Exploris
201 East Hargett Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-834-4040
Hours: Open Tuesday – Saturday, 9am – 5pm, Sunday, noon – 5pm, closed Monday
Admission Charged
Exploris is an interactive museum about the world that utilizes hands-on, interactive exhibits, the visual and performing arts, thought provoking programs and the new IMAX giant screen theatre to help people of all ages learn to respect differences, appreciate similarities and make connections with people of the world.
Borden Building
820 Clay St
Raleigh, NC 27605
919-831-6430
Hours: Call for days and hours of operation
Admission Free
The Borden Building is one of two remaining buildings on the former campus of the Methodist Home for Children. What was originally the superintendent's home is now available for public tours and functions. Admission is free.
Haywood Hall House and Gardens
211New Bern Place
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-832-8357
Hours: March – December, Thursdays, 10:30am – 1:30pm. Closed from the end of December until the beginning of March.
Admission Free, donations accepted
John Haywood, the state's first elected treasurer, built this Federal-style frame house in 1799. His descendants occupied it until 1977. This is the oldest residence built within the original city limits still on its original site with family furnishings.
Historic Oak View County Park
4028 Carya Drive
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-212-7248
Hours: Mon - Sat, 8:30am-5pm; Sunday, 1 – 5pm
Admission Free
This antebellum farmstead features an 1855 Greek Revival house, detached plank kitchen, cotton gin house museum and two outbuildings. Included are the pecan grove, 1870s gazebo, and a Farm History Center.
Historic Oakwood
1653 Old Louisburg Road
Raleigh, NC 27604
Admission Free
919-733-3456
Hours: Vary, call for additional information
Admission Free
A Victorian neighborhood listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with restored homes built between 1870 and 1912. This 20-block area may be enjoyed by driving or walking. Bordered by Franklin, Watauga, Linden, Jones and Person Streets.
Historic Tours of Raleigh
301 N Blount Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-829-4988
Hours: Mid-March - late-Nov, Sunday, 2pm; tour time is one hour. Reservations recommended.
Admission Charged
One hour tour around Raleigh's finest sites.
Historic Trolley Tours
1 Mimosa St
Raleigh, NC 27604
919-834-4844
Hours: March-December, every Sat, 11am-3pm. Tour time is 45 minutes. Last tour begins at 2 pm.
Admission Charged
Trolley through the heart of the Capital City on a narrated tour with six stops. Visit historic sites, art galleries, museums, shops and restaurants. Board at any stop including Mordecai Historic Park and City Market. Unlimited re-boarding with all-day pass.
Joel Lane Museum House
728 W. Hargett St
Raleigh, NC 27603
919- 833-3431
Hours: Mar - mid-Dec, Tues -Fri, 10am - 2pm, Sat, 1pm – 4pm. Closed from mid-December to Feb. 28.
Admission Charged
Built in the 1760's, this landmark is Raleigh's oldest dwelling. Wakefield was the home of Colonel Joel Lane, the "father of Raleigh." In 1792, representatives of the newly formed North Carolina Legislature met here to choose a site for the state's Capital City and purchased 1,000 acres of Colonel Lane's plantation for that purpose. Tours are approximately 30 minutes.
Mordecai Historic Park/President Andrew Johnson's Birthplace
1 Mimosa St
Raleigh, NC 27604
919- 834-4844
Hours: Mon and Wed - Sat, 10am – 4pm; Sun, 1 – 4pm; closed Tues.
Admission Charged
Mordecai features an antebellum plantation house museum that was home to five generations of the same family. Other historic structures are grouped together along a "village street," providing a unique glimpse into 19th-century Raleigh life. Seventeenth U.S. President Andrew Johnson's birthplace also is preserved here.
North Carolina Executive Mansion
200 N Blount St
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-733-3456
Hours: Vary, call for times and seasonal open house hours
Admission Free
This fine Victorian-style mansion, home to N.C. governors since 1891, once was described by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as having "the most beautiful governor's residence interior in America." Built from native North Carolina materials, it has been occupied by 26 governors' families.
North Carolina State Archives
109 E Jones St
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-733-3952
Hours: Tues - Fri, 8am - 5:30pm; Sat, 9am - 5pm; closed Sun and Mon.
Admission Free
The State Archives preserves original and microfilm records of the colony and state of North Carolina from 1663 to the present. This includes state agency and county records, private manuscript collections, maps, photographs and other documentary evidence available for research.
North Carolina State Capitol
1 E Edenton St
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-733-4994
Hours: Mon - Fri, 9am – 5pm; Sat, 9am – 5pm; Sun, 1 – 5pm. Guided tours available with advance notice.
Admission Free
Built between 1833 and 1840, this National Historic Landmark is one of the best-preserved examples of a civic building in Greek Revival-style architecture. It originally housed the governor's office, cabinet offices, legislative chambers, state library and state geologist's office.
North Carolina State Legislative Building
16 W. Jones St
Raleigh 27601
919-733-7928
Hours: Mon - Fri, 8am – 5pm; Sat, 9am – 5pm; Sun, 1 – 5pm
Admission Free
Home of the North Carolina General Assembly, the building is unique because it is devoted solely to the legislative branch of state government. Throughout the building, provisions are made for easy public access and observation of the legislative process.
Oakwood Cemetery
701 Oakwood Ave
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-832-6077
Hours: Open daily, 8am – 5pm
Admission Free
Adjacent to Historic Oakwood, Oakwood Cemetery is the resting place of 2,800 Confederate soldiers, five Civil War generals, seven governors and numerous U.S. Senators. Established in 1869, it is an excellent example of Victorian landscaping and mortuary art. Free maps of the cemetery area available at the cemetery office.
Saint Augustine's College Chapel
1315 Oakwood Ave
Raleigh, NC 27610
919-516-4189
Hours: June - July, Mon - Fri, 9am – 5pm; Aug - May, Sun, 11am chapel service.
Admission Free
Students built this Norman Gothic-style chapel in 1896 under the direction of Rev. Henry Beard Delany. The chapel houses the bishop's chair, a memorial of Delany's consecration as the first African American Episcopal Bishop in North Carolina.
St. Mary's School
900 Hillsborough St
Raleigh, NC 27603
919-424-4000
Hours: Call for days and hours of operation
Admission Free
Founded in 1842, Saint Mary's is a college preparatory boarding and day school for young women in grades 9-12. The 25-acre campus in the heart of Raleigh is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and four of the school's 25 buildings are Raleigh historic sites. St. Mary's Chapel, a striking neo-gothic structure which dates back to 1856, also is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Spring Hill House
705 Barbour Dr
Raleigh, NC 27603
919-733-5454
Hours: Mon - Fri, 8am – 5pm
Admission Free
Spring Hill is located on the site of a large plantation house once owned by Colonel Theophilus Hunter, Jr. The land is now the site of Dorothea Dix Hospital for mental illness, and the house contains memorabilia from the hospital.
J.C. Raulston Arboretum at NC State University
4301 Beryl Rd
Raleigh, NC 27606
919-515-3132
Hours: Call for additional information
Admission Free
Features more than 5,000 trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals in an eight-acre, internationally-recognized garden. Unique spaces and collections include a stunning 450-foot-long perennial border, magnolias, conifers and brilliantly colored annuals, with a formal garden crafted around the color white.
N.C. State Fair
1025 Blue Ridge Rd
Raleigh, NC 27607
919-733-2145
Hours: Held each year during mid-October
Admission Charged
Approximately 700,000 people attend the N.C. State Fair each year. The 10-day fair features livestock, agricultural, arts and cultural exhibits, an amusement midway, and nightly nationally-acclaimed musical performances.
State Farmers Market
1201 Agriculture St
Raleigh, NC 27603
919-733-7417
Hours: Every day except Christmas, Mon - Sat, 6am – 8pm; Sun, noon - 6pm
Admission Free
More than fresh vegetables - a family adventure. Considered one of the best and most modern markets in the U.S., visitors enjoy 75 acres of indoor and outdoor specialty shops, restaurants, garden center; fruits, vegetables and gift products from across the state.
Nearby
Triangle Metro Zoo
200 Steven Taylor Rd
Wake Forest, NC 27587
Located 27 miles north of Raleigh
919-562-8899
Hours: March – December, open daily, 10am – 5pm
Admission Charged
The zoo has over 30 acres of exotic animals and one of the largest petting areas in the state.
Page-Walker Arts and History Center
119 Ambassador Loop
Cary, NC 27513
Located 15 miles west of Raleigh
919-460-4963
Hours: Mon - Wed, 10am - 9:30pm; Thurs, 10am – 5pm; Fri, 10am – 1pm; open weekends by reservation.
Admission Free
A circa-1868 hotel built to service the passengers on the Chatham & Seaboard Railroad, Page-Walker now serves as a cultural center for the Town of Cary and houses the Cary Heritage Museum. Open to the public for tours, classes, and cultural and historical performances.
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