Romantic Retreats
Romantic Escapes In NC
You don’t have to wait for a special occasion to seek romance in North Carolina. From the misty mountains to the storied Outer Banks, our landscape is perfectly designed for spending quality time with the one you love.
Let’s start on our coast, where an intimate get together awaits you at the Marsh Harbour Inn on Bald Head Island. The journey begins with a ferry crossing to an island that separates you from your cares. Gorgeous sunrise and sunset views of the Cape Fear River, marsh and harbor are among your rewards.
Although the inn has a New England look about it, the hospitality is strictly Southern. Cape Cod rockers, Shaker furniture and antique wood floors set the stage for your weekend of romance, and guest services will customize your stay by coordinating dining as well as boat and bicycle rentals.
Cars are forbidden on Bald Head Island, so you can travel only as fast as your feet or electric golf cart will carry you. You’ll find 14 miles of ocean beach, a maritime forest and 10,000 acres of salt marsh in which to get lost with your loved one.
Marsh Harbour Inn even has a special couple’s retreat package that includes accommodations, ferry passage, temporary membership to Bald Head Island Club and a champagne basket.
Ocracoke Island’s Castle on Silver Lake is a unique venue for a weekend getaway. Decoy carvers and boat builders erected the 9,000-square-foot historic Colonial American mansion over three decades. This picturesque manor house with cedar shakes and seven gabled dormers sits on two flower-covered acres. Views of Silver Lake Harbor are the attraction for the romantic couple.
Will it be one of the 11 rooms in the bed and breakfast or one of eight villas in the adjacent courtyard? The B&Bs’ Lighthouse Suite, with its unusual size and shape, is very popular with those who have that loving feeling. It is situated in the private cupola at the very top of the Castle, and comes with a sitting room with a half bath, and a bedroom with a queen bed and full bath. There are plenty of couple-friendly activities too, like antiquing, visiting art galleries and museums, moonlight walks on the beach, and canoeing.
The romantic twosome in the Raleigh-Durham area can take a short drive to Historic Fuquay-Varina, where the healing waters of a mineral spring have been rejuvenating travelers since 1858. Romance-minded couples can stay at the Fuquay Mineral Spring Inn and Garden Bed and Breakfast, a Colonial Revival Landmark Inn set in the historic district.
Select the Savannah Sparrow Room with its antique mahogany chest and queen size rice plantation bed. Four large windows with plantation shutters award residents with views of the garden, gazebo and mineral spring. The Inn features a romance package complete with roses, dessert for two and champagne.
Twelve miles from Boone in the Fleetwood community is the River Farm Inn, nestled in the New River Valley. Couples looking for an out-of-the way encounter can choose from a rustic log cabin, the 800-square-foot Carriage House, or one of two suites set in a reconstructed 1800 dairy barn.
During winter months it’s a short drive to downhill skiing or outdoor ice skating. Cross country skiing is available nearby as well.
Nature stars year-round. Wildlife abounds and the annual and perennial flowers in the gardens of the River Farm Inn paint the landscape. Warmer weather lures lovers outdoors for quiet canoe trips down the ancient New River.
Remember, from the mountains to the sea, romance awaits you in North Carolina.
added: December 5, 2008
updated: March 25, 2009
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