I recently got back from my first trip to North Carolina, and LOVED it! The coast was so pretty, the sand was fine and soft, the wildlife was fascinating, and don’t even get me started on the lighthouses. We flew into Norfolk Airport in Virginia (the nearest to our destination) and drove on down.
The “Outer Banks” refers to a thin line of barrier island that run along much of the coast of North Carolina (see below, running along Duck, Kitty Hawk… all the way down to Hatteras and beyond).
We mostly stayed in the northern part of the Outer Banks, but I’d love to explore further south on another trip (Cape Hatteras, I’m coming for you!!).
Here are the areas that we visited and will be covered in this blog post:
- Currituck
- Corolla
- Duck
- Kitty Hawk
- Nags Head
And now…here are the main highlights we fit into our 3 day trip to the Outer Banks in North Carolina!
The Beach
Obviously, the Pacific Ocean is the star of the show around here. I love a beach with coastal sand + tall grasses, and these ones did NOT disappoint. Make plenty of time to chase waves, read a book, boogie board, or watch the crabs (!!!!).
We went a few times to a public beach in Corolla and there was a small (free!) parking lot to park in–Bonito Street Public Beach Parking. Nearby there’s also free Sailfish Public Parking (southern end of Corolla), or Shad Street free Parking (northern end of Corolla).
Other cities nearby have similar public access points too. You can find these on Google pretty easily. It helps to look these up ahead of time, because street parking is either limited or not allowed in many areas.
Lighthouses!
One of the few things I knew I wanted to see on this trip was a classic North Carolina coastal lighthouse. And we were able to see two!
Currituck Beach Lighthouse is the first one we visited, and a bit further inland than I expected. It was brick and lovely and the views from the top were fantastic.
You can climb to the top for $13 if you visit sometime between mid-March through the end of November. There’s also a small but worthwhile maritime museum on the grounds there near the parking lot.
The second lighthouse we visited was Bodie Island Lighthouse. You can climb to the top for $10/ adult. The views from the top were well worth the climb, but if you get claustrophobic you may want to skip it (same goes for the other lighthouse too).
There’s also a boardwalk trail you can take while at Bodie Lighthouse, and restrooms on site.
The final lighthouse I’d love to see another time is Cape Hatteras (with the black and white barbershop stripes)! It’s currently undergoing restoration so it is not available for climbing in 2025.
Wright Brothers Museum & Memorial
If you are a history buff or a lover of airplanes then this site is a no-brainer. I LOVED this stop and was really impressed with how the National Park service has executed everything there.
You can find a gift shop, restrooms, and indoor exhibits (including a large model airplane of the Wright Flyer). When we visited we heard a park ranger give a detailed and enthusiastic talk about Kitty Hawk and the Wright Brothers. It was moving to think about how brave and curious these young men were– and about all of the support they were provided to make their dream a reality.
Outside you can see where the first several successful airplane flights in history occurred, or hike up to the memorial on the hill.
Coastal Shopping
As is typical of other coastal vacation spots, there are plenty of shops to wander in the Outer Banks area. We found a big variety of shopping options: stores selling t-shirts, hand-crafted jewelry, boutique shops, miniature lighthouses, and even hammocks.
We especially enjoyed wandering the boardwalk/waterfront shopping area in Duck, but there are tons of other areas too. Learn more about the Duck Waterfront Shops HERE.
Chase some Wildlife:
Wild Horse Tour
There are some famous wild horses that live on the beaches in this area. Descended from Spanish Mustangs, they have been on these islands for hundreds of years. Tour companies will load you up & take you out to the beach to hopefully find some horses in their native habitat (while keeping a respectful distance).
This tour was really fun, and we were able to see lots of horses! We used Wild Horse Adventure Tours based out of Corolla, but there are several options you can find from a quick Google search.
Ghost Crabbing
A friend recommended we try to go ghost crabbing at night, and it was so unique and cool. We simply brought our flashlights out at night to the beach and looked for the ghost crabs.
This activity works best in the summer months, between May and September.
Eat Seafood!
I am having full regret for the order in which I listed these things…in my mind I had kept my ghost crabbing experience very separate from my crab eating experiences all weekend. I’m sorry poor crabs!! With that said…
Take full advantage of the huge amounts of SEAFOOD available in this area! Many menus we saw featured items such as: fried fish & chips, crab dip, crab bisque, crab cakes, or shrimp something or other. And everything I tried was really fresh and really delicious.
My favorite dish was probably the seafood boil in the take-out pots we brought back to our Airbnb (good find, Katy!!). It was jumbo shrimp, onions, potatoes, and corn on the cob + divine seasoning.
I’ve devoted a whole other blog post to our favorite eats from this Outer Banks trip HERE, including more info on the seafood boil.
That’s it!
That wraps up how we spent our 3 days in the Outer Banks of North Carolina! What would you add to this itinerary?? Have you been to the Outer Banks? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments!
Other Coastal Trip tips:
5 Amazing Eats from the Outer Banks, NC
Family Trip to the Oregon Coast in Fall
