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Travel guide
Raleigh
5 days · 8 things to do
Best time to go: April to May, September to October
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Welcome
Raleigh, in a few days
The capital of North Carolina, nicknamed the City of Oaks, laid out its grid of streets around a granite capitol of 1840 and opens its major natural history and art museums free of charge. With Durham and Chapel Hill, it forms the Research Triangle, a university and science hub whose campuses, greenways and forests can be explored on foot or by bike.
- Day by day
- D1 Day 1 3 things
- D2 Day 2 2 things
- D3 Day 3 1 thing
- D4 Day 4 1 thing
- D5 Day 5 1 thing
- Worth sorting before you go
- Words that help
- The practical page
- Packing checklist
The trip
Day by day
Map of the sights (numbers follow the suggested order). It prints with the base map.
D1
Day 1
3 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences free · 2 to 3 hThe Southeast's largest natural history museum, free and facing the capitol, with suspended whale skeletons, the most complete known Acrocanthosaurus and researchers at work behind glass in its Nature Research Center.
- Afternoon · North Carolina State Capitol free · about 1 hA Greek Revival capitol of local granite completed in 1840, with its original legislative chambers, a copy of Canova's statue of Washington in the rotunda and statues of three presidents outside.
- Late afternoon · Dorothea Dix Park free · 2 to 3 hThe 125-hectare grounds of a former psychiatric hospital turned into Raleigh's central park, with the best view of the skyline, summer sunflower fields and wooden giants hidden in the woods.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Residence Inn Raleigh Downtown ↗ · All places to stay by budget →€160 a night
D2
Day 2
2 things to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Pullen Park · 2 to 3 hNorth Carolina's first public park, opened in 1887 near NC State, with a lake, lawns and old-fashioned rides that delight families, including a hand-carved Dentzel carousel of 1911 and a miniature train.
- Afternoon · North Carolina Museum of Art free · half a dayThe free state art museum west of downtown, with European, American, African and contemporary works, a major Rodin collection and a 66-hectare park of monumental art, meadows and woodland trails.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Residence Inn Raleigh Downtown ↗€160 a night
D3
Day 3
1 thing to do · at your own pace
- Morning · William B. Umstead State Park free · half a dayA state park between Raleigh and the airport where worn-out farmland has become oak and pine forest again, with 55 km of hiking trails, bike and bridle paths and rowing boats.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Residence Inn Raleigh Downtown ↗€160 a night
D4
Day 4
1 thing to do · at your own pace
- Morning · Neuse River Trail free · half a dayRaleigh's longest greenway, a paved 44 km path along the Neuse River through hardwood forests, wetlands and suspension bridges, forming part of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail across North Carolina.
🛏️ Where to sleep · Residence Inn Raleigh Downtown ↗€160 a night
D5
Day 5
1 thing to do · at your own pace
- All day · Duke University and Durham free · a full dayThe former tobacco capital, home to Duke University's neo-Gothic chapel and the Sarah P. Duke Gardens, plus old factories turned into restaurants facing the stadium of the Durham Bulls.
Before you go
Worth sorting before you go
📶 eSIM data
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
Online the moment you land, no roaming bill.
Get one · Holafly
🛡️ Travel insurance
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
Health, luggage, cancellation.
Cover it · Ekta
💳 Fee-free card
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
Pay at the real rate, with no exchange markup.
Open one · Revolut
🚐 Airport transfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
A private car at a fixed price from the moment you land.
Book it · GetTransfer
Some links are partner links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.
Good to know
Flavours & local habits
🍽️ Worth tasting
- Burgers and barbecue: brisket and ribs cooked low and slow, done differently in every state.
- Clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl: the classic lunch on the San Francisco waterfront.
- Mexican food: tacos from a truck in Los Angeles, a Mission burrito in San Francisco.
- Pancakes and weekend brunch: a national habit, generous to the point of excess.
- Craft beer, and California wine from Napa and Sonoma.
⚠️ Best avoided
- Tipping is not optional: add 15 to 20% in restaurants and bars.
- Prices on menus and in shops exclude sales tax, which is added at the till.
- Do not plan more than four or five hours of driving a day: the distances are larger than they look on the map.
- Never travel without health insurance. A night in hospital can cost thousands of dollars.
- In summer, do not hike down into the Grand Canyon in the heat of the day: the climb back out is where people get into trouble.
Getting by
Words that help
🗣️ English is the main language here, so there is nothing to learn by heart.
The essentials
The practical page
CurrencyUS dollar (USD, $)
BudgetAbout €140 a day, mid-range
Best seasonApril to May, September to October
PlugA/B · 120V
Tap waterSafe to drink
Tipping15 to 20%, expected
Emergency911
EntryUK, Australian and most EU passports need an ESTA, applied for online before departure, for stays of up to 90 days; a few EU countries sit outside the Visa Waiver Program and need a full visa. Canadians need neither, only a passport. Anyone who has been to Cuba since January 2021 cannot use an ESTA and must apply for a visa.
HealthNo vaccination required. Keep tetanus, diphtheria and polio up to date; hepatitis A is worth considering if you eat well off the tourist trail. In the desert parks, the heat is the real risk.
Scan to open this guide online, always up to date.
https://offwegooo.com/en/guides/raleigh
Don't forget
Packing checklist
Have a good trip.
Guide made on offwegooo.com · Photos via Pexels · Details are indicative, check before you leave.