Kitty Hawk Hotels: Where to Stay in North Carolina

Looking for hotels in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina? The list is short. We confirmed three hotels and resorts inside the town limits, and each has a different style. This guide covers all three, explains why three old listings no longer belong on a Kitty Hawk list, and shows how to pick a base. Rates change daily and by season, so we do not quote them. Use the Expedia link below to compare current prices.

Compare Kitty Hawk, North Carolina hotels on Expedia

Where to Stay in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina

Hotels in Kitty Hawk We Could Confirm

Kitty Hawk sits on the Northern Outer Banks. Kill Devil Hills lies to the south and Southern Shores lies to the north, according to the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau. The town has a mix of residential streets, rental homes, hotels, motels and campgrounds.

Three hotels showed up in more than one independent listing with a Kitty Hawk street address. We list each below with the facts the sources agree on. Where a detail came from a single source, we say so.

Hilton Garden Inn Outer Banks/Kitty Hawk

The address is 5353 North Virginia Dare Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949. The phone number is 252-261-1290. Travel Weekly, Hotel Guides and the Outer Banks lodging directory all give the same address and number.

Travel Weekly and Hotel Guides both list 180 rooms, check-in at 4:00 PM and check-out at 11:00 AM. Both also list an indoor pool, a seasonal outdoor pool and an exercise room. Free self parking and free Wi-Fi are listed too. Every room has a microwave and a refrigerator, according to Hotel Guides.

Hotel Guides says the on-site restaurant serves breakfast and dinner and a tiki bar opens in summer. The Outer Banks lodging directory says breakfast is not part of the room rate, so ask what your booking includes.

Pets are the one point where sources differ. Hotel Guides says pets are not allowed. Travel Weekly and the Outer Banks lodging directory say pets are allowed, and one guest review mentions a pet fee. Call the hotel before you bring a dog.

The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau says the town’s one wooden fishing pier is open only to guests of this hotel and to pass holders. Guests here also get beach access, according to Travel Weekly. This hotel suits couples and groups who want a full-service stay with a beach nearby.

Holiday Inn Express Kitty Hawk Outer Banks

The address is 3915 North Croatan Highway, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949. Travel Weekly lists the phone number as 252-261-4888. Travel Weekly and Hotel Guides agree on the address, on 98 rooms, on check-in at 4:00 PM and on check-out at 11:00 AM.

Hotel Guides lists a free hot breakfast buffet, free parking, free Wi-Fi, an exercise room and a seasonal outdoor pool. Each room has a microwave and a refrigerator. The same page says the hotel does not allow pets. Hotel Guides also says the hotel stands about one block from the beach. We found only one source for the beach claim, so confirm the walk when you call.

This hotel works well for families and road trippers who want breakfast included and a simple room.

Beachwoods Resort, a Hilton Vacation Club

Beachwoods is an all-suite condo resort at 1 Cypress Knee Trail, Kitty Hawk, NC 27949. Hilton Grand Vacations, Travel Weekly and Hotel Guides list the same address. The phone number is 252-261-4610.

Our older version of this post called the resort Beachwoods by Diamond Resort. Hilton Grand Vacations now lists the property as Beachwoods, a Hilton Vacation Club. Older names may still appear on some booking sites. We found no source for when the name changed, so treat the new name as current.

Hilton Grand Vacations lists one, two, three and four bedroom suites with full kitchens. The one bedroom suites have a king bed and a private balcony or patio. The resort lists indoor and outdoor pools, a hot tub, a splash pad, a lazy river, a fitness center, a game room, sports courts and a fishing area. Travel Weekly describes the grounds as a resort in a maritime forest between the Atlantic Ocean and Currituck Sound.

Hilton Grand Vacations and Travel Weekly both give check-in at 4:00 PM and check-out at 10:00 AM. Hotel Guides lists the same times. Hilton Grand Vacations says the resort has a dedicated parking lot at Kitty Hawk Beach. The sources do not state a walking distance to the sand, so ask when you book.

Hotel Guides lists a daily resort fee and says pets are not allowed. Confirm both by phone because policies change. This resort suits families and longer stays where a kitchen saves money on meals.

Old Favorites Outside Kitty Hawk or Unconfirmed

Our earlier post listed three more properties. We removed them for the reasons below.

The Sanderling Resort has its own website, which lists events and offers. The address is 1461 Duck Road, Duck, NC 27949. The town of Duck is a separate community north of Kitty Hawk. Hotel Guides describes the drive from Kitty Hawk as 12 miles to the northwest. The resort site lists a spa, several restaurants and complimentary bicycles. We could not find check-in times, so call the resort at 855-412-7866 for them.

Barrier Island Station is also in Duck, at 1245 Duck Road. Travel Weekly lists indoor and outdoor pools, a hot tub, a health club and kitchens in the units. The listing does not confirm whether the resort is open now, so we do not recommend booking without a phone call. The number shown is 252-261-8101.

Dunes Inn and Oceanfront Suites did not appear in any Kitty Hawk hotel listing we checked. We found no address, phone number or official site. We dropped the property. If you know the Dunes Inn is open, tell us and we will check again.

Motels Near Kitty Hawk in Kill Devil Hills

Travelers who want a motel style stay often look south. Hotel Guides lists several budget brands in Kill Devil Hills, the next town south of Kitty Hawk. The list includes Days Inn Oceanfront Mariner at 1801 North Virginia Dare Trail, Travelodge Outer Banks at 804 North Virginia Dare Trail, and Quality Inn Carolina Oceanfront at 401 North Virginia Dare Trail. Hotel Guides also lists Comfort Inn on the Ocean at 1601 South Virginia Dare Trail.

We checked these addresses against a second booking directory, which also lists Days Inn, Travelodge and Comfort Inn properties in Kill Devil Hills. We did not confirm room details, so call before you book. The page gives no exact distances from Kitty Hawk.

Where to Stay Near the Wright Brothers National Memorial

The Wright Brothers National Memorial marks the site of the first powered flights on December 17, 1903. The National Park Service lists the address as 1401 National Park Drive, Manteo, NC 27954 and the phone as 252-473-2111. The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau says the flights took place on the outskirts of Kitty Hawk.

The visitor center has a Flight Room with a reproduction 1903 Wright Flyer. Rangers offer talks. You can see reproductions of the brothers’ camp buildings, the takeoff spot and Big Kill Devil Hill, where the monument stands.

The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau lists hours of 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM daily and closures on Memorial Day, Independence Day and Christmas Day. The park service page does not list hours, so call before you go. Entry fees apply to adults. We leave the amounts out because fees change.

Any of the three hotels above works as a base for this visit. We did not find a sourced drive time from each hotel, so check a map.

Things to Do Near Kitty Hawk Hotels

The Kitty Hawk Woods Coastal Reserve is a maritime forest on the Albemarle Sound side of town. The North Carolina Coastal Reserve says visitors can hike, study nature and kayak. Pets must stay on a leash. The reserve is closed from sunset to sunrise. The state agency lists four trailheads with roadside parking. The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau gives the reserve as 1,824 acres while the state page says 1,890 acres, so the sources disagree on size.

Jockey’s Ridge State Park lies in Nags Head, not Kitty Hawk. North Carolina State Parks lists day use as free. The park offers hiking, sandboarding and hang gliding, with registration required for hang gliding. The visitor center opens daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and closes on Christmas Day. The park phone number is 252-573-6108.

The town of Kitty Hawk lists about a dozen public beach accesses with parking, including Byrd Street and the Kitty Hawk Bath House at 3840 North Virginia Dare Trail. The Bath House has public restrooms and showers. Lifeguards work from Memorial Day to Labor Day, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The town bans driving on the beach, glass and fires. Surfers must wear a leash. Swimmers must stay out of the water when red flags fly.

Where to Eat Around Kitty Hawk

The Outer Banks Visitors Bureau names Bad Bean Baja Grill for Baja style tacos, Black Pelican Restaurant and Catering for seafood and wood-fired pizza, The Pony and The Boat for local seafood and comfort food, and TRiO Restaurant and Market for salads and sandwiches. We did not verify current hours for any of them. Check each restaurant before you go.

How to Choose a Hotel in Kitty Hawk, NC

Pick Hilton Garden Inn Outer Banks/Kitty Hawk if you want a larger hotel with a restaurant and indoor pool. Pick Holiday Inn Express if you want breakfast and a simple room. Pick Beachwoods if you want a kitchen and space for a group.

If you want a motel style stay, look at Kill Devil Hills. If you want a resort with a spa, look at Duck and call ahead. Book early for summer weekends. Ask each property for the total cost, including resort fees and parking, because policies differ.

Check pet rules by phone. Our sources disagree for the Hilton Garden Inn, and the other two properties list no pets.

What We Checked and What We Could Not

We read hotel listings from Travel Weekly and Hotel Guides, the Hilton Grand Vacations resort pages, the Outer Banks lodging directory, the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, the National Park Service, North Carolina State Parks, the North Carolina Coastal Reserve and the Town of Kitty Hawk.

Several official hotel sites blocked our tools, so we relied on directories for some details. We could not confirm walking distances, shuttle service, the current status of Barrier Island Station or the existence of the Dunes Inn. We also left out every price. Call each property for the latest check-in rules, fees and pet policy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Hotels in Kitty Hawk are few but varied. Hilton Garden Inn Outer Banks/Kitty Hawk offers a full-service stay, Holiday Inn Express offers breakfast and simple rooms, and Beachwoods offers condo suites with kitchens. Sanderling and Barrier Island Station sit in Duck, and we could not confirm the Dunes Inn at all. Call before you book and compare current rates on Expedia.