Raleigh, North Carolina · City Break
Free museums, leafy parks & Southern food in the City of Oaks
North Carolina's capital is one of the South's most underrated short breaks — world-class free museums, a green and walkable downtown, an award-winning food and craft beer scene, and the Outer Banks and Blue Ridge Mountains within easy reach.
Why Raleigh
A green, smart, food-mad Southern capital
Nicknamed the City of Oaks for its tree-lined streets, Raleigh pairs a compact, walkable downtown with three free world-class state museums, a brilliant independent food and brewery scene, and a perfect launchpad for the wider Research Triangle, the North Carolina coast and the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Explore More · Top Tips
Top things to do in Raleigh
Highlights drawn from Visit Raleigh, the city's official destination organisation — tell us which appeal and we'll fold them into your itinerary.
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences
The largest natural history museum in the Southeast — dinosaurs, a living conservatory, the Nature Research Center and the famous 'Daspletosaurus' specimen. Free admission, right on Bicentennial Plaza.
North Carolina Museum of History
Free state museum tracing 14,000 years of North Carolina life — from Cherokee history and the Wright Brothers' first flight to NASCAR and the Civil Rights movement.
North Carolina Museum of Art
One of the South's great art museums, with European masters, African art, a Rodin collection and a 164-acre Museum Park studded with outdoor sculpture and walking trails — free general admission.
Stroll the North Carolina State Capitol & Bicentennial Plaza
An 1840 Greek Revival capitol building you can tour for free, surrounded by monuments, the Legislative Building and a downtown plaza ringed by Raleigh's biggest free attractions.
Pullen Park
One of the oldest amusement parks in the United States — ride the 1911 Dentzel carousel, the miniature train and pedal boats on the lake. A classic Raleigh family afternoon.
Explore the Warehouse District & Glenwood South
Raleigh's coolest neighbourhoods for food and nightlife — Union Station, Crank Arm Brewing, indie boutiques, rooftop bars and live music venues like Lincoln Theatre and The Pour House.
Eat your way around the capital
From Beasley's Chicken + Honey and Poole's Diner (Ashley Christensen's Southern classics) to Brewery Bhavana, Bida Manda Laotian kitchen, Crawford and Son and the Saturday State Farmers Market.
Tap into the craft beer scene
Raleigh and the wider Triangle have one of the densest craft brewery clusters in the South — Trophy Brewing, Lynnwood Brewing Concern, Brewery Bhavana and the self-guided Raleigh Beer Trail.
Shop & wander Cameron Village and North Hills
Cameron Village for tree-lined boutiques and bakeries; Midtown's North Hills for a walkable mix of restaurants, shops, a cinema and the rooftop Top of the Hill at AC Hotel.
Day trips: Durham, Chapel Hill & the coast
Raleigh is the gateway to the Research Triangle — pair with Duke University in Durham, college-town Chapel Hill, the Outer Banks (3.5 hrs east) or the Blue Ridge Parkway and Asheville (3.5 hrs west).
Source: visitraleigh.com, the official Raleigh destination marketing organisation.
See Raleigh
Raleigh in Video
Ready for Raleigh?
Pair a few nights in the City of Oaks with Duke and Chapel Hill, the Outer Banks or a wider Carolinas fly-drive — we'll build the hotel, the reservations and the road trip around you.