Is a fun family vacation possible in Cary NC area? (Raleigh: sale, real estate)
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, CaryThe Triangle Area
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My wife and I are looking to visit the areas of Cary, Apex, and Holly Springs, NC this summer with our two girls (ages 7 and 4) to make sure we really like the area before a possible relocation. We are both burnt out from work and the daily grind so we'd also like to make it a fun and relaxing trip for the whole family. We don't want to look at model homes the entire time. I was hoping we'd be able to find some place within maybe 30 minutes from those areas, where we could spend time by a pool or waterpark/resort, and then when we feel like it, drive through the towns I mentioned to check out houses and different neighborhoods. But, I've been searching all over the internet and can't seem to find anything to do really that is close by.
There is a small water park in Greensboro, about an hour or so away. Hiking in the Uwhairrie National Forest, an hour and a half or so away. NC Zoo in Asheboro about an hour away. NC Museum of Natural Science in downtown Raleigh. Museum of Life and Science in Durham.
Maybe you should look at the community events/ parks and rec websites for each of the towns to see if there is anything appealing during your travel dates. That would be a good chance to find out what the community offers in regards to parks and rec.
If I were you I'd spend a few days at the beach or in the mountains, then drive to the Triangle. Your'e not really going to find much in the way of "relaxing vacation" type places around the Triangle.
Cary isn't resort-like, but there area has a lot of fun things for kids.
If I were you, I'd look for a hotel with a beautiful pool and make that the base for fun and relaxation. Then take the kids to visit our stellar museums, many of which are FREE. Then visit Bond Park in Cary for a day of boating on the lake. In this way you'll get to know more about the area than just the real estate, and the kids can see how much fun it is to live in this area.
Lifetime Fitness does have an absolutely beautiful, resort style pool area with a big water slide. You might want to inquire about day passes.
The Embassy Suites in Cary is a very popular base for exploration.
It gives easy access to DT Raleigh, to Durham, and to local parks and amenities.
And, has an indoor pool, perfect for young kids.
We ended up in Wake forest in that area after leaving the hurricane in Fl. It was literally the first place we could feel completely safe and where we could get gas as up to NC there had been no gas. I have a fondness for our family time here and we actually looked at the area to live as we were kind of in a flux not really knowing what were going to decide. So, I'm coming at this from a family of camping enthusiasts. I can't think of a more stressful time for us to have been in and a more relaxing time with so much fun we have had in a long time, despite that. We stayed at the state park there (we got special permission with some other Floridians to extend after two weeks) but even looked at going over to Jordan Lake for another week while we were deciding. Wonderful place and my kids (16 and 19) really had a lot of fun with camp fires every night and hikes. Everyone was just lovely.
We tried to look at the area to live and honestly we did love it but it was not something that was economical for us to purchase a home from the sale of our home in Fl at the prices nearer the city areas and still keep a good savings in our retirement. We did look though and tried to get to know the area. If you love nature, this place is really wonderful.
There's stuff to do but the area is kind of spread out...I like m378 idea of a few days at the beach or in the mountains to regroup and then back here to explore. The Embassy Suites Mike mentioned has a great indoor pool, free breakfast and happy hour each evening. There's a small basketball court out back as well.
In addition to already mentioned ideas, there's Pullen Park in Raleigh, Bond Park in Cary, a couple of trampoline places, a water park in southern Cary....minor league baseball in Durham, college campuses to walk around (always found that was a good way to work off some energy when our kids were little)...
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
