Uncluttered beauty
Much of North Carolina’s appeal hinges on the natural beauty of its mountains, lakes and oceanside setting, a beauty that happily has not been undermined with clutter and overdevelopment.

The state offers extremes of geography, from the Blue Ridge and Great Smokey mountains in the west to the sloping coastal plains, where lakes, rivers and the Atlantic Ocean’s islands and beaches meet. Therefore, the state draws those who love fishing, golf, beaches and water sports, plus the leaf peepers in autumn.  In addition, visitors seek out the cities and towns that preserve the look and feel of decades and even centuries past.

About North Carolina
The Carolina siblings have a lot in common. Both have a seashore, attractive weather, lots of recreational facilities and the charm of the South. What distinguishes North Carolina, according to travelers, is its lack of commercialization and development. Words like “not crowded,” “quaint” or “no rip-offs” come up frequently when people talk about what they like.

North Carolina appeals to a wide variety of people across the personality scale, all of whom enjoy the peaceful beaches, fresh air, friendly people, good food and the variety of things to do and see in this unspoiled part of the U.S. Visitors say North Carolina has something for everyone.

The area called the Outer Banks is one of the most sought-out vacation destinations in the eastern part of the country and is frequently cited by travelers as a favorite vacation spot.
When centrics visit, they are very attracted to the mountains and the beaches, and they mention each about equally. Both areas have natural beauty, plenty of things to do and places to visit. Fishing and golf earn the most mentions from centrics. In addition, sightseers seem intrigued with quaint villages like Ocracoke that emit a sense of timelessness, and they like the shopping and reasonable prices. Centrics describe their time in North Carolina as peaceful, quiet and relaxing.

No surprise, venturers are more active and seek out options for camping, swimming, surfing, biking and sea kayaking, as well as playing golf and fishing. Venturers also interest themselves in North Carolina's history, which includes the first British colony at Roanoke, relationships with the Cherokee Indian tribe and the Wright brothers’ first successful flight. These travelers also cover more ground as sightseers, exploring undeveloped, isolated islands, hitting quaint little towns as well as exploring Charlotte, one of the South’s major cities.

Authentics, on the other hand, like having some development — on behalf of tourists! They join all the other travelers in admiring North Carolina’s varied and beautiful scenery.

• Fashion a fall foliage tour in North Carolina, undertaken by hiking, or canoeing, or whitewater rafting.

• Learn to paddle a canoe or kayak at the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City. The center also offers mountain biking, ropes courses, kayak touring, fly-fishing and hiking.

• Pursue insights into the African-American heritage through food. Lunch at the Aramark Cafeteria in Durham, home to the country’s largest African-American-owned financial institution, North Carolina Mutual Insurance.
Or, order sweet potato cheesecake and other unique Southern-style dishes at the Sweet Potatoes Restaurant in Winston-Salem.

• Participate in Cycle North Carolina, the state’s annual cross-state ride, in early autumn.

• Do the obvious at the U.S. National Whitewater Center, a training site for Olympic athletes at Charlotte. The 300-acre facility, along the Catawba River, also has trails for mountain biking and running, plus primitive campsites.

• Or, go whitewater rafting or kayaking on the Cheoah River; you will want to do this soon after one of the regular releases of water from the upriver Santeetlah Dam.

• Take a ride down Sliding Rock, a natural 67-foot water slide of smooth stone that drops you into a seven-foot-deep pool.  Eleven thousand gallons of water gush down the slide per minute.

• Get into scuba-diving gear and search for lost treasure. Lots of ships have gone down off the Crystal Coast.

• For a perspective from the air, go hang gliding off the dunes on the Outer Banks. Need lessons? Learn to fly at Kitty Hawk Kites’ Hang Gliding Training Center, which claims to be the world’s largest hang gliding school based on number of students.

• Participate in one of the autumn Build a Boat in a Day workshops at the North Carolina Maritime Museum on Roanoke Island, Manteo.

• Follow the North Carolina Birding Trail, which encompasses 120 birding sites. The state boasts 460 of the 900 to 1,000 species in the U.S.

• Take the African-American Heritage Walking Tour in New Bern. This is a town where free blacks comprised 13% of the population before the Civil War, and they helped design and build the place.

• Attend the annual Benson Mule Days, in Benson, a fall tradition spanning more than 50 years. The event includes rodeos, a mule-pulling contest, arts and crafts, street dances, bluegrass shows and a huge parade that draws about 20,000 people.

• Alternatively, if auto racing is more your speed, the NASCAR season begins in May at the Charlotte Motor Speedway.

• North Carolina boasts several scenic drives. Choose one based on your interests (mountains, coastal scenes, farmland, etc.). A drive called Tail of the Dragon is a favorite with motorcyclists. The drive begins at Cheoah Dam where Harrison Ford jumped off the bridge in “The Fugitive.”

• In autumn, make the drive a fall foliage tour. In season, check www.visitNC.com/fallcolor for reports.

• Tour the Somerset Place State Historic Site, in the Pettigrew State Park, for a realistic view of 19th century slave life on a large North Carolina plantation. See the reconstructed plantation hospital, the only example of its type.

• Eat your way across the state by following the Barbecue Trail created by the North Carolina Barbeque Society (www.ncbbqsociety.com). The state calls itself the Barbecue Capital of the World.

• Plan a driving itinerary around North Carolina’s sections of a multistate Civil War Trails project. Check www.civilwartraveler.com and www.civilwartrails.com.

• Cape Hatteras National Seashore includes the Outer Banks, Ocracoke and Hatteras Island, and is noted for its wild beauty and occasionally treacherous sands. Walk, fish, hunt or just observe wildlife. Look for dolphins!

• At summer’s end, attend the annual Smoky Mountain Folk Festival in Waynesville to hear fiddlers, banjo players and string bands and to see square-dance teams in full swing.

• See “The Lost Colony,” the story of the 1587 lost colony of Roanoke, presented during the summer on Roanoke Island on the Outer Banks. Dating from 1937, it is the country’s longest-running outdoor historical drama.

• For wine lovers, check out North Carolina’s output at the wineries on the Swan Creek Wine Trail. Or, in October, come to the Swan Creek group’s Harvest Festival Weekend in Yadkin Valley.

• Fish off the Cape Fear Coast, on the Outer Banks and at other sites. Look for fall fishing festivals and competitions. Check www.visitNC.com/fallfish. You are invited to submit photos of your big catches at the Web site, too.

• The Cherokee Indian Reservation memorializes the fascinating and turbulent history of this Indian nation. See its museums and the Oconaluftee Indian Village, and take in the play, “Unto These Hills,” a historical drama about the Cherokees.

• Sample the offerings at the Randy Parton Theater in Roanoke Rapids. It is part of a large entertainment complex with special appeal for country music lovers.

• Take the family to the Ghost Town in the Sky, a family theme park in Maggie Valley, featuring events like staged gunfights plus historical and heritage exhibits.

• Stay at the Pinehurst Resort and Country Club and, of course, play golf. The resort is often called the American birthplace of golf.

• Take in a basketball game, either a Hornets professional game in Charlotte or college ball played at Duke, the University of North Carolina or other colleges.

• In Asheville, see the Biltmore Estate, built by the Vanderbilt family. The mansion, in French-chateau style, is surrounded by gardens, greenhouses and a winery. Schedule this visit to coincide with the Festival of Flowers held annually in April.