The Quick Emerald Isle Travel Guide

We lived near Emerald Isle for over fifteen years. Living along the coast gave us a much different perspective than when we used to just visit for a few days. We went through what passes for winter with one year only have thirty-six hours below freezing. Wesurvived a few hurricanes including Irene and Florence.

This page is my free on-line travel guide to the area. I haven't updated it since we moveed to NC's Piedmont in February 2021. I am sure lot of things have changed like restaurants and accomodations but the area and the beaches are likely much the same as we lived there.

This page is not attempt to sell you a book. I wrote the books because I loved the area and with no illusion of making money or getting more than pocket money. However, much of the information in the books, Kindle and paperback, would still be useful.

At this point in time, the 2018 guide would still be a good introduction to the area. I like to think that for six years we wrote a travei guide, they continued to get better. The most recent version of our book, A Week at the Beach, An Emerald Isle Travel Guide was published in the summer of 2018. It is still available at the Kindle Store for only $3.99. The Kindle version has 100+ full color pictures, 12 maps, and 10 recipes. The Kindle version also has many links to additional information.

Both paperbacks are 6X9 and available online. The black and white paperback version and the color version have the same content. The paperbacks are available from Amazon with free Prime shipping for around $7.99 (B&W) and $19.99 (Color). Amazon pricing does change, If you buy the paperback from Amazon, you can purchase the Kindle version for $1.99.

All the books include lots of information about the area and suggestions about how to have a great vacation at the beach. You will find information on boating, kayaking, and fishing among other things. The books comes with beautiful pictures of the area’s beaches, some great bird pictures, and even some wonderful recipes. If you want to plan some quality time along the beaches and waters of the Crystal Coast, our book still give you the view of a couple who have actually lived on the coast and loved the area.

There is just enough information about the beach on this page to help you start to intelligently plan a nice family vacation at Emerald Isle.

We lived just up the White Oak River near Hancock Point twelve months out of the year. That put us three miles from the Intracoastal Waterway and about ten minutes from the beaches of Emerald Isle. Because of that I got to feel the heat in August, the warm breezes in the fall, some cold storms in winter, and the persistent breezes of spring that let us sleep with our windows open.

Each year here on the coast was a little different, but you could generally count on three to four months of nice beach weather and that does not even count the magnificent fall weather that we usually get. Most falls it is was nice enough to get out on the big water in the ocean.

Spring ofen started with cool weather in March but usually by the end of April it felt like the beach season was just around the corner. It is normal on the coast to enjoy a wonderful early spring season filled with local produce. Our strawberries usually last until the end of May and you can count on having fresh local blueberries even before the strawberries are gone. By the end of June local corn and lots of other fresh vegetables are ready. By the fourth of July some delicious Bogue Sound Watermelons are at the produce stands. Fresh shrimp, flounder, crabs, and clams are also available much of year.

in spite of the cool spring he last year we lived on the coast, we managed to get our first ripe home-grown tomato on May 25. We feasted on a wide variety of tomatoes from our garden including some wonderful Cherokee purples. Besides great, uncrowded beaches, fresh produce is one of the best kept secrets of Carteret County and it is easy to get a taste of it at one of the great produce stands like Winberry’s in Cedar Point.

Because of the great weather on the coast, I spent far more of my time enjoying the outside than I spent at my desk writing. I spent time walking on the beaches and even more time on the water. One year I walked 10,000 steps a day for 365 days. Another year i walked the beach twice from the Emerald Isle town line all the way to the Point.

I was an avid boater, fisherman, and kayaker. This is a great area to be on the water. My last spring on the coast was a good one for fishing for drum, but you don’t have to catch fish to have a good time on the water. Fish are great but fishing in drop dead gorgeous scenery is enough reward some days.

It is impossible to guarantee everyone a perfect, every-day-will-be-sunny vacation. However if you come for a visit, I can tell you that the beaches of Emerald Isle, neighboring Salter Path, and Pine Knoll Shores can restore your appreciation of the natural world. It is a world that is always changing. Areas like the Point where Bogue Inlet meets the Atlantic ocean are magical places that change almost before our eyes. Where there is water one day, you might find sand in the same place tomorrow.

You will not find the night life or shopping of Myrtle Beach in Emerald Isle. But you will find safe, uncrowded beaches that are there for the enjoyment of the people who take the time to walk them. Emerald Isle is proud of its image as one of the last family beaches. Almost everyone that visits falls in love and comes back again and again.

As in any area with hundreds of individual accommodations available for rent, your individual experience is going to have a lot to do with the property that you rent or the motel you choose. If you are renting a beach property, the best suggestion is that you pay careful attention to the reputation of the people renting you a vacation spot. People doing rentals depend on repeat business so they want to make your trip as enjoyable and stress free as possible.

Before you come, you should know that Emerald Isle is not a large place. Emerald Isle’s 3,800 year round residents, make the town one of the larger towns in Carteret County. With only 64,000 permanent residents and more water than land, Carteret County is not known for crowds. Of course the population more than doubles for a few weeks in the summer, but it is still easy to get around the area even during busy times in the summer. There is still plenty of room on the beach, and when you compare Emerald Isle to many of the other east coast beaches, it is very uncrowded and relatively easy to enjoy your own private space on the beach. There are no high rise condominiums to pack the beaches. Finding a spot on the beach is never a challenge if you are will to walk a little on the sand. And if you have a skiff you will not have any trouble finding even more private beaches in Bogue Inlet. If you are willing to walk a few minutes, the Point at Emerald Isle has plenty of space to spread out and explore areas that most beach visitors never see.

Part of what attracted me to Emerald Isle is that it reminds me of the Carolina beaches of my youth. You can still walk on a fishing pier in the evening or even go fishing on the beach. Walking the beach at night is a special treat since there are no city lights. The days on Emerald Isle seem to slow down. There always is plenty of time to enjoy an ice cream cone or a walk on the beach. A vacation in Emerald Isle's uncrowded world lets you surf fish, swim, or just relax on the beach without getting in anyone’s way. There are plenty of things to do while at the beach. The list changes as the seasons do, but whether it is enjoying fresh local produce in the summer, surf fishing in the fall, or catching fish in someone's backyard, there are lots of things that make the area special.

As for accommodations the area has a number of large oceanfront homes know locally as sandcastles. They are very popular for family reunions, but it is still possible in Emerald Isle to find reasonably priced accommodations within walking distance of the beaches. There are nice motels in Emerald Isle, Cedar Point and Swansboro.

What Emerald Isle might lack in night life, it makes up for in convenient services for visitors and full time residents. Even on the popular Saturday and Sunday check in days for the rentals, it is possible to slide into area grocery stores without too much inconvenience. We have maps of services and suggestions on restaurants in our books.

Beaufort with its historic district, shops, and the Maritime Museum are only thirty five minutes from Emerald Isle. Our books provide a lot of suggestions on how to enjoy a visit to Beaufort along with some other popular day trips.

A few restaurants call Emerald Isle home and there are more on the neighboring mainland. I think the restaurants along the Crystal Coast do a fine job of preparing some exceptional seafood. You can often get better service and even tastier meals during peak season by adopting a slightly different meal schedule than the general population.

There are a number of attractions in the Emerald Isle area including some wonderful trails, a golf course, a driving range, miniature golf courses, bumper boats, bike trails and a water slide. The bike trail has been extended to the eastern border of Emerald Isle and also down Coast Guard Road to the point where the road makes its final turn south towards the beach. There is still beach volleyball at the western regional access.

You will need a salt water fishing license for most spots but there is one spot, the Bogue Inlet Pier, to try your luck fishing where you do not even need a license. My book has detailed fishing information for the surf and suggestions on gear and places to try including my favorite spot the White Oak River.

Probably one of the nicest things about Emerald Isle is that the beach seems to have room for everyone who wants to enjoy the beach. The range of accommodations and the relative ease of finding a parking space at either the eastern or western regional beach accesses makes going to the beach something that everyone can enjoy. There is now a small fee on weekends and holidays during the summer for parking.

There are other spots that you can easily access the beach like Third Street Beach. If you take nothing else away from this article, perhaps you can learn the Third Street secret. It is one the nicest and quickest ways to enjoy a taste of saltwater without any pressure. It is a short walk to the water, and I have never seen a crowd there.

Vacationing on Emerald Isle is a restful experience. When you are done enjoying the beach for the day, you can enjoy some tasty seafood at one of the area restaurants. If you want unforgettable seafood order some grouper at Riverside Steak and Seafood. For some traditional Carolina fried seafood, try Bogue House in Cedar Point or one my favorites Moore's Chicken and Barbecue in Swansboro. I love their flounder plate. Shark's Den remains a local favorite. We always have a meal there in the spring before it gets busy on the Island.

Restaurants come and go, but what really defines the Crystal Coast are special places like the Point. There are few places only a couple of hours from a major metropolitan that offer such a rare opportunity to explore almost unknown territory. You will have a hard time finding a more beautiful place for a morning or afternoon at the beach.

Whatever other activities you try when you visit the Island, I hope you at least go home having enjoyed a walk or two along our beaches. Hopefully your toes got some therapy in our warm, crystal clear salt water. Perhaps the taste of fresh area seafood will also remain in your memory until you can visit again. May you also come away from Emerald Isle with an appreciation for the beautiful waters of the Crystal Coast and how important it is that we protect them. If you can do that, you will likely rate your vacation as a success.

Check out this this beach walk near the Point for more local scenery. If you fall and love in our area and decide you need a home, get in touch with me and I can suggest some good real estate agents. Many of us fell in love after visiting here. If you just want to dream about moving here visit my Saltwater on my feet site. There are lots of articles there about living in the area.

Find out more about me and my other books at my Amazon author page.