The Beaufort, NC travel guide

Update:

This travel guide has been a very popular resource.  I am now keeping a more up to date version on my home website.  It is in a format that is easier for me to update.

You can see the updated version of this post by clicking this link to the revised Beaufort travel guide.  If the latest information on Beaufort isn't critical to you, enjoy this post.

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If you've read many of my posts, you know how much I enjoy the Southern Outer Banks.  It's always a moral dilemma when you're faced with sharing one of your favorite places with others.  You certainly never give away favorite fishing holes, but when it comes to tourist destinations, I think it's fine to share.

That would especially be the case with Beaufort, NC.  It has to be one of the nicest places to visit that I have found.  You can stay in town and walk any number of exceptional seafood restaurants.  There are plenty of shops for the ladies.  There are all sorts of water activities, harbor tours, boat rides beaches, and last but not least some of the best fishing on the east coast.

What really makes me comfortable sharing information about Beaufort is that it's actually harder to get to than most beaches that our favored in our area such as Nags Head, Corolla, Wrightsville, and Mytrle Beach.  It takes almost three hours and 57 stop lights from Raleigh, NC to make it to Beaufort.  That means that very few people will go through the extra hassle to get to Beaufort.  That's fine by me, but you should understand what a great place you're missing.

The Beaufort Inn is our favorite spot to stay.  They have wireless Internet, great king beds, a hot tub, and  a nice free breakfast each morning which includes Katie's sausage and egg pie.   Their  water view rooms have a small porch overlooking the inlet.  They have a 10% AAA discount/or senior discount if you ask for it on check in .

Map to Beaufort Inn

It you want something fancier there are some very neat B&Bs including the Cedars.  We love the Cedars and it is more centrally located.   It's more expensive, the beds are harder but they have some beautifully decorate rooms including some suites.  There is a honeymoon cottage called the Carolina Cottage.  Our favorite room is the second floor Bristol, which has a sitting room and a fireplace.  You might not like it since it is supposedly haunted with a ghost of a sea captain.  We never ran into him.

The  Cedars also has wireless.  They have great breakfasts with cheese grits served every morning.  They are less flexible on their breakfast timing.

To my fisherman's mind,  the Beaufort Inn is the best value since it has a dock which allows my fishing guide, Captain Tom Roller of Waterdog Guide Service,  just to swing by and pick me up with his boat.  If you love to fish, don't miss going out with Tom.  He's young, intelligent, enthusiastic, and knows his fish.  In reality nothing in Beaufort is very far from a dock.  However, you just don't get any closer to a dock than the Beaufort Inn.

We have friends who have stayed at the Anne Street Inn, but it's not on the water. They thoroughly enjoyed their stay and found the free beer to be a great treat.

Among other places to stay,  there's also the Pecan Tree Inn and the Bed & Biscuit.

Then there are the restaurants which have made Beaufort a popular year around destination.

There are more good restaurants than you can try in a week.  All are walking distance from the places I have suggested .

Being able to ditch your car and to walk to everything is next to the fishing, my favorite thing about Beaufort.  You can just forget your gas guzzler once you get there. Traveling  by  foot, boat, or bike are all popular and great ways to get around.

Also Beaufort has enough wide streets so nothing is crowded except perhaps on the 4th of July.  This is unlike Ocracoke and Chincoteague where cars can hardly move most of the time.

The Net House is often first on the list of restaurants.  It is a very casual place which has been recommended by some of the movie stars that pass through the area via the inter-coastal waterway.  It is often favored by some year around residents.

Sometimes the Nethouse is only open for dinner, but you never know.  The always on the special broiled grouper with a Dijon mustard sauce is pretty hard to beat, then there are the fried soft shell crabs, flounder or oysters, and  also fantastic steamers when in season. The steamers are the best price in town.  If you love classic Carolina fried seafood, the Net House is your spot.

Of course the traditional hush puppies come out first.  Their chowder is the Hatteras type which means no cream.  The service is friendly and you'll definitely think you're in a typical coastal fish house.  Of course I think they serve better fish than almost any other I have visited.

 

 

One of our personal favorites is Spouters. They don't even have a deep fryer, and you can eat on the water.  I love their mixed grill which comes with grilled Tuna, shrimp, and scallops.  They also have great flounder, wahoo, and especially delicious desserts.

Then if you want a fancier atmosphere, exceptional service, a beautiful dining room or a deck on the water check out Front Street Grill at Stillwater.  They sometimes have some very unusual entries on the menu.  Their chowder is usually exceptional.  Front Street is very popular for lunch but somewhat expensive.  It is a better value at dinner

Finz's is our favorite place for lunch,  they have a great shrimp melt sandwich and very good salads.

Another really nice place for lunch or dinner is the Beaufort Grocery.  It is a very interesting restaurant with a varied menu and excellent service.

Then there is the Blue Moon Bistro where I took Glenda for our anniversary last year.  Very good service and well prepared, exceptional food.

Clawson's is a good place for lunch, sometimes has exceptional flounder.  More of a bar/restaurant like Clydes

We've also enjoyed Aqua which is one of those multi tiny plate restaurants.

There's is a steak house, Ribeye's but we have never gotten around to eating in it.

There are several others including a new very fancy one that we haven't tired (Sharpie's and there is the Dock House which is on the water, fine for beer and music but avoid the heavily battered food.

As for entertainment-  there's a great Maritime museum which is also in walking distance.   

Across the street from that is an addition to the museum where they build these beautiful wooden boats.  These are not small boats so it is fascinating to watch them work.

Then there is the historic Beaufort site and museum which is like a tiny Williamsburg with some very old buildings, the old grave yards, all within walking distance.  The Ghost walk, a London Bus tour of town. some evenings there are horse drawn carriage rides

Then you can drive about fifteen minutes over to Fort Macon or Atlantic beach for beach walks, or take one of the many water taxis over to Carrot Island which is just minutes away by boat.

Of course there are a plethora of boat rides, tours, sunset cruises etc,  also kayak rentals etc.  Our friend Robert went kayaking while I was fishing the last time we were down.  He had a great time and got very close to the wild ponies.

The water in the Beaufort Inlet are very calm,  the Mystery is a large tour boat which even those fearful of the sea can handle.  There is a giant speed boat that goes to Cape Lookout and a catamaran that also goes there and does sunset cruises. 

There are plenty of sail boats that do cruises also.

You can also drive up to Cape Lookout and take a quick ten minute boat ride over there.  That's our preferred method since the ride up takes you through some interesting territory.

You can read about how much I enjoy going over to Cape Lookout in my post entitled, "The best twenty dollars you'll ever spend."

There are tons of shops all in walking distance for ladies to enjoy including the Bag Lady and the Boathouse by Jarrett Bay .

They are both favorites of our friend Diane.  There is also a wine bar/wine shop, The Cru Wine Bar and Store, a shop for birders, and more antique shops and things than I can handle.  Glenda, my wife, never has a problem finding one to wander into for a few minutes.

There's a great nautical bookstore, and another bookstore run by someone who used to write for one of the San Francisco papers and then retired to Beaufort.  Of course there is the historic general store, a fudge and ice cream shop, and some nice spots with outdoor gear.

If you want more pictures you can check out this set of slides on my Flickr site. 

This past weekend when we were down in Beaufort, there was a great kite festival going on over close to Fort Macon where we often go to walk on the beach.

On top of that there were plenty of fishermen in the inlet hoping to catch some "spots."

I've already written about my successful fishing trip in the post, "Not her first choice."

The real estate agents will tell you that Beaufort is a great place for "OPALS" or Older People with Active Life Styles.

I think it is great place for anyone who enjoys the water, sand, great food, friendly people and an absence of crowds.

Don't expect the stores to open at any particular time and count on eating lots of seafood and you'll have a great time.

If you can't have a good time in Beaufort, NC, you need to re-examine your definition of a good time, or just pass your vacation money over to me so I can take another fishing trip.

I'll look forward to running into more Roanoke people down on the Southern Outer Banks or SOBX as the stickers call it.

Fall is a great time of year to visit, there's no humidity and the restaurants are even more eager to see you.

Comments

[Mary Warshaw]

Hi,
I found your blog while searching for Beaufort photos taken by visitors. I loved your travel guides and especially the one on Beaufort. Thought you might enjoy reading my new blog at http:beaufortartist.blogspot.com
Keep up the good work - you are providing a great service.

[Aileen]

Hi...:)
I saw the piece in the News Times about your blog,and just had to check it out.
I spent a good deal of my youth living in Beaufort.My parents owned the Piver House at 125 Ann Street.My Memories of Beaufort in the 60's and 70's are of a quaint coastal town in which legend and ghosts abounded.Sunsets over the river while the Dolphins bobbed up and down through the water.Saturday afternoons at the old Movie theater where 50 cents could get you in and buy a drink and popcorn.
The Pirate Invasions,Old Homes Tours and Homecoming Parades bought everyone out to mingle.And of course it seemed like everyone knew everyone.
Times have changed,however Beaufort has hung onto it's quaint lifestyle in some ways.
Just take a walk through the Old Burying Ground,or along Front Street while the waves gently lap onshore,and you can almost bring back the quiet, simple Beaufort of not so long ago.

[Patricia Frank]

You've painted a wonderful portrait of my newly adopted home town of Beaufort. I'm so glad you enjoy it as a visitor as much as I enjoy it as a resident--though I feel on permanent vacation here, even while working full-time at writing.

I named this town "The little Easy" 'cause it's such an easy place in which to live.

In No. CA., my former home, I dreamt of a small town, rich in heritage and tradition, with lots of artists and writers, where, I too, could write. And when I wasn't writing, I hoped to ride my bike to grocery, library, and to pretty places.

I found that here in Beaufort.

This little village is special. Rambling around the historic district on a soft summer evening is stepping back 200-300 years in time, so beautifully have the old homes been kept.

Only one tiny correction..the restaurant you referred to as "Sharkie's" is actually "Sharpies"--named after a type of boat--and their food is fabulous.

Hope to see you around B'fort Town.

Thanks for your wonderful words.

Best wishes,

Patricia Frank

[ocracokewaves]

I'll have to blame my editor for not catching that. That would be me. I often find that I go back to a post and catch an error. I'm alway grateful when someone takes the time to let me know I've made a mistake so I can correct it.

Home for me now is just down the road near Cape Carteret on the White Oak River. We still come up to visit and in fact we had dinner at No Name Pizza last week.

Congratulations on having Beaufort as your home.

[ocracokewaves]

I also have another site which has area information.

http://coastalnc.org

[Patricia Frank]

Yum, No Name Pizza..did you have one of the Greek specialties or a pasta dish?

We love their gyro's and Greek Pizza's.

I feel like such a traitor, my iMac crashed and needed a new motherboard and so I (sob) bought a PC..now I'm Mac-less for the first times in eons...I went to the dark side.

[ocracokewaves]

Well it is possible to survive on the dark side, it just not nearly as much fun. Every time I boot up my PC, I'm surprised at how busy you have to get before you can even start working. There's always three or four things telling me something about the PC that I really don't want to know.

Someone once said that a PC is like a busy body that assumes you want to know everything that is happening whether you need to or not.

A Mac assumes that everything is okay and shouldn't be bothered unless absolutely necessary.

We need to convince someone down here to start selling and servicing Macs.

This was our second time at No Name Pizza. This round we had hamburgers. The time before we had Greek specialties. It's nice place to have a reasonably priced meal. You can tell that from all the locals in the parking lot.

[Juno888]

In your post picture i fell much happy to see that nice view behind the sea... very cool one... i like it...

[Lisa]

I am taking my daughter for her high school graduation. This is promise from 8th grade when she saw the movie "A Walk to Remember. What should we do while we are there? What is the best beach? We are staying at the inlet Inn, what is the best place to eat to get the local feel? I appreciate and and all help. We lave June 23rd 2007

[Patricia Frank]

Gosh, so many wonderful treats in store for you and your daughter...Clawsons on Front Street is always fun for local flavor and local seafood and pasta at reasonable prices, the Net House has great, no-frills seafood at honest prices, Taylor's Big Mug has coffee and tea treat and Wi Fi access, Beaufort Grocery has yummy lunches, Miss Marie's Gallery on Orange Street has beautiful hand-crafted jewelry by the owner and Handscapes Gallery on Front Street has lots of nifty handcrafts made by local artisans, lots of clothing stores all along Front St. with many temptations, a must visit is to the Old Burying Ground--an amazing place with startling history like the little girl buried in the rum keg (first get a self-guided brochure from the Historical Site), and while there, visit their Mattie King Gallery for fun art by locals, at dusk, take a scary and informative Ghost and Local History Tour from Tour Beaufort on Front Street, pack a picnic and wear your bathing suits and ride out to Shakelford Banks aboard Island Ferry Adventures on Front St.--you'll likely see the wild ponies and maybe some dolphins, ride the red London double decker bus around town, grab an ice cream cone at the General Store and sit on their porch and watch the passing parade of people, maybe rent a couple of bikes and pedal up and down the streets of the historical district for a flavor of yesteryear..rent two kayaks and paddle out at sunset, I could go on and on--there's so much to do...you'll have a blast. Welcome to the Little Easy...

[michael jones]

When i decide to travel among the nature i always take with me one travel guide and one fishing guide.

[Mike Hodgdon]

I am passionate about fishing. I have a very strong desire for the activity. The start of trout season signifies the beginning of the entire fishing season, for me. Can anyone please tell me which country has the greatest salmon fishing in the world?

[El Cid Vacation]

i love how it looks so "old". old in a good way

[villas mallorca]

It seems like you had a great experience at this place. I'll also plan a trip here with my family soon. I loved your article.

[Robert Johnson]

Why would hesitate to share your top visited place? Aren't you proud that you can give suggestions to others? Anyway, thank you for this post. I love the fishing area that you shared to us.

[ocracokewaves]

Not sure I understand your question, the post is full of places that I have suggested. I'll even be glad to suggest a fishing guide for the area. I'm quite willing to share my fishing holes also but they are down the coast from Beaufort.

http://www.crystalcoastlife.com/blog/2012/09/19/living-by-the-inlet/