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History buffs will enjoy the 16th century sailing ship Elizabeth II, the 16th century Elizabethan Gardens, the Kitty Hawk Memorial honoring the Wright Brothers, who flew their first plane in the Outer Banks, and the Roanoke Island Festival Park.
 The infamous Blackbeard the Pirate spent much time in the Outer Banks and was gunned down in a bloody battle at Okracoke Inlet. His flagship sank at Okracoke and the Maritime Museum offers up booty from the wreckage. The Outer Banks was his final resting place. Perhaps his ghost leaves footprints in the sands looking for his lost treasures.
The largest aquarium in North Carolina is on Roanoke Island. Sharks, river otters, stingrays, and even a replica of the USS Monitor can be found at the aquarium.
Miniature golf, big boy golf, an amusement park, paddling, biking, hiking, birding, wind surfing, kite boarding, swimming, boating and relaxation stretch the length of the pristine, sandy beaches. 13 miles of undisturbed National Seashore offer some of the most beautiful beaches in the country.
If you're looking for a genuinely relaxing beach vacation, you won't find a better beach than the miles of seashore in the Outer Banks. Most of the rentals are cottages and beach houses making the islands of the Outer Banks your home away from home. You won't find high rise hotels to spoil the pristine beauty that nature created.
Where else can you walk out your door straight onto the beach? Where else can you sit on your balcony overlooking the ocean? Dolphins frolick off shore and it's common to see a whole family of dolphins playing in the ocean.
The North Carolina Maritime Museum in Beaufort, North Carolina, exhibits artifacts recovered from the shipwreck believed to be Blackbeard's flagship, the QAR, discovered in 1996.
The museum has a branch on Roanoke Island, just north of Rodanthe, dedicated to maritime exhibits.
Graveyard of the Atlantic maritime museum, located in Hatteras, North Carolina, is dedicated to the myriad of shipwrecks on the coasts of the Outer Banks.
Teach's Hole Blackbeard exhibit and pirate shop on Okracoke Island offers over 1000 items relating to pirates, including pirate books, pirate toys, pirate flags, pirate t-shirts, pirate maps, and other pirate wares. The exhibit features a life-sized recreation of Blackbeard the Pirate in full battle dress.
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