North Carolina Active and Adventure Vacations

North Carolina Active and Adventure Travel Guide

• North Carolina Overview
• North Carolina Hotels
• North Carolina Attractions
• North Carolina Feature Articles
• North Carolina Vacation Rentals

Other Guides for North Carolina

Active and Adventure Guide
• Aerial Sports
• Biking
• Hiking and Backpacking
• Paddling
• Beach Guide
  • Sailing
  • Surfing
• Family Guide
• Parks and Outdoors Guide
  • Camping
  • Nature

Top Active and Adventure Destinations In North Carolina

• Outer Banks, NC
  
• Kill Devil Hills, NC
  
• Appalachian Trail, ME
  
• Blue Ridge Parkway, VA
  
• Cape Hatteras National Seashore, NC
  
• Mount Mitchell State Park, NC
  
• Nantahala National Forest, NC
  
• Pisgah National Forest, NC
  

Travel Guides In North Carolina

• Charlotte, NC
  • Family Guide
• Outer Banks, NC
  • Parks and Outdoors Guide
  • Beach Guide
  • Family Guide
• Asheville, NC
  • Family Guide
• Corolla, NC
  • Beach Guide
• Buxton, NC
  • Beach Guide
• Cape Hatteras National Seashore, NC
  • Parks and Outdoors Guide
  • Beach Guide
• Ocracoke, NC
  • Beach Guide

Southeast Active and Adventure States/Provinces

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Florida
• Georgia
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Mississippi
• North Carolina
• Tennessee
• Virginia

Active and Adventure Travel Destinations

• Mid-Atlantic
  • Maryland
  • New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania
  • West Virginia
• Midwest
  • Indiana
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • South Dakota
  • Wisconsin
• Mountain West
  • Colorado
  • Idaho
  • Montana
  • Utah
  • Wyoming
• Northeast
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • New York
  • Vermont
• Pacific Coast
  • Alaska
  • California
  • Hawaii
  • Oregon
  • Washington
• Southeast
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Kentucky
  • Louisiana
  • Mississippi
  • North Carolina
  • Tennessee
  • Virginia
• Southwest
  • Arizona
  • Nevada
  • New Mexico
  • Texas

Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in North Carolina's Outer Banks (Craig Brewer/Photodisc/Getty)

Top North Carolina Active and Adventure Destinations

• Appalachian Trail
• Blue Ridge Parkway
• Cape Hatteras National Seashore
• Kill Devil Hills
• Mount Mitchell State Park
• Nantahala National Forest
• Outer Banks
• Pisgah National Forest

Feature Articles

• Schools: Current Curriculum
  outside
  Immersion course in kayaking, rafting, and canoeing
• The Thrill of the Skill
  outside
  Paddling
• June Active/Adventure Travel Guide
  
• Paths to the Past
  outside
  Don't just hike—follow in the footsteps of famous explorers and naturalists
• Great Smoky Mountains
  outside
  The Southeast's Backwoods at its Best

Trip Ideas

• Cycling in the High Country
  
• East: The Outer Banks (North Carolina)
  Top Eight Sea Kayaking Hot Spots
• Bold Colors on the Blue Ridge: Pisgah National Forest, North Carolina
  GORP's Top 10 Autumn Escapes: Fall's Best Forests
• Five Great Family Escapes
  100-Mile Wilderness Trail, Maine
• At Home in the Wild
  Civility and wilderness meet at Little Lyford Pond Sport Camps

Practical Advice

• A Mountain Climbing Primer
  
• A Whitewater Rafting Primer
  
• A Sea Kayaking Primer
  
• A Trekking Primer
  
• Be the Sag Wagon
  outside
  How to pull off a bike tour on your own two wheels.

GORPTravel Trips

• 
  Nolichucky River Family Whitewater Rafting - The Lower Nolichucky
  Cherokee Adventures
  from $52, 1-2 days
  A relaxing trip down the Nolichucky River, perfect for the family and gentle enough for the younger children. ...
  
• 
  Nantahala Hideway, North Carolina
  Sierra Club Outings
  from $1095, 7 days
  This trip is a lodge-based overview of the Slickrock Wilderness and Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, both of which lie in the Cheoah Ranger District of...
  
• 
  Nolichucky River Whitewater Rafting - The Upper Nolichucky
  Cherokee Adventures
  from $64, 1-2 days
  The Upper Nolichucky is one of the wildest and most scenic rivers in the Southeast - exciting and challenging! ...
  
• 
  North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains Biker
  Timberline Adventures
  from $1795, 6 days
  In the context of our new 6-day Blue Ridge of North Carolina program, we'll ride the southernmost 180-mile section of the magnificent Blue Ridge...
  

Gear

• Complete Gear Archives: Day-Hiking, Backpacking, and Trekking
  From in-depth gear review articles and Gear Guy Q&A highlights to the latest—and past—entries in Outside magazine’s award-giving Summer and Winter Buyer’s Guides, a detailed overview of all things hiking.
• Complete Gear Archives: Paddling
  From in-depth gear review articles and Gear Guy Q&A highlights to the latest—and past—entries in Outside magazine’s award-giving Summer and Winter Buyer’s Guides, a detailed overview of all things paddling.
• Complete Gear Archives: Cycling
  From in-depth gear review articles and Gear Guy Q&A highlights to the latest—and past—entries in Outside magazine’s award-giving Summer and Winter Buyer’s Guides, a detailed overview of all things related to cycling.
• Complete Gear Archives: Climbing
  From in-depth gear review articles and Gear Guy Q&A highlights to the latest—and past—entries in Outside magazine’s award-giving Summer and Winter Buyer’s Guides, a detailed overview of all things climbing.
• How I Came to Know and Love the Backcountry
  The Basics of Telemark Skiing

Fitness

• Mountain Athlete
  outside
  Jackson, Wyoming
• Chalk It Up
  outside
  Experience is the key to mountaineering prowess, but high-altitude fitness makes all the difference on summit day
• Blitzing the Backcountry
  outside
  Turn your winter fitness routine into a brand-new adventure
• The Rowbike
  outside
  Video
• Saddle Up
  outside
  Spring is here. Time to wipe the cobwebs off your bike, oil your chain, and kick your fitness into a new gear. Here's how.

• See All North Carolina Articles »
• See All Active and Adventure Articles »

Attractions

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Hotels

• View More Photos

from: $89

Hampton Inn Franklin
244 Cunningham Road
Franklin, NC 28734 Map

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from: $93

Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites BREVARD
1570 ASHEVILLE HWY
Brevard, NC 28712 Map

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from: $61

Jameson Inn Lenoir
350 Wilkesboro Blvd.
Lenoir, NC 28645 Map

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North Carolina Active and Adventure Destinations

North Carolina Active and Adventure Travel Guides

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Beach Guide
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