Carrboro, NC Road Trips

The town began as a small village of a thousand people consisting of mostly Scottish and English immigrants arriving in the area during the 1700s; the village took its name from the New Hope Chapel, which happened to be situated on a hill (the Carolina Inn of Chapel Hill now stands where the chapel once was). The town was founded in 1819 to support the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill and later was incorporated in 1851. The adjacent town of Carrboro was settled in the 1880s around a spur rail line built to serve the university; the town is named for Julian Carr, who purchased a local cotton mill and installed electricity in the town. Today, Carrboro is where many UNC students live, owing to its cheaper rents, and is home to the Weaver Street Market (a local co-op), a popular farmers' market, plenty of bars and restaurants, and a bunch of festivals. Like much of the rest of the Piedmont, the landscape is hilly and heavily wooded, becoming very lush and green in the summer months. Politically, Chapel Hill is liberal compared to much of North Carolina. Although legend says that the town became liberal when a Union general married former UNC President Swain’s daughter, Chapel Hill’s liberal politics are similar to many US college towns and are bolstered by nearby Carrboro, which is known for being a bastion of liberalism in the state.

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Often considered one of the best public schools in the United States, UNC is also one of three schools that claim to be the oldest public university in the US. While it was the second public university to receive a state charter (in 1789), after the University of Georgia, it was the first public university to start classes (in 1795) and graduate students (1798). The campus is divided into three sections: North (between Franklin Street and South Road), Middle (between South Road and the UNC Hospital and Manning Drive) and South (from Manning Drive south, including the UNC Hospital). The North campus, the oldest, is quite scenic, with plenty of brick buildings and beautifully landscaped. The main quad runs north-south through the North campus and is lined with lovely academic buildings, and is home to the 1 Old Well, a small rotunda modeled after the Temple of Love of the Palace of Versailles, and 2 Old East, built in 1793 and the oldest building on the campus (now a highly in-demand residence hall). 3 The Pit. The center of activity on campus is a small plaza between the bookstore, the student union, a dining hall, and a library. On school days, The Pit becomes crowded with tables for student organizations, activists and demonstrators giving speeches, or performers making use of the sunken courtyard in the middle of the space. 4 Morehead–Patterson Bell Tower, South Road. An impressive brick clock tower which chimes on the quarter-hour.

1 Varsity Theater, 123 E Franklin Street, ☏ +1 919-967-8665. Historic movie theater that opened in 1927 on Franklin Street and has been renovated. The two-screen theater plays second-runs of major Hollywood hits along with classic features at the low price of $3. Concessions remain reasonably priced and, much to UNC students' delight, the new ownership began serving craft beer to go along with their flicks. Halloween on Franklin Street. On Halloween night, Chapel Hill hosts a huge street party with thousands dressing in costume and hanging out on Franklin Street. Although not an event sponsored by the Town of Chapel Hill, Franklin Street is closed to all vehicular traffic and restaurants and bars stay open late in order to accommodate the huge crowd of revelers. 2 Tar Heels Basketball, Dean Smith Center (on the south end of UNC Chapel Hill's campus, off Manning Drive), ☏ +1 919-962-7777. Home to the national powerhouse in men's college basketball - the Tar Heels. The arena is named for basketball legend and former head coach Dean Smith but is lovingly referred to by students and residents of Chapel Hill simply as "the Dean Dome". The arena is open to the public and a must for any sports-lover. With over 100 years of basketball in Chapel Hill, six national championship banners proudly hang from the rafters, along with endless NCAA honors and retired jerseys - the stadium boasts an impressive collection, including that of Michael Jordan, a sports legend. 3 Tar Heels Football, Kenan Memorial Stadium (in South campus, on Stadium Drive off of South Road).

Many restaurants in Chapel Hill are on Franklin Street and the roads nearby Franklin Street, but some restaurants are away from Franklin and others can be found in residential neighborhoods such as Meadowmont and Southern Village within the Chapel Hill city limits. If you need to use a bathroom on Franklin Street, remember that most restaurants require a food purchase before using their bathroom facilities, even on nights such as Halloween and nights where Franklin Street shuts down for bonfires (i.e. if the UNC men's basketball team wins against Duke University). If ordering delivery, consider restaurants in Durham too – some of them deliver to Chapel Hill. 1 Buns, 107 N. Columbia Street, ☏ +1 919-240-4746. M-Th 11AM-10PM, F Sa 11AM-3AM, Su 11AM-9PM. The perfect place to have delicious burger and fries. All the food is prepared everyday to guarantee the freshness, the portions are big, and the huge basket of large fries is one of the better (and more affordable) group meals in town. The dipping sauces are fantastic; their chipotle mayo is a favorite. 2 Cosmic Cantina, 128 East Franklin Street (at the back of a small shopping center, tucked down a narrow walkway), ☏ +1 919-960-3955. Daily 11AM-4AM. A small burrito joint that's the sister location to the original in Durham. The veggie burrito is quite affordable. The restaurant often prints discount coupons in magazines such as The Independent Weekly and also has alcoholic drink specials. 3 The Pig, 630 Weaver Dairy Rd, ☏ +1 919-942-1133. M-Sa 11AM-9PM.

Being a college town, Chapel Hill and adjacent Carrboro have more than their fair share of bars. All the nightlife options are sandwiched along Franklin and Rosemary Streets in Chapel Hill and Main Street in Carrboro, with Thursday and Saturday nights being the busiest. 1 He's Not Here, 112 West Franklin Street, ☏ +1 919-942-7939. Su-Th 4PM-2AM, F Sa 2PM-2AM. This is where Michael Jordan comes when he's in town, but you'll keep coming back for the 32 oz (910 g) Blue Cup. Tucked away from the street, with a nice courtyard space big enough for the regular frat parties that occur here. 2 Linda's, 203 E Franklin St, ☏ +1 919-933-6663. M 11:30AM-midnight, Tu-F 11:30AM-2AM, Sa 5PM-2AM, Su 5PM-midnight. A bar with a relaxed atmosphere, a good selection of beers on tap, and cheap prices, although the real attraction here is the bar food, which includes fried okra and sweet potato tater tots. 3 Zog's, 108 Henderson St, ☏ +1 919-933-8252. Daily 5PM-2AM. Cozy place with a good beer selection and an excellent place to play pool. The decor is rather eclectic and there's also board games, darts, and a craft box. The most convenient option in Chapel Hill is 4 Starbucks, in the middle of town near the intersection of Franklin Street and Columbia Road and is regularly open. There are other coffee shops in the downtown area and on the UNC campus. If you are on campus, one option sits on the western edge of campus: 5 Friends Cafe in the Health Sciences Library at 335 S Columbia St. However, hours are limited once school is out of session.

Most accommodations in Chapel Hill are of the chain variety. If you want to stay in the center of town, you have three options, and they tend to be expensive: the Carolina Inn and the Franklin Hotel in Chapel Hill, and a Hampton Inn in Carrboro. There are cheaper accommodations on two of the main roads out of town, Highway 15-501 and Raleigh Road, positioned to take advantage of their proximity to I-40, and driving into town from one of these will be all but necessary as bus service on the edge of town can be inconvenient at best. 1 Chapel Hill University Inn, 1301 N Fordham Blvd, ☏ +1 919-929-2171. On-site pool, restaurant, meeting facilities. Pet-friendly rooms. $70-100. 2 Days Inn, 1312 N Fordham Blvd, ☏ +1 919-929-3090. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. More often than not, this is the cheapest place to stay in Chapel Hill if you don't know anyone to crash with. Basic chain accommodations. Near a few grocery stores and stops on the D/F bus lines, although this isn't a very walkable part of town. $70-130. 3 Holiday Inn Express, 6119 Farrington Rd (near NC-54 and I-40), toll-free: +1-877-834-3613. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. Has access to the pool at the (nicer) hotel next door. Free hot breakfast, clean rooms, and good wi-fi. $90-130. 4 Hampton Inn & Suites, 370 East Main Street, Carrboro, ☏ +1 919-969-6988. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. A hotel near the center of Carrboro, and within easy walking distance of Franklin Street and the UNC campus. Free breakfast, internet fitness center, outdoor pool, meeting space. $150-200.

Interstate 40 passes along the north and east side of Chapel Hill, with three exits: NC 86 (Exit 266), US 15/501 (Exit 270), and NC 54 (Exit 273). From the west, NC 86 (which becomes Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd in Chapel Hill) is the best exit. Be warned that Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd is a notorious speed trap through Chapel Hill, where the speed limit is only 35 mph (56 km/h) despite the road being designed to handle much faster speeds. From the east (say, Raleigh or the Research Triangle Park), NC 54 (which becomes Raleigh Road) is a good option. Coming from Durham, US 15/501 is the most direct route. The nearest commercial airport is Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU IATA), a 20-minute drive to the east in Morrisville, just off I-40. RDU has two terminals; Terminal 1 services budget carrier Southwest, while the more modern and architecturally impressive Terminal 2 services American Airlines/American Eagle, Delta, Frontier, JetBlue, and United. Both terminals have restaurants, newsstands and smaller versions of North Carolinian stores such as A Southern Season and the ACC Store. RDU also has rental car services and overnight car parking. If taking public transit, Triangle Transit route #100 takes you from the airport to the Regional Transit Center, where you can then transfer to #800 or #805 to Chapel Hill. The nearest Amtrak stop is in Durham, which is served by the New York City-Charlotte Carolinian line and the Raleigh-Charlotte Piedmont line.

The UNC campus and the downtown area are very pleasantly walkable, but going further afield largely requires transportation by car. Anything outside the immediate Franklin Street downtown area can be frustrating on foot, with long distances and fast-moving car traffic. Grocery stores are a fairly long walk from downtown Chapel Hill, although downtown Carrboro is served by the Weaver Street Market and a Harris Teeter. Limited public transit service around town is provided by the fare-free Chapel Hill Transit bus system. Curb parking in the downtown area is available but often full, especially while school is in session, making it hard to find a spot. Paid lots and garages are available along Rosemary Street, just north of Franklin Street. Outside of the downtown area, parking is very easy to find. Chapel Hill Transit, ☏ +1 919-969-4900, [email protected]. Routes go through Chapel Hill, Carrboro and the UNC campus. Buses run on weekdays, with limited service on Saturdays and virtually no service on Sundays save for two routes circulating around the UNC campus. Service tends to be less reliable at night, on weekends and times when there is a football or men’s basketball game. For those particular home games, many Chapel Hill Transit buses are used for the Tar Heel Express, a park-and-ride service to UNC football and men's basketball games.