Driving from NYC to Outerbanks NC - any must see

[lisaross]

places on the way..

It seems to be about an 8 hour drive - our longest yet...the most we've done is about 6 hours to VA. So any place that might be fun to stop and see - or should we just eat quick get gas and keep on driving???

 

[ghidorah97]

I've been making that drive for 20 years (give or take). The honest answer is that there are no "must" sees along the way. Did you decide which route you are going to take? The closest thing to a must see is the Chesapeake Bay Bridge/Tunnel which you would cross if you take Rte. 13 through Delaware/Maryland. It is a 4-1/2 mile-long bridge crossing the Chesapeake Bay. A pretty remarkable feat of engineering, if you ask me.

The only other notable sight along this route is the plethora of Fireworks/Virginia Ham stores. Yes, stores that sell fireworks and Virginia hams. Because nothing goes better with firecrackers than a good 'ol Virginia ham!

 

[lisaross]

yes, we are taking rt 13 - i googled directions...

i guess its good there is not much to see as we will just arrive sooner.

 

[Charitycase20]

Gah!! Nothing much to see!! How can you say that!! (Says the woman who has lived around of RT 13(MD/VA) all her life!)

You definitely want to ogle the CBBT a bit. But are some nice restaurants coming "down the road" that will make nice pitstops. Of course, if you really want to spend sometime "off the beaten path" there is nice NASA Visitors Center on Wallops Island.

 

[mcorbo]

Don't delude youself with the times that you get from google etc, there's usually a lot of traffic the closer you get. That 8 hour drive has usually taken us anywhere from 9-12 hours from here in northern NJ during the summer.

 

[lisaross]

oh gosh really? we will be leaving on a weekday think that helps at all?

Don't delude youself with the times that you get from google etc, there's usually a lot of traffic the closer you get. That 8 hour drive has usually taken us anywhere from 9-12 hours from here in northern NJ during the summer.

 

[HeatherC]

We took the Chesapeak Bay Bridge Tunnel when we went to Williamsburg over April break. Wanted the kids to see it.

But the funny thing was that there were so many traffic lights in Delaware that it took FOREVER. Can't imagine it during the summer. The kids actually thought Delaware is about the same size as Texas!

 

[GabbyJacobsmom]

Not sure how old your kids are, but we love to stop in Gandy, NC at Grave Digger's and get pictures of the kids with the various monster trucks. They typically have Grave Digger & a couple other trucks from the Monster Jam circuit.

 

[ghidorah97]

We took the Chesapeak Bay Bridge Tunnel when we went to Williamsburg over April break. Wanted the kids to see it.

But the funny thing was that there were so many traffic lights in Delaware that it took FOREVER. Can't imagine it during the summer. The kids actually thought Delaware is about the same size as Texas!

You need to make sure to use the Rte-1 bypass. You miss the vast majority of the traffic lights on Rte 13 by using the bypass.

oh gosh really? we will be leaving on a weekday think that helps at all?

That will probably help. I have to admit that I'm not too familiar with what the summer traffic will be like as my trips there have always been in May. I've never really had any problems with traffic and the timing from CT has always been around 9 to 9-1/2 hrs (so considering that I'm about an hour from where you are, should translate to about what you were thinking).

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

If your boys are into monster trucks and have heard of Grave Digger, you can stop at Digger's Dungeon which is in Poplar Branch, NC and is only about 30-45 minutes north of the Outer Banks. Grave Digger was first built in 1981 in Kill Devil Hills, NC by Dennis Anderson and he's been driving it ever since (several versions of the same thing). There's a store and some monster trucks they can climb on and take pictures with. Our boys love it and it's a great "almost there!" place to stop.

And I have to add that Dennis Anderson is one of the nicest people you'd care to meet and we like to support that kind of good sportsmanship so we always get a few T-shirts while we're there.

Here's a link with the address so you can add it to your list of possibilities:
http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/15184

And some basic Gravedigger info:
http://www.gravedigger.com/?id=50

 

[MyDizneyBoyz]

Not sure how old your kids are, but we love to stop in Gandy, NC at Grave Digger's and get pictures of the kids with the various monster trucks. They typically have Grave Digger & a couple other trucks from the Monster Jam circuit.

See, now if I had read the other posts before posting I would have said "Ditto!".

 

[DreadpiratK]

When we did that drive last year from Syracuse we stopped at Hershey Chocolate world on the way down. It's probably a bit out of the way for you, , but our kids thought is was a fun time. The ride is free, and otherwise it's really a big food court/souvenir stand for Hershey, but worth the time if you're going by anyway, takes about a hour to two hours, less if you don't like to shop at all.

 

[mjkacmom]

When we did that drive last year from Syracuse we stopped at Hershey Chocolate world on the way down. It's probably a bit out of the way for you, , but our kids thought is was a fun time. The ride is free, and otherwise it's really a big food court/souvenir stand for Hershey, but worth the time if you're going by anyway, takes about a hour to two hours, less if you don't like to shop at all.

I really think that is way out of the way coming from NYC - like 6 hours! I think the OP needs to go south, not west. We've driven to the OB 4 times, and only did 13 once. I prefer 95 (timing it with rush hour traffic), because being on a little road for 10 hours drives me insane. We always stopped one night in Richmond, stayed at ES, we enjoyed the free cocktails, and the kids the pool, and then a 3 hour or so ride to the beach the next morning.

 

[Ashlander]

You could stop at Mount Vernon - right off 95 and my kids loved going there. You can always walk through Williamsburg for free. You could pay to go into the buildings, but I think it is too expensive if you want to do something quick.

I almost forgot - right off 95 at Quantico is the Marine Corp Museum. Another neat place to stop and it would probably be the quickest on and off the highway.

 

[lisaross]

we will be stopping in Williamsburg, VA on the way home for 3 nights - going to Busch Gardens and Water country...

Think we will try and be on the road by about 7:30a - will hit Washington way after morning rush hour...seems nothing great to stop at so we'll probably try and stop about lunch time hope their is a play area for the kids and get back on our way...thanks for the information...will hope we hit the Outerbanks for dinner.

 

[lisaross]

yes, Hershey would be out of our way..we have been their already - we need to go South!

When we did that drive last year from Syracuse we stopped at Hershey Chocolate world on the way down. It's probably a bit out of the way for you, , but our kids thought is was a fun time. The ride is free, and otherwise it's really a big food court/souvenir stand for Hershey, but worth the time if you're going by anyway, takes about a hour to two hours, less if you don't like to shop at all.

 

[Irin997]

The only advice I have is if you have to cross the Currituck Sound, I highly suggest being on that bridge earlier than 2pm. Otherwise it will take forever to get across. Of course, I've never crossed it during the week, which might make a difference in traffic. But in our Sat/Sun experiences, cross the bridge as early as you can.