Our Family Getaway to Oak Island, NC: Where We Stayed, Ate & Played!
- Aug 16
- 7 min read
Featuring Time & Tide, a family-friendly Oak Island vacation rental we’d absolutely stay at again
There are some beach towns you visit once, and then there are the ones your family starts to feel a little bit like they belong to.
For us, Oak Island, North Carolina is the latter.
It has become one of our favorite beaches on the East Coast because it gives us exactly what we want from a family beach vacation: beautiful beaches, a relaxed atmosphere, great local restaurants, plenty to do with kids, and enough quiet that you can actually come home feeling like you went on vacation.
And on our most recent family trip to Oak Island, NC, we found a new home base that made the entire getaway even better: Time & Tide.
Time & Tide is a beautiful, newly built three-bedroom, two-bath Oak Island vacation rental designed for up to seven guests. The home has two king bedrooms plus a bunk room, making the layout especially convenient for families. It also has a full kitchen, washer and dryer, Wi-Fi, free parking and a bright, open living space with that airy coastal feel you want when you're at the beach!
But what we loved most was how easy it made our trip feel.
Why We Loved Staying at Time & Tide in Oak Island
When you're traveling with kids, I've learned that the place you stay can make or break the trip.
I want beautiful, obviously. But I also want comfortable, functional and easy.
Time & Tide checked those boxes.
It's located in a quieter area of Oak Island, which we really appreciated with our kids. We could spend our days in the energy of the beach and then come back somewhere that felt calm and cozy.
The house itself feels fresh, bright and welcoming. The open-concept living area gets tons of natural light, and the coastal design feels elevated without being so precious that you're nervous to actually live in the house with children.
And then there was the kitchen.
Parents, you know why this matters.
We love eating our way through a beach town, but with kids, we definitely don't want to eat every single meal out. Time & Tide has a full kitchen, so we were able to make breakfasts at home, prep picnic lunches and have everything we needed for easy beach days. The in-unit washer and dryer is another major win when your days involve swimsuits, towels, sand and children.
The property is currently a 5.0-rated Airbnb Guest Favorite, and previous guests specifically mention things like the beach, amenities, hospitality, location, family friendliness and cleanliness in their reviews. After staying there ourselves, we understand why!
Night One: Saying Hello to the Ocean + Pizza
We have a little family tradition whenever we arrive at the beach.
Before anything else, we go say hello to the ocean.
No elaborate plans. No rushing into vacation mode. We just get ourselves down to the beach, put our feet in the water and have that first we're here moment.
So that's exactly how this Oak Island trip began.
We spent about an hour at the beach saying hello to the ocean, and afterward we picked up dinner from one of our tried-and-true Oak Island favorites: Pepperoni Grill.
Pizza and salads. Nothing complicated. Absolutely delicious!
We brought everything back to Time & Tide, ate at the house and got everyone into bed early because we had exactly one major item on the agenda for the next morning:
The beach.
Our Perfect Oak Island Beach Day
One of the reasons I recommend Oak Island for families with kids is that you don't need to over-plan it.
We woke up, made a big breakfast at Time & Tide, packed a picnic lunch in the kitchen and headed out for a full beach day. And I mean a full beach day.
Sand. Waves. Snacks. Picnic lunch. Repeat.
There's something so good about having nowhere you need to be and nothing you're supposed to accomplish. And if you're visiting Oak Island with children, one of the fun little things to watch for is the ice cream and Italian ice carts that come down the beach.
Obviously, we had to participate!
Date Night at Salt64
One thing we try to work into family trips whenever possible is a date night, and if you're searching for where to eat in Oak Island for date night, put Salt64 on your list.
This was not our first time there, and there's a reason we keep coming back. We ordered the lobster tails, grilled artichokes and fried green tomatoes: the aritchokes are one of our absolute favorite things on their menu! We also tried an Asian fish special that night, and then came dessert. Blueberry lemon cheesecake. I don't throw around “best ever” lightly, but this was legitimately one of the best pieces of cheesecake we've ever had.
If you're planning an Oak Island trip during busy season, I'd absolutely recommend making restaurant reservations ahead of time rather than assuming you'll be able to walk in everywhere you want.
The Trip Where the Boys Learned to Boogie Board
The next morning was another slow breakfast at the house followed by another full beach day. And this one gave us one of those little vacation memories I know we'll remember. The boys learned how to boogie board!
Once they figured it out, that was it. Wave after wave after wave.
They were obsessed! We packed another beach picnic, grabbed more Italian ice and ice cream from the carts and basically let the day revolve around waves, food and sunshine.
This is one of my favorite things about an Oak Island family vacation. There are plenty of things you can do, but you don't feel like you need to constantly entertain everyone.
Sometimes the activity really can just be: go to the beach.
Our Favorite Dinner of the Trip: Swain Seafood Shack
That evening, we went out for a family dinner at Swain Seafood Shack, and this ended up being the best meal we've had on Oak Island. Seriously. Tyler ordered the ribeye with sides, and I ordered the blackened shrimp. The shrimp were phenomenal. Easily the best blackened shrimp I've had. If you're searching for great seafood restaurants in Oak Island, NC, Swain deserves a spot high on your list.
Again: make a reservation.
Shopping, Surf Shops + One More Beach Day
By our last full day, we had pretty much perfected our vacation rhythm.
Wake up.
Breakfast.
Beach.
Eat.
Beach again.
Ice cream.
Repeat.
We did break from tradition long enough to stop by a local surf shop and grab a few new things for everyone before heading back out for another half-day of crashing into the waves. And I think that's exactly why we love Oak Island so much.
It's not a beach destination where you feel pressure to constantly do something. It's a place where the doing can be incredibly simple. Watching your kids learn to boogie board. Packing sandwiches for the beach. Walking into a surf shop still covered in salt.
Eating ice cream after dinner. Going home tired in the best possible way.
Family Dinner at Tranquil Harbour
For our final evening, we chose Tranquil Harbour for a casual family dinner.
This was definitely more of an easy, kid-friendly option for us. The food was fine, but the service was great, and it worked well for a relaxed family meal after spending half the day at the beach. And naturally, dinner wasn't technically the end of the evening.
Because there was still Frosty's.
You Have to Get Ice Cream at Frosty's
This became our nightly ritual. Frosty's. Every. Single. Night.
They make their own waffle cones, which means the second you walk through the door, it smells heavenly! And there are SO many flavors.
There's just something about walking into an ice cream shop with sandy, sun-tired kids after a day at the beach that feels like childhood, even when you're the parent now.
These are the moments I want to remember!
Is Oak Island, NC Good for Families?
For us, absolutely. Oak Island has become one of our favorite family beach destinations on the East Coast because it still feels like somewhere you can actually slow down.
There are great Oak Island restaurants, local shops, family-friendly activities and plenty nearby when you want something to do. But you can also build an entire day around the ocean and nobody feels like they're missing anything. And that's our kind of beach vacation.
For families specifically, I also think your accommodations matter tremendously. Having multiple bedrooms, a bunk room, a real kitchen and laundry at Time & Tide gave everyone room to settle in and made the practical side of traveling with children significantly easier!
Where to Stay in Oak Island: Time & Tide
If you're planning your own Oak Island, North Carolina vacation and looking for a beautiful, family-friendly place to stay, we'd absolutely recommend checking out Time & Tide. The property sleeps up to eight guests with three bedrooms, four beds and two bathrooms. Two bedrooms have king beds and the third has a bunk bed, which is a great setup for a family or a small group traveling together.
And if you're the person who wants your beach rental to actually feel like part of the vacation rather than simply somewhere you sleep, this one delivers!
It's bright.
It's comfortable.
It's beautifully designed.
It has the amenities families actually need.
And after long days in the sun, it was genuinely nice to come home to.
Our Oak Island Favorites From This Trip
If you're saving this as your mini Oak Island travel guide, here's our quick recap:
STAY: Time & Tide
PIZZA: Pepperoni Grill
DATE NIGHT: Salt64
FAMILY DINNER FAVORITE: Swain Seafood Shack
CASUAL FAMILY DINNER: Tranquil Harbour
SWEET TREAT: Frosty's
BEST ACTIVITY: Honestly? The beach. All day.
FAVORITE MEMORY: Watching the boys learn to boogie board.
Oak Island continues to be one of those places we leave already talking about coming back to. And I think that's the sign of a really great family vacation.
Not that you checked everything off a list. Not that you packed every minute with activities. But that everyone got to slow down, reconnect and make memories together!
Time & Tide gave us the perfect home base to do exactly that.
Until next time, Oak Island. 🤍
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