Please Help with Chapel Hill (and area) Itinerary
 

We will be visiting Chapel Hill area Labor Day weekend. Flying from Boston into Raleigh/Durham @10:30am on Sat., and leaving Monday @2:30pm

We would like to see as much of the surrounding area as possible (minus Raleigh and Durham) as we are considering the area for possible retirement some years out.

Are staying at the Fearrington House, and on my list to see is Pittsboro, Chapel Hill, Pinehurst and Southern Pines.

Are there any places we are missing which are easily driveable? Chapel Hill is about as big a place as we would want to retire to, which is why we will not be visiting Raleigh/Durham.

What about Cary or Carboro? Worth seeing?

Also, can anyone give us an idea time-wise how long the drive to/from the airport might take?

Restaurant suggestions welcome also - casual, good food - nothing fancy or too expensive (over $15/pp).

Also Hillsborough is on the list.

What's the best way to group these since we don't have tons of time? We basically want to see enough to know if this is an area we want to come back to and explore in more depth.

I think you'll be in your car the whole time. Head to Pittsboro, Hillsborough, PInehurst and Southern Pines from the airport and do a loop.
Cary and Carrboro are pretty new "burbs". I don't think they are "you". Are you contemplating a retirement community? There are very nice ones in Chapel Hill and the Southern Pines area, as well as Raleigh.
Did you ever visit Davidson?

Try Mama Dips for a true Southern meal. It is in Durham.
The Fearrington House was lovely on my last visit. I look forward to seeing your trip report.
Come on down!

Since CH is as large a town as you want, eliminate Cary. It's about 2x the size of CH.

Mama Dip's restaurant is in CH, not Durham.

I don't know much about Southern Pines or Pinehurst, but it's maybe an hour from CH down 15-501. 15-501 between CH and Pittsboro has been under construction for awhile, but I'm not sure what's going on with it now.

CH and Carrboro abut one another. CH is kind-of Pacman shaped gobbling Carrboro. Yes, they are separate towns, but they work together on a lot of projects.

The Fearington House is lovely (5*/5daimond rating) but it's not intown, about 8-10 miles south. If you really want to see the town, I'd suggest staying within the town limits.

Also, Labor Day weekend might not be the best time to see the town. Students will be away. If you could come during a week when the students are here and stay in town, visit local stores, ride the bus, etc. you'd have a better viewpoint of CH.

Good luck with your search.

Oh, and don't eat at Fearington House (at least for $15) probably.

School will be in session though. But the parking problem might not be as great on a holiday week-end.
DO pay attention to the parking laws. They are stringently enforced.

Sorry about my location goof. Thank you, ncgrrl for the correction.

Thanks everyone. Have not seen Davidson just yet - this is our first visit to CH. If it's doable, will try and see if we have time.

How long from Fearrington House to the airport?

We would consider a "retirement community", so would like to know where these are. It would need to be very nice though, not "institutional" or without landscaping, and would need to be single family homes. That's one reason we're staying at Fearrington - to check out the model homes there.

Carrboro isn't a new suburb - it's just a little nicer than it used to be!

I would head straight to Pinehurst and Southern Pines through Cary on Saturday. Come back to Chapel Hill via Pittsboro. Sunday morning, run up to Hillsborough in the morning, then spend the rest of your time in Chapel Hill and Carrboro.

A warning though - Chapel Hill may or not be swarming with students that weekend. It's a week or two after classes start, and while many students do run home or to the beach for a mini-vacation, many stay in town. It may be pretty crowded downtown with all the new students getting to know their surroundings, as well.

You can't do Davidson on this trip. you already have enough to "check out". I would still go directly from the airport to Southern Pines, etc. You don't really have time to check in and then start out.
Check with the various towns about retirement homes. I know one in Raleigh and one in Pinehurst, but not the name of either.

The retirement centers I know of in CH area with private homes -- and probably a waiting list -- include:

Carolina Meadows (kind of near Fearrington, ask for directions)
Carol Woods, north side of town
Meadowmont, east side of town

I don't know much about Fearrington.

Depending on traffic (like if there's a home UNC football game) it should take less than an hour. Has FH given you directions to their place? There is a backroads route that avoids most of CH, but I don't know all the details.

Hi wanderer-
My parents have been living in Chapel Hill for the last 15 years. They are currently "semi-retired". They like the area but if I were you I would want to know this-- the building in the area is really getting crazy. There are shopping centers and malls going in everywhere and this has caused incredible traffic. Don't know what you are used to in the area you live in now but I know may parents are getting fed up with the congestion.
They are actually thinking about Asheville, NC. It's quite a bit west but it is beautiful.
I've been in the town of Chapel Hill many times and it is charming. The college also deserves a look. If you find yourself with an hour or two to spare check out the gardens at Duke University- not to be missed!
Good luck in your search. If my parents have any suggestions I'll let you know.
terric

terric is right. He/she gave you good info you need to know.

We have been in our house just south of Raleigh for almost 20 years - it's a farmhouse built in 1850 on 8 acres.

We are currently looking to flee the area despite the fact that we both work in Raleigh.

We are desperate to escape the explosive growth that Raleigh, Chapel Hill and environs are experiencing.

Every single day we see a new development or strip mall or road closing or traffic jam or new this or that due to the influx of people moving here.

The roads and infrastructure are jammed to overflowing, and the quality of life is quickly being compromised unwittingly by the very people who are coming here to enjoy it.

Within the last month, Cary's overburdened sewage treatment plant spilled millions of gallons of raw sewage into local creeks and waterways "accidentally."

We are currently in search of 20+ acres in the middle of nowhere on which to escape to. We know we are going to have at least an hour's commute, but it will be worth it to get away from the mess the area is unfortunately becoming.

If you think Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill is quaint or "old South" or has what you are looking for, be sure to spend some time here, because it is well on the way to becoming the next Atlanta.

I agree to look at Asheville - very nice.

Money Magazine just listed Cary in the top 5 small cities to live in the US.

Really? Which issue?

How big (pop) is Cary?

The most recent issue. You can see info from it at
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/money...006/index.html

But it wasn't as a small town - it was as a Great American town (essentially, it was #5 overall, US-wide). It listed population at 106k, but with its proximity to Raleigh and Durham, and many other towns that are directly adjacent, I think you'll find that it feels a little bigger (or a little sprawl-y).

Haven't seen it in print. Just heard what the guy on the Today show said this morning. They said they focused on big towns/small cities for this year's list. Fort Collins was #1.

As I recall, Wanderer wants "small, historic, close to large city, old, etc.". Cary?

Yep. That's why I posted.

kgh8m:

Because our flight gets into RDU at 10:30am on Sat., and because we want to see the homes at Fearrington Village which are only open Sat., we thought we'd arrive at the FH, unpack, see the village and homes, then have lunch and spend the remainder of the day in Chapel Hill.

Sun, since we have more time, I thought we'd drive early to S. Pines/Pinehurst (You mentioned to go thru Cary - Cary is on the way?) and then Monday, our flight is at 2:43, so spend the AM in Chapel Hill again, and see Carborro and Hillsborough.

Is there any flaw in this plan?

How far is the airport from Fearrington House (time-wise on a Holiday)?

Cary IS NOT on the way from Fearrington to Pittsboro, Pinehurst/Southern Pines.

Take a left turn out of F onto 15-501 and continue south. Pittsboro is just a few miles from FH, to Pittsboro.

It should take less than an hour to get from RDU to FH, unless there is football traffic. I don't know the home UNC schedule yet. IF there is a home UNC game scheduled for 12 or 1 pm kickoff, you could have problems since the directions you (probably) have to FH go through Chapel Hill.

UNC has a home football game 9/2/06 at 3:30 p.m. so you could get caught up in tailgating traffic jams. The team is playing Rutgers and I don't know how large a crowd is expected. Back when UNC was a top 10 team (ah, memories) people would come to town just to be in town during a game. Didn't have a game ticket, just wanted to 'experience' it first hand.

Instead of going straight to Fearrington through CH, how about from RDU go to Cary, then take 64W to 15-501N to FH? You could see if Cary fits your criteria and avoid some traffic at the same time.

Better check the NCState schedule. Raleigh is worse than Chapel Hill!!

NCSU plays at 6:00. While it's later in the day, it will be well attended as it's the first game of the year and it's against AA-National Champs ASU (who's fans will be driving into Raleigh from Boone via I-40 E).

The stadium is a few miles east of the airport off I-40 so staying west of this from 2:00 PM on is a good idea.

You will definitely find lots of traffic if there is a football game. You may want to get to the Fearrington community and get out before 2:00ish to avoid traffic. You could head over to Hillsborough and then come back to CH that evening after the game.

If you could do the homes on Monday morning, you should go straight to Southern Pines/Pinehurst for Saturday and come to Fearrington that evening after the game. You could then hang out in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and Hillsborough on Sunday. You could see the homes Monday morning and then head to the airport.

For a holiday weekend, I would think that your trip to the airport will be at least 45 minutes. But, I would probably give myself an hour. The problem will be traffic more than distance.

I recommend Saratoga Grill in Hillsborough for dinner. There is another good restaurant on the main street that is really nice. (You should be able to identify because Hillsborough is not so big.)

Cary is quite large. Very "new" and clean...very Atlanta like.

Pittsboro is a growing town. There will be a lot of growth in Northern Chatham County within the next few years. Fearrington is getting ready to swallowed up by a huge new community being built in that area.

Pinehurst and Southern Pines are great if you like golf. Very nice...but not a lot to do unless golf is your thing.

In Chapel Hill, Mama Dips is good. I like Nantucket Cafe which is at the intersection of I40 and Hwy 54. Also, 411 (on Franklin Street) is good. The Weathervane at Southern Season is nice.

There is a great little soda shop (ice cream counter and all) in Pittsboro. Nice antique shopping along the main street.

Have fun-

Thanks for all of the great suggestions! - dining included! We are really looking forward to this trip.

If it is on the way, we may very well check out Cary - if it is "Atlanta like" I think it will be way too big for our tastes, but you never know. While there, I want to see as much as possible.

I would doubt FH model homes will be staffed on a holiday, but I will check with them. That would make sense to do things that way.

Am I missing any other towns we should try and see?:

Cary
Chapel Hill
Pittsboro
Hillsborough
Carborro
Southern Pines
Pinehurst

Raleigh and Durham are too big for us - we don't really have a desire to see these this time given our timeframe.

p.s. Although I realize S. Pines and Pinehurst (moreso?) are alot about golf, I was under the impression - with Southern Pines anyway - from the literature that they sent, that this is not just a bunch of gated golf homes and courses.

It appeared that there was a real downtown with a village-like atmosphere, and numerous events throughout the year not centered around golf.

Is that not accurate?

We have family in Southern Pines--and it certainly is not all gated communities. It is a lovely little town--actually backs up to Ft Bragg which I have just become aware of. But of course, Ft.Bragg is immense. Yes, it and Pinehurst have nice little town centers and it is not all about golf.
I may be quite wrong, but in a lot of ways, Cary might be larger than Durham--or would feel so. I would rather take a beating than deal with the beltways around Raleigh. I know--this coming from a Charlottean!!
Durham is in a way a sort of small town with good shopping. I think there is a bit of town and gown about it also. They have taken the big old warehouses downtown and converted them into attractive shopping and dining destinataions. It--Durham--definitely has more panache than Cary. You might not want to dismiss it out of hand.

I will add that coming from the NE you will perhaps be amazed at Southern Pines and Pinehurst--there is a definite reason for the naming!! The neighborhoods (that I have seen in SP) are quite lovely, sitting in the piney woods. No problem about mulching!

I agree...you may want to check out Southern Durham--near SouthPoint Mall or Northern Durham (Treyburn) which has rolling hills and is georgous or the Trinity Park/Watts Hillandale areas--old houses w/personality.

Yes, Durham definitely does feel smaller than Cary...(and a lot more personality)...I've lived in both.

Don't believe all the bad press that Durham gets.

I grew up near Southern Pines and Pinehurst...I think that most of the "retired" folks that live there are saturated in the golf lifestyle. Yes, there is a cute little town part...mostly for the tourists. But, it is a beautiful area.

This just came from our AAA

Chapel Hill Road Trip

This fall, visit Chapel Hill and the North Carolina communities of Hillsborough and Carrboro to enjoy the eclectic culture and activities surrounding the nation’s first state university.

Explore Hillsborough’s historic architecture - a backdrop for a writers’ colony that includes a Pulitzer prize-winning author. Sample Carrboro’s vibrant art’s community. Call today for a free guide: 1-888-968-2060

Thanks Gretchen!

We are on our way Labor Day weekend and cannot wait!!

Any hints people can provide would be appreciated, as well as areas to look for real estate and 55+ communities (nothing institutional please!!)

We will have limited time, so I think for now will skip Durham. Much too big for us from what we have seen anyway...

Thanks to all who have helped.

As several of us have said, you may make a mistake to rule out Durham. It is NOT a large town. Skip Carrboro.

I will add that the amenities of having Duke University outweigh "size". I am feeling you have a skewed view of these towns/cities by including Cary and Carrboro.

We have not ruled out Durham, but for this trip, we are just seeing Chapel Hill, Hillsborough, Southern Pines, and Pinehurst as well as the Fearrington Village and model homes there.

We really don't have alot of time with just Sat/Sun and Mon AM, so I don't want to spread ourselves too thin.

Thanks to all who helped. We are just back and had a great time on our first trip to NC! Such VERY friendly people! What a nice change.

I will do a full trip report when I have more time over the weekend.