manteo

Living History

Located on Roanoke Island, Manteo is a historic waterfront town with a walkable downtown, full of specialty shops, restaurants, and a marina with various types of boats. Manteo has a variety of attractions including the North Carolina Aquarium, Island Farm, the Elizabethan Gardens, Roanoke Island Festival Park, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and the Lost Colony Outdoor Drama. 

Visitors to the North Carolina Aquarium will find exhibits about the various aquatic environments of the Outer Banks, focusing on life in the marsh and wetlands as well as ocean life. There is a special emphasis on sea turtles with the sea turtle rescue exhibit. Island Farm provides visitors with a glimpse life in Manteo on a working farm during the mid-1800’s.

Roanoke Island Festival Park is home to the replica 16th century ship the Elizabeth II, as well as Indian Town interpreting the lives of Native Americans, and the Settlement Site interpreting the lives of early English colonists. These sites have costumed interpreters who tell about life during the 16th century. Nearby, the Elizabethan Gardens offers acres of lush vegetation and manicured landscapes set along the Roanoke Sound.

If you are interested in the history of the Lost Colony, Manteo is the place for you.  Fort Raleigh National Historic Site is the location of some of the earliest English settlements in America dating from 1584 to 1590. Visitors learn about those early settlements, the colony that came to be known as the Lost Colony and the Native American inhabitants the English met on Roanoke Island. The Lost Colony outdoor drama is an interpretation of what happened to the Lost Colony and, first presented in 1937, it is one of the longest running outdoor dramas in the nation.