Accommodations

The Outer Banks offer a relaxing, nature oriented getaway with a large variety of condos, vacation homes, hotels, and Resorts. Choose a vacation that offers quiet comfort while making the most of the beautiful beaches at affordably priced rates.

View our Outer Banks Vacation Rentals & Resorts

Activities

The islands of the Outer Banks offer something for everyone. You can visit one of the more than 20 art galleries located between Duck and Hatteras Island. Rent a bicycle or bring your own, and enjoy the new bicycle paths located in the area while taking in the scenery. Area dive shops offer charters offshore along our sea floor, where you can find the remains of more than 1,500 ships. Jockey's Ridge State Park is the spot for learning to fly like the birds with a hang glider. Enjoy a horse ride along the beach or opt for scenic nature rides along trails. Stables are located on Hatteras Island. The Outer Banks is called the windsurfing capital of the East Coast because of the steady windsand rolling ocean waves of the Atlantic Ocean which provide great windsurfing opportunities throughout most of the year

Events

Celebrate with the First Flight Society in December on the anniversery of the Wright Brothers historic flight from Kill Devil Hills. Virginia Dare's birthday (The first English baby born on American soil) and the Lost Colony are celebrated on August 18th each year. Surfing, windsurfing, hang gliding, and fishing tournaments occur throughout the year.

Water Sports

The Outer Banks cover an area of 800 square miles, of which 409 square miles are water that is perfect for a wide variety of water activities including jet skiing, ocean and sound kayaking, diving, surfing, parasailing, windsurfing, sailing, boating, and of course swimming. While diving, visit one of more than 1500 wrecked ships nearby on the sea floor.

Golfing

Play on four of the finest golf courses in North Carolina. The courses range in terrain and challenge from a 9-hole executive course to an 18-hole, Scottish links style course. Most courses have pro shops and clubhouses for relaxation.

History

Roanoke Island and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site was the location of the first British colony in America, where the first English baby was born in America on August 18, 1587. The colony vanished without a trace in 1587, with no clues left behind of its fate. The Outer Banks is home to several colonies of wild horses, said to have been washed ashore from shipwrecked Spanish ships.

Until the first bridges to the Outer Banks were built in the 1930's, access to the islands was limited to boaters and little development was done. The islands suffer periodically from storms, and in 2003 hurricane Isabel carved a 3000 foot wide channel through Hatteras Island that was 30 foot deep. This damage has since been repaired.