Topics Related to Things to Do

The Museum of the Albemarle starts the summer off with the opening of "Are We There Yet," on April 19, 2024. This traveling paneled photography exhibit, on loan from the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, “looks back at an era when tourism boomed thanks largely to a state-run marketing effort called “Variety Vacationland.” 

The North Carolina Museum of History announces the unveiling of Julius Peppers’ 2003 National Football Conference (NFC) Championship ring. It will be displayed in the museum’s lobby starting Tuesday, April 23. The display offers an unparalleled opportunity for fans and enthusiasts to witness this piece of sports history.

The Civil War surrender at the Bennett farmhouse sealed the fate of slavery in the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. To cap off the 159th anniversary of the surrender, Bennett Place State Historic Site will host a new event to commemorate the end of legal slavery and to honor the more than 331,000 enslaved men, women, and children in North Carolina at the time of the Civil War. The program, entitled “The Day Had Come: Emancipation at Bennett Place,” will take place Saturday, April 27 from 7-9 p.m.

Unique and beautiful, the North Carolina Aquariums at Fort Fisher and on Roanoke Island and Jennette’s Pier are showcasing children’s artwork curated from “Este es mi México 2023” or “This is My Mexico 2023” through April 28. NCA Fort Fisher (NCAFF) is showcasing 20 pieces of the ocean-inspired art, NCA Roanoke Island (NCARI) will exhibit 16 and the Pier, eight.

Lake Norman and Eno River state parks will host inaugural “Poetry in the Park,” events on April 20 and April 27, respectively, the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation announced. The events are planned as part of the division’s Arts in the Parks initiative and are being held in commemoration of National Poetry Month in April.

North Carolina will launch its commemoration of America’s 250th birthday with the captivating "Halifax Resolves Days: Prelude to Revolution" event in Halifax, N.C., April 12-14.The event will take place at the iconic Historic Halifax State Historic Site in conjunction with Halifax Resolves Day on April 12, and will feature a two-day living history weekend where North Carolina's pivotal role in shaping the destiny of America will be on display.

The North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro was nominated for “Best Zoo” in USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for 2024. As the world’s largest natural habitat zoo, the North Carolina Zoo spans over 2,800 acres and cares for over 1,700 animals. The North Carolina Zoo also turns 50 this year, making the nomination an added treat for its golden anniversary.

A new exhibit has been installed in the visitor center at Fort Dobbs State Historic Site.Using a mix of authentic relics and replica items, the exhibit explains the importance of trade between colonists and American Indians in the Carolina backcountry in the 1750s, calling particular attention to occasions when American Indians visited the fort, both as friends and as enemies.

On Thursday evening, April 11, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., the Museum of the Albemarle and Elizabeth City State University, will host the Max Roach Centennial Celebration Jazz Festival opening night reception with special guest Elizabeth City native, A. B. Spellman. Spellman has written essays and poetry for Rhythm magazine and taught at Morehouse College, Emory University, Rutgers, and Harvard University.  

First appearing approximately 230 million years ago, the hearty crocodilians — alligators, crocodiles, caimans and gharials — have survived nearly every earthly scenario. They have outlived dinosaurs, ice ages, mass extinctions and more, yet they have changed very little over time. Find out all you ever wanted to know about crocodilians, plus a menagerie of wild reptiles and amphibians from North Carolina and around the world, at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences’ Reptile & Amphibian Day, Saturday, March 9, 10 a.m.–5 p.m.