You are missing out if you haven't taken a tour with Raleigh Walking Tours. Raleigh Walking Tours…read moreare provided by Tricia who is a very personable tour guide. Her dedication shows in all the research and details provided on the tours. Raleigh Walking Tours started with tours of Oakwood, so I discovered the company as I love seeing the historic houses and the different styles of architecture. Oakwood has Queen Annes, Second Empires, Neoclassical, mid-Victorian Venacular, Shotgun, and Craftsman. I get them all confused but Tricia can tell you about each of them and why they have a certain porch or roof, window and door placement and other features. I've taken the tour enough times I should remember but my mind just appreciates looking at them. The Oakwood tours now are offered a few times in the spring and in the fall when the houses are decorated for Halloween. The spring tours is different from the fall tour so you will see and learn about other houses. The Halloween House and the Nightmare on Elm Street houses are part of the fall tour. Besides the Oakwood tour, Raleigh Walking Tour has many other tours. The tours all have different starting points, and you are provided with detailed information as to where to park beforehand. The True Crimes and Curious Tales is my favorite tour. You get to learn about different crimes that happened in Raleigh and some strange happenings. I also enjoy art and street art has been something I look for so there are mural and public art tours as well. Raleigh has a lot of it, and I wouldn't have discovered as much as I did without the tour. But just seeing it is one thing and on the tour you get to learn more about it. A new tour is at Raleigh Iron Works. I did not know of the history of RIW before the tour. I just knew of the mixed use development that opened. But it had been a steel company with a fascinating history, and in WWI was a munitions and artillery shell plant. The buildings are neat to learn about then there is art to see on this tour too. Then there are Haunted History, Ghost Tours, Women's History Tours. I feel like I am forgetting a few others. But there are a variety of offerings. If you want to take a tour, just register on the website. Tours are pay what you think the tour was worth. If you are visiting from out of town or a local, you will learn something new on these tours.

I really enjoyed my 1st Raleigh Walking Tour Downtown for the Fall Historic Oakwood Tour. Historic…read moreOakwood is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Raleigh to gaze in amazement at many Victorian and Queen Anne dream homes. The neighborhood is a National Register of Historic Places and is North Carolina's largest, intact 19th Century residential neighborhood. These dream homes belong to many wealthy and artistic homeowners. Each home makes you feel like you've stepped back into time centuries ago never losing the beauty of the house's true age. During the holidays you can expect for each home to be all decked out. Oakwood is home to Jesse Jones and the famous " Halloween Oakwood House". A true spooky sight to see each year in October. The Walking Tours are an excellent way to learn about the area and get your steps in. Tricia was our tour guide and she was wonderful. She was organized and provided lots of details prior to the event. Parking is plentiful in Oakwood and we started the tour at the NC Medical Society. Tricia has a talent for what she does and shared amazing facts and history on each home and business. Her knowledge on architecture was impressive. We walked the blocks of Elm, Lane, Oakwood, Person and Linden learning the history of homeowners like Annie Brantley. You make a donation at the end of the tour and pay what you see fit. I plan to attend a candlelight Oakwood Tour soon and look forward to attending another local walking tour.

Ghost story walking tour of the most notable haunts in downtown Raleigh, narrated by Brad. We met…read moreat the Wake a county Courthouse for check in. Yarborough House Hotel :Silent Gentle 1852 fun and informative and lots of great spots definitely check them out !!

This was a really fun thing to take my family on while they were visiting. Almost everywhere in NC…read moreis claimed to be haunted because of the civil war and all sorts of things. I never miss an opportunity to go on a ghost walk. The company gives you the address of the meeting spot at 7:30pm and they made it incredibly easy to find them. The tour was about 90 minutes around downtown Raleigh. We were able to book the same day online, no issues. Tickets were only $17 per person. So really cheap fun, while getting a little history lesson.

I have used imagine tours for over 25 years. Every trip is perfectly planned and executed. Karyn…read moreis amazing and unlike other sites she is there 24/7 if there is a need or problem.. She just booked my 3rd trip to Riu Palace Aruba and as usual it was spot on. I made several special requests and they were ready for me when I arrived. To make it even better her pricing is extremely aggressive. Thank you Imagine Tours

This was such a super fun way to spend an afternoon! Our group was for a team building activity…read moreand this was a great event! We had perfect weather -- but can't imagine doing this in the pouring rain -- it would definitely add to the adventure. We started at a bar -- can't recall the name but there was plenty of parking, and we grabbed some waters from the bar before we left as it was pretty humid out. An important note is that it is BYOB and you can't take the alcoholic drinks off of the trolley. Bringing a well stocked cooler is a great idea. I also suggest to wear sneakers (for pedaling), and exercise clothes -- although important to point out that the trolley does have a motor so if you aren't good at pedaling, you don't really have to -- the driver can make it as hard or as easy as you want. I really liked our driver but for the life of my I cannot recall his name!! He was super funny. After a brief safety discussion, we mounted our bicycle seats. To note -- the seats are real bicycle seats and you must wear your seat belt -- I am a big girl and the seatbelt fit me. Also they have a regular seat at the very back -- My butt started hurting after the first couple of stops so I sat on the seat -- I called it my Queen seat. Also you can hook into their blue tooth to play your own music -- that was super fun! We had a local in our group, so he was able to give some good suggestions for places to stop -- Our first stop was The Johnson Street Yacht club -- a fantastic dive bar with a slide on the outside!! Very divey. Then we pedaled to the Ugly Monkey Party Bar -- another good dive bar. I know we went to one other place but I cannot recall what it was called. My group had a great time -- I would have liked to have a little more time -- we felt a little rushed at the end. However, it was a great way to see Raleigh!! I would recommend!!

Mark was amazing!!!!…read more We had a mixed group of locals and visitors and Mark did a great job of pointing out tourist attractions to visitors and ensuring everyone was kept happy. The weather was horrible- warm rain - and the vibes were high. He even let us take an extra stop to fuel our energy before walking to another bar after it concluded. Would highly recommend for big groups looking to explore Raleigh.

Jordan Lake Tours provides tours to individuals or groups on Jordan Lake. The tour takes place in a…read morereally nice pontoon boat and snacks and beverages are provided. Parking is available for $7, make sure to get your parking voucher when you pull in. They take cash and credit cards. Then after you park, you will go meet the boat at the loading dock. David is the tour guide and he knows a lot of the history of Jordan Lake and will point out the wildlife. I believe he has been giving tours for 19 years now. We saw bald eagles, osprey, cormorants, among others. I liked learning about the dam and how that operates. It was relaxing on the water and nice to get away from things for a little while.

Beth and Bud are very personable and were a pleasure to converse with. Enjoyed staying at their…read morehome and exploring the beautiful property. Definitely a change in scenery from our dry Colorado climate. The rooms are quaint and cozy and have a unique story for each of them as they are dedicated to a family member. Definitely would recommend especially for the same price as a La Quinta, Holiday Inn, etc.

Please beware of this business. We had our wedding reception here over 6 years ago and I am still…read moreupset regarding how I felt we were misled. My new hubby and I also stayed overnight. Weeks in advance, we asked the owner, "How long can we have the reception?" to which she responded we could have it as long as we wanted because it's the "saddest thing in the world" to cut someone's wedding reception short. Well surprise, at 9pm the night of the reception, while dancing outdoors, the owner informed my mother that we had to turn off the music due to an Apex noise ordinance. We later found out from Apex police there is no such ordinance (my dad called). Also, this inn is on a huge piece of land, and the music was not that loud. When we asked to move the dancing inside the inn, the owner told an elaborate story of how a honeymooning couple had been dropped off, checked in, and they immediately went upstairs to their room. Of course this sounded fishy; why would a honeymooning couple be dropped off at an inn in the middle of nowhere while a wedding reception was going on? We found out later there was no such couple, but the owner planned ahead with her story and had even put a "do not disturb" sign on the "couple's" door. We should've been told upfront, when we initially asked, that we could have the reception until 9pm instead of being manipulated by such unethical tactics. We could've planned things better. It still doesn't make sense to us. If the innkeeper wanted to go home for the night, aren't there nicer ways to plan this ahead instead of not being truthful about multiple things? It was embarrassing to skip over many planned songs and suddenly announce that we had to play our last song. Our guests (and we) were shortchanged. They traveled from across the country to be with us, and our time with them was awkwardly cut short. I want to warn future brides to get every detail regarding your wedding planning in writing so things like this don't happen to you; we were too trusting. Also, some food served at dinner was tasteless and unacceptable. Six years later I still remember that dry beef. Future brides, you would be wise to take your business elsewhere!! Sure, the suite we stayed in was comfortable, but how can we recommend a place run in such a manner?

Betty Ann is simply the best! I just completed using Alpha Christian Tours for a large group of…read moreUnited Methodist Missionaries for the 5 straight year in a row and could think of using any other person to assist us with our travel needs. Great prices and exceptional service. She literally takes care of all of the travel needs and keeps me updated via email and phone along the way. I've used their services for groups of 12 to 40 people into both Guatemala and San Salvador and always had a flawless experience. They are a class act! All communications are very organized and all necessary money and documents timelines are given to you at the start of planning. From there, you just follow the schedule of events, provide her what she asks for, and you're set. She makes it that easy. You get complete online itineraries for all of your travelers and you're ready to go. Thank you for what you do. I will continue to tell all people planning missions trips to go straight to you! You're awesome Betty Ann.

So much fun! Doug knows all the ghosts and ghouls that call Clayton home! It's very apparent that…read morehe's been a history teacher for nearly 30 years!! Great experience and super fun for a group!