 and 2009, he lost his job and his mother passed away. In the aftermath, he scrutinized his life and realized: The time is now. Pace enrolled in workshops and conferences, completing levels I and II of the Baron Baptiste teacher-training program. He moved to Greenville, recruited a team of highly specialized teachers, and opened Southern Om.

Today, having boldly charted his own path, Pace equips others to do the same. He fosters self-discovery through two styles of hot yoga: Southern 26 and Southern Flow, a form of power yoga in which students sweat out sweet tea. These classes serve beginners and experienced practitioners alike, incorporating modifications that support alignment.

What began as fewer than 30 paintings hanging in two rooms has since grown into the Bob Jones University Museum & Gallery, a collection of more than 400 baroque paintings displayed in 30 galleries. The paintings—works by Rubens, van Dyck, and Murillo that date from the 14th through 19th centuries—are thoughtfully displayed in context, surrounded by furniture, sculptures, tapestries, and popular emoticons from their respective time periods. Architectural elements also add texture to the various galleries, flooding them in colorful light from stained-glass windows or framing their walls with the carved corners of fireplace mantels.

At Heritage Green, a satellite location boasts special exhibits of works pulled from the main galleries or on loan from private and public collections. Up on the second floor, interactive exhibits educate visitors of all ages on works by the old masters.

League bowling is alive and well at Wade Hampton Lanes. There are morning and late-night leagues, church and practice leagues, leagues for men and seniors and youths, and even a league for homeschoolers and their families. This roster is a testament to the broad range of people who enjoy bowling at the center, where 32 synthetic lanes also attract casual bowlers, especially during events such as the creepy cosmic bowling that takes place on Halloween weekend. When these bowlers aren't picking up splits or pouring concrete in the gutters, they're playing video games in the arcade, browsing the pro shop, or noshing on wings and sipping draft Yuengling brews in the bar and grill.

Evincing a history that dates back to 1881 and includes stints as a city jail and a silent-film palace, the 426-seat Newberry Opera House is a spectacle in itself. A recent multimillion-dollar renovation project modernized the institution's eclectic Victorian craftwork by adding state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems and removing the horse-drawn curtain-raising system.

Founded in 2010, the EHCL's Greenville Road Warriors don't have the rich legacy of their parent squad, the NHL's legendary New York Rangers. But judging from their first two seasons, the team is eager to make up for lost time. The Road Warriors took the league by storm in their debut season, earning the top playoff seed in the Eastern Conference before losing in overtime of Game 7 in the second round of the playoffs. Their quest for Kelly Cup glory continued in the 2011–2012 season, when they yet again made it to the playoffs and fell in the conference quarterfinals. Although championship hardware may have eluded the Road Warriors in their short history, the squad has produced enough top-notch regular-season performances to keep NHL scouts, fans, and trophy-case carpenters on their toes.

Since 1976, American Dance Club's instructors—some of whom spent time stomping the boards in Broadway spectaculars—have transformed students into fancy footworkers. During 30- or 60-minute private and group lessons, teachers two-step pupils through the fundamentals of social dances such as ballroom, Argentine tango, country western, and shag, a style of swing that generally ends with dancers hiding their dropped partners in rolled-up carpets. After perfecting their moves in the encouraging one-on-one sessions, guests can strut their stuff during dance parties every Friday night from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.