Your upcoming Outer Banks vacation in Cape Hatteras is something you will never forget, offering beach days, exciting attractions, and a step back in history as you explore historical attractions such as the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, located within sight of your Lighthouse View vacation rental. Offering a peek back to the time when shipwrecks were common and lighthouses were lifesavers, this lighthouse will add an element of wonder to your vacation experience, just as our escape will add an element of comfort to your getaway. This tour of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse will offer another reason this vacation will be unforgettable.
Located at 46379 Lighthouse Road in Buxton
The landscape of Cape Hatteras looked very different about 150+ years ago and the waters that surround our barrier island home offered quite a different experience to ships traveling through the night. The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse had yet to be built, and the seas were known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic due to the number of shipwrecks that occurred on dark or stormy nights. In 1870, however, a bright light appeared, one that warned sailors of the dangers they were about to face and the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was open for business. Also known as the Cape Hatteras Light Station, the tallest brick lighthouse in the nation (nearly 200 feet tall) was given a distinctive black and white stripe to ensure it could be seen in the daylight hours too.
Lighthouse Adventures in the New Millenium
In case you were wondering, the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse still functions today, operated by the US Coast Guard to aid in the safety of today’s ships, even as most ships have navigation systems that have greatly lessened shipwrecks everywhere. Tours are offered of the lighthouse in the summer months, giving visitors the opportunity to climb 257 steps to the top where the views will take your breath away (if the climbing hasn’t already done so!). Unfortunately, for visitors on a Cape vacation in the summer of 2025, the lighthouse is closed for tours as they engage in renovations that will ensure it stands tall another 150+ years and stays safe for tourists to climb. Photo ops at its base are still allowed, and a virtual tour of the lighthouse is available on the Cape Hatteras website.
In the Shadow of the Lighthouse
Our Lighthouse View vacation cottages, rooms, and suites, are located in the shadow of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, offering comfort, peace, and a vacation experience you will remember for the rest of your light. Reserve your favorite escape today!
