Wilmington welcomes regional travelers
CHARMING, CULTURE-RICH N.C. COASTAL TOWNS AWAIT SOCIAL-DISTANCING TOURISTS IN SUMMER OR FALL
Members of a writing group read excerpts aloud from their new anthology as a packed crowd sips wine and nibbles on appetizers.
The writers’ words touch on everything from a beloved family dog to a favorite 200-year-old tulip tree.
The setting is the Art in Bloom Gallery in Wilmington, N.C., a renovated 19th-century horse barn filled with original artwork by local artists.
Art in Bloom is one of numerous galleries in downtown Wilmington, a city with a thriving arts scene that includes multiple theaters and music venues. Combined with restaurants, bars, breweries and eclectic shops, it’s a place where something is always happening.
It’s also open despite the pandemic. North Carolina state parks and recreation areas are all open, but visitor centers and picnic and swim areas remain closed. (See sidebar.)
Perhaps it’s a local artists’ showcase or concert at the Brooklyn Arts Center, located in a former 1880s church, or a themed party highlighting Wilmington female artisans in a building made from old shipping containers.
As discovered during a visit to southeastern North Carolina’s coast, Wilmington is full of culture, history, beauty and vibrancy.
The Riverwalk allows you to stroll along the Cape Fear River and view boat traffic, the Battleship North Carolina and an iconic vertical-lift bridge that rises 135 feet above the water to allow ship traffic.
Market Street and Front Street bustle with people shopping, dining, drinking and just strolling. Couples and families take horse-carriage rides and join walking, trolley and boat tours.
You can traverse roads — some constructed of brick — filled with restored homes from the grand to the quaint, and visit the Colonialera Burgwin-Wright House with a stone foundation that once was the city jail.
Wilmington has a great walking downtown with plenty of historical markers providing insight. Interesting architecture, eateries and shops are around every corner.
At the same time, Wilmington isn’t a Disneyland-type city where everything is perfect. It’s a work in progress, with more facades being refurbished as gentrification moves inward from the tourist-packed riverfront.
A fast-growing city of 123,000, Wilmington’s historic downtown contrasts with outlying sections that contain sprawling suburbantype development. First settled by the English in the early 1700s, it’s home to a major commercial port and located between the Outer Banks and Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Many writers, artists and musicians live in what is affectionately called the Port City. Movies and television shows are filmed here, a trend that began with TV’s “Dawson’s Creek” in the late 1990s.
Wilmington is a short drive from popular, bustling shoreline towns such as Wrightsville Beach and Carolina Beach.
During our visit, we stayed a bit farther south on Oak Island, known for its 14 miles of pristine beaches. Wilmington was about a half-hour drive and a trip we made frequently.
Be sure to visit some Wilmington museums, such as the Cape Fear Museum — focusing on science, history and culture — and the Cameron Art Museum.
The Cam, as it’s called, is a few miles south of downtown and we viewed modernist works by Alexander Calder and Jasper Johns, and photography by an architect who designed the Smithsonian’s
National Museum of AfricanAmerican History. Musicians regularly perform in its cafe.
We attended events at Thalian Hall, an ornate structure built in 1858 that hosts hundreds of theatrical performances, music shows and films annually. Thalian is home to the country’s oldest community theater company.
We drank $5 pints of Scallywag IPA at Edward Teach Brewery, built in a former firehouse and boxing gym. Edward Teach was the legendary pirate Blackbeard’s real name.
Downtown, Beer Barrio offers excellent modern Mexican food and Front Street Brewery is a popular hangout.
Touring the 22-room Bellamy Mansion, constructed just before the Civil War, offered insights into a past era. The grounds include one of the few remaining urban slave quarters open to the public.
Another must is visiting the restored 729-feet-long Battleship North Carolina, a tourist attraction prominently positioned in the river. Commissioned in 1941, it had a crew of 2,300 sailors and became the most decorated U.S. battleship in World War II.
A highlight was seeing the rock musical “Lizzie,” written locally and performed in the upper-floor North Front Theatre that adjoins a rooftop bar. The production, chronicling the Lizzie Borden ax murder case of 1892, was riveting.
Gravity Records on the reviving Castle Street is the place to peruse vinyl, with its appearance a throwback to the 1960s and ’70s. Bands perform in a small performance space in the rear most nights. (35 words)
Oak Island, the barrier island where we stayed, is about mellowing out on the beach. Weekly house rentals through local real estate agencies are the norm.
It’s popular with families and retirees, many opting for.golf carts and bicycles. Visit the lighthouse, open for summer tours, and take a vintage plane or helicopter ride at Cape Fear Jetport. Enjoy the piping plovers, pelicans and beautiful sunsets.
Adjacent Southport is a charming nautical town that has a Norman Rockwell feel to it. Be sure to sit on the swinging benches at Waterfront Park to watch the fishermen and boaters.
Wilmington has plenty of hotels, from chains to boutiques. The Ballast on the riverfront downtown is a mainstay.
The city is an 11-hour drive from southwestern Connecticut (630 miles from Stamford). Wilmington International Airport, close to downtown, offers flights from American, Delta and United.
The best time to visit is the spring and fall to enjoy warm weather but avoid the summer crowds.
For tourism information, go to WilmingtonAndBeaches.com and NCBrunswick.com (Oak Island and Brunswick County).