University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has certainly had its fair share of firsts. Chartered in 1789, UNC Chapel Hill holds the distinction of being the first public institution of higher education in North Carolina. WXYC, the university’s student-led radio station, hosted the world’s first internet radio broadcast. The university is currently in the process of constructing the first building in North Carolina poised to receive LEED Platinum status. The list goes on and on.

As the home of so many firsts, it only makes sense that UNC Chapel Hill is the first stop on your trip to this great area of North Carolina. Once you’ve seen all that the university’s beautiful campus has to offer however, you’ll definitely want to make a point to check out some of the fantastic entertainment and dining options that can be found right nearby.

Things to Do

Carolina Basketball Museum

There’s no better way to kick off your visit to UNC Chapel Hill than by checking out the Carolina Basketball Museum. A must for diehard Tar Heels fanatics and everyday college sports fans alike, the Carolina Basketball Museum is dedicated to chronicling the history of the university’s legendary team.

The museum’s collection features anything and everything Tar Heels, including nearly 500 fascinating artifacts, hundreds of old photographs, and displays highlighting the history of the Carolina basketball program. The museum also presents informative video tributes to esteemed coaches and players along with interactive presentations that highlight Carolina’s 20 Final Four appearances and 18 ACC Tournament championships.

What makes this unique museum even more worth visiting while at UNC Chapel Hill is that it holds the distinction of being the first-ever university-related basketball-only museum in the nation. Free admission only makes it even harder to pass up! The museum’s 8,000 square feet of captivating exhibits can be found on the first floor of the Ernie Williamson Athletics Center on the UNC Chapel Hill campus. 450 Skipper Bowles Dr, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Duke Lemur Center

Of course, UNC Chapel Hill isn’t the only college around with incredible on-campus attractions. The Duke Lemur Center, located on the campus of nearby Duke University, is the largest sanctuary of its kind in the entire world. Founded just over 50 years ago, the Duke Lemur Center’s 85 acres are currently home to nearly 300 lemurs and various other prosimians.

Count on encountering plenty of cute, fuzzy creatures as you take one of the many unique tours offered at the facility. These include tours like Walking with Lemurs, A Photographer’s Dream, Behind the Scenes, and even Painting with Lemurs! There’s also the standard Lemurs Live tour where visitors get the chance to learn about and meet some different species of lemurs. All tours at the Duke Lemur Center are available by reservation only, so be sure to book your visit at least two weeks in advance. Before you go, don’t forget to commemorate your visit with a fun keepsake from their one of a kind Lemur Landing gift shop! 3705 Erwin Rd, Durham, NC 27705

Bull City Escape

Put your wits to the test at Bull City Escape. This popular attraction, located less than 30 minutes from the UNC Chapel Hill campus, offers an exhilarating escape room experience that’s a clear favorite among local puzzle-solvers. If you’ve never been to an escape room like Bull City Escape before, the idea is simple: you and a small group of about three to eight people will be locked in a room full of clues, puzzles, and other mind-bending brainteasers. Once inside, it’ll be up to all of you to figure out the answers in order to escape in less than 60 minutes.

Like other escape room attractions, Bull City Escape features a variety of different rooms, each with its own unique storyline and décor. For instance, if you choose the Lunar Lockdown room, prepare yourself for an out of the world adventure taking place inside a spaceship that’s just crash landed on a mysterious, faraway planet. The other two rooms at Bull City Escape include A Study in Murder, which, as its name would suggest, is a challenging, Clue-style murder mystery; and Enchanted Kingdom, a fantastical quest to find magic crown jewels. 711 Iredell St, Durham, NC 27705

Sarah P. Duke Gardens

Score some much-needed relaxation during your visit to UNC Chapel Hill at the Sarah P. Duke Gardens. Spanning approximately 55 acres on the campus of Duke University, these gardens are a treasure trove of vibrant natural beauty.

Among the many sights you’ll come across as you traverse the Sarah P. Duke Gardens are a tranquil pond filled with koi, goldfish, and lilies of all shapes and sizes; a fascinating carnivorous plant collection; and an elegant Japanese pavilion. Don’t leave without paying a visit to “The Big Easy,” one of the gardens’ newest and most unique features. Crafted by acclaimed artist Patrick Dougherty, “The Big Easy” is a series of towering sculptures made from sticks deftly woven together. Many of these sculptures feature arches tell enough for visitors to walk underneath, making “The Big Easy” an art piece that’s as whimsical and interactive as it is beautiful to look at. 420 Anderson St, Durham, NC 27705

Durham Bulls Athletic Park

If America’s pastime is your favorite pastime, you’ll be glad to hear that one of the finest minor league ballparks in the country is located right nearby in the neighboring city of Durham. Durham Bulls Athletic Park, often referred to as DBAP, is the nationally acclaimed home of Durham Bulls Triple-A minor league baseball team, as made famous by the 1988 movie Bull Durham.

Designed by the same architecture firm responsible for the likes of Baltimore’s renowned ballpark Camden Yards, DBAP features a towering, 32-foot-tall left field wall affectionately dubbed the Blue Monster. Atop the Blue Monster sits the ballpark’s most distinctive flourish: a giant snorting bull sign modeled after the one featured in Bull Durham, along with the Blue Monster pavilion, where fans can watch the game from a vantage point unlike anywhere else in the stadium. Throw in comfortable, spacious seating; the fun, kid-friendly Wool E. World playground; and enough concession stands to make a foodie’s head spin; and you’ve got the makings of one of the best minor league ballparks in America. 409 Blackwell St, Durham, NC 27701

American Tobacco Historic District

For shopping, dining, and entertainment options that are second to none all in one convenient location, head to the American Tobacco Historic District. Just under 30 minutes from UNC Chapel Hill, this former tobacco factory complex now serves a central role in downtown Durham’s newest large-scale urban renewal project.

At the American Tobacco Historic District you’ll find restaurants serving everything from modern interpretations of traditional Japanese cuisine to decadent American comfort food; a wide range of boutiques and specialty shops; a 2,000-seat amphitheater; and more. Day or night, this lively entertainment district is one of the area’s most happening hotspots. 300 Blackwell St, Durham, NC 27701

Museum of Life and Science

If you’ll be visiting UNC Chapel Hill alongside any curious young minds, treat them to an afternoon of entertaining and educational fun at the Museum of Life and Science. With over 80 acres of informative exhibits, even older visitors can expect to learn a thing or two during their visit to this captivating, world-class museum.

Some of the most popular exhibits at the Museum of Life and Science include Magic Wings Butterfly House, one of the largest habitats of its kind on the entire East Coast; Dinosaur Trail, an outdoor exhibit populated by over a dozen life-size statues of prehistoric creatures like Albertosaurus, Styracosaurus, and Maiasaura; and Aerospace, an exhibit featuring many fascinating artifacts related to early NASA space programs.

Because the Museum of Life and Science features both indoor and outdoor exhibits, it’s a great attraction to visit no matter the weather. Need to find the perfect souvenir or a gift for someone back home? The Elements Museum Store features a unique selection of toys, games, gadgets, and more. 433 W Murray Ave, Durham, NC 27704

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Places to Eat

Mellow Mushroom

For out of this world pizza just minutes from the UNC Chapel Hill, take a trip to Mellow Mushroom. Each and every pizza served at this much-loved regional chain has been hand tossed and stone-baked ever since they opened up their first location in Atlanta, Georgia over 40 years ago.

What keeps many patrons coming back to Mellow Mushroom year after year are their specialty pies topped with an eclectic assortment of ingredients. These include pizzas like the Pacific Rim, which features red sauce, mozzarella, ham, bacon, caramelized onions, pineapple, and jalapenos; and the Funky Q. Chicken, topped with barbecue chicken, mozzarella and Cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, Applewood smoked bacon, and a tangy barbecue sauce swirl. You can also build your own pizza by choosing from a variety of sauces, cheeses, and toppings. Other delicious offerings on the menu at Mellow Mushroom includes salads, calzones, hoagies, burgers, plenty of fun appetizers, and sweet treats like brownies and cookies for dessert. 310 W Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC 27516

Bonchon

The word “bonchon” means “my hometown” in Korean, which makes it a very appropriate name for an eatery that’s serving up one of the country’s latest comfort food obsessions. Bonchon is a fried chicken franchise that has created their own innovative take on crispy poultry by combining it with mouthwatering Korean-inspired flavors. Their Korean fried chicken, twice-fried and tossed in either soy garlic sauce or spicy sauce, is far crispier and more flavorful than your usual go-to game day wing. One bite is all it will take for you to understand why their wings were named one of five best in the country by CNN.

If wings aren’t your thing, Bonchon’s menu also features a plenty of other delicious dishes, ranging from exotic options like takoyaki, savory fried octopus dumplings drizzled with Japanese mayonnaise, Katsu sauce, and bonito flakes; to familiar favorites like popcorn chicken, sliders, tacos, and more, each with their own tasty Korean twist. 205 E Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Sutton’s Drug Store

A Chapel Hill institution, Sutton’s Drug Store has been the place for Tar Heels to enjoy quintessential American eats since 1923. On the menu at Sutton’s you’ll find everything from hearty breakfast dishes such as pancakes, biscuits, and omelets to lunch and dinner options like towering sandwiches and inventive hot dog creations.

Not sure what to get? You can’t go wrong with one of their juicy burgers, topped with your choice of delicious ingredients like coleslaw, pickles, onions, jalapenos, chili, and more. Wash it all down with one of their 62 different sodas, which range from classics like Coca-Cola and Dr. Pepper to little-known oddities including NuGrape, Zuberfizz Cola, and something called Kickapoo Joy Juice. 159 E Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC 27514

Wimpy’s Grill

No visit to this area of North Carolina would be complete without a visit to Wimpy’s Grill. This iconic local landmark was once even featured on Travel Channel’s Man v. Food, and for good reason! They’re known far and wide for serving up big, hearty breakfasts and even bigger burgers, along with plenty of other comfort food staples.

If you’ll be dining at Wimpy’s during the most important meal of the day, you’ve got to try one of their famous “giant” biscuits. If a tender, buttery biscuit on its own isn’t enough for you to get your down-home breakfast fix, pair it with delicious meats like fried pork tenderloin, country ham, sausage, steak, and more. Planning to visit Wimpy’s for lunch instead? Don’t leave without sinking your teeth into one of their ever-popular Garbage Burgers. Far more delicious than its tongue-in-cheek name would suggest, this behemoth burger comes piled high with pickles, tomatoes, lettuce, chili, slaw, onions, ketchup, mustard, mayo, bacon, cheese, and two quarter-pound patties. 617 Hicks St, Durham, NC 27705

As you can see, the lovely town of Chapel Hill and the surrounding area has far more to offer than just one of the most esteemed universities in the entire country and its beautiful campus. There you’ll also find plenty of unique museums, fun outdoor activities, renowned restaurants, and so much more. If you don’t get to see everything that you want to in just one trip, don’t worry; that’s a good excuse to go back again soon!