154 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in North Carolina - Atlas Obscura

Unusual Attractions in North Carolina

Littleton, North Carolina

Cryptozoology & Paranormal Museum

Bigfoot prints, Feejee mermaids, and haunted dolls on display in a tiny North Carolina town.

Hendersonville, North Carolina

Blue Ghost Fireflies

These eerie outliers of the lightning bug family glow a mysteriously blue color, for too long, and it's awesome.

Raleigh, North Carolina

Cloud Chamber for the Trees and Sky

This woodland architectural installation acts as a camera obscura for the heavens.

Bryson City, North Carolina

The Road to Nowhere

This road in the Great Smoky Mountains was supposed to assuage a displaced community, but ended up a $52 million dead end.

Hildebran, North Carolina

Abandoned Henry River Mill Village

An abandoned village that doubled as "The Hunger Games"' post-apocalyptic wasteland is up for grabs.

Rougemont, North Carolina

Castle Mont Rouge

A sculptor's dream castle turned fantastical ruin.

Cullowhee, North Carolina

Judaculla Rock

Mysterious ancient boulder carved with petroglyphs in the mountains of Western North Carolina.

Pisgah Forest, North Carolina

Sliding Rock

Who needs fancy modern water slides when this giant North Carolina rock works just as well?

See All 154 Things to Do in North Carolina See All 154 Places

Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.

Cool Places to Eat & Drink in North Carolina

Manteo, North Carolina

The Mother Vine

Perhaps the oldest vine in North America, this sprawling plant helps make a sweet wine.

Rose Hill, North Carolina

The World's Largest Operational Frying Pan

The 15-foot-wide, 2-ton pan fries hundreds of chickens once a year.

Mount Airy, North Carolina

Scoops Ice Cream & Such

Follow the path behind this treat-slinging camper van to a sculpture garden in the forest.

Hatteras, North Carolina

Shipwrecked Doritos

The time thousands of bags of chips washed ashore in the Outer Banks is memorialized in a local museum.

See all 6 places to eat in North Carolina See all 6 places to eat in North Carolina

Atlas Obscura Trips

Forage & Fiddle in Asheville

Harvest wild food and learn about Appalachian culture in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Community Forums / United States / US: South

Top Discussions in the US: South Travel Forum

Post	Replies	Views	Activity
What would you do on a time crunch in DC?	19 December 9, 2019	3057	December 9, 2019
Carolina House with a Natural Cavern underneath	12 April 1, 2020	5478	April 1, 2020
New Orleans suggestions?	15 March 26, 2020	3550	March 26, 2020
Off the beaten path / hidden gems near Nashville?	9 November 20, 2019	2951	November 20, 2019
Nashville Music Shops — seeking recommendations	10 September 12, 2019	939	September 12, 2019

New Post Visit the Forum

Explore North Carolina

Launch Map

North Carolina Leaderboard

Places Added

Places Edited

Places Visited

Recent North Carolina Activity

kevinbeck has been to Biltmore Estate's Secret Passages

scarrie has been to Outer Banks Futuro House

scarrie has been to Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site

scarrie has been to Lake Norman

scarrie has been to The Can Opener

Stories About North Carolina

At farmers markets and other events, Brown displays a variety of apples to incite pomaceous conversations.

Meet the Appalachian Apple Hunter Who Rescued 1,000 'Lost' Varieties

Tom Brown's retirement hobby is a godsend for chefs, conservationists, and cider.

by Eric J. Wallace

The Radical Act of Opening a Brewery as a Native American

Many associate beer and spirits with disease and colonialism.

by Eric J. Wallace

November 16, 2020

Freeman Vines and his guitars, 2015.

A North Carolina Artist’s Search for a Lost Sound Uncovered a Dark History

Freeman Vines honors a lost Black life with his ‘Hanging Tree Guitars.’

September 29, 2020

The 1975 Hollerin' Contest in Spivey's Corner, North Carolina.

The Rise and Fall of North Carolina's National Hollerin' Contest

Hollers are sort of like the yodels of the American South.

by Emily Cataneo

September 25, 2020

Scientists Need Your Sourdough to Solve a Microbial Mystery

For North Carolina researchers, every starter is more data.

by Hannah Thomasy

So you want to tag a great white, do you?

The Carolinas' Mysterious Great White Shark Cluster Is Not Mysterious, Not a Cluster

They're just doing what sharks do.

by Sabrina Imbler

February 14, 2020

An 1826 map of North Carolina, with counties, roads, settlements, and topographical features.

Why North Carolina Is the Most Linguistically Diverse U.S. State

But it might not be that way for much longer.

by Dan Nosowitz

December 11, 2019

How Whopping Whale Skeletons Come to Life at 'Bonehenge'

“Every one of these animals has a story."

December 5, 2019

Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.

Lists Featuring North Carolina