Visitors to the Outer Banks are recreation lovers. After all, with an area known for its natural beauty, why wouldn’t you want to be outside taking full advantage of every Outer Banks thing to do you could think of? Perhaps the Outer Banks’ biggest draw is Mother Ocean and her surrounding sandy beaches. When it comes to things to do on the Outer Banks, the top of anyone’s to-do list involves getting in or near the water. That translates into sunbathing, swimming, body boarding, skimboarding, surfing, scuba diving, shelling, sea glass hunting, shore walking…and did we mention just sitting and looking at those meditative waves rolling in? Check out the Things To Do in Hatteras section and the Things To Do in Ocracoke section for the scoop on the best ways to enjoy the water.
Of course, the Outer Banks things to do on the sound are just as numerous as those on the ocean. Take a peek at the sound, and you almost always see someone boating, sailing, parasailing, kiteboarding, standup paddleboarding, clamming, windsurfing, kayaking or Jet Skiing. Check out Things To Do in Nags Head or Things To Do in Duck, NC, for your watersports options.
Outer Banks Things To Do on Dry Land!
Feel more like a dry activity? No problem! If fishing is the ticket, there are many opportunities to wet a line with piers, bridges, shorelines, the sound, bays, offshore and inshore charters. Along a similar drift, a dolphin or sightseeing boat tour is a popular Outer Banks thing to do, and you can learn more in the Things To Do on Roanoke Island section. And no equine lover's trip to the Outer Banks is complete without seeing the wild horses, a popular Thing To Do in Corolla, NC. Want to see as much of the Outer Banks as you can by walking, jogging or biking? Then you’ll love it here! Each town has either a designated bike path, boardwalks or back roads that are so lovely you’ll forget all about the fact that you have three more miles to go!
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
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
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
The folks at Village Marina call this the “best little dink marina anywhere.” Small as it is, Village Marina offers slip rentals with water and electric...read more
VusicOBX is a summer concert series held at Roanoke Island Festival Park in Manteo. The organizers are Outer Banks locals who love bringing people together...read more
An unincorporated village on the southern end of Roanoke Island, Wanchese is small and well off the beaten path. Not many visitors make it down this way,...read more
Beneath the Washington Baum Bridge on the Manteo side of the Nags Head/Manteo Causeway, N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission has a extensive public dock that...read more
Waterboy has everything you need for island exploration. They rent kayaks, surfboards, watersports equipment, standup paddleboards and more. There’s also...read more
Hunting is allowed in Cape Hatteras National Seashore in restricted areas of Bodie Island (on the west side of N.C. Highway 12 opposite South Nags Head)....read more
Wave Riding Vehicles has been on the beach since 1980, and in that time their wave of porpoises logo has made their surfboards one of the most recognizable...read more
Whalebone Park, located across from Jennette's Pier, is an ocean-themed public park opened by the Town of Nags Head for daytime use. Complete with a pirate...read more
Locally owned and operated since 1975, Whalebone has all the gear you need to outfit the whole family for the beach. They stock all the major surf brands...read more
