Reviews of Cape Lookout (Tourist Attraction)

Richard Eckel

Wonderful island location with both sound side and sea side swimming. Great place for a picnic! There are bathrooms and a water fountain near the lighthouse

Samantha Wagner

Harkers Island is a gorgeous secluded beach. Travel there by ferry only. Spend the day on the beach with Cape Lookout Lighthouse behind you. On the other side of the island is Bougie Sound. Tons of seashells to find. The sunset over the Atlantic Ocean and the view of the sunset behind the lighthouse is phenomenal! A must see!

Zachary Ayscue

Beautiful beach

Jeremiah Grant

It was the 3 hours I won’t get back

Lori Simparosa

Just beautiful scenery

Steven Ray

A very beautiful sight

Chris Breedlove

Beautiful Beach, not crowded just awesome

Adam Wainright

Took our 2 year old son for the first time and everything from the ferry ride to playing on the beach was a blast for him. Planning to go back with our extended family soon.

Brandon Jordan

Great to take boat too and relax

Connie Taylor

Absolutely beautiful and so clean! We love it here. Our first time here! However will not be our last!

Kelsey Deney

Beautiful place!

Mobley Mobley

Beautiful!!!

Bobbie Jo Edwards

So peaceful and relaxing. Won't be swimming in the water anytime soon with all the sharks we incountered 8/30-9/2

Jedediah Seltzer

I enjoy this island, light house and the beach. I have never seen to many crowds and the water bayside is clean, clear and calm.

Brooks Adcock

Very beautiful

Ralph Southerland

You can't appreciate this majestic southern jewel unless you visit in person. The view from the top is something you'll never forget.

Rita Pearson

I really enjoyed my trip over to the lighthouse. You can see the island with the wild horses on it on the boat ride over. Nice Lighthouse with a great view. The day I visited a storm was approaching so it was very windy. Great place to take kids as there's plenty of space to get their energy out! There are walkways and lots of sand so probably not a great place to bring a stroller. I visited there September 2014.

Cheryl G Mann

I love lighthouses of any kind. I didn't know the name of this one but a friend told me the name of it.

Nicole Hudson

Love this place

john mattox

GREAT DAY ON BOAT WITH JUDY!

Jason Curtis

Truly a magical place no matter how many times you visit. Last time I came the lighthouse was closed and you couldn't climb it....now that it's open the experience for me is so much more Zen like. I got to climb it with my children so they could experience what I've experienced climbing the other NC lighthouses and the true breathtaking beauty being 200+ get in the air at the ocean provides. Last one on my list is now Boddie Island. The shell gathering is awesome, go to the point for the real good ones. Sound side is nice but the place to be is on the ocean side. This is a must visit.

Paula Foster

Evening at the Cape.... amazing

Denny McGuire

Very beautiful.

Belinda Lupton

Love it

Brandy Turner

Amazing awesome educational trip .

Whit Procter

Gotta go!

Candice White

Beautiful

Mike Vail

Great piece of history and beautiful beaches!

Linda Johnson

The best climb of all the lighthouses!

Amanda Rhodes

This is a Serene and primitive island, so peaceful.

Melody Toy

My whole stops and we enjoy God's Beauty ❤️

Russell Blackmon

Great! Very pleasant workers. Nicely arranged.

Andrew Brackbill

I have been to most of the lighthouses on the east coast, and all of them in North Carolina. Cape Lookout is the best of all of them for the location's scenic beauty. The ferry ride to the lighthouse is a treat.

samantha honeycutt

Love it!

Denise Phillips

Great time with the family. Very beautiful place

Magikal Karp

Pretty cool, but the seagulls can get aggressive

Courtney McGlothlin

It beautiful was beautiful. We were the only people on our to or boat, and we got to go to Shackleford and we saw 6 well horses. Apparently it's mating season and we also got to see to stallions fighting over a mare. It was awesome.

Martin Laforest

(Translated by Google) A bit expensive to cross and you have to pay again to climb the steps of the lighthouse (Original) Un peu cher pour traversé et il faut payé encore pour monté les marches du phare

Sharon McClard

I love this Island. Such a pretty lighthouse and beautiful view from the top.

Geoffrey Corey

Love camping here for the drum run in late fall

Erinn Byers

We had a great time! We went out on a ferry to Shackleton Banks and saw the wild horses. Next we took the ferry to the lighthouse. We climbed the 207 steps! It was really beautiful.

Heather Mueller

Island Express Ferry is the way to go! Smooth trip to island and back. Cape Lookout was phenomenal as always.

Escobaria Gracilis

Very nice and interesting National Seashore. Did enjoy visiting the lighthouse and walk along the beach and look for seashells. Very informative signs telling you the history of the seashore. The boat ride to the lighthouse was fun also.

John Maynard

This is going to require a boat. This is a beautiful piece of NC History.

Jessica Jordan

Gorgeous beach both ocean side and sound side. Cape Lookout lighthouse is stunning to look at and tour.

Ella Jo

The lighthouse was closed bc of a lightning. But it's still available to touch and smell it

sharon jones

Beautiful and worth the trip. Kind people

Gwen Williams

Beautiful place! Great finds on the beach, but it was cold!!

Joe Cholewinski

Such a great place! Had such an awesome time here last year, that we are going here this year again. But we're going earlier, to stay longer!

Adrienne Mitchell

this is lit fire for the water there and how well a bit smelly

Mark Vincent

Great weekend, great weather, great company!

Michael Barber

Most beautiful lighthouse on the Carolina coast. Be it via a ferry or your own boat, make the trip and take lunch, so you can spend your whole day exploring the island.

Kimberly Nelson

Can't wait to go back!

Earl Hewitt

Beautiful clear water. Must visit.

Jim Tiffany

Heaven on earth

Kathie Hardin

Loved it! Even though I didn't climb it as they were closed, I did get some great pictures of the wild horses swimming to a new island.

Travis Horning

Awesome !! Nice quiet place and very nice seashore !!!

Justin Harkey

Great place for both sound and ocean fun.

cindy o'neil

Beautiful

Ryan Steiger

Amazing place to sightsee and relax!!

Sally Brown

Great seashell finds!!

ro s

Beautiful. Scenic. Historic.

Jordan Thompson

It was amazing! I live in pine level 217 oliver st

Benjamin Doby

Absolutely beautiful!

Deb Cunningham

Its beautiful historic and a wild life preserve.

Nellie Richardson

Very beautiful place

Samantha Rowley

Absolutely stunning view for the top of the lighthouse!

Traci Stead

Beautiful relaxing interesting... stay all day!

Caitlyn McKechney

We had the absolute best time here! Amazing views and amazing fun! Lots of awesome shells to take home as well!

Patricia Baker

My happy place !!!

Kathy Bruening

My family had a great time here

Jennifer Jones

I can’t give this enough stars!!! ✨ ⭐️

Angie Causby

Awesome place to go

Aaron Barr

Great view from the top, great staff.

Erin Brooke Robinson Schneider

We had a great time and will be back

Roxana Mihailescu

Just one word: HAVEN!

Ronald Proulx

Shallow water and the boat scraped getting into the shore, but an absolutely Beautiful part of North Carolina

Rebecca Mckelvey

So fun and beautiful. Cant wait to go back!!!!

Ashley Triplett

Had a great time

Jennifer Craig

One of our faves.

Joe Sunshine

Awesome lighthouse to check out.

Larry Meyer

Great place

Matthew Carawan

One of the best beaches I have ever been to

Brian Whitson

Nice beach. It requires either taking a ferry or driving your own boat there. Lots of people fish here also. Very quiet and laid back. Bring your own food and trash bags.

Mundi Broda

Nice secluded beach time with great fishing and a cabin that still camping without giving up some basic essentials

Chad Steelman

My family and I had a blast here! You get to learn a little bit about the history of the lighthouse and the island. The climb of 200+ steps was well worth the breathtaking views. On the ferry ride we got to see the wild horses as well.

Crystal Solomon

Family friendly, clean area

cindy Rosancrans

Love it

Matthew Mano

A great place to spend the day with the family!! A nice little gift shop and restrooms on the island too. So many aces to walk and see. NOTE: you have to take a paid ferry ride to the island. You can't get there by road.

shane Johnson

Great place to visit by boat!! Great beach day!!

Allen Zhang

Lighthouse opens May 15 through September 15 yearly.

Kelly Page

Serenity, non-commercialized, beauty, and nature.... plus a lighthouse? FANTASTIC day adventure!

David Trader

Worth it. Beautiful and well done by the park service here. Take the ferry from harkers island.

david coffey

Great ace to take your family for great time,,get away from it all and get back to nature and relax,,,none of that downtown city to disturb you here,,,bring what you need and don't leave nothing behind,,,get back to nature,,

CHRIS VINSON

To me it is one of the most beautiful places. The horse are usually out and the dolphin come out to play and it is great. Found a lot of shells to take home while I was there.

dale fluke

Lovely! Stingrays, dolphins, gorgeous views from the lighthouse. Quiet and peaceful. Please take your trash home with you and bring water and snacks. Enjoy!

Sergio Nasser Filho

Beautiful

chuck prickett

Had a great time.

Josh Van Wycke

Amazing experience

Joseph Condon

OBX you can't go wrong. You'll love it.

Caleb Smith

This was amazing! I love all the history displayed here. It's really well maintained and there are lots of placards with info and cool facts. There's an audio tour you can do by calling in and it'll have posts with numbers for prompts. It's definitely worth a stop. There's boardwalks for a lot of the pathways and beach access to the sound and the ocean. The have opened up the old keeper's quarters and turned it into a museum (free entry) with information about the lighthouse and some history of the barrier islands. The beach looks very clean and well taken care of, worst I found was an area need the visitor center that had some scattered cigarette butts. But it was easy enough to clean up. The water is much cleaner now. In September of 2018 Hurricane Florence wreaked some havoc, but it all seems to have been sorted out.

Ethan Cloud

The lighthouse was neat. We were unable to go up into it on account of there were thunderstorms throughout the day and they do not allow tours if lightning has flashed in the last 30minutes. The lighthouse keepers quarters has a lot of historical information and was a neat stop along the south end of the island.

Brian Conlon

This is a must see! Take the ferry out to lookout point, you will often see the wild horse on shakelford island. Lookout point is, its self is beautiful place with very limited human development. The view from the top is amazing, but it's a spiral staircase from bottom to top, so pack a lunch, just kidding, but it is a climb, but well worth it.

Dean MIller

Beautiful place to go and spend the day.will be back.

Tommy McClard

Must do trip.

Adam Huskey

Beautiful place we will be back

Kitty Dollar

Beautiful area

Chrisanna Barrett

Amazing

Joe Watson

Wow!!! Amazing visit to The Cape Lookout lighthouse National Park. We took the ferry from Harkas Island to the Cape. It only took 15 minutes and they dropped us off right at the lighthouse dock. From the top you can see forever and then some. The rangers informed us that there are three different types of stairs that we have to encounter on our climb to the top. They are definitely helpful and safety is top priority. As you climb, there are other rangers along the way to help you if you need. Amazing time, if you are ever in the area, GO!!!

gary a. usher

Spent 9 days beach camping here. Beautiful secluded beaches the way nature intended. A real slice of heaven! Too bad Florida didn't preserve some areas like this. Even if you just make it a day trip it's worth the time to visit.

Lydia Jenkins

Nice ferry ride from Harker's Island. Pretty location

Rick Nobers

Will need to take a ferry from Beaufort to get here. A commerical ferry typically takes you between Shackleford Banks and Harkers Island. Shackleford has wild horses and is also a great place to pickup shells. The ferry companies usually make a stop here before getting to Cape Lookout. Cape Lookout has the the lighthouse of course and you are able to swim on both sides of the island. Sound side is calm and ocean side can be rough and dangerous. This is the perfect place to do water riding activities per my younger days. Yes you can bring your equipment etc onto the ferry. Can bring pets onto the island. Can bring food for picnics too. The entire area is well maintained to almost being immaculate considering hurricanes pound this yearly. A good half day trip.

Sherry Smith

Excellent family vacation spot!

Debi Rains

awesome place

tony tucker

Nice place, friendly staff, good for whole family

Daniela Ladinos

Beautiful, worth the whole trip would definitely recommend to take the time to visit :)

David Goldman

Great spot that takes you back in time

Robert Zorzi

Awe inspiring natural beaury. Just a quick day trip about one hour drive from The White House on Freedom Way. Get some fresh air and feel nature all around you. Simply spectacular.

Cindy Gaines

Beautiful, but the ferry is a little pricey

Deian Tabakov

From the lighthouse you have great view of the island.

Debra Harwell-Braun

Great place to visit. Climbed the lighthouse for a spectacular view and photos. People here are always hospitable and helpful.

Brenda Parker

It was a beautiful place. It cost to go up in the lighthouse. Absolutely worth the trip.

Thomas Turner

First encounter with Outer Banks. It was great. Unspoiled island with time and expanse to explore...what happened and what's happening. Volunteers have a lot of info to share and are very helpful.

juju edwards

Loved it

Gregory Stiller

Although I can no longer enjoy climbing stairs and such it was and is a beautiful place to visit. Nice Rangers on duty.

Paul Mack

Wild horses and the feeling it could be 1880 or 2000BC

Brian O

Great day at lighthouse. Nice beach.

tommy jordan

Light house, beach, history, privacy....sun and fun.

Me Zony

This place is amazing for fishers. If you want to catch fish come here and let the feeling begin!

Tom Carlin

Excellent natural resource, beautiful and tranquil.

Cheryl Mann

CAPE LOOKOUT IS ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL it's something you need to go and see in person I do not know what mile marker is it is maybe one of the others looking can tell you but it is it is something awesome to see when you go to the very top and sink the ground under is gorgeous I do believe you right only love it

Elena Bambaeva

Absolutely beautiful, even though the lighthouse was closed when we visited, we truly enjoyed our trip!

finwe90

Beautiful scenery. Nice clean air. The beach is gorgeous. The lighthouse is ravishing. The ferry ride was bumpy but pleasant. Stopped by Shackleford bank to look at the wild horses before docking. The sanctuary facilities were clean and maintained. The lighthouse keeper building had some great history and facts about the place in it. Would come here again, definitly.

Jason Floyd

Very peaceful

Timothy W.

So beautiful, hot, and a lighthouse.....winning.

Debra Anderson

Beautiful beach, water & sky. The views from the top of the lighthouse are spectacular!

James Bischer

Great place to visit!

Michael Coffield

One of a kind!