Hero - Interior Page Hero Module
Compelling Narratives
For 80-plus years, "The Lost Colony" has wowed audiences in Manteo with epic battles and American Indian dances on an outdoor stage triple the size of one on Broadway. The production dramatizes the mysterious disappearance of 117 English colonists from Roanoke Island in 1590. Learn about the first habitants of Hatteras Island and buy crafts at the Frisco Native American Museum.
Farther inland, nobody knows the origin of Lake Phelps at Pettigrew State Park near Creswell, but artifacts like dugout canoes (some at least 4,000 years old) show the ingenuity of Carolina Algonquian people. Two canoes are on display in the park’s information center.
The Lumbee Tribe of southeastern North Carolina represents “those who remain.” This resilient Indigenous group includes descendants of three different language families who found sanctuary from colonial forces in the swamps and dark waters of the Lumber River. Immerse yourself in the colorful art, unique stories and artifacts of the Lumbee at the Museum of the Southeast American Indian at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. The university is the only four-year public institution in the United States created by and for American Indians.
Cherokee Ways
Drama unfolds in Cherokee on an outdoor stage each summer as the Cherokee story comes to life in "Unto These Hills." It begins in 1540, when Spanish explorers arrive on the state’s western edge and continues today, as 14,000 tribal members still live in the Great Smoky Mountains.
Get immersed in their culture on a visit to the town of Cherokee. Weavers make baskets, hunters shoot blowguns and workers hull canoes at Oconaluftee Indian Village, which recreates an 18th-century Cherokee community. Artifacts at the Museum of the Cherokee People take visitors on a 13,000-year journey, including the Paleo-Indian period and the Trail of Tears, the tribe’s forced move to Oklahoma. Bonfires at nearby Oconaluftee Islands Park commemorate the journey with lively costumes and movements. Creativity shines at Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual, the oldest Native American cooperative in the United States. Pottery, toys and beadwork make meaningful souvenirs.
The legacy of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Indians extends beyond town. In Hayesville, the 2-mile Quanassee Path starts at the Cherokee Cultural Center and leads to four other sites, including the Cherokee Homestead Exhibit. There, take a free self-guided tour that covers a summer house, winter house and food storage crib. At the adjacent museum, see rare Cherokee quilts, carvings and baskets.
Indian Heritage Trail
Plan extra time for spontaneous stops at farm stands as you cruise along the Indian Heritage Trail. This 22-mile cultural route weaves through North Carolina’s prime peach-growing region in the Piedmont. Nearly 1,000 years ago, the Pee Dee people constructed the earthen mounds visible at Town Creek Indian Mound State Historic Site in Mount Gilead. At the other end of the trail, the Rankin Museum of American Heritage in Ellerbe presents one of the largest Native American collections in the state, including a 700-year-old canoe and other pre-colonial artifacts.
Native Celebrations
American Indian Heritage Celebration, Raleigh
All eight recognized tribes in NC participate in this event honoring American Indian Heritage Month (November). With demonstrations, performances and presentations, this celebration's main theme is to show how Indigenous people still live here.
Blooming of the Dogwood Tribal Powwow, Hollister
Savor the spirit of the Haliwa-Saponi Tribe through food, drums, arts and crafts.
Fading Voices Demonstration Day
Activate all the senses via sassafras tea tasting, wild greens eating and even corn pounding at May’s annual Fading Voices Demonstration Day, held in Robbinsville. For nearly four decades, this celebration of Snowbird Cherokee tradition has introduced all ages, backgrounds and abilities to the myriad flavors and practices that connect local people to the land.
Lumbee Homecoming Festival and Powwow, Pembroke
About half of our state’s 60,000 Lumbee Tribe members gather for pageants, a parade, an outdoor market and fireworks.
Weave your vacation together by visiting other sites featured in The Official 2026 North Carolina Travel Guide.