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Cape Hatteras Lighthouse Reopening Expected for Summer 2026

Climbers can plan on scaling the nation’s tallest traditional lighthouse with the expected completion of a major restoration that began in late 2023. Rising 198.49 feet, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse in Buxton will boast a newly crafted replica of its original first-order Fresnel lens, repairs to deteriorated masonry, restoration of the lantern and marble flooring, and a fresh paint job. Landscape improvements include improved walkways and interpretative features, including restoration of the stones etched with the names of lighthouse keepers. The date for reopening for the 257-stair climb is TBD.

North Wilkesboro Tapped for NASCAR Cup Series Race

After its 2023 revival and triple turn as NASCAR All-Stars Race host, historic North Wilkesboro Speedway returns to the Cup Series lineup with the Window World 400 on July 18. Sponsored by the locally based comapny, it will be the storied short track’s first NASCAR points race in 30 years. Part of NASCAR’s inaugural 1949 season, the track hosted Cup events until 1996 (Jeff Gordon won the final race). With a resurrection effort that included a Dale Earnhardt Jr.-organized cleanup for an iRacing scan, the track captured new glory with the All-Star Race and sparked driver calls for a points event. The 2026 All-Star race will move to Delaware’s Dover Motor Speedway. North Carolina’s other 2026 Cup Series locations include Winston-Salem (Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium, Feb. 1) and Concord (Coca-Cola 600, May 24, and Charlotte Roval, Oct. 11, at Charlotte Motor Speedway. In other action, newly reactivated Rockingham Speedway replays its 2025 success April 3-5 with the NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly Xfinity Series) and Craftsman Truck Series races. These series’ events at Charlotte Motor Speedway include the NC Lottery 200 (May 22), NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (May 23) and the Blue Cross 250 (Oct. 10).

PGA Tour's Biltmore Championship in Asheville to Debut in 2026

After eight decades, the PGA Tour returns to the Land of Sky with the inaugural Biltmore Championship in Asheville, set for Sept. 17-20 at The Cliffs at Walnut Cove in Arden. As part of a four-year agreement, Biltmore Estate and Explore Asheville will serve as co-title sponsors for the event, part of the FedExCup Fall. The 7,167-yard Jack Nicklaus-designed course, which appears on Golf Digest's list of NC's best, sits in a valley that borders Pisgah National Forest and the Blue Ridge Parkway on former farmland laced with streams and mountain laurel woodlands. The PGA Tour's last Asheville stint ended in 1942 with the Land of Sky Open, which ran for four years with Ben Hogan winning the final three. The new event is expected to draw more than 100 players and thousands of spectators. 

New Gateway to Enhance the Duke Gardens Experience

Sarah P. Duke Gardens, one of the nation’s premier public gardens, will enrich the experience with its new Garden Gateway. Scheduled for completion in spring 2026, the project will feature a new welcome center with a café, lobby, gallery space, outdoor plaza and upgraded restroom amenities. The project also includes enhanced learning and event facilities, a more accessible entrance and expanded green spaces for events. The 55-acre site on Duke University’s West Campus is celebrated for its original Terraces, the H.L. Bloomquist Garden of Native Plants, the W.L. Culberson Asiatic Arboretum with its iconic red bridge, and the Doris Duke Center Gardens.

Charlotte to Host MLS All-Star, Military World Summer Games

The Queen City adds a new jewel to its sports crown as host of the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game, It will be played at Bank of America Stadium, home of the Carolina Panthers and the Charlotte Football Club, which debuted in 2022. In 2027, the city will make history as the site of the Military World Summer Games, being played in the United States for the first time. A unique blend of Olympic and military-specific competition, the International Military Sports Council event will include 10,000 athletes from 140 countries. The competition elevates the city’s standing as a sports hub with professional teams (Carolina Panthers, Charlotte Hornets); a dominant NASCAR presence with the NASCAR Hall of Fame, nearby Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, and major race teams based in the area; and major PGA Tour and USGA tournaments played at Quail Hollow Club.

New Queen City Museum to Elevate Nature

Nature lovers can walk through treetops in the heart of NC's largest city when the Charlotte Museum of Nature opens next year in Freedom Park. The Canopy Walk, which will sit 20 to 40 feet above the forest floor, will be the outdoor signature of the museum, which aims to inspire deeper connections to the natural world. Part of the Discovery Place museum family, the new nature hub will feature a state-of-the-art naturalist lab, a woodlands garden with Fog Bog and live frogs, and different turtle species. Freedom Park is a 98-acre expanse with a lake, trails, recreational amenities and a playground. It has been seen on screen in "Homeland," "Shallow Hal" and the new crime comedy-drama "Roofman." 

Coore & Crenshaw Create Pinehurst Resort’s 11th Course

With more courses than any other US resort, Pinehurst Resort boosts its score with No. 11 from Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. Routing the 18 holes through the old Pinehurst Sandmines, the architects promise a course that will differ from the adjacent No. 10, designed by Tom Doak for a 2024 opening. A fall 2027 debut is planned. Coore and Crenshaw, who restored Donald Ross’s course No. 2 masterpiece in advance of the 2014 US Open. Pinehurst is currently home to 10 18-hole courses, a short course called The Cradle and the Thistle Dhu putting course. Architects of record include Jack Nicklaus, Tom Fazio, Ellis Maples and Gil Hanse. Pinehurst, home of the USGA Golf Experience and the World Golf Hall of Fame, has hosted the US Open four times with future dates in 2029, 2035, 2041 and 2047.

NC Museum of History Aims to Reopen in Style in 2028 

More gallery space, stories and amenities are in the works for the NC Museum of History in Raleigh, where a transformative restoration is under way. The museum, which closed for the project in October 2024, is adding 40,000 square feet, relocating its main entrance for improved accessibility, and upgrading its climate control system as well as adding classrooms, community spaces and a new restaurant. During the building’s closure, the museum continues to offer programs, sponsor events and share exhibitions. The completion target is 2028. 

2029 World University Games Head to NC

The International University Sports Federation has selected North Carolina's Research Triangle region for the summer 2029 World University Games. The two-week event attracts 7,000 athletes from more than 150 countries for competition in swimming, basketball, track and field, and other sports. In its proposal, the state's Local Organizing Committee pitched the region (which includes Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and Cary) as part of a "University Hub" that extends to the Piedmont Triad (Greensboro, Winston-Salem and High Point). The biennial Games, which were inaugurated in 1959, have been staged in the United States three times, twice in Lake Placid, N.Y. (winter 1972 and 2023) and Buffalo, N.Y. (summer 1993).