Accessible travel at NC's Outer Banks
June 13, 2022 7:52 PM Subscribe
Can you help me find somewhere to stay with my aunt Rosie? We want to go to the NC Outer Banks! Yay! I can't stay at her preferred hotel due to allergies (the Ramada uses air freshener everywhere that's mainly made of propylene glycol). I'd probably be OK at a Hilton. She needs 1) a great ocean view/ocean sounds, 2) no stairs, 3) at least a refrigerator and microwave, and 4) a restaurant in the building. My only additional hard-line requirements are 5) no air freshener, and 6) no mold.
I thought maybe I could make the Ramada work, but it sounds like they're booked pretty solid, and so any room is going to have air freshener recently applied. Also, it's pretty likely they'd forget and spray the room with air freshener even if I requested otherwise.
I'm open to counterarguments -- I'd love for her to be able to stay in the hotel she knows and loves, AND have me in the same building in case she falls or something.
OTOH it might be lovely to show her something new and awesome, but also very safe and convenient.
She can walk, but it sounds like an iffy endeavor. The beach view is critical, since she's not certain she can still walk on sand. Her husband died early this year; he was sick for a couple of years, and she developed pretty bad osteoporosis in the meantime.
I'm planning to research renting a beach wheelchair wherever we end up staying.
I did a vague 'disability travel' Google search but it didn't really hit my sweet spot. I found a resort that's all booked up.
---> time/money
She'd love to go late this month, but I realize that's probably not realistic. I'm open to figuring out the date if we can find a place that works for us. Before July = before peak season = maybe cheaper? But probably not that much cheaper.
I'm finding rooms around $300/night (so much! I usually rent an AirBNB!) for the air-freshened Ramada, so that's my benchmark. Any higher and I start to feel guilty/worried, although I know everything is insanely expensive right now.
[Also, part of my brain is wondering if I can evaluate hotels for "probability of sliding into the ocean", but I'm going to ignore that part for now.]
I thought maybe I could make the Ramada work, but it sounds like they're booked pretty solid, and so any room is going to have air freshener recently applied. Also, it's pretty likely they'd forget and spray the room with air freshener even if I requested otherwise.
I'm open to counterarguments -- I'd love for her to be able to stay in the hotel she knows and loves, AND have me in the same building in case she falls or something.
OTOH it might be lovely to show her something new and awesome, but also very safe and convenient.
She can walk, but it sounds like an iffy endeavor. The beach view is critical, since she's not certain she can still walk on sand. Her husband died early this year; he was sick for a couple of years, and she developed pretty bad osteoporosis in the meantime.
I'm planning to research renting a beach wheelchair wherever we end up staying.
I did a vague 'disability travel' Google search but it didn't really hit my sweet spot. I found a resort that's all booked up.
---> time/money
She'd love to go late this month, but I realize that's probably not realistic. I'm open to figuring out the date if we can find a place that works for us. Before July = before peak season = maybe cheaper? But probably not that much cheaper.
I'm finding rooms around $300/night (so much! I usually rent an AirBNB!) for the air-freshened Ramada, so that's my benchmark. Any higher and I start to feel guilty/worried, although I know everything is insanely expensive right now.
[Also, part of my brain is wondering if I can evaluate hotels for "probability of sliding into the ocean", but I'm going to ignore that part for now.]
I was just at the outer banks last week, it wasn't quite peak but it was still busy. We rented a house and it definitely was not very accessible. Honestly $300 sounds quite cheap to me, hotels are very expensive out there which is one of the reasons people rent houses. You will definitely be able to save a lot of money (and have better availability) if you go on weekdays. If you want to go soon I would book as soon as possible, otherwise I'd probably say you should look for dates in September as that is after peak and still quite nice.
posted by JZig at 10:35 PM on June 13, 2022
posted by JZig at 10:35 PM on June 13, 2022
Response by poster: Can your request no air freshener at her Ramada, throw the windows open, fire up a fan, bring an air purifier
I've considered it, but that air freshener will be all over the walls and ceiling, in any soft furniture and the carpet, and it takes a while to dissipate - -a while being more than a few days. And the cost if I get it wrong is days with piercing pain in my head, vomiting, and not being able to take care of my fairly fragile relative if there's an accident or she needs help navigating. Not to mention I'll be doing all the driving, and will be the one driving 3 hours to the airport at the end of all this -- probably driving westward at sunset, no less.
posted by amtho at 10:52 PM on June 13, 2022
I've considered it, but that air freshener will be all over the walls and ceiling, in any soft furniture and the carpet, and it takes a while to dissipate - -a while being more than a few days. And the cost if I get it wrong is days with piercing pain in my head, vomiting, and not being able to take care of my fairly fragile relative if there's an accident or she needs help navigating. Not to mention I'll be doing all the driving, and will be the one driving 3 hours to the airport at the end of all this -- probably driving westward at sunset, no less.
posted by amtho at 10:52 PM on June 13, 2022
Maybe this Hampton Inn?
I'm concerned that you're going to be hard-pressed to find....anything...available now.
posted by kuanes at 3:29 AM on June 14, 2022
I'm concerned that you're going to be hard-pressed to find....anything...available now.
posted by kuanes at 3:29 AM on June 14, 2022
I can’t speak to the hotel aspect, but in many parts of the outer banks you can drive directly on the beach with a truck/jeep/beach ready vehicle if you purchase a permit. I bet you could find a tour operator of some sort who could set something up for you/her for at least that experience. (Also, must it be the outer banks, or just the beach?)
posted by raccoon409 at 4:59 AM on June 14, 2022
posted by raccoon409 at 4:59 AM on June 14, 2022
Yeah, if it doesn't have to be Outer Banks check out options on Emerald Isle. I was there this past winter and there seemed to be many hotels right on the beach. I don't know anything about any of them.
posted by mareli at 6:49 AM on June 14, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by mareli at 6:49 AM on June 14, 2022 [1 favorite]
Like Double Tree in Atlantic Beach, for instance.
posted by mareli at 6:51 AM on June 14, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by mareli at 6:51 AM on June 14, 2022 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Dates are a little flexible, but the sooner the better -- I don't know how her osteoporosis is going to develop, so waiting seems like a bad choice.
The just needs to be within about a ~3 hour drive of Chapel Hill/RDU, and on the ocean. I'll be picking her up at the airport -- probably in a rented car -- and driving straight to the beach from there.
posted by amtho at 8:51 AM on June 14, 2022
The just needs to be within about a ~3 hour drive of Chapel Hill/RDU, and on the ocean. I'll be picking her up at the airport -- probably in a rented car -- and driving straight to the beach from there.
posted by amtho at 8:51 AM on June 14, 2022
There are accessibility ramps on the sand on the northern end of Oak Island (a little ways out from Wilmington, so within your driving range) and a nice tiki restaurant and fishing pier. I don't know the cost, but it looked like there were a handful of hotels around, with nice views, that were not fancy. It's a nice spot.
posted by knotty knots at 9:48 AM on June 14, 2022
posted by knotty knots at 9:48 AM on June 14, 2022
The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality has statewide GreenTravel listings for hotels and inns; vacation rentals, and bed-and-breakfasts.
Participating businesses must fill out applications that ask questions about the sustainability of their operations, including aspects such as choice of cleaning products and employee training in the use of same. I can't speak to how well the lodgings on this list would meet your criteria, but at least the list would be a place to start looking.
posted by virago at 9:48 PM on June 14, 2022
Participating businesses must fill out applications that ask questions about the sustainability of their operations, including aspects such as choice of cleaning products and employee training in the use of same. I can't speak to how well the lodgings on this list would meet your criteria, but at least the list would be a place to start looking.
posted by virago at 9:48 PM on June 14, 2022
Atlantic Beach and Emerald Isle are technically part of the Outer Banks. It's almost exactly a 3 hour drive from RDU, and it's much more likely that you'll find something at this late in the season. My wife and I have had great experiences in Atlantic Beach and wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone considering a beach getaway that isn't crazy busy like the 'true' Outer Banks can be.
posted by schyler523 at 12:57 PM on June 15, 2022
posted by schyler523 at 12:57 PM on June 15, 2022
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I've been an owner of a timeshare at the Outer Banks Beach Club for many, many years and could recommend it, but it falls a bit short on your measures. The one-bedroom and two bedroom units have full kitchens, but may not *quite* have an ocean view because of the dunes (check the two-bedrooms in Beach Club II, though!) They have elevator buildings but no restaurant. The boardwalks over the dunes are wheelchair accessible. They book for week-long stays; I'm not sure what the going prices are in summer. However, I have detected no air freshener, and I fairly sensitive to such things.
The beach houses designed for multi-family vacations are big enough for beach views, but an eight-bedroom extravaganza doesn't otherwise meet ANY of your needs.
Can your request no air freshener at her Ramada, throw the windows open, fire up a fan, bring an air purifier, and head out to lunch/dinner?
posted by desuetude at 9:42 PM on June 13, 2022