Origin
Saint James, NC
Late night in Saint James on Sunday
Local time
12:40 AM
EDT
Current temp
56°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Saint James, NC to Wilmington, NC
Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 19, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
50m
Distance
29.8 mi
48 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$5
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 46m
★
6 AM
0h 50m
8 AM
0h 58m
10 AM
0h 53m
12 PM
0h 52m
3 PM
0h 53m
5 PM
0h 58m
8 PM
0h 48m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Saint James, NC
Jo Kassis
Trip Overview
Saint James, NC to Wilmington, NC is 29.8 miles and takes about 50 minutes via Ocean Highway East, with a fuel budget near $5 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short trip stays within North Carolina's Southeast region, offering a straightforward local drive. It's a quick connection perfect for a day trip or to get you to your destination without much hassle. You'll mainly be on local roads, so expect a more town-centric experience than a highway cruise. This route is ideal if you're looking for minimal travel time between these two points.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Ocean Highway East | 16.2 mi | 22m |
| Midway Road Southeast | 6.5 mi | 8m |
| Middleton Street | 1.1 mi | 1m |
| Main Street | 0.9 mi | 1m |
| Members Club Boulevard | 0.8 mi | 3m |
| Cape Fear Memorial Bridge | 0.8 mi | 1m |
| Old Ocean Highway | 0.8 mi | 1m |
| St James Drive Southeast | 0.7 mi | 2m |
Longest stretch:
Ocean Highway East
— 16.2 mi, about 22m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Saint James, NC and Wilmington, NC.
1
Start on this road
118 ft
·
12 sec
·
this road
2
Turn left onto St James Drive Southeast
0.7 mi
·
2 min
·
St James Drive Southeast
3
Turn left onto Members Club Boulevard
0.8 mi
·
3 min
·
Members Club Boulevard
4
Turn right onto Wingfoot Drive
207 ft
·
9 sec
·
Wingfoot Drive
5
Turn left onto Fairway Village Drive
221 ft
·
14 sec
·
Fairway Village Drive
6
Turn straight onto Wingfoot Drive
0.3 mi
·
1 min
·
Wingfoot Drive
7
Turn right onto Ellington Place
0.3 mi
·
1 min
·
Ellington Place
8
At end of road, turn right onto Parkridge Drive
0.4 mi
·
1 min
·
Parkridge Drive
9
Enter roundabout
243 ft
·
10 sec
10
Continue
0.4 mi
·
1 min
11
Turn right onto NC 906
1.1 mi
·
1 min
·
Middleton Street
12
Continue on NC 906
6.5 mi
·
8 min
·
Midway Road Southeast
13
Turn right onto US 17 Business; NC 906
0.5 mi
·
41 sec
·
Old Ocean Highway
14
Continue on US 17 Business
0.9 mi
·
1 min
·
Main Street
15
Continue on US 17 Business
0.3 mi
·
35 sec
·
Old Ocean Highway
16
Turn right onto US 17
13 mi
·
18 min
·
Ocean Highway East
Use the straight lane.
17
Keep slight right at fork
0.5 mi
·
37 sec
Toward US 17
18
Continue on US 17; US 74; US 76
3.1 mi
·
4 min
·
Ocean Highway East
19
Continue on US 17; US 76; US 421
0.8 mi
·
1 min
·
Cape Fear Memorial Bridge
20
Turn left onto US 421; US 17 Business
0.1 mi
·
15 sec
·
South 3rd Street
21
Arrive at destination
US 17 Business
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 125 decision points cluster between mile 1.9 and 25.3 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
4
1.9 mi into trip
|
~7m in
|
Ellington Place
Turn right onto Ellington Place
Navigation decision point
4
2.2 mi into trip
|
~8m in
|
Parkridge Drive
At end of road, turn right onto Parkridge Drive
Navigation decision point
5
2.6 mi into trip
|
~10m in
Enter roundabout
Roundabout - know your exit number before entering
5
12.3 mi into trip
|
~25m in
|
US 17 / Ocean Highway East
Turn right onto US 17 / Ocean Highway East
Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight lane.
5
25.3 mi into trip
|
~43m in
Keep slight right at fork toward US 17
Highway fork - watch signs carefully
Toward US 17
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.66 one way
$9.32 round trip
$3.97/gal
25.4 MPG avg
10 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.34 | $5.10 | $10.19 |
| premium | $4.70 | $5.52 | $11.03 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $6.58 | $13.16 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$5
Estimated CO2 emission: 10.4 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 70% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 8.9 | 0 | $3.13 | $1.43 |
| Efficient EV | 7.5 | 0 | $2.61 | $1.19 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 11.9 | 0 | $4.17 | $1.91 |
Gas CO2
10 kg
EV CO2
3 kg (70% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Wilmington, NC
Late night in Wilmington on Sunday
Local time
12:40 AM
EDT
Current temp
52°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
4 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
50m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
This is a turn-heavy local drive with no highway share, meaning you'll be navigating surface streets for the entire 29.8 miles. The longest uninterrupted stretch you'll encounter is 16.2 miles on Ocean Highway East. Expect the road to feel more like a series of connected town roads rather than an open highway. You'll likely experience more frequent stops, turns, and changes in speed limits as you move through different local areas. This driving profile requires your attention to be on navigation and immediate surroundings.
Only 0% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
21 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 16.2 mi on Ocean Highway East.
How Hard Is This Drive?
5/10
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. You will hit about 12 points where you need to pay attention to lane position or signs. The trickiest moment comes around 1.9 miles in near Ellington Place.
Driving Effort
5/10
Moderate - straightforward overall, but long enough or busy enough to require pacing
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This drive requires moderate attention. Across 29.8 miles you will encounter 12 spots where lane choice or exit timing matters. Not difficult for experienced highway drivers, but worth previewing the tricky sections before you go.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 1.9 miles (Ellington Place): Navigation decision point; at 2.2 miles (Parkridge Drive): Navigation decision point; at 2.6 miles: Roundabout - know your exit number before entering.
About the Cities
Arriving in Wilmington, NC
Full guide →Wilmington is a city in the southeastern part of North Carolina. It is the county seat of New Hanover County, and home to the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, the U.S.S. North Carolina Battleship Memorial, the Cape Fear Museum, Airlie Gardens, and a large historic district. It is convenient to nearby beaches, and is a relatively short drive from the Triangle (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill), Charlotte, Myrtle Beach, SC, and the I-95 corridor.
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 50m. Total distance: 29.8 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
50m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (0%). Some complex stretches to watch for.
Scenic Drive
Mostly surface roads route profile with national parks nearby.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 16.2 miles on Ocean Highway East. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.
Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.
The main spots that need attention: at 1.9 miles (Ellington Place): Navigation decision point; at 2.2 miles (Parkridge Drive): Navigation decision point; at 2.6 miles: Roundabout - know your exit number before entering.
Yes — Moores Creek National Battlefield. See the National Parks section for detour distances and tips on detours.
Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Wilmington, NC before heading back.
How this page is built
Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and NPS for national parks. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Your tip has been submitted. Thanks!
/500
Recent Tips
·
Explore More
Continue From Wilmington, NC
More from Saint James, NC
More trips to Wilmington, NC
Explore more options from Saint James, NC or browse trips ending in Wilmington, NC.
Looking for more statewide routes? Browse NC road trips.