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I'm planning a train trip back east in the spring. OK, for the Outer Banks part of the trip I'll rent a car since Amtrak doesn't serve the area, but most of the trip will be by train.
I enjoy visiting aquariums and I have found that there is one in Virginia Beach and another one not far away on Roanoke Island in Manteo, North Carolina. I believe some of you regulars here are familiar with the area and might be able to offer some advice.
Has anyone here visited both aquariums? If so, if someone had time to visit only one of the two, which would you recommend? And how similar are they? I would assume that the focus of both would be the marine life of the nearby rivers, bays/estuaries, and Atlantic, though both would probably have some other exhibits as well. (Everyone likes to look at colorful tropical fish.)
Unfortunately I will only have a day or two for Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks. Besides the aquariums, the Elizabethan Gardens, Fort Raleigh/Roanoke Colony, and the Wright Bros. memorial at Kill Devil Hills are crying out for time and attention. So little time, so much to do!
And even if I had more time, two aquarium visits in two days might be a bit much anyway, even for an aquarium lover.
The rest of the trip will focus on Amtrak-friendly destinations like D.C., Williamsburg, and Norfolk. We're hoping to see the cherry trees while they're in bloom!
Posts: 9 | Registered: Jan 2007
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posted
Can't help you with the Aquariums you mention (but a ranger program on Ocracoke at the tip of the outer banks was the real thing - especially if you have kids for their junior ranger program).
The one in the Inner Harbor in Baltimore is truly outstanding, hopefully you can work it in with your DC visit. Also recommended (have not visited), but more modest, are the ones in Charleston, SC and Chattanooga.
Posts: 2397 | From: Camden, SC | Registered: Mar 2006
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I'm sorry that I can't give you much help with the aquariums BUT I can assure you that the Wright Brothers Memorial is a 'Can't Miss' attraction. You'll be rushed if you don't allow yourself at least three hours.....and you could easily spend more than that.
Jennettes Pier in Nags Head may be worth a stop. Go out all the way to the end. The fishermen are trying for shark there.
I also like the two Outer Banks Lighthouses. The smaller one at Bodie Island just below Nags Head is undergoing restoration presently but the visitor center in the Keeper's House is open. The famous Cape Hatteras Lighthouse is another 50 miles south down NC Highway 12 and is something every able North Carolinian ought to climb at least once.
Given the limited time you've got - Cape Hatteras may be a little further than you want to go as you'd be spending an extra hour or more each way driving..... and if lighthouses are a curiousity rather than a passion for you, Bodie Island will probably be sufficient to scratch that itch saving you 100 miles driving.
One other interesting tidbit - the vehicles belonging to year-round Outer Banks residents all have North Carolina license plates beginning with the prefix 'OBX'.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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Sorry I don't know the aquariums you mention, but if you haven't been to the aquarium in Baltimore, that one is quite a Big Deal. Downtown Baltimore also has other attractions to appeal to all sorts, including the water taxis that take you to and from them (if the weather is nice); and it's quite close to DC--Amtrak will take you there as will MARC trains, though I think the latter may not run on weekends, or on Sundays, at any rate. The B&O Railroad Museum is of interest to rail fans; you may want to use taxis to go to that location.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Thanks for the replies. We won't be going to Baltimore on this trip, but I go there from time to time on business and have visited the aquarium there several times. It is indeed a gem.
And I am looking forward to riding the trolley in Norfolk.
Posts: 9 | Registered: Jan 2007
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