I’m a huge fan of Oriental NC as a stop on the seasonal trip north or south. There are several reasons but the largest has to do with the large sailing community. It’s been described as where cruisers retire. And I can totally see that.

We tend to skip the popular Beaufort NC for a few reasons. The largest reason is that Beaufort is so much more popular and the anchorage is small. Plus if I ever get the catamaran I’d love to get I won’t be able to do the ICW so having extra Oriental time is worth the effort.

Oriental is just a couple hours north of Beaufort so if you time your trip correctly you can pop out of Wrightsville Beach by Cape Fear in the morning and make it to Oriental by lunch the next day. The approach is simple and the town boasts two free docks with space for four boats, two at each dock.

We tend to anchor just off the “Oriental Harbor Village Marina” and have always had a great time. We tend to anchor because there is a 48 hour limit for the free docks and honestly I enjoy Oriental enough to stay longer.

The folks at the Nautical Wheelers shop will help you with mail. There is a cruisers shack (really nice) and bathrooms just off the dock with a pump out. And you’ll find yourself soaking up the conversation at The Bean café.

Another great feature of Oriental has to be the truck from the local grocery store. They will pick you up and drop you off from any of the docks in town. We tended to walk to keep my blood sugars down but the service is great for times when you’re going to do a larger provision.

Well protected and pleasant we look forward to stopping each year.