Visit Ocracoke NC

Getting Around Ocracoke Island

The minute you arrive on Ocracoke Island, one thing becomes obvious: life slows down here and it seems every day lasts forever. The pace of island life is easy, and when you’re in a place as tranquil and beautiful as this, what’s the rush? 

There’s no real rush here (unless you’re late for the ferry) and island time slows to a crawl for good reason: the island’s small, the village is small, and many of us – whether we’re visitors or residents – trade in our oversized SUVs and cars loaded with luggage for golf carts and bicycles. 

Unless you drove your cart onto the ferry or brought a batch of bikes with you, you’ll need to pick up a ride on the island. Fortunately, there are a number of places around the island ready to help you out with golf cart rentals, bike rentals, and more. Here’s what you need to know about renting and driving a golf cart or bicycle on Ocracoke Island. 

Renting a Ride

There are a half dozen places on Ocracoke where you can rent a golf cart or bicycle. Most car rentals are of the one-day or one-week variety, though you can rent carts for a weekend from several outfitters. Rates range from $70-$250/day depending on the size (4-passenger or 6-passenger) cart; weekly rentals range from $295-$425. Bicycles are, naturally, less expensive at $15-30/day. 

Each cart and bike outfitter will remind you of the rules of the road, ensure you have helmets for your bike riders and working seatbelts/lights on your cart, and outfitters may have restrictions on cart rentals. Inquire with each for pricing, availability, and age restrictions. And whatever you do, if you’re coming to Ocracoke in summer or on a holiday weekend, secure your rentals (and your ferry tickets) before you arrive on the island.

You can rent carts from:

For bicycle rentals, pay a visit to:

Rules of the Road

What are the rules of the road when you’re on a golf cart or bicycle? On Ocracoke, bikes and golf carts follow the same rules as automobiles. To refresh your memory, here are a few of the essential rules you need to follow.

  • Come to a full stop at stop signs (but don’t worry about stop lights, we only have one and we only use it when there’s road construction)
  • If you’re under 16 years old, you can’t drive a golf cart. Drivers must be 16 years old or older (18 years old for some rental companies, check with them when you make your reservation). 
  • No drives under 16 means no drivers under 16. No perching a kid on your lap to let them steer, giving the kids the keys for a quick spin around the block, or anything of the sort.
  • Even if your cart has turn signals, use your hand signals to indicate turns and stops. Don’t remember your hand signals? No problem (most of us need a refresher).
    Left Turn: stick your left arm straight out to the side, palm forward, as if you’re pointing at where you’re turning (arm out, hand out)
    Right Turn: stick your left arm out to the side and raise your hand, keeping the palm forward; make an “L” with your arm and forearm (arm out, hand up)
    Stop or Slow Down: stick your left arm out to the side and lower your hand, facing the palm behind you; make an upside down “L” with your arm and forearm. (arm out, hand down)
  • Don’t drink and drive. You can get a DUI for operating a golf cart, and that’s one vacation memory no one wants to bring home. 
  • Wear your seatbelts.
  • Children under the age of 8 or weighing less than 80 pounds must be in a proper restraint. 
  • All car seats and booster seats must be buckled in.
  • Headlights and rear lights must be operational (if yours aren’t working, contact your cart rental folks)
  • Everyone riding in a cart must have a seat; no standing.

For bicycles the rules are similar. 

  • Stop at all stop signs.
  • Use your hand signals to indicate a turn. Remember your signals:
    Left Turn: arm out, hand out
    Right Turn: arm out, hand up
    Slow or Stop: arm out, hand down
  • Riders under the age of 16 must wear a helmet (per North Carolina law)
  • Always ride with traffic (on the right side of the road).
  • Give pedestrians the right of way.

Beyond those rules, try to be a courteous driver. If you’re going slow and traffic is building behind you, pull over and let them go around. Keep an eye out for pedestrians and other road traffic. Be sure you have adequate and proper lighting if you’re driving or riding at sunrise or sunset, or after dark. And don’t ever drink and drive; Ocracoke’s small enough for a brisk walk back to your accommodations, and if that doesn’t cut it, Ocracoke’s friendly enough for you to hitch a ride home and return for your cart or bike with a clear head in the morning. 

Where to Explore

You can explore everywhere (well, almost everywhere) in Ocracoke Village by golf cart or bicycle. Carts aren’t allowed beyond the town limits, so if you want to head out to the beaches of the National Seashore, you’ll need your bike or your car, and you’ll find more details on that in the next section. 

Three popular spots to bike or cart to are the British Cemetery and Memorial on British Cemetery Road, the Ocracoke Lighthouse on Lighthouse Road, and the Ocracoke Preservation Society Museum adjacent to the ferry landing. Springer Point, with its nature trails and beach and bay access, is another popular place to visit, but with no cart parking available, you’ll need to bike there or have someone drop you off. 

Follow British Cemetery Road 0.2 miles from Highway 12/Irvin Garrish Highway (as it’s known in the Village) and you’ll reach the namesake British Cemetery. This memorial marks the final resting place of four British seamen who met their fate during World War II when their patrol boat, the HMT Bedfordshire, met and was sunk by a German U-Boat (submarine); of the 37 onboard when the Bedfordshire sank, these were the only bodies recovered. It’s a beautiful and somber place, and, oddly, the cemetery is regarded as British lands and periodically dignitaries from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission visit, though US Coast Guard personnel from Ocracoke maintain the site. 

Ocracoke Lighthouse pokes its head above the maritime forest, welcoming visitors on the ferries and keeping ships and sailors safe on our waters. Drive 0.4 miles down Lighthouse Road and you’ll arrive at this picturesque spot. The squat white tower of the lighthouse makes for a great photograph (it’s even better if you come out for sunrise or sunset and catch the sky and clouds full of color) and a great backdrop for family photos. It’s an active lighthouse, so, unfortunately, you can’t climb to the top. 

In Silver Lake Harbor near the Ferry, the Ocracoke Preservation Society Museum tells the story of Ocracoke and o’Cockers (that’s the local term for locals) through the centuries. Naturally, the story of Pirate Captain Edward Teach – better known as Blackbeard – is told in some detail, as are the stories of some of his crew, a few of whom are the ancestors of several o’Cocker families, but there’s more: Ocracoke’s tie to the elite Navy Seals, a glimpse at the only Boy Scout Troop on horseback, and an impressive collection of shells you could find on the island. Be sure to spend a little time watching the video about the Ocracoke Brogue, that distinct accent the island’s long-time residents wear with pride. 

Springer’s Point Preserve sits just down the road from the Ocracoke Lighthouse and offers nature-lovers a place to experience the maritime forest and access sound-side beaches. A short, easy trail leads through the 120 acres of maritime forest, tidal red cedars, salt marsh and wet grasslands before depositing you on sandy beach. The beach overlooks Teach’s Hole, the place where the pirate Blackbeard met his fate at the hands of privateers in 1718, and it’s possible that Blackbeard and his pirate crew used Springer’s Point as a hideout while prowling the waters along Ocracoke and the Outer Banks. Another interesting spot in Springer’s Point is the gravesite of Sam Jones and his beloved horse. Depending on who you ask, Sam was buried astride his horse or beside his horse, but we tend to think the side-by-side grave markers reveal the true story.

There’s more to find as you cruise and pedal the roadways of Ocracoke. You may spot a colony of Ocra-Cats, feral cats who call the forest home. You’ll definitely come across more than a few graveyards and family cemeteries (they’re cool to see but be respectful when you visit). It’s possible you come across artists in their studios, fishermen mending nets or spooling new line onto reels, or even displays of yard art that blur the line between weird and whimsical. 

Venturing Beyond Ocracoke Village

If you want to explore beyond Ocracoke Village and enjoy our beaches and the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, you’ll need to park the golf cart and hop in your car. The speed limit changes from Ocracoke’s bucolic 25 mph in town to highway speeds as you head north along the National Seashore, so golf carts aren’t allowed, but you can use the bike lane to explore the Seashore on two wheels. 

All along Highway 12, access points give ORV (off road vehicle) drivers access to the beach or Sound-side spots to launch a kayak. Most of these beach accesses also include pedestrian access and parking areas, making it pretty easy to find your favorite stretch of beach. 

Visitors looking to drive on the beach will need to secure an ORV permit and have the proper know-how and equipment to safely drive on the sand. ORV permits come in two flavors, annual (good for one year from date of purchase) and 10-day, and you can acquire your permit here << https://www.recreation.gov/vehiclepermits/249978>>. Have your driver’s license, vehicle registration, and credit card ready, then pick your 10-day ($50) or annual ($120) pass and pay for it. Print a copy of your permit and display it in your vehicle, or keep an electronic copy handy on your phone. If you can’t print your permit (hey, it happens), you can get a self-certification card at the National Park Service Discovery Center (in Silver Lake Harbor) and a Tradewinds Tackle. 

Driving on the beach opens up miles of shoreline for your sightseeing, fishing, surfing, and sunbathing pleasure, but if you’re nervous about driving on the sand, don’t have the right vehicle, or just want someone else to do the work, you can contact Ray Stallings with OBX Rentals and Shuttle Services by calling or texting 252/908-2994. Ray’s a seasoned beach driver and a trusted vendor with the National Parks Service, and he knows every bit of sand on the shores of Ocracoke and Hatteras Islands; he’s happy to take you on a beach tour or set you up for a day on the shore.  

If you want to drive on the beach yourself but you brought the wrong car, give Beach Ride Rentals a call < https://beachriderentals.godaddysites.com/. They rent Jeeps and SUVs in 3-, 6-, and 12-hour blocks, or for two or more days; rates range from $125-160/3 hours, $185-225/6 hours, $225-285/12 hours, or $185-250/day (two-day minimum) for overnight rentals, depending on vehicle. When available, they also offer a beach drop off (and pick up) for $20/passenger.

They offer 4×4 rentals in 3-, 6-, and 12-hour blocks, and overnight (two day minimum on overnight rentals), and prices range from $125-$285

As you venture north along Highway 12, you’ll find the National Parks Service Ocracoke Campground, the Hammock Hills Trail looping off into the woods, and the Pony Pens. The Pony Pens are the home to a few Banker Ponies, feral horses who have lived on the Outer Banks for more than 500 years. The largest part of the herd is to the far north, but a few of the horses live here on Ocracoke and south of us on the Shackleford Banks. At the northern tip of the island sits the ferry terminal connecting Ocracoke Island to Hatteras.

Ocracoke Township Tourism Development Authority
Learn More About the TDA
PO Box 466, Ocracoke, NC 27960
(252) 928-6711  Email Us


Ocracoke Observer
WOVV 90.1 FM
Ocracoke Civic & Business Assoc.

FB Instagram link Twitter link