Most vacationers
at Corolla on North Carolina's Outer Banks rent a private home for their vacation accommodations.
As you'll see below,
there are only twohotels in
the area, together offering only 166 hotel rooms. Meanwhile,
there are more than 5,000 rental homes on the Currituck Outer
Banks.
Most of Corolla's visitors — up
to 50,000 people a week in the summer — rent a home.
Almost all the homes are relatively new and offer a wide range
of amenities. The majority of the Corolla homes are larger than 5,000
square feet and offer pools and hot tubs; some even have home
gyms and fitness centers. Since such large homes are readily
available, many of them are rented for weddings (usually requiring
a special contract), family reunions, corporate retreats or
other gatherings on the Outer Banks. The trend in Corolla vacationing is for several
families to rent a large home together, splitting the cost
of the house and all staying under one roof. Some families
prefer to rent neighboring homes. See theCorolla Vacation
Rentalspage for
more about renting a home.
Hampton Inn and Suites Outer
Banks Corolla 333 Audubon Drive, N.C. Highway
12, Pine Island
(252) 453-6565
This hotel is on the oceanfront at Pine Island, halfway between Duck and Corolla, which are both about seven miles away. The grand-looking hotel has 123 rooms, both standard and larger studio suites, more than half of them with an ocean view. Every room has a balcony or patio, a sleeper sofa, microwave, refrigerator, coffeemaker, ironing equipment and hair dryer. Rooms have either one king-size bed or two queens. Their special on-the-house breakfast is included with the room rate. For recreation, Hampton Inn offers beach access, chair and umbrella rental (in season), five pools (an indoor pool and hot tub, an outdoor pool, an outdoor kids' pool and a lazy river), a game room and a fitness center. The Pine Island Racquet Club is just across the street, and anyone can reserve a tennis or squash court for a fee. Conference and meeting rooms are available here. Call for rate availability. The hotel is open year round.
Inn
at Corolla Light 1066 Ocean Trail
(252) 453-3340, (800) 215-0772
Located on the sound side in the Corolla Light resort, the Inn at Corolla Light is all about pampering its guests. Rooms are furnished with king- or queen-size beds, all with pillow-top mattresses, and sleep from two to four people. Many rooms have kitchenettes, whirlpool tubs, fireplaces or sleeper sofas. The inn actually hovers over Currituck Sound, so the views from the back rooms are amazing. Guests also have access to a video library, bicycles or, at an added cost, Jet Skis and horse tours (May to October). A pool and stone hot tub and a 400-foot pier and gazebo are on the property, and guests have access to all of the numerous Corolla Light amenities, which include five pools, beach access, tennis courts, the sports center, nature trails and planned activities for kids in the summer.
To truly pamper yourself, ask about the inn's spa packages available at the Spa at Corolla (see
ourRecreation
page), located about seven minutes from the inn. The inn is open year round, and rates range from $209 to $320 in the summer season, $85 to $215 in the wintertime. Packages and specials are available year round. There is not a restaurant on site, but several restaurants are nearby and a continental-plus breakfast is offered to guests every morning.
