Weekend in Wilmington NC

We recently spent a weekend in Wilmington NC. It is about a 3-hour drive from our home in central North Carolina. Wilmington is located in the Eastern part of the state near the coast. We have taken several trips this year to Western North Carolina(Cherokee) to see the mountains. The coast/beach is somewhere my Husband loves to go. Growing up in North Carolina, he spent most of his vacations at the Beach, as most families here do!

History of Wilmington

This area was colonized by the English in the 1720s, the area along the riverfront was named Newtown and it grew in population. By 1740 it was renamed after The Earl of Wilmington in England. The Cape Fear River helped it grow into a busy Port Community with families moving here from both North and South Carolina colonies.

During the Revolutionary War, the port made Wilmington a popular region for Patriots defying the British Government. The town remained in good condition after the Revolutionary War. In 1830. a railroad line was developed linking Wilmington to Raleigh(the state’s capital). Completed in 1840, this railroad became the longest single railroad track in the world.

Wilmington was a significant city during the Civil War, as well as WWI and WWII. You can read more about the rich history of Wilmington, HERE The WWII Battleship, USS North Carolina, is moored along the Cape Fear River across from downtown Wilmington.

Airbnb Wilmington NC

I searched on the Airbnb app. for a place near Wilmington, NC. I always filter the search to include what we want; 1 bedroom, 1 bath, kitchen area, an entire place, Wifi, private entrance, TV, free parking on premises, and heat & air. One of the most important things to be sure of is that you checked the box for a Superhost, these are hosts who have good ratings and can usually be trusted. Since we were going to Wilmington, I was searching for a place near the Cape Fear River with a river view! We have used Airbnb several times in different parts of the country and have been very happy with the places we have rented!

*Disclaimer; We are still dealing with COVID19 and travel can be difficult and unsafe. On this trip, we rented an apartment through Airbnb, you can read about their enhanced safety protocols HERE. The listing we found has a “SuperHost” who described how they are following these protocols. We did, of course, do a little cleaning of our own too. We only dined in at one restaurant, otherwise, we had take-out.*

Day 1 – Checking in on River Road, Wilmington NC

The check-in time was 3:00, but we asked the Host if we could check-in early and were very happy when he said we could check-in at noon. We dropped off our dog at the kennel at about 8:30 am and headed down the road. It’s an easy drive for us from our home to Wilmington, about 3 hours. With COVID19, we are always leery about stopping at gas stations, so we try to look for the cleanest places we can. If we got hungry, we would go to a drive-through.

We arrived at our River Road, Wilmington Airbnb apartment almost exactly at noon. The host had sent me the lockbox code by text so we were able to get the key and go in without any problem. I didn’t realize that we were on the third floor. Check out these steps! When you find a place on Airbnb, make sure you read the description carefully and look at all the photos. We were OK with the top floor since it gave us great views of the River!

We first went in to check out the apartment. It was more than we could hope for! It was clean, comfortable, and well-equipped. It may not be right for a family, but it was definitely perfect for a couple.

Next, we had to carry our luggage and supplies from our Truck upstairs to the apartment. Then we sat out on the front deck for a while, enjoying the fresh air and view of the Cape Fear River. This weekend we intended to have a relaxing time. We usually like to have a balance of activities and relaxation. We decided we would get some groceries and take a look around the community we were in.

River Road Park, Wilmington NC

We came across a neighborhood park, River Road Park. It was a small park with a boat launch on the river. It also had a pier but it was closed due to damage, There were a playground and shelters with picnic tables.

Wilmington is a fairly large city, with a population of about 122,000. The city has many restaurants of every kind. We decided to choose a restaurant close to our apartment, one that was requiring masks and practicing social distancing. I usually look online at restaurants near my location, on google maps or trip advisor apps. We were in the mood for seafood and found Fish Bites, it had great reviews and was reasonably priced! I’m not sure if it is totally safe to dine in any restaurant during COVID19, but we have on a few occasions. Since Fish Bites was not busy we were seated at the first booth, we noticed that masks were required and that they had installed plexiglass between booths. It always seems to me, that the small restaurants that don’t look like much from the outside, have the best food!

Fish Bites Wilmington

My husband had a combo of fried oysters & shrimp, I had a lobster roll. Both dishes were very good! We spent the rest of Day 1 relaxing in our Airbnb apartment. We watched the sunset over the Cape Fear River from our front deck.

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Day 2 – Aquarium, Kure Beach Pier, Carolina Beach

We were able to make coffee and have a light breakfast in our apartment. This Airbnb had a toaster oven and microwave but no stovetop. It also had a small refrigerator. It was perfect for us!

NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher

We had already purchased our tickets to the North Carolina Aquarium. During COVID, the number of people at the aquarium at one time is limited so you are required to purchase a time slot online. We bought our tickets for 9 am, since it was Saturday, we figured it would get busier as the day went on.

The North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher was very nice! It has 2 floors with several tanks full of different kinds of fish, sharks, and eels. They have a tank with sea stars and horseshoe crabs that you can touch! My favorite part was the many tanks with jellyfish, they look so peaceful and graceful, I could watch them all day.

We learned about prehistoric sharks and humpback whales. They have an albino alligator, which was cool!

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When you leave the building, they have trails to explore with turtle ponds and even a bald eagle! We spend several hours at the NC Aquarium.

Fort Fisher – Historic site

Fort Fisher is located in Kure Beach, NC, it had a major role in the Civil War.

History of Fort Fisher

Fort Fisher kept North Carolina’s port of Wilmington open to blockade-runners supplying necessary goods to Confederate armies inland. Wilmington was the last major port open to the Confederacy and the destination of steamers called blockade runners, which smuggled provisions into the Southern states and supplied General Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia. These ships traveled from Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Nova Scotia, where southern cotton and tobacco were exchanged for food, clothing, and munitions from British traders. It became the last supply route open to Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia.  Fort Fisher fell after a massive Federal(Union) amphibious assault on January 15, 1865, its defeat helped seal the fate of the Confederacy. Once Wilmington fell, the supply line of the Confederacy was severed, and the Civil War was soon over.

Museum at Fort Fisher

The museum and historic site are open Tuesday through Saturday, 9:00 am – 5:00 pm and admission is free, although donations are welcome. We watched a ten-minute audiovisual program that told the story of Fort Fisher. We found it very interesting! Approximately ten percent of Fort Fisher still stands along with a restored palisade fence. All tours of the grounds begin in the visitor center, the tour trail is about 1/4 mile long and encircles the remaining fort along the river.

A confederate monument to those who lost their lives stands on the ocean side of Highway 421.

Kure Beach Pier, & Carolina Beach

We drove the short distance to Kure Beach. We parked and headed to the pier. We spent some time walking on Kure Beach pier and on the beach. It was quite windy but my husband said that is normal for the Carolina coast. I am from Wisconsin and not really a “beach person”, but I do find this area to be very beautiful! There were quite a few people fishing off the pier and off the beach. They were casting into the surf. I had never seen anyone fish this way before, some of the fish in this area are; drum, spot, and flounder.

The sound of the waves crashing on Carolina Beach is so soothing. We sat on the beach for a while and just watched the waves come in.

Later, we got some sub sandwiches on the way back to the apartment. We ended day 2 once again watching the sunset from the front deck. What a perfect day!

Day 3 – Wilmington Riverwalk

We decided to go out for breakfast today. So we headed toward downtown Wilmington and found a cute little restaurant, Eggs Up Grill. I am happy if I can find a place that serves Eggs Benedict. They had very good food! Today we were going to check out the Wilmington Riverwalk in Downtown Wilmington.

*Note: There is construction going on downtown including improving the handrails on the riverwalk. The downtown improvement project should be completed by early 2022*

We were surprised to find quite a lot of people were already downtown, this was strange since it was about 9:00 am and a Sunday? We soon found out that they were having a half marathon, the Battleship half marathon, which started and ended at the U.S.S. North Carolina Battleship Memorial. Many streets were blocked off and so was part of the Riverwalk.

**Travel Tip: Check the Calendar of Events on the City website for the city you will be visiting. You may find something you want to attend or something you want to avoid**

It was a beautiful morning to be walking by the river! We even enjoyed watching the runners and the people cheering them on! We would have loved to had lunch at one of the restaurants on the river but it was just too busy and we didn’t feel safe(social distancing). Across the river, we could see the WWII Battleship, USS North Carolina. The ship is open daily 8:00 am – 5:00 pm and offers self-guided tours. The admission fee is: $14 for adults, $10 for seniors, $6 for children, and children under 5 are free.

Since it was Sunday, we wanted to watch some football in the afternoon so we headed to our favorite restaurant(for this trip), Fish Bites, and got some take-out food, fish tacos. The rest of Sunday was pretty lazy, watching the game and sitting on the deck. This apartment also had a back deck that overlooked a pond and had a table and chairs. This is where we ate most of the time.

In Conclusion..

Getaways and vacations are never long enough, but our trip to Wilmington seemed just right! We were looking for a relaxing time with some sightseeing thrown in. We found plenty to do and many restaurants with take-out and delivery options. Wilmington has the best of everything! A small-town feel with lots of good shopping and restaurants! The many parks and beaches close by will give you plenty of fun things to do! Fort Fisher and Historic downtown Wilmington will be perfect for you history buffs.

Have you taken a vacation or a long weekend this year? Traveling is definitely different and will probably be that way for several months to come. We have been blessed to be able to have short getaways within our own state. I think that for us, renting cabins(Great Smoky Mountain cabins) and renting this Airbnb have been good options. We do miss eating in restaurants and being free to come and go, but I am sure our life with be getting back to some kind of routine soon. In the meantime, you can go on road trips, and camping trips, and have great staycations close to home. Be safe out there!

Please send me your comments, I would love to hear about your adventures! Don’t forget to share this post with your family & friends on social media!

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