Wrightsville Beach
Wrightsville Beach, NC
Just east of Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach occupies its own barrier island, close enough for a day trip and lively enough to feel like a real destination. The surf breaks steady near Johnnie Mercer's Pier, and by mid morning in July the sand around it is shoulder to shoulder with paddleboards, surfboards, and beach chairs.
The surf at the pier is genuinely good and the town stays walkable, but summer parking is expensive and gone by mid morning, which is the complaint every local repeats.
How we score beachesMeters run March through October and only take card or the Text2Park app, so have your phone ready. Park a block or two off Lumina Avenue and the walk to the sand is barely longer than the lot right at the pier.
Metered parking runs $5 an hour or $25 a day at most lots, more near the pier, enforced daily from March through October. Spots off the main drag fill by mid morning in summer, though there's no charge to access the beach itself.
Public accesses along Lumina Avenue drop straight onto the sand from the street, no boardwalk or stairs involved, though the sand itself is soft enough that a wheelchair will need help.
Dogs are allowed on Wrightsville Beach only from October 1 through March 31, always on a leash, with waste bag stations at most accesses.
Summer water climbs into the upper 70s by August, warm enough that locals mostly swim in the shoulder months instead, when the crowds thin and the metered lots actually have room. Hurricane season runs June through November, worth checking before a late summer trip.
More Atlantic Coast beaches
Coast Guard Beach
Eastham, MA · Atlantic Coast
A National Seashore beach backed by grassy dunes and a tidal marsh, with clean Atlantic surf and one of the Cape's most scenic approaches on foot from the parking area.
Surfside Beach
Nantucket, MA · Atlantic Coast
Open Atlantic swell and a wide sandy shoreline about three miles from Nantucket town, popular with locals for its bodysurfing waves and quieter, less commercial feel.
Jones Beach State Park
Wantagh, NY · Atlantic Coast
A classic Long Island beach with six and a half miles of shoreline, a landmark water tower, boardwalk, and a large outdoor amphitheater that hosts concerts through the summer.