Outerbanks NC...anyone been?

[gracie1]

I was originally thinking of doing a trip to Niagara falls but am also looking into possibly going to the outerbanks. I have heard many good things about it. So any advice from those who have been please fill me in!
What is there to do besides go to the beach?
If we go we are going to rent a pet friendly home. I was looking at homes on outerbanks realty...anyone used them?

Thanks for any info and tips!

 

[shortbun]

We head south to Hatteras because it's so remote-no fast food, 75% National Park, fewer people, fewer cars.

Mirlo/Rodanthe is the first village on Hatteras and rentals may be had there through:

www.midgettrealty.com
www.surforsound.com
www.hatterasrealty.com
www.sunrealty.com
www.dolphinrealty.com

Rodanthe/mirlo is also the only actual oceanfront village. All other villages have high natural dunes blocking most of the view from oceanfront homes.

This area reminds me of life when I grew up-late 50's and 60's. Barefoot beach kids, surfers, lots of wave jumpers, no big shops but plenty of little ones, no fast food(there IS Dairy Queen).

There's another realty company: 'Outer Beaches', but they ripped me off to the tune of $800 this year so I do not recommend them. (We cancelled well b4 the deadline to rcv deposit back if the home got rented. It was rented with a family from New Jersey. We saw them, saw their car, their bathing suits drying on the line, the occupants standing on the deck gazing out to the sound in the evening sunset. Outer Beaches denied it was occupied and kept our deposit. We had no recourse because we'd not taken pics or had no proof -never thought they'd try to cheat us.)

 

[gracie1]

We head south to Hatteras because it's so remote-no fast food, 75% National Park, fewer people, fewer cars.

Mirlo/Rodanthe is the first village on Hatteras and rentals may be had there through:

www.midgettrealty.com
www.surforsound.com
www.hatterasrealty.com
www.sunrealty.com
www.dolphinrealty.com

Rodanthe/mirlo is also the only actual oceanfront village. All other villages have high natural dunes blocking most of the view from oceanfront homes.

This area reminds me of life when I grew up-late 50's and 60's. Barefoot beach kids, surfers, lots of wave jumpers, no big shops but plenty of little ones, no fast food(there IS Dairy Queen).

There's another realty company: 'Outer Beaches', but they ripped me off to the tune of $800 this year so I do not recommend them. (We cancelled well b4 the deadline to rcv deposit back if the home got rented. It was rented with a family from New Jersey. We saw them, saw their car, their bathing suits drying on the line, the occupants standing on the deck gazing out to the sound in the evening sunset. Outer Beaches denied it was occupied and kept our deposit. We had no recourse because we'd not taken pics or had no proof -never thought they'd try to cheat us.)

Thanks for the info! I misquoted what I said...it was hatteras that I was looking into...and the realty company that you got ripped off at was the one I was looking into renting Do you have so long to cancel before they will hold the deposit if they cannot rent it again? I've never rented a house before so nervous about going through real estate companies

 

[brianheather]

Yes we go to a place called Emerald Island. It's amazing!! Actually my family is there now for 2 weeks. If you go to Spinnakers Reach Realty, it is an amazing area, then a mile or two down the island there are water slides, go karts stores. etc.
I just love it there.

 

[Breezy_Carol]

I think we have gone 19 times in the past 23 years. We love the Outer Banks but stay farther north, towards but not in, Duck. We like Southern Shores and have used southern shores realty successfully every time.

We have gone to the top of Jockey's Ridge at sunset every trip. And they have some Ranger programs at the state park there. Once we took a free guided tour on kayaks.

Lots of good restuarants to eat lots of good seafood.

 

[Florida_Mom]

Definitely go to Jockey's Ridge. Take skim boards with you so the kids can slide down the huge dunes. And go at sunset.

We went for the first time last month. We did not get down to Hatteras, but were up near Kitty Hawk, Duck, etc.

Oh, and Family Fun magazine just did a whole report on traveling to the OBX. Here's a link: http://familyfun.go.com/family-trav...r-banks/ff0509-exploring-the-outer-banks.html

Have fun!

 

[Shutterbug]

We head south to Hatteras because it's so remote-no fast food, 75% National Park, fewer people, fewer cars.

Mirlo/Rodanthe is the first village on Hatteras and rentals may be had there through:

www.midgettrealty.com
www.surforsound.com
www.hatterasrealty.com
www.sunrealty.com
www.dolphinrealty.com

Rodanthe/mirlo is also the only actual oceanfront village. All other villages have high natural dunes blocking most of the view from oceanfront homes.

This area reminds me of life when I grew up-late 50's and 60's. Barefoot beach kids, surfers, lots of wave jumpers, no big shops but plenty of little ones, no fast food(there IS Dairy Queen).

+1 for this.
My family always goes all the way to Hatteras Island to get away from it all.
We went right after peak season back in 2005. The houses we had on either side were empty so it was quiet except for the sound of ocean which we could see from the deck of our house.

Only time we actually went up into town was to go hang gliding off the sand dunes at Jockeys Ridge.

 

[karibritt01]

It was rented with a family from New Jersey. We saw them, saw their car, their bathing suits drying on the line, the occupants standing on the deck gazing out to the sound in the evening sunset. Outer Beaches denied it was occupied and kept our deposit. We had no recourse because we'd not taken pics or had no proof -never thought they'd try to cheat us.)

Just a possibility... it could have been the owners, or their friends or family using the house for free. We have a friend that will let us use her beach house on occasion when it is not rented, and all we pay is the cleaning fee. But if it was something like that, then the house was technically not "rented" and you would not get your deposit back.

I've never rented a house before so nervous about going through real estate companies

I have rented quite a few houses from www.homeaway.com It is rentals by the home owners, and very few are handled by realtors. We have rented from them 6 times, and have not had a bad experience yet.

As for the beaches, quite a bit of the Outer Banks are very rural... no big restaurants or chain grocery stores, evening entertainment, etc. You really are going there for the peace and quiet. Many do not have paved roads, and a 4-wheel drive is recommended to reach your house, and you drive on the beach. I personally won't go to beaches that allow driving on the beach because of my kids. Just something to keep in mind to ask about when contacting anyone about a rental.

Many of the outer banks have wild horses that you can go to see. Corolla (northern OBX) and Shackleford Island (southern OBX) come to mind first. A private ferry is generally around $10-$15 per person round trip. They will drop you off at the island, and arrange a pick-up time to come back for you. Take your swimsuit, picnic, beach chairs and enjoy the day watching the horses, then swimming on a "private" beach. Last time we did this we saw MAYBE 10 people in 4 hours time. (We went to Shackleford.)

Southern Shores is a nice area. Manteo, Kitty Hawk and the Wright Brothers Memorial, Kill Devil Hills and Jockey's Ridge, you can climb the Currituck lighthouse. There are plenty of restaurants, shopping, and movies and such to do in the area.

Our favorite beach is Atlantic Beach. Lots to do in that area... aquarium, putt putt, Fort Macon, Beaufort waterfront, Shackleford Island. It is located on the same island as Emerald Isle... Atlantic is the north end and Emerald Isle is the south end, about 17 miles apart. In between you can find hotels, condos, and private homes for rent. You are then a 20 minute drive from either end of the island, so you can easily experience everything both towns have to offer.

 

[gracie1]

We will probably be staying in Rodanthe or Avon. Maybe Buxton but somewhere along that strip. We found two houses that we really liked....and I am thinking there will be enough to do during the day as far as sightseeing and we can just relax. I honestly can't say I've ever gone on a "relaxing" vacation! It's always got so many days planned with a bunch of activities that I think it would be nice to just lay back. Although I can lay around my house cheaper

 

[mikehn]

We'll be in corolla in October, cant wait

 

[Tiggeroo]

We have gone many times and always stay in Frisco which is one town from Buxton. It is beautiful and undeveloped. We have never gone in the middle of summer but I have heard it gets busier. You can go to the lighthouse which is awesome. You can also take the ferry to Ocracoke for some cute shopping and lunch or dinner. Go to Buxton Seafood Market and pick up some fish and shrimp to grill. We do this several times during our stay. There is a Food Lion with a good selection for groceries in Avon. There is also a tiny movie theatre for rainy days. There is one go-cart place and a mini golf. You can have camp fires on the beach so pick up some wood. Bring a surf fishing pole.
Now I want to take a trip.