Why Does Island Roanoke, Attract Thousands Of Visitors A Year?

We never go to the Outer Banks without a visit there.You can start in Manteo and work your way to the village of Wanchese,at the southernmost end of Roanoke Island,opposite the town of Manteo to the north.

The town of Manteo is on the eastern side of Roanoke Island, part of North Carolina's Outer Banks. Manteo is home to more Bed and Breakfasts than any other Outer Banks town.

County business bring people to the downtown streets,as do the many reminders of the island's unique history,including the 16th century ship Elizabeth II at Roanoke Island Festival Park,and the George Washington Creef Boathous and Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse,part of the North Carolina Maritime Museum.Island Roanoke is filled with history.Don't forget to write down some of the things to do.

Each summer,Manteo has singers,dancers and actors back to Waterside Theatre,where they perform the nation's oldest outdoor symphonic drama.

There's always something different to do in Manteo,and another reason to return.Maybe there's a concert or art show or nature program that brings you back.

First Fridays,Dare Day,July 4,Virginia Dare's Birthday, Halloween,and Christmas are special times in the town for residents and visitors alike. You can find more on Manteo here. Island Roanoke is home to Fort Raleigh National Historic Site,the first English Colony in the New World.You can still walk the grounds where Queen Elizabeth I established a lone military outpost in 1585 for raiding Spanish ships filled with Aztec gold.

In 1587,just over 110 men,women and children sailed to the Outer Banks to start a new life in a strange land.All that remains is their earthen fort that is still available to the public today. No one ever saw them again.

Roanoke Island is home to the Freedman's Colony.During the Civil War African-Americans could escape slavery if they stayed there,and could make it safely across the Roanoke and Croatan Sounds.Don't miss this.

And one more attraction that we never miss is the North Carolina Aquarium on island Roanoke,and the Elizabethan Gardens.They are two popular attractions located on the north side of the island.

The Aquarium has a replica of the U.S.S. Monitor as the centerpiece for their Graveyard of the Atlantic tank,with sand tiger sharks,barracuda,and many other fish found in the Atlantic.

Elizbethan Gardens is home to an English pleasure garden,and a walking trail that takes you into a world of rare,and beautiful roses,azaleas,and camellias.

Wanchese Is Another Place Of Interest.

The North Carolina Seafood Industrial Park is at the village's southeastern point,just a short drive from the Highway 158 intersection,down state road 345 leading right into the village.Be for sure to visit this.

Here, at the middle of the East Coast of the United States,is a major fishing port. Shrimp trawlers,and flounder boats,go out for weeks at a time catching fresh seafood from waters up and down the Eastern Seaboard and the coastal and inland waterways of North Carolina. Much of the fresh catch ends up in local Outer Banks restaurants. The rest is packed in ice,and shipped all over America.

Most of the attractions on island Roanoke can be accesed in just a few minutes from Wanchese.You could spend all of your vacation on Roanoke Island and actually never visit the other parts of the Outer Banks.

Have Fun On Your Outer Banks Vacation And Be Careful.

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