Manteo, North Carolina, is on Roanoke Island. It’s the island before you get to the islands that make up the Outer Banks. Virginia Dare, the first English child born in the then-colonies, was born here. Manteo is also the site of the Lost Colony. Stepped in a bit of history and tourism, the town has a rustic charm while offering some unique attractions visitors won’t find anywhere else.

Among the site visited in this photo adventure are the Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, the Elizabethan Gardens, Festival Park and downtown Manteo. The top photo is of the Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse, which is a sister to the lighthouse near our home, the Roanoke River Lighthouse in Edenton.

A marker noting the lost Roanoke colony Fort Raleigh National Historic Site..
A replica board waits for visitors to board.
A bench at the Elizabethan gardens.
Wood panelling from the late 1500s on display at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site..
Bags of oysters sit under the water. The animals help filter the water.
This plaque describes a pretty cool mayor pro tem who thought the waterfront belonged to all.
Roses at the Elizabethan gardens.
A gate bars entry into the upstairs of a downtown Manteo building.
Gypsy VI is used by tourists who can shoot water from the cannons, attacking a nearby pirate ship.
More roses at the Elizabethan Gardens.
A grasshopped sits on a flower.
The shoreline of Manteo.
Island Perk, a coffee shop, used to be a bank.
The sunrise at Manteo looking toward Nags Head and the Outer Banks.
Pigeons vie for a spot on the room of this building at the Scarborough Inn.
A bench at the Elizabethan gardens.
A replica board waits for visitors to board.
A grasshopped sits on a flower.
A gate bars entry into the upstairs of a downtown Manteo building.
Bags of oysters sit under the water. The animals help filter the water.
More roses at the Elizabethan Gardens.
The sunrise at Manteo looking toward Nags Head and the Outer Banks.
Gypsy VI is used by tourists who can shoot water from the cannons, attacking a nearby pirate ship.
The shoreline of Manteo.
Island Perk, a coffee shop, used to be a bank.
Pigeons vie for a spot on the room of this building at the Scarborough Inn.
Wood panelling from the late 1500s on display at Fort Raleigh National Historic Site..
This plaque describes a pretty cool mayor pro tem who thought the waterfront belonged to all.
Roses at the Elizabethan gardens.
A marker noting the lost Roanoke colony Fort Raleigh National Historic Site..