Carolina Breeze - Vacation Beach House in Rodanthe

Location

North Carolina, Outer Banks, Cape Hatteras

Directions

From North:
(Red Route on map) From I-64 in Chesapeake, take exit 291B for US-17 South, VA 168 South.
Take exit 15B for US-17 South, keep right on US-17 South.
Follow US-17 South into North Carolina.
Take US-17 South by-pass around Elizabeth City.
Continue on US-17 South to NC-37 South.
Turn left on NC-37 South. (NC-37 South becomes NC-32 South.)
Follow NC-32 South.
Make left onto 94 South.
Make right onto Benson Road.
Turn left on US-64 East.
Keep going east to Roanoke Island and The Outer Banks.
Once across the Causeway, Turn right onto NC-12 South onto Hatteras Island.

If Using I-95 is more Convenient for You
Follow I-95 South to North Carolina and take Exit 138 for US-64 East toward Rocky Mount.
Follow US-64 East through Williamston and Plymouth, NC.
From Plymouth, NC keep going East to Roanoke Island and The Outer Banks.
Once across the Causeway, Turn right onto NC-12 South onto Hatteras Island.

(Green Route on map)
Follow I-95 South to Richmond, VA.
Take I-64 East toward Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Va.
Take 64 or 664 to Chesapeake, Va.
Go south on 168, Chesapeake Expressway*.
Once in North Carolina, 168 turns into US-158 East.
Follow this road onto The Outer Banks until you reach NC-12 South at the south end of Nags Head.
Take NC-12 South to Hatteras Island.
*Chesapeake Expressway is a toll-road which costs $3.00 each way during the week, and $6.00 each way on the weekends. To bypass tolls, take 168 South Business in Virginia.

Coming from Raleigh take US-64 East toward Rocky Mount.
Follow US-64 East through Williamston and Plymouth, NC.
From Plymouth, NC keep going east to Roanoke Island and The Outer Banks.
Once across the Causeway, Turn right onto NC-12 South onto Hatteras Island.

Coming from South Carolina take I-95 to Wilson, NC.
Take US-264 East through Greenville and Washington, NC.
From Washington, take State Rt. 30 to Plymouth, NC and follow the directions above via US-64 East to Hatteras Island

Neighborhood

The entire northern end of Hatteras Island was once known as Chicamacomico, but in 1874 the postal service changed the name to Rodanthe, but by the early 1900s, three distinct villages had become established in the Rodanthe area – North Rodanthe, South Rodanthe, and Clark. As the postal sections were subdivided, the northernmost village kept the name "Rodanthe," while the others were assigned new names once again.

Rodanthe is home to the Chicamacomico Lifesaving Station, the first such station established along the North Carolina coast, in the service of the U.S. Lifesaving Service, which eventually became today's modern Coast Guard. The U.S. Coast Guard was essentially founded in this tiny village. A state historic site is one of the showpieces of this community, where re-enactments using the breeches-buoy rescue cannon, restored buildings and artifacts. Rodanthe is a simple delight for children and those hungry for history.

During the Civil War in 1861, Confederate troops landed on the northern end of the island in an effort to re-take Fort Clark and Fort Hatteras, which had fallen to the Union's first naval invasion of the South. The southern troops chased the 20th Indiana back to their lines near present-day Buxton, only have the Federals reinforced from the southern end of the island. The Union then chased the Confederates northward in a half-hearted skirmish that wags mockingly named "The Chicamacomico Races."

More recently, the natural beauty of Rodanthe was featured in the major motion picture Nights in Rodanthe starring Richard Gere and Diane Lane. The actual locations seen in the film still draw thousands of fans each year, all longing to experience the romance and solitude found so easily among the sand and the waves.