Going to Raleigh/Durham for the 1st time
 

We are going to a convention held at the Sheraton Imperial the beginning of November. I'd like to make this trip a little nicer than your average business trip so I am looking at alternate accomodations. I did do some searching before posting this and thanks to Fodorites'previous suggestions such as triangle.citysearch.com I am looking at the Washington Duke Inn in Durham and the Fearington House in Pittsboro. The Sheraton is located off 40 just West of 540. Are either the Duke Inn or Fearington a reasonable commuting distance for the Sheraton? If we want to spend an evening in Raleigh, is it too far from where we will be staying? Sorry, but I have no idea of distances there. Someday I may be an expert on the area since my 16 yo is looking at NC State. But for now, I need your help. Thanks.

Fearington House is a lovely place -- it is kind of far out but not too bad. You might be better located at the Washington Duke Inn in Durham, but I'm not picturing it's location in my mind, so let me check my map. If so, consider spending an evening in downtown Durham rather than making the haul into Raleigh. There are a couple of great restaurants I would recommend: Another Thyme, and Niko's -- both in the vacinity of Brightleaf Square (Nikos is right in the complex, AT is on a side street. ) It is a small compact area so you can't miss it, with big parking lots right there. (Free parking).

Our daughter graduated from State, and we love the area!

And don't leave out Chapel Hill! :) Granted, I'm a little biased, but they don't call it Blue Heaven for nothing. It's a charming town, and the campus will be beautiful for a stroll in November.

You could even consider staying at the beautiful Carolina Inn, which would be about a 20-minute drive to the Sheraton (www.carolinainn.com). The Inn is located right on campus, and near Franklin Street (the "main street" of the town).

Enjoy- it's a really beautiful area.

I started looking at Chapel Hill but didn't find much availability. Football game, perhaps?

Washington Duke would probably be more convenient to the Sheraton Imperial than the Fearrington Inn. The Sienna Hotel in Chapel Hill gets rave reviews. I definitely recommend eating dinner at the Fearringon Inn. It's worth the drive down country roads. It's located in a beautiful setting. Durham/Chapel Hill has superior restaurants to Raleigh. You might try the Magnolia Grill in Durham.

The Fearington is not a good commute for you -- a real hike -- and it's also a "much of a muchness" in terms of cost as well as style. I love it, but most people who stay there are there for the Inn itself, not what it's near (which is mainly the belted cows and McIntyre's bookshop). It's our only 5-star restaurant, though, so if you have enough time to trek out there for dinner, you might enjoy it (tho' driving back in the dark could be very slightly unnerving to someone unfamiliar with the area).

The Washington Duke is fine and, once you figure out how to get from there either to 15-501 or 147 "Durham Expressway," it would be a reasonable commute. It's upscale, too, but not in the same league as Fearrington (despite its pretensions) -- pretty, set on a golf course with memorabilia of the Duke family everywhere. Attentive staff.

The Carolina Inn's restaurant is excellent, and the Inn is lovely but the commute might have been a little cumbersome.

From the Sheraton, many of Raleigh's good restaurants would be 20 minutes without traffic and 45 or more in evening rush hour -- I40 from the airport south can be miserable. But some of the best are in the northern parts (out Glenwood Ave.) and not as hard to reach, esp. if you take 540 instead of braving I 40 between the airport and 440.

Durham's best restaurants include Nana's (although I prefer Nana's Chophouse in Raleigh), 4 Square, Parizade, and (my least favorite although others are devoted) Magnolia Grill. In Chapel Hill -- well, actually Carrboro -- the Provence is my very favorite, followed by Carolina Inn's dining room and Il Palio (in the Siena).

Let us know where/what ....

Cassandra,

Have you been to Nana's in Raleigh lately? We used to go at least once a month and then it went WAAAAAY donwhill about 6 ot 8 mos. ago. (Lost their chef due to the non-restaurant-experience owner getting too hands-on.)

Are things back to their former glory?

Also, as far as restaurants go...it's hard to go to the Triangle area without trying some barbecue! If this appeals to you at all, I would highly recommend visiting Mama Dip's in Chapel Hill. It is located on Rosemary Street (parallel to Franklin Street, the main road), and is absolutely fabulous home-cooked food.

Have a great time! :)

I found a $209 rate for the Washington so I booked that. Thank you to everyone for their input. When I have a better idea of our schedule, I will start thinking about restaurants, etc.
If I have free time during the day, I will be happy just wandering around one of the campuses.
We will have to go back just to stay at Fearington.

This is my third attempt at posting to this thread, I hope it takes.

Since you have free time during the day, walk around Duke Gardens. It's a nice/healthy walk from the Washington Duke, or you could drive over there and park. I think the rates are 25-cents per 15 minutes with a max of one hour.

What types of food do you like? We don't have ethnic beyond Chinese-ish, Mexican and Italian, but there are some good places within that selection.

(My second attempt -- hope it "takes")

Diana, we were there Sat. evening and enjoyed it -- sorry to hear others have not had such good luck. It's not as ambitious as Nana's Durham, which is part of what works (IMHO) for it. Had a white peach sorbet that was great, chops good, etc. It's still "young" so maybe it's still having some bumps.

Re: barbecue -- just debating about it is a pasttime here. There's Mama Dips, although she's there at least as much for the down-home comfort food as for the 'cue. But others can fight over Bullocks (Durham), Allen & Son (Chapel Hill and Pittsboro), and Barbecue Joint (Chapel Hill - a bit adulterated with some haute cuisine extras, but good nonetheless).

Birdie, hope you enjoy the Washington Duke -- I "lived" there for 10 days while househunting. Avoid fattening yourself up on the breakfasts (wonder if they still do the occasional hunt breakfast). And do go out to the Fearrington (note: pronounced "Fair-ington") -- and if you don't have the nerve to spring for dinner, the Market Cafe has charming dining for lunch or brunch, too.

(OK, let's see if this posts.)