Fort Fisher State Historic Site — Attraction in Kure Beach

On my first trip to Wilmington, the two things I wanted to do were the aquarium and the historical site. I honestly thought the aquarium would be more impressive, but no -- the Fort Fisher Historical Site was a much better experience!

The building and area were like new. Parking is plentiful with nice, wide sidewalks. There's a lovely exhibit on the second floor as well as a small theater and a smaller hall that has rotating exhibits. There's also a small gift shop on the first floor. Upstairs has a wide open area with seats and windows, plus a big balcony where you can enjoy the view. Bonus: super clean bathrooms and a water fountain.

You're free to wander the outside area along a paved path that has several informative signs. I'm not sure how much area it covers, but I spent a good 30 minutes wandering. You can climb some wooden stairs up to the top of one of the hills, and there's a wide wooden trail around the back. It was a beautiful day and it was so pleasant.

They're finishing up some new exhibits inside the fort. You can walk inside several rooms and a long tunnel. It was all recreated (there are exit signs and lights, and I'm pretty sure A/C in one of them). But it still offered a wonderful perspective of what it must've been like.

There's a small two-lane road with a pedestrian walkway to the beach. There is at least one more informational sign and then you can walk along the paved path. Vehicle traffic was light and cars stopped to let you cross. Plenty of walkers and bicyclists were enjoying the park.

A truly wonderful little place! No fee, but they...

16 Sept 2025 MOM & DAUGHTER WEEKEND TRIP We have always loved Ft Fisher and being down at the rocks on the beach. But this time, my daughter, her dog and I decided to go walk the path at the park and wow we were impressed! We didn't go into the museum but we did walk the paths at the park. The paths were paved and easy to walk. We have been down there countless times, and never knew about or even saw the cannons on top of the hills there. That was a pleasant surprise. There are multiple boards along the path that offer pictures and tons of history on them. There are plenty of benches along the path to stop and have a seat along the way. Next to the museum is a display of a cannon with stone blocks all around it, and each stepping stone block had someone's name on it with the military unit they were in. Some even had dates on them. Well worth the time to walk it. Just make sure to bring your water...

We came here later in the day, around 3:45. Nobody else was touring at the time. The guy sitting behind the main desk in the lobby was very friendly and put on the 10 minute video for us and gave us a brief explanation of everything there was to do and see. Walking the grounds was definitely a humbling experience, and the outside tour wouldn't take longer than 20-30 minutes.

I'd highly recommend playing the display map inside the lobby - it has a light show representation of the maneuvers of the troops that makes the battle much easier to visualize. The staff is very friendly and and made sure we got to see everything we wanted to without being rushed out at 5 (we ended up getting out of there around 4:45, seeing everything in just about an hour). Definitely a cool historic site worth checking out if you have a free...