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Travel Discussion
Duck, NC
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Anonymous
| Would love to hear from anyone that has stayed there. How does it compare to Rehoboth/Bethany/Cape May/Avalon/Spring Lake? If I'm renting a house, can I walk to coffee and pastry in the am, or do you need to drive to everything? TIA. |
Anonymous
| Duck is a lot more of a Southern beach and is quieter than Cape May and the Delaware beaches I have been to, but depending on where you are staying, you will be able to walk to shops, coffee, etc. There are a lot of sidewalks down the main drag. I loved Duck when we vacationed there last year. We stayed at the Four Seasons community (not associated with the hotel chain) and it was great. They had a nice walkway to the beach and to a community pool with an amazingly large baby pool. I would highly recommend Four Seasons again, especially for families. For decent restaurants and grocery stores, you will need to drive. |
Anonymous
Thank you! What do you mean by it is more of a "Southern beach" -- what's the difference aside from geography? |
Anonymous
|
Duck is much quieter and slower than any of the Delaware or NJ beaches I've been to, so perhaps that's what the PP meant by "Southern beach." There isn't much to do there besides beach, ride bikes and a couple parks, unless you drive 20-30 minutes south. We absolutely loved it and made sure we chose a house that was walking distance to the shops, especially Duck Donuts (YUMMY!).
Have fun! |
Anonymous
| I agree with 19:15-- the beaches are relatively empty and without any commercial development on the beach (other than rental houses). We really love that, but some people get bored. By the way, the Blue Point is one of the best restaurants in the Outer Banks, and it's right in Duck. |
Anonymous
| First PP here. Agree about Blue Point - great food! Most of the Northern beaches I have been to are more developed with a boardwalk, etc and more crowded. Most of the Southern beaches are a little less developed and quieter. |
Anonymous
| OP here. Thanks so much for the advice! It actually sounds like the beaches in the Hamptons, which I love. I am also a donut fiend so you've peaked my interest with Duck Donuts! Is Blue Point child-friendly? |
Anonymous
| We took our 19-month old to Blue Point for lunch and it was fine. Most of the restaurants are a little more casual. |
Anonymous
|
I would think about Bethany in DE before Duck. It is a really long drive to Duck with such a small child and when you get there there is not a ton to do. So if you get a rainy day or a bad teething incident like we had one year, you are cooked!
In Bethany it is quite and family friendly but you can walk or ride your bike to town and it only takes like 2 1/2 hours to get there. After going to Bethany I would never go back to the Outer Banks and I was a really big fan years ago. |
Anonymous
| Bethany is a family place, but the beaches get packed and the sand/beach is nowhere near as nice. Down south, you'll have warmer water and better beaches. I spent most of my youth vacations at both and much prefer NC. |
Anonymous
|
We love Duck.
The drive is mostly highway driving, and we make it with 4 hours driving from our Falls Church home. We have two young kids and typically are able to drive 3 hours before stopping. Because the fist stretch is on the highway, our kids nap nicely, and it's an easy trip. The town is very low key and relaxing. When we went the first time, I was expecting more of a town. Mostly there are t-shirt/casual clothing shops, souvenir shops, casual restaurants. Not much more. We have found most of the restaurants (not including Blue Point) to be average and prefer to cook at home. The local fish market has great quality and prices. We prefer to stay in one of the communities closest to the shops so that we can walk to get a newspaper or donut. We rent bikes while there, and that can also make getting around much easier. |
Anonymous
| I went to Duck as a teenager w/ my friend and thought of it as boring (I was used to going to OC, MD as a kid though). There wasn't much to do except go to the beach. The beaches were great and practically empty. But there wasn't much in terms of nightlife. Now, as a parent, it seems like a great place to take the kids. My son could stay at the beach all day and then would go to bed pretty early. Then, we could watch movies or TV and talk. Sounds like a relaxing family vacation. |
Anonymous
| Duck is a ton of fun. I went there twice with friends. We rented a house both times. There are lots of shops and stores, the pace is slow, the beaches are gorgeous and not crowded. I would go there with my kids any day. It's also not too long of a drive from DC. |
Anonymous
OP here. Thanks so much for all your responses. How do I know which communities are closest to the shops? We are sorting through tons of listings from realtors but feel lost in that respect. If you could even toss out a few cross streets of where those things are, that would help a lot. I would love to be within walking distance of coffee and a donut! TIA. |
Anonymous
My favorite shopping center in Duck to walk to is Scarborough Lane Shoppes. Sea Pines would be the closest development of houses to that I believe. |