I am in the process of planning a trip to the Outer Banks either near the end of June or near the end of July. We plan on renting a 4 brm house on the Oceanfront. However, I am unsure as to what area we would like to stay in. In consideration at this point, are Corolla and South Nags Head. Are these areas fairly nice? Which others should we consider? We tend to like more secluded areas, and our favorite activity is doing nothing but playing in the sand, sun and water.

Duck is the nicest area around..Next down is Corolla...
Have fun!

If you haven't rented a house yet you may not find one, especially if you want oceanfront. Duck is a nice area but I wouldn't call it secluded. Neither is South Nags Head. The southern end of the Outer Banks, i.e. Avon, is more secluded.

The southern beaches were hit hard by Isabel and some haven't recovered very well yet, like hatteras. check article in Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com) on this in travel section Sunday before last- discusses recovery of all parts of the OBX
Check other posts on the road up to the northern beaches, like Corolla. Love Corolla, but that two lane road in and out is a bummer in summer.

We rented a house in Duck last summer that was on the sound side but a short walk to the beach...great area if you like secluded beaches. You have to drive quite a distance to get to a grocery store, restaurants and shopping-- that's the only down side. Nags head is much more touristy but convenient to everything. Keep in mind that traffic is horrible since there's only one main road going on and off the island.

Re nags head-- yes, southernbelle, but if you get a really great house and just stay there and on the beach, you can avoid the touristy stuff on the highway and get the benefit of having lifeguarded beaches (after being caught in a riptide, that is a big deal to me) and shopping and grocery stores close by...
South Nags is even better, as it is more secluded but still close to Manteo and dinner and shopping and groceries (and Bodie Island lighthouse)

Is Avon fairly nice? I am hesitant of finding something too rickety down that way, but I really have nothing to base my belief on. Exactly how remote is remote??

Rickety? Hardly. Most of the rental home construction that far south is new and upscale. You can see for yourself if you take a look at the photos on the vacation rental websites.

Remote means farther south down the island and not as developed as Nags Head and north. That's partially because the Dept of Interior has jurisdiction over lots of the OBX south of Oregon Inlet. It's probably a good hour or so to Avon from Nags Head.

If you can get a place, I would opt for late June over late July. Heat & humidity really crank up in July/August.

Where else in the southern OB would you recommend?

If you want the south beaches, I'd stick with Avon or go all the way to Ocracoke Island.

Not all of the towns have fully recovered from Hurricane Isabel. My understanding is the towns of Avon, Buxton and Frisco and Ocracoke Island are fully back in business. Cleanup and repair is still ongoing in Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo and Hatteras Village.

I've been doing a little research on Ocracoke and it seems pretty appealing to me. Are the beaches nice there? I assume it is a good place to go for peace and quiet. Can you shed any more light on the island?

Now it's been 8 or 9 years since I did the Outer Banks with my Mom and Daughter. We stayed on Ocracoke the first two nights. It's very quite and laid back (we were there in October). But I don't recall any oceanfront housing. It seems the beach area was all state park property. They have a quaint harbor area. We stayed in a suite in a small inn across from the harbor. Our room had a large private hot tub on the third floor deck. All-in-all I just remember Ocracoke as being must older and less commercialized than Nags Head, Duck and other area north.

paige, You're right about the accommodations in Ocracoke. Definitely fewer places, older, and not the oceanfront Jimonie mentioned in the original post. The beaches are beautiful. It is a good place to go for some (relatively speaking) peace and quiet.

Jimonie, I think you'd be happy in Avon or South Nags Head from what you've said. Of the places you've mentioned, the only one I'd exclude is Corolla. It's heavily developed, gets lots of traffic and is kind of resort-y.

Thanks for your help. I understand that it is imperative that I reserve a house soon (if any are left). Do you know if Avon was drastically affected by Isabel? I saw some pictures online of Hatteras island- it looks like they got hit pretty badly there.

Jimonie, we have a wonderful six BR house in Ocean Sands in Corolla that we rent during the summer. We just put in a private pool, hot tub, and extra parking. There is tennis available, and the ocean is 1000 feet from the house. It is very modern and we get rave reviews from our guests. You can see it on www.atlanticrealty-nc.com, it is property #087 called Carolina Seabreeze. I'm leaving to go for a few days this afternoon with my sister, and can't wait! (We live in landlocked Kansas). They have other properties if ours is booked. Enjoy the OBX!