We are driving from Boston to Charleston, SC to visit friends. We would like to stop somewhere along the east coast for 2-3 days before heading down to Charleston. We are looking for a beach town, something different, interesting, with beautiful beaches and nice surf. Thanks for your help.

Do you mean surf as in surfing?

We're heading out this weekend to go to Topsail Island, NC near Wilmington. I've never been there but my husband grew up nearby and learned to surf in the area.

From what I've read, the island is not over-developed (like the Outer Banks to the north) and the wave action is supposed to be pretty good. The motel we're staying at looks mom and poppish. I won't know if that's a good thing or not until I get back ;^)

I don't know about surf but Cape May NJ is just beautiful. Very quaint like Martha's Vineyard.

If you're talking about surfing, I would head to the Outer Banks. While the northern bank towns of Kitty Hawk and Nags Head are certainly over-developed, towns on Hatteras Island to the south are relatively free of congestion. Moreover, Hatteras (particularly the area around the Avon by the famous lighthouse) is one of the only locations on the east coast where you can find surfable waves 365 days per year. The same cannot be said for Topsail Island, NC or Cape May, NJ. Remember, the Atlantic is generally pretty flat in the summer. Enjoy.

Thank you for your help. We were thinking of the Outer Banks and it is nice to hear you agree. By nice surf, I mean nice waves for body surfing, boogey boarding, surfing, etc. Now I am trying to figure out a place to stay for just 3 nights on the Outer Banks. We are looking at The Dolphin, The Colonial Inn and Sea Foam - thinking that we could drive wherever we wanted from there and still have something to do with kids on a rainy day. Have you heard anything about any of these hotels? Thanks