Beaufort Hotel

Discover the historic homes in Beaufort that once belonged to the town’s earliest sea captains, seafarers, and merchants. Visitors, and locals alike, can breathe in the salty fresh air, stroll or pedal leisurely down the tree-lined streets as your professional guide tells you about Beaufort’s past. It’s the perfect opportunity to learn about Beaufort’s beautiful restored historic homes and churches. You’ll learn about many of the 18th and 19th century homes as you step back in time or ride through 300 years of history in Beaufort’s historic district. Listed on the National Historic Register, the town’s historic district is ideal for biking, walking, and guided culinary tours. Your guide will share stories of what really happened inside the walls of some of those homes. Tours available year-round. Hungry Town Tours is the #1 Activity on the Crystal Coast – TripAdvisor.com. Advance telephone reservations only 252-648-1011 from 7 a.m. – 9 p.m.

The Beaufort Historic Site, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is a 2-acre area attraction made up of ten buildings, six authentically restored, in the center of the town’s historic district. The Beaufort Historical Association has restored and preserved the buildings in award-winning detail. The collections and furnishings, some original to the structure, help interpret a particular period in Beaufort’s history. Visitors can explore the historically accurate buildings, the original Carteret County Courthouse, the Old Jail (a visitor favorite), as well as the Apothecary and Doctor’s Office. Priceless collections of artifacts and antiques can be found throughout the properties, and volunteers offer tours, activities and special programs throughout the year for all visitors, young and young at heart.

The North Carolina Maritime Museum documents, collects, preserves, and researches the maritime and natural history of coastal North Carolina, and interprets history through educational services and exhibits. The museum is the official repository for artifacts from Blackbeard’s flagship, Queen Anne’s Revenge. In 1718, the notorious pirate ran his ship aground in Beaufort Inlet, roughly two miles from where the museum stands today. The exhibit illuminates the life of pirates aboard the ship with artifacts, interactive features and fun facts. Other exhibits include Surfing in North Carolina, commercial fishing, recreational fishing, and more. Free admission. Donations welcome.

Located across Taylor’s Creek from Beaufort, diverse arrays of important coastal habitats are found at the site including: tidal flats, salt marshes, ocean beach, soft bottom, shell bottom, dredge spoil areas, sand dunes, shrub thicket, submerged aquatic vegetation, and maritime forest. The Rachel Carson Reserve is a complex of islands which includes Carrot Island, Town Marsh, Bird Shoal, and Horse Island. Horses were brought to the site by a local citizen in the 1940s and eventually became wild or “feral,” thus they are considered non-native inhabitants of the islands. Today, the Reserve is home to approximately 30 wild horses. More than 200 species of birds have been observed at the site. Monitored by the State of North Carolina. Serviced by Island Ferry Adventures. -Carry your trash out of the park when visiting these remote beaches. -Keep your dog on a 6 ft. leash. -Stay 50 ft. away from the wild horses and do not feed them. They really are wild horses.

One of the best places to see Beaufort’s maritime history come to life is at the Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center. It’s a working boatbuilding facility that comes alive with the sounds and smells of traditional North Carolina wooden boatbuilding. It truly showcases the art and skill of traditional boat builders. When you walk through the doors and step onto the viewing platform, above the shop floor, you’ll discover it’s a great place to watch the boats take shape, from frame to finished product. You’ll notice the Watercraft Center also provides a unique opportunity to witness a craft as old as shipbuilding itself taking shape – the construction of wooden model boats. The watercraft center is home to the Carolina Maritime Model Society. Free admission. Donations welcome.

Located at the southern-most barrier island in Cape Lookout National Seashore, Shackleford Banks is home to more than 100 wild horses. Although how the “Banker horses” arrived is still a mystery, legend has it that these horses are descendants of Spanish Mustangs that survived a shipwreck. Venture out by boat or passenger ferry to Shackleford Banks and enjoy the rare privilege of watching horses that live without the help of man. Appreciate the horses’ tenacity and watch their social behaviors. Respectfully stay far enough away to avoid disturbing the horses or endangering yourself, your children, or your pets. This picturesque and undeveloped barrier island shoreline is a popular destination for visitors. Monitored by National Park Service. Serviced by Island Express Ferry Service. Please respect our islands and wild horses. When enjoying the barrier islands, please be aware: -Carry your trash out of the park when visiting these remote beaches. -Keep your dog on a 6 ft. leash. -Stay 50 ft. away from the wild horses and do not feed them. They really are wild horses.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the weathered tombstones date back to the early 1700s chronicle the heritage of Beaufort and the surrounding coast. Stories of military heroes, star-crossed lovers, privateers and noted Beaufort residents of all ages are featured under a protective canopy of live oaks. The earliest graves were marked with shell, brick, or wooden slabs, because stone markers had to be brought from afar by wooden sailing vessels. Characteristic of this period are vaulted graves bricked over in an attempt to protect them from high water and wild animals. Self-guided tours with maps available at the Safrit Historical Center on the grounds of the Beaufort Historic Site. From June through September, the Beaufort Historical Association gives narrated tours of the Old Burying Ground on Ann Street.

The Cape Lookout Lighthouse is a 163-foot high lighthouse located on the Southern Outer Banks of North Carolina. It flashes every 15 seconds and is visible at least 12 miles out to sea and up to 19 miles. The Cape Lookout Light is one of the very few lighthouses that operate during the day. It became fully automated in 1950. The Cape Lookout Lighthouse is the only such structure in the United States to bear the checkered daymark, intended not only for differentiation between similar light towers, but also to show direction. The center of the black diamond points in a north-south direction, while the center of the white diamond’s points east-west. Monitored by the National Park Service. Cape Lookout National Seashore Visitor Information Center is located at Beaufort Town Hall, 701 Front Street. Serviced by Island Express Ferry Service.