1. The Fearrington House Inn
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (919) 542-2121
Address: 2000 Fearrington Village Center
Description: At the heart of Fearrington Village, between Chapel Hill and Pittsboro, the Fearrington House Inn is a member of the prestigious Relais & Chateaux group. Its 35 rooms and eight suites overlook well-tended gardens and greens of the village. Decor runs to English country, with flourishes like marble accents in the bathrooms and heated towel racks. Included with the room rate are breakfast and afternoon tea in the Fearrington House Restaurant, a nightly turndown with port wine and truffles, and high-speed wireless Internet access. Guests may use the village’s Duke Center for Living fitness facility, and the inn arranges in-room massage services. The inn is wheelchair accessible and allows pets. Shopping in the village includes McIntyre’s bookstore, Dovecote garden shop, and the Belted Goat gift shop, which sells merchandise featuring Fearrington’s trademark “Oreo” cows, including miniature stuffed replicas. Squeeze them, and they moo. The Fearrington House is one of two AAA Five-Diamond award winners in the state.
2. Rosemary House B&B
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (888) 643-2017
Address: 76 W. St.
Description: A block from Pittsboro’s downtown traffic circle, the 1912 Colonial Revival inn sits on a quiet yard under towering sugar maples. The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Its long-time second owners rented rooms to patients who came for treatment at the hospital that stood across the street. The current owners renovated the house in 2000. The inn has five rooms, all with private bathrooms. Two are outfitted with two-person soaking tubs. Decor includes hand-painted furniture, claw-foot tubs, and antique bed frames. Breakfast, high-speed wireless Internet, television, ironing board, and hair dryer are included in the room. The Rosemary offers discounts for last-minute reservations and extended stays. An afternoon tea service is available for a separate fee.
3. Shakori Hills Spring Festival
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Annual Events & Festivals
Telephone: (919) 542-8142
Address: 1439 Henderson Tanyard Rd.
Description: Once in the spring and once in the fall, the fields and woods of the Shakori Hills grounds near Silk Hope, in Chatham County, fill with hundreds of campers, music lovers, and enthusiastic environmentalists for this four-day festival. The lineup of more than 60 performers can include such diverse acts as pop stars Arrested Development, alt-country pickers Chatham County Line, and jam band Donna the Buffalo. If the event had an aura, it would definitely be green. At the Sustainability Pavilion, festival-goers can hear speakers talk about such topics as eco-friendly building practices, composting techniques, and public transportation initiatives. There’s a hippie vibe but it’s very family friendly, with a number of bands and performers geared to children. Kids can participate in activities in the Kids Zone, including face painting, art projects, storytelling, and learning wilderness survival skills. Local vendors sell coffee and a variety of food, from curried rice to crepes. A biodiesel-fueled shuttle ferries folks who choose not to camp to and from stops in Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Durham. Admission ranges from $95 for a four-day adult pass to between $22 and $36 for one-day passes, depending on the day. A four-day pass for ages 13 to 15 is $45, with one-day passes ranging from $11 to $18. Children 12 and younger get in free. Vehicle camping is $60 per day.
4. Shakori Hills Fall Festival
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Annual Events & Festivals
Telephone: (919) 542-8142
Address: 1439 Henderson Tanyard Rd.
Description: This fall version of the Shakori Hills festival is much like the spring event. Admission ranges from $95 for a four-day adult pass to between $22 and $36 for one-day passes, depending on the day. A four-day pass for ages 13 to 15 is $45, with one-day passes ranging from $11 to $18. Children 12 and younger get in free. Vehicle camping is $60 per day.
5. Central Carolina Community College
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Education
Telephone: (800) 682-8353
Address: 764 W. St.
Description: Central Carolina Community College has sites in three counties, including Chatham. The Pittsboro campus has a focus on sustainability education and offers coursework in the fields of sustainable agriculture and alternative fuel technology. A culinary arts program is planned for the campus. Chatham County Small Business Center is located at the campus.
6. Chathamarts Gallery
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (919) 542-4144
Address: 115 Hillsboro St.
Description: ChathamArts supports the work of artists in Chatham County by staging community events and festivals, providing a directory for artists, working with the area schools on arts education programs, and offering art and craft classes. The organization operates a gallery in downtown Pittsboro’s historic district that features the work of more than 90 Chatham County community artists and writers. An opening reception on the first Sunday of each month introduces a new art exhibition.
7. Mcintyre’S Fine Books
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Nightlife
Telephone: (919) 542-3030
Address: 2000 Fearrington Village Center
8. The Fearrington House Restaurant
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Restaurants
Telephone: (919) 542-2121
Address: 2000 Fearrington Village Center
Description: Set in a restored farmhouse, surrounded by the immaculate and beautiful grounds of Fearrington Village, dinner at Fearrington House is a special occasion, whether or not it’s your birthday. Lush linens, European antiques, and glowing wall sconces set the mood in each of the small dining areas. The menu changes frequently, and the chef incorporates local produce, meat, and game. Traditional dishes like beef tenderloin come with smoked wild mushroom ragout and foie gras, atop a decidedly Southern mix of spaghetti squash, turnips, and sweet potatoes. Seared North Carolina mountain trout gets dressed up with herb gnocchi and a bed of leeks and butternut squash. The presentation and service are flawless, and the wine list is wide ranging. It often includes a few choices from North Carolina’s growing wine region, one of the few in the area that does.
9. French Connections
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (919) 545-9296
Address: 178 Hillsboro St.
Description: Antiques from France, art from Senegal, and baskets from half a dozen African countries are among the treasures you’ll find at French Connections. The shop also carries a range of hard-to-find fabrics, including French florals and African batiks. The owners are a married couple. He is a South African–born Frenchman, and she is from North Carolina. Their shop, housed in a turn-of-the-20th-century house in downtown Pittsboro, reflects their travels and passions.
10. Mcintyre’S Fine Books
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (919) 542-3030
Address: 2000 Fearrington Village Center
Description: In keeping with the aesthetic of the carefully tended village that surrounds it, McIntyre’s is the picture-book ideal of a bookshop. Follow the redbrick path to the front door, step inside, and find your way to in a wingback chair by the fire where you can settle in with a prospective purchase. The shop carries a good selection of young adult and children’s books and a strong collection of mystery fiction, among other genres. The shop is a frequent stop for national and local authors. The store’s programming includes storytime for preschoolers and open mic night for readers and writers.
11. Chathamarts Gallery
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (919) 542-4144
Address: 115 Hillsboro St.
Description: Scores of artist and crafts makers who work in studios scattered about the wooded countryside of Chatham County show their works at ChathamArts Gallery in historic downtown Pittsboro. The Chatham County Art Council operates the gallery and exhibiting artists must live or work in the county. Art includes painting, photography, glassworks, textile art, metal work, stained glass, and more. The gallery exhibits new works monthly, and holds an opening reception on the first Sunday of each month from noon to 5 p.m.
12. Missy Mclamb Gallery
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (919) 755-1117
Address: 403 W. Camden, Fearrington Village
Description: The de facto official wedding photographer for Fearrington Village, Missy McLamb features her work and the work of other photographers in her gallery in the village. McLamb, whose clients have included Stephen King and former U.S. Senator John Edwards, employs a documentary approach in her wedding photography. Past exhibits have included a retrospective of 10 years’ worth of wedding cake photos and candid portraits of children.
13. Carolina Tiger Rescue
City: Pittsboro, NC
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (919) 542-4684
Address: 1940 Hanks Chapel Rd.
Description: Carolina Tiger Rescue is a wildlife sanctuary that has 72 animals—tigers, caracals, servals, ocelots, binturongs, and kinkajous. The preserve is about 3½ miles east of Pittsboro on 55 acres. All the preserve’s cats have been abandoned by previous owners or are unable to survive in the wild due to physical impairment or prolonged captivity. The group opposes keeping wildcats in captivity as pets or entertainment. Part of its mission is to educate visitors about the perils of keeping wildcats.Guided tours are offered by advance reservation during the day on Saturday and Sunday, and in cooler months at twilight on Saturday. The twilight tours are the best time to catch the creatures while they are active. Participation in the twilight tours is for ages 13 and older only.