The Outer Banks landscape is a mesmerizing geographic wonder. Climb Jockey’s Ridge to see the Atlantic Ocean to the East, the sound to the West and the variations between thin strips of sand and flat marshland in between. Fortunately for you, Outer Banks outdoor things to do aren’t limited to sunning on the beach and swimming in the ocean. Take advantage of the beautiful landscape by participating in activities that put the warm sun over your head and sea salty air in your lungs. With Outer Banks outdoor activities, you can look for native animals and plants in wooded nature preserves, take vehicle tours to find some wild ponies playing in Corolla, stand over the water on a pier, take a fishing trip with a captain who knows all of the top fishing spots, visit docks to watch boat captains and mates unload the day’s catches, promenade through lovely gardens and take nature-oriented classes at Jennette’s Pier in Nags Head, the Ocean Center in Avon or the Wildlife Education Center in Corolla. With such a wide selection of activities, you’ll stay busy and entertained. Check out the below listings of Outer Banks outdoor things to do that you can enjoy during your visit to the beach.
Outer Banks Things To Do by Area
Corolla | Duck & Southern Shores | Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills & Nags Head
Roanoke Island & Manteo | Hatteras Island | Ocracoke Island
Outer Banks Things To Do by Category
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Kitty Hawk Kites has been teaching the world to fly since 1974. With 10 retail locations from Corolla to Ocracoke, Kitty Hawk Kites boasts an impressive selection of kites, flags and spinners, toys, apparel, gifts and games on the Outer Banks. Kitty Hawk Kites specializes in kites, from the single-lines for kids to high-tech stunt varieties. The stores also sell fun outdoor goodies such as flags, toys, boomerangs and games. You’ll find a wide selection of Outer Banks gear, beach sportswear and footwear from Crocs, Chaco, Hey Dude, Southern Fried and Life is Good apparel, t-shirts, sweatshirts, outdoor clothing, sunglasses and more. Kitty Hawk Kites also offers a number of adventure activities including hang gliding, kayak and SUP tours, lessons and rentals, parasailing, Jet Skis, dolphin tours, wild horse tours, historic tours and much more. The brand-new Whalebone Watersports Center on the Nags Head Causeway offers kayak fishing, Jet Skis, pontoon boat rentals and more. At Kitty Hawk Kites' Waves Village Watersports in Rodanthe, you can learn kiteboarding; buy and rent kiteboarding gear; rent a kayak, surfboard or standup paddleboard or climb the adventure tower/ropes course. Kitty Hawk Kites Hang Gliding School at Jockey's Ridge in Nags Head offers private lessons, beginner lessons, advanced lessons and training packages for hang gliding, as well as retail merchandise and sand boards available for rent.
Kitty Hawk Kites has been teaching the world to fly since 1974. With 10 retail locations from Corolla to Ocracoke, Kitty Hawk Kites boasts an impressive...read more
Kitty Hawk Kites has been teaching the world to fly since 1974. With 10 retail...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Springer’s Point covers about 120 acres of maritime forest, tidal red cedar forest, salt marsh, wet grasslands and soundfront beach bordering Pamlico Sound...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Join a captain and crew for a two-hour saltwater safari on the newest vessel in the Oregon Inlet Fishing Center fleet. The Safari is a 50-foot...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Ocracoke Civic & Business Association Contributor
Interested in kitesurfing? This is your place on Ocracoke Island. The Sea Monkey Lodge & Kite School owner Keith Croghan is the ambassador of kiting on the island and gladly shares his love of the island and sport. With more than 15 years of experience teaching kite-surfing lessons, Keith operates the island's only kite school for all levels from beginners to advanced riders looking to enhance their skills and experience some of Ocracoke’s truly world-class kiting conditions and scenery. Beginner lessons are held in the safe, shallow, calm waters of the Pamlico Sound. For more advanced riders, Keith facilitates downwinders and excursions as well as tricks and wave-riding clinics. Want to graduate from the sound to the surf? This is the place! The guided downwinders are truly hidden gems through some of the island’s more hard-to-reach and untouched places. Keith also offers multi-day kite camps for all levels as well as sailing lessons on 15’ daysailers.
Keith operates a boutique kite lodge and budding permaculture ranch. The guest house, a perfect base for all your adventures, serves as the center for like-minded windsports and watersports enthusiasts. The lodge offers accommodations for larger groups but also welcomes solo travelers, with options of booking the whole property for your group, private rooms or even the occasional van/tent/coach camper. Tucked away on a quiet creek with plenty of shade and a well-provisioned kitchen, it’s got everything you need and is centrally located within walking distance to shops, bars and restaurants.
Interested in kitesurfing? This is your place on Ocracoke Island. The Sea Monkey Lodge & Kite School owner Keith Croghan is the ambassador of kiting on...read more
Interested in kitesurfing? This is your place on Ocracoke Island. The Sea Monkey Lodge &...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s LEED–certified visitor center is on the north end of Roanoke Island near the entrance to Fort Raleigh National...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
For a chance to see the offshore boats unloading the day’s deep-sea catches, head down to one of the Hatteras Village marinas between 3:30 and 5 p.m. When...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Designated in 1991 as North Carolina’s first Historic Shipwreck Preserve, the USS Huron lies 250 yards from the beach. During the summer, buoys may...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Whalehead is an historic house museum on the northern Outer Banks. The grand residence, dressed in bold yellow and striking copper, stands on a vast green...read more
Outer Banks Nature & Outdoor Oriented
Wright Brothers National Memorial commemorates two ingenious brothers from Dayton, Ohio, who, in 1900, chose the sparsely populated area known as the Outer...read more
