Greenville, NC Road Trips

Not to be confused with Greenville, South Carolina, Greenville, North Carolina boasts a vibrant business community including the campus of East Carolina University. Because of these factors, Greenville is often ranked among the top places nationally to play, bike, and study. In 2004, Greenville was named Sportstown USA for the state of North Carolina by Sports Illustrated and the National Parks & Recreation Association. The city is also known as "BMX Pro Town USA", as it is home for many top professional BMX riders, such as Dave Mirra, Ryan Nyquist, Ryan Guettler, Mike Laird, and Josh Harrington. It's also home to famous YouTuber MrBeast.

1 Emerge Gallery & Art Center, 404 S Evans St (corner of Evans St and 4th St), ☏ +1 252 551-6947, [email protected]. M closed, Tu-F 10AM-9PM, Sa 10AM-4PM, Su 1-4PM. Art gallery featuring works from local artists. Periodically holds special community events. Free. 2 Greenville Museum of Art, 802 South Evans St., ☏ +1 252 758-1946, [email protected]. Tu-F 10AM-4:30PM, Sa 1-4PM. Free. 3 River Park North, 1000 Mumford Rd, ☏ +1 252 329-4560, fax: +1 252 329-4547. Nov-Feb 8AM-5PM, Mar-Apr 7AM-7PM (closed Mondays). 324 acre park located along the north shore of the Tar River. Has a large open field with a small playground. Offers several nature trails, camp grounds, ponds, and picnic shelters with grills. Picnic shelters and pedal boats are available by reservation with a fee. Fishing, a private boat dock, and camp sites are all available for a fee.

1 East Carolina Pirates, Old Pirate Club Building (between Gates 1 and 2 of Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium), ☏ +1 252 737-4500, toll-free: +1 800 DIAL-ECU (3425-328), [email protected]. M–F 9AM-5PM. Sports teams of East Carolina University, fielding 9 men's and 11 women's NCAA Division I sports, mostly in the American Athletic Conference. The most popular sport is football, in which the Pirates typically make bowl games about as often as not, but basketball and baseball are also significant draws (as at most big schools). Almost all athletic venues are on campus, with the most notable being Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium (football) and Minges Coliseum, home to several indoor sports, with basketball in a part of the complex known as Williams Arena. The central ticket office for all ECU sports is near the football stadium. 2 Visit the Town Common, 105 E. 1st St. A medium sized park that features the Millennium Sundial, the Toyota Amphitheater, the Town Creek Bridge, and an esplanade along the Tar River, which borders the park on its north side. (updated Jun 2017)

1 Cubbie's, 600 E Arlington Blvd (between Greenville Blvd and Red Banks Rd), ☏ +1 252 321-8091. Local lunch-style restaurant known for their unique Cubbie Burgers served "All The Way" and their Freedom Fries with cheese and chili. Carving your initials into the tables does not seem to be discouraged. Restaurant televisions are always tuned to different sporting events. In the traditional diner style, men do the cooking and women wait tables. 2 Hibachi Grill & Supreme Buffet, 3437 S Memorial Dr (0.2 miles south of Greenville Blvd), ☏ +1 252 321-8882. Large inexpensive Chinese and Japanese cuisine buffet. Have your meal cooked fresh hibachi-style or grab some basic types of sushi--both for no extra cost. Go exotic with calamari or stick to the basics with mac & cheese, pizza, or a salad, among other things. $6-9. 3 Japan Inn, 739 Red Banks Rd (corner of Arlington Blvd and Red Banks Rd, next to Staples), ☏ +1 252 364-2222. Lunch: M-Sa 11AM-3PM, Su noon-3PM; Dinner: Su-Th 4:30PM-10PM, F Sa 4:30PM-11PM. Spacious Japanese and Chinese cuisine restaurant with a sushi bar. Offers an all-you-can-eat sushi special during lunch hours. Mostly serves sushi with a few authentic-looking Japanese meals. Chinese meals are similar to typical Chinese take-out menus. $8-20. 4 Mi Cabaña, 333 E. Arlington Blvd (between Evans St and Greenville Blvd), ☏ +1 910 931-9555. A small Mexican cuisine restaurant. Their motto is "Come and enjoy true Mexican food." Offers many authentic Mexican meals as well as the classic Americanized favorites. Fast service and tasty food.

1 The Buccaneer Music Hall, 2120 E Fire Tower Rd (corner of Charles Blvd and Fire Tower Rd, next to Harris Teeter), ☏ +1 252-756-5505. Live music hall. cover charge varies.

1 Holiday Inn Greenville, 203 W Greenville Blvd, ☏ +1 252-355-8300. $192. 2 Hilton, 207 SW Greenville Blvd, ☏ +1 252 355-5000. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. $140+. 3 The 5th Street Inn, 1105 E 5th St (corner of 5th St and Library St), ☏ +1 252 355-0699. Built in 1925, this bed and breakfast is registered as a national historic location. The inn has four rooms available, including the top floor 700-ft² Chancellor's Suite that includes a private bath and a sitting area with a couch. $89-$129. 4 Microtel Inn and suites, 450 Moye Blvd (directly behind Pitt Memorial Hospital), ☏ +1 252-758-7282. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. 90 rooms with LCD televisions and wireless internet access. $59 and up.

Greenville is in a central relative location, being equidistant from Raleigh (to the west) and the Outer Banks (to the east). It is also approximately midway between the North Carolina-Virginia border and the North Carolina-South Carolina border. American Airlines operates a charter flight to Greenville and the airline's regional hub in Charlotte, or fly into the Raleigh-Durham International Airport and use a rental car. 1 Pitt–Greenville Airport (PGV IATA). You can fly in from Charlotte (updated May 2019) But you can also get in from Raleigh-Durham International Airport, the airport that serves the Research Triangle. It's a one-and-a-half hour drive. From Raleigh, NC, use US Routes 64 East, 264 East, and 13 North to get into town. Charlotte Douglas International Airport is considerably further away, but Greenville can be reached from there via I-277 North, I-77 North, I-85 North, I-40 East (and from that point, one uses the routes used by going from Raleigh to Greenville mentioned earlier). From I-95 North or South, use US 264 East to reach Greenville. Greyhound buses are available, as is Amtrak Thruway bus service.

Rental cars are the preferred mode of transport, and there is the occasional taxi (but they are not simply out-and-about... one must use the Yellow Pages in the back of the phone book to obtain their services). For transportation in and around East Carolina University's campus, university visitors can use its bus system. The City of Greenville operates a mass transit bus system, Greenville Area Rapid Transit or GREAT (the fare is $1.00 with free transfers).