Outer Banks Sunrise

Seaside Vacations, a leading vacation rental company located on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, lists the top 10 reasons to visit the Outer Banks during the off season.

Come enjoy the beach all over again this fall with everything you love about the Outer Banks – warm sunny days, refreshing ocean waters, fine dining, natural treasures, historic sites, local attractions – with fewer crowds.  The weather continues to stay warm long into September and October; so while the beach beckons, what better place to spend some time than the OBX?

Seaside Vacations has compiled a list of 10 great reasons to visit the Outer Banks in the off season. – everything from savory, fresh-caught seafood to cozy nights by warm fireplaces. While everyone else is paying top dollar to stay during the summer months, you’ll be soaking in the relaxation, solitude and the satisfaction of a fabulous getaway…at a great bargain.

10. Computer? Check. Notes? Check. Brainstorming Sessions in the Sand? Amazing.
Great meetings are about more than what goes on inside the conference room. The Outer Banks has the uncanny power to clear the mind and rejuvenate the spirit, paving the way to productive meetings. The serene setting allows meeting participants to focus their minds and unlock their creativity, ensuring guilt-free breakout sessions on the picturesque beaches. Discover Outer Banks meetings.

9. No Reservations Required
Well-known for fresh, locally-caught seafood, you’ll be delighted by the wide-ranging offering of culinary delights in unique settings – even during the off season.  Outer Banks restaurants serve everything from Italian standards, to Southwestern and French cuisine.  And the best thing about the off season dining experience?  No reservations.  No more 45-minute waits.  And still just as many delectable choices.

8. Flip Flops Welcome Year Round
No matter the time of year, you’ll find that it is always a great time to be on the Outer Banks. The Outer Banks typically has mild weather year-round with the ocean waters staying warm through November and then warming up again in May. The weather in the fall is ideal with warm days and cool evenings. The ocean water is still warm from the summer months – and not too cool for swimming until almost Thanksgiving.

7. Adventure, History, Culture…and More
From kayaking, hang-gliding and wild horses to famed lighthouses and boutique shopping, there is still plenty of fun to be had in the off season with numerous Outer Banks attractions and activities. The world-class surfing on the Outer Banks reaches its peak in the fall, and the fishing is also at its best with a typical Outer Banks fall morning displaying a gorgeous sunrise silhouetting a shoreline dotted by surfcasting fishing enthusiasts.

6. ‘Tis the Season
The holiday season on the Outer Banks is something to behold! Our barrier island comes alive with festive Outer Banks events that set the stage for fun family reconnecting. From concerts and festivals to art shows and open houses…the holiday cheer abounds!

5. Nights in Rodanthe, Anyone?
Why not leave the family behind…and take some time to rekindle the romance (the sitting-snug-by-a-crackling-fire kind). From long walks by the ocean to brilliant sunsets over the sound, you’ll discover that the romance is all around.

4. A Family Affair
Off season on the Outer Banks is the perfect setting for fun family reconnecting. The vast stretches of empty shoreline, the crashing of the waves, the long walks in the refreshing ocean breezes, all the seashells you can carry and the serene natural beauty—this picturesque scene is staged just for you.

And don’t forget the other members of your family! The off season is the perfect time of year to bring your furry friends for a frolic on the beach in a pet-friendly rental on the Outer Banks!

3. Fully Stocked
So maybe you won’t be donning a bathing suit and lounging on a chaise the way you might under the hot summer sun. If the weather isn’t picture perfect, no matter. Most Seaside Vacations vacation rental homes come stocked with everything you’ll need (and more) to have just as much fun inside as outside. From board games and DVDs, to cozy fireplaces and warm relaxing hot tubs…you’ll find that you may never need to leave.

2. Out of Season Vacations = Out of Your Mind Prices
One of the biggest draws for off-season visitors is the amazing deals they can find on an Outer Banks vacation rental.  An impressive eight-bedroom oceanfront house that rents for $10,050 a week in July rents for $2,815 a week in November. And a five-bedroom home drops from $3,720 to $825!

1. Our Pristine Natural Beauty
Spectacular sunrises over the Atlantic. Radiant golden sunsets over the sound. Pristine (and empty) windswept beaches and rolling dunes covered in swaying sea oats. A place of unparalleled beauty where time seems to slow and breathtaking beauty envelops the spirit and sets it soaring. This is the off season on the Outer Banks.

So, if you’re looking to escape the crowds and find a peaceful vacation in a beautiful spot at the edge of the world, visit the Outer Banks in the off season.  It just may be that a sweet escape to the wind-swept coast is exactly the getaway you’re looking for.

For more information on a relaxing late summer or fall vacation with Seaside Vacations, please visit www.OuterBanksVacations.com.

About Seaside Vacations:

Founded in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina in 1990, Seaside Vacations is a full-service vacation rental management company representing homes from Corolla to Nags Head.

Seaside Vacations offers a complete selection of Outer Banks vacation rentals. Guests can choose from 1 – 10-bedroom private vacation rental homes, condominiums, townhomes and villas.  Explore our homes in Duck and Corolla as well as numerous vacation rentals in Southern Shores, Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head.

For more information on Seaside Vacations and their wide selection of vacation rentals, visit www.OuterBanksVacations.com or call one a Vacation Specialist at 877.346.8231.

Great Outer Banks Surf

Earlier this year, National Geographic chose the Outer Banks to be included on its list of “Drives of a Lifetime,” and now the OBX has landed on N.G.’s list of the Top 100 American Adventures.

Here’s piece of the praise for the OBX:

“North Carolina’s Outer Banks represent what the eastern seaboard used to look like before all the development and jetties. Left to the whims of the wind and tide, the barrier islands and their dunes change shape from year to year. That makes for an ideal place for beach sports ranging from surfing to striper fishing.”

You can read the full article here.

They did a great job of capturing their full vacation; starting the week shopping at Harris Teeter, enjoying a BBQ dinner, making the most of the game room, races on the beach, Nags Head Pier at night, an OBX thunder storm, and an awesome rainbow to close out the trip.

We are looking forward to welcoming them back to the OBX soon!

Wind Turbine

Duke Energy has been working towards a wind farm along the Outer Banks.  The initial plan called for a pilot program in conjunction with UNC Chapel Hill to build three wind turbines in the Sound, but Duke Energy has decided it will not build the three wind turbines in Pamlico Sound as a pilot project..

The costs of the small pilot project were too steep. Duke had estimated the costs at $35 million. But it now believes the costs would be closer to $116 million to build three turbines.

Duke Energy feels the economies of scale still argue that building a large number of offshore turbines would be economically feasible for developers. The problem with the small project is that the utility cannot sufficiently defray the design, permitting and other fixed costs with only three turbines.

Duke Energy does not consider this a failure.

The project has already proved that the best place for building such turbines would be on the ocean side of the Outer Banks.  Duke Energy feels that Pamilco Sound is too shallow for the barges that would be required for construction of the offshore turbines. And the greater wind resources in North Carolina are clearly on the ocean side of the Outer Banks.

This may seem like a step back, but Duke Energy is still committed to the wind farm and has increased its investment in UNC Chapel Hill’s study of offshore wind power for North Carolina to $4 million, a $400,000 increase.

Moo Thru

The famous Brew Thru stores started along Outer Banks have inspired a popular new ice cream business in Fauquier County, Virginia.

A fourth-generation dairy farmer, came across the Brew Thru stores in Nags Head and decided that a similar concept would work for a store selling milk, ice cream and other dairy products.

And the Moo Thru was born.

Outer Banks Sunset

In the Life & Style section of the Wall St. Journal, reporter Bob Davis recently highlighted Duck, NC on the Outer Banks…. “where the sea is mild and the breeze is stiff.”  Davis covers what to do, where to stay, and where to eat along the OBX.

Here’s a quick synopsis of the article:

What to do:

• Lounge on the remarkably uncrowded Atlantic Ocean beaches of the Outer Banks, a chain of barrier islands. The sand is fine and the water temperature is mild.
• Currituck Sound, on the other side of Duck, is the place to jet-ski or kayak.
• History abounds:
  • Kitty Hawk, 10 miles away, is where the Wright brothers made their storied first controlled, powered flight in 1903.  Wright National Memorial has a full-size model of the biplane they flew.
  • Another historic attraction is the Roanoke colony, where British colonists first landed in 1585 and endured a few scant years. Their remains weren’t found, giving rise to tales of a “lost” colony. The national park on the site of the colonists’ Fort Raleigh is a lovely forested area.
  • The consistent winds are ideal Kite flying on the beach; Duck is filled with stores that sell all manner of kites.
  • Nearby, on Highway 158, is Jockey’s Ridge State Park, whose 100-foot-tall sand dunes give a better sense of what attracted Orville and Wilbur to the area: It’s a place where glider experiments could end in a soft landing. Instructors offer $99-an-hour hang-gliding lessons.
  • It will cost you nothing to stroll along Duck’s boardwalk, which juts over the sound.
  • Take a drive along the roads of Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge, 30 miles from Duck, a marshland where black bears lurk and cross the road at sunset.

Where to Stay: Prices for one-week rentals of three-bedroom homes start at about $1,500 in Duck and nearby Southern Shore, both of which have thick tree cover. Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hills lack much shade, but rentals there are cheaper.

• Beautiful vacation rental homes available.

Where to eat: There are lots of restaurants with great views of the water.

• To eat well, try The Blue Point Bar & Grill.  It offers a gorgeous view of the sound. Try the flavorful celery soup for $7. Catfish fried in cornmeal with zucchini slaw on the side will set you back $25.
• The Roadside Raw Bar & Grill, near Duck’s town square, lacks the view but has fine fare and live music most nights.
• The Sanderling Inn’s Lifesaving Station restaurant, in a restored 1899 sea-rescue building, is more casual and less costly than the inn’s other restaurants. A terrific chowder followed by shrimp, andouille sausage and grits go for $31, roughly 40% less than the fare at the Sanderling’s elegant Left Bank restaurant.

As you drive south to the OBX along Rt. 158, you pass through a number of communities in Currituck County that have a strong history of farming. Many of these farms still operate today, and for the lucky traveler, the farms have set up great “farm stands” along Rt. 158. The stands are full of mouthwatering fruits, veggies, pies, ice cream, etc.

If nothing else, the farm stands give you a great reason to get out and stretch your legs, but I predict it will be more than just a pit stop. Fun will be had, fruits will be purchased, and you’ll help support a local farmer.

After all, who doesn’t love some fresh, local watermelon while you’re sitting on the beach?!

Fresh & Local - Outer Banks

Outer Banks Sunset

Away.com recently compiled their list of Top Ten Weekends on the Water, and the Outer Banks came in at #2.

Away.com’s OBX description covers a wide variety of the amazing qualities the Outer Banks has to offer

• Wide beaches
• Temperate weather
• Great opportunities for fishing, boating, swimming, and parasailing
• A chance to glimpse herds of wild horses at play
• Also famous for Jockey’s Ridge, the largest natural live dune on the East Coast
• Historic attractions include the site of the first American colony on Roanoke Island
• Check out vestiges of that age at the Elizabethan Gardens and the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site
• It was also in the Outer Banks that the Wright Brothers conducted their first experiments, which eventually led to the first powered flight in their airplane.
• In addition to the stunning landscape, there are plenty of great places to eat and drink on the Outer Banks.

Outer Banks Sunset

The Gulf oil spill has been a national concern for weeks, and now that the well has been capped, some more positive news is beginning to develop.

Outer Banks enthusiasts can start to breathe a little easier knowing that indicators are beginning to demonstrate oil on the OBX is unlikely.

North Carolina State University associate professor Roy He, an expert on marine sciences and coastal circulation, says it is unlikely that oil from the Gulf spill will make its way to the East Coast….and the Outer Banks.

The Virginia Pilot is reporting that Professor He said the chances are low because the damaged oil well is capped, the oil is undergoing continuous dilution and degradation, and large amounts of oil have not been seen in the Loop Current, which has the potential to carry the oil around Florida and up the Eastern Seaboard.

Outer Banks Shipwreck 2010

On Tuesday, July 20, what is believed to be the oldest shipwreck to be discovered in North Carolina slowly meandered its 7.5-ton, 17-foot-wide by 37-foot-long body along the Outer Banks’ Rt. 12 towards its new home at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras Village.

The wreckage was discovered on the beach in Corolla in late 2009, excavated in April 2010, and it has been temporarily stored at on the ground of the Currituck Lighthouse in preparation for its big move.  The ship’s remains were loaded onto a flatbed trailer on Monday, and it set out on its journey south just after midnight on Tuesday morning.  A full entourage accompanied the ship on its journey – a police escort, museum directors, members of the Park Service.

Despite some stormy weather, the ship completed the 90 mile trip and arrived at its final resting place around 4 AM.

Here’s a great slideshow of the ship and its journey.

To beach combers’ delight, pieces of the shipwreck are still showing up on the Corolla beaches.