We recently went to the Outer Banks (OBX) with some friends. We have decided we will take an annual freindcation every June since we seem to somehow end up together every year anyway. We learned a bunch and were pleasantly surprised by this little corner of the country. I thought I would share some tips and things we enjoyed.

First, where on earth is the Outer Banks?

They are the chain of islands that run along the coast of the Carolinas. Think East Coasters fleeing the cities for the summer meets crawfish and crab boils and Southern folk lounging on the beach. 

There are several airport options within 1-4hrs to extend your trip to D.C., Richmond or Raleigh really easily (we went through Norfolk but wished we were smarter about it and went through D.C. with an extra day on one side). You have to have a car to get around. Uber is just starting up in the area and is quite pricey.

To Stay

God Bless Air BNB. We rented a little two-bedroom townhouse for the four of us and it worked out perfectly! There aren’t very many hotels in the OBX, so rental houses are the way to go! There are tons and tons of options too!

We stayed around the Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills, Nag’s Head area. This was more developed than we expected and not really what we pictured for our beach vacation. Next time, we would head north and stay in the quainter town of Duck. It is soooo cute and has so many typical New England beach houses of all colors right on the water.

There is a sound side and an ocean side everywhere in the Outer Banks. Both are beautiful in their own ways. The sound is quieter and less crowded. The beach is, well, the beach. Be sure to know what side of the island you are staying on.

To Eat

The food is quite fried, quite Southern and quite seafoody. We found this really fun breakfast place called Stake ‘Em High and went there two morning. We had heard some good things about Grits Grill so tried it the first morning. We walked away with just about the best mug experience possible.

The last morning we went to Duck Donuts. Anyone who knows us probably just dropped to the ground. Yes, the O’Connell’s ate a donut and they liked it. They are made right in front of you and are made however you want. When they are finished they are so fresh they’re too hot to eat!

On our last night we went waaaaaayyyy south to Hatteras and had a really yummy dinner at Rusty’s. It is apparently the Red Drum capital and always has delicious, fresh seafood. The swordfish was also super yummy!

You have to get some oysters while on the East Coast and there are plenty of raw bars to grab some at! They are a must!!!!

There are ice cream shops EVERYWHERE. We really loved Rita’s Frozen Custard and Italian Ice and Booty Treats ice Cream. Booty Treats has this fun shaved ice- Dippin’ Dots combo, delish!

To Do

BEACH

We went to several beaches all throughout the OBX.

Along Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills and Nag’s Head: is very popular and also the most crowded. One of the days the surf was too high and there was no swimming here. We went back the next day though and had a great time (under our umbrella that is).

Corolla and Duck: are more secluded and there aren’t really any tourists just those in the houses lining the beach. The beach is also wider here and we thought it was prettier. Just north of Corolla is Corova and you get to it by the only beach highway in the country. It’s actually a really busy road, so be careful!

Hatteras Seashore: is a huge protected seashore with some beach access and camping. It is perfect and not disrupted with pretty much no one else except for some of the small towns that dot the roadside.

There are a TON of water sports. As you could imagine, Kyle was all about them. He and Travis surfed and were pretty good for their first time! There is a tone of kite boarding, kite surfing, boogie boarding, parasailing and beach cruising as well. You HAVE to do something fun in the beach at least once while you’re there!

DRIVE

It is about three hours to go from Corolla to Hatteras. We did it in two separate trips but we were really glad to drive the whole way. Although it is a lot of time in the car, it is well worth it. There are six lighthouses along the coast and we went to three of them. It was really neat to hear the stories and history that surrounds them. It was also a decent little workout to climb them!

You have to kayak somewhere in the OBX. There are a ton of options to fit whatever you are looking for be it beach, river or marsh. DO ONE OF THEM! We went down the Alligator River and had a blast!

On our way there we were driving to the drop sight and a black bear and her three cubs walked across the road right in front of our car!!!!! WHAT?!?!? The island we were on has the highest density of black bears in the world! While we were kayaking we saw some gators, tone of turtles and several different frogs that hitched a ride in our kayaks. This was seriously the best idea!

WILDLIFE

We had no idea the Outer Banks were so diverse! There are bears, foxes, gators, dolphins, tons of reptiles and wild horses.

We hiked up north of Corolla to see the wild horses. Everyone will tell you that you need a tour company to do this. Not true! You do need a SUV/truck or be willing to walk 1.5-2mi down the beach to get to them. The dunes are really fun to play on and seem like a different world. 

Drivers also aren’t so friendly to hitch hikers, we tried. Fortunately on the way back Junior Sisk and Junior Rambler took pitty on us and gave us a lift. His wife threw a hat out her window at Travis as we left. Little did we know we were sitting in the presence of greatness. He is one of the top 20 bluegrass artists. Look him up; he has shows all around the country!

The horses were well worth the walk, it was so cool to be walking then all of a sudden these horses are just standing in front of you!

There are several trails to go hiking and exploring we went on a few and loved all the different landscapes.

HISTORY

Surprisingly enough, this tiny chain of islands is packed full of history. The Wright Brothers flew the first airplane in Kitty Hawk. You can go see where they lived and flew their planes. It was a cheap, quick little bit of history. We probably wouldn’t do it again if we go back, but first time visitors should definitely see it!

The Lost Colony on Roanoke Island is quite the mystery. It is one of the original colonies in the region and just disappeared one day. No one knows what happened or where they went. Check it our and see for yourself.

Hope that was a fun little insight into our trip! It was the perfect mix of South and East, beach and forest, fun and sun!!!

 XO,

Katie