Looking to telecommute or online school from Cape Hatteras?

Stay 14 nights or longer and receive an additional 5% off our seasonal rate, plus complimentary weekly housekeeping service ($150 value/week).

Give us a call at 252-987-6060 for more information and to book your extended stay.

The Pamlico Sound is known for miles of shallow flat water. This is what helped build its reputation for being such an incredible place to dial in your windsurfing and kiting skills over the past 40+ years. Kiteboarding with 2” fins, you can ride almost anywhere and not have any issues of hitting bottom. When you switch over to the foil, even with a short 24” mast, you better watch out because you will hit bottom. The sandbars in the Pamlico Sound are shallow and very unpredictable.

When we stumbled on to the REAL Slick 20 years ago, hydro foils were only being used in Air Chairs and towing into Jaws by a select few. We never saw the kite foil and wing foil storm coming. Little did we know that directly out of the back yard of what has become the REAL Watersports and Watermen’s Retreat is the perfect depth for both kiteboarding and foiling.

99% of the Pamlico Sound around Cape Hatteras is too shallow to foil in. You could go with a mast that is in the 15” range and be ok, but those short masts are pretty limiting once you learn. There are a couple deep spots with public access like the Canadian Hole, but the Watermen’s Foil Garden is the only sound side location in Cape Hatteras that you can foil directly behind your accommodations. For those foilers that are more experienced, there are 70 miles of ocean side foiling that has deep water and great foiling conditions.

The Watermen’s Foil Garden starts 100 yards off the launch at REAL, has a defined runway out to the REAL Slick Island and then a huge riding area of chest deep water that is accessible in all wind directions. You can foil this area with anything from a 24-34” mast length.

Many of our guests have been really progressing their kite foiling and wing foiling skills in the Watermen’s Foil Garden because you have the perfect combo of steady wind, shallow enough water to stand for a break and you don’t get that much chop because the water isn’t that deep.

As kite and wing foiling grows, we’ve had a lot of visitors coming to Cape Hatteras inquiring about the best spots to foil. The ocean is wide open, but the sound is pretty limited unless you want to walk your foil a mile offshore to get to deeper water.

All of our guests staying at Watermen’s Retreat, Watermen’s Cabanas and Watermen’s Hideout have access to our private launch site and to the Watermen’s Foil Garden. This launch and access to the Watermen’s Foil Garden is limited to guests staying with us at Watermen’s and currently enrolled in REAL Lessons. Guests of all Watermen’s accommodations also enjoy a 10% discount on gear rentals at the REAL Rental Shop which is stocked with all the latest 2021 foiling gear from Armstrong, Naish, Slingshot, North and Core.

For more information about the Watermen’s Foil Garden and to book your accommodations with us, shoot us an email at reservations@watermensretreat.com or call us at 252-987-6060. We look forward to seeing you on the water soon!

“This place looks incredible!! What do you do to keep it in such good shape? It’s like it gets newer every year!”

From the beginning, we knew staying the same is the same as going backwards. That’s why we have a year round passion for maintaining and improving all of our guest accommodations at Watermen’s Retreat. This includes our premium waterfront and water view suites, our budget minded Watermen’s Cabanas, and our secluded two bedroom waterfront cottage, Watermen’s Hideout.

This year, Watermen’s Hideout received another significant list of upgrades including:

• Installation of a Hot Tub on the waterfront deck
• Refinished original Hardwood Floor
• New Natural Stone Kitchen Floor
• New Stove and Oven
• New Sink Fixtures
• New Cody Hammer Surf Image
• New Living Area Rug
• New Curtains and Sheer Curtains
• New Shower Fixtures
• Cedar shakes and Windows professionally washed
• Decks and Outdoor Shower professionally washed and sealed
• Updates to the Gear Shed, including gear storage, surf racks, storage space, upgraded lighting, and a laundry folding area
• New Gear Shed Steps and Railing
• New Side Entrance Railing

Huge props go out to our property maintenance manager Joey Crum as well as Brady Reid, Nick Davies and many others to get this list of improvements rolled out over the winter and early spring!

We are taking bookings for Watermen’s Hideout, and all of our other properties HERE, or call us at 252-987-6000 for more information and to make your reservation.

We have a secret… some people like winter at Watermen’s Retreat better than summer. Miles of empty beach make it easy to find a perfect peak for just you and your friends. Watermen’s Retreat is centrally located offering multiple setups that favor varying wind and swell directions. Surf right out front on north swells and west winds or head south for south swells and north winds. With all the possibilities it’s not hard to see why winter is one of the best times to stay at Watermen’s Retreat.

Short stays mean you can strike the next swell. Rates starting at only $194.99 per night.

World renowned professional surfer Cory Lopez and his family know a good summer vacation when they see it. Their last seven months saw them trotting the globe to find the best waves and contests in the world.

One stop that’s always on the “Lopez World Tour” is a trip to Cape Hatteras mid summer to stay with us at Watermen’s Retreat. With a wide variety of consistent surf, warm water, and four wheel drive access to track down your own peak, this stretch of coastline is an easy drive-to surf score for families mid summer when the kids’ schedules loosen up. And for the non surfers in your group, it’s also ranked among the “Top 10 Beaches in America” year after year. It’s always great to see Cory and his family having so much fun while they’re here!

For the wind sports enthusiasts, the summer months are also some of our most consistent of the year, with upwards of 28 rideable days per month. That’s a lot of warm water sessions!

Summer at the REAL Lesson Center sees lessons and camps on the water every day. So if you want to learn one of these sports, advance your skills, or have a friend that wants to “catch the bug”, bring them along and experience the Watermen’s Retreat advantage. It’s all right here!

Whether it’s surfing, kiting, winging, or just having a great time at the beach, now’s the time to start planning your summer trip to visit us at Watermen’s Retreat in Cape Hatteras, North Carolina!

We’re coming into our favorite time of year… Warm air and water, mixed with consistent surf and wind, make the next few months absolutely incredible.

Late August sees consistent swell created by wide swinging tropical systems offshore. Today as we write this, it’s 3-5ft and barreling with offshore winds forecasted all day. Pretty easy to sound stoked when you’re caked in sunscreen and satiated with countless tubes.

This time of year also sees winds shift to a mix of SW and NE directions rather than all SW. NE winds take the edge off the heat, and ​opens up a whole slew of surf spots on the south side of the island. They also usher in our wave kiting season with endless downwind runs in the ocean on the northside of the island, and side offshore barreling conditions on the southside. We continue to enjoy 20+ days a month of good kiteable winds for both flat water and surf kiting. Warm and windy anyone? YES!

The foiling out back in Watermen’s Foil Garden continues to be prime time, with foilers kiting and winging every day, plus students learning to fly behind jet skis. We have a good number of surf foiling spots dialed in to take you away from the crowds with near perfect conditions and endless rides. Let us know if you want to take the plunge and learn. It’s a liberating feeling freeing yourself ​with good waves and double digit wind speeds.

If epic conditions on the water aren’t enough, let’s talk about your time on the land. Legendary surf photographer John Bilderback always makes September his time to strike Cape Hatteras. For the waves yes, but even more so for the lighting and atmospheric conditions. Every sunrise, sunset, and cloud formation is supercharged this time of year. John has seen it all traveling the world, and he still comes here for several weeks to enjoy the light show.

Warm waves. Consistent winds. Out of this world views. Short stays, check in and out any day, plus extended stays available. We hope to enjoy our paradise with you in ​its prime!

70 degree temperatures in February had REAL employees out enjoying the Watermen’s Foil Garden and Slick all to themselves during a sunset session.

Book your stay and come enjoy some of the warm weather we have been enjoying!

Are you interested in learning to surf foil? You’re not alone. Follow Dave Sincox of @surfcraftunion and @theliftjournal as he shares his learning curve fully immersed in our foiling instructional program with veteran REAL Coach Esben Boxer.

Episode #1 covers Dave’s first day on the water; Efoil, tow foil, and his first rides prone foiling. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to learn to foil (and to learn at REAL), Dave does an excellent job of showing day one firsthand.

Stay tuned for episodes #2 and #3, which will document Dave’s second and third day with us here in Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

For more information about learning to foil or to book your instruction, you can always reach us at the shop at 252.987.6000 or email REALpro@realwatersports.com.

The last thirty days have been a bit strange here. Kind of like a hurricane evacuation, except without the hurricane, the cleanup, the repairs and the hot weather.

The sessions have been ON though, and it’s tough writing about them. Do we publicize how good it’s been or hold it tight for the cause? Last week we posted a picture of Luke Johnson boosting over the REAL flags in the backyard and the answer was crystal clear.

People love this place. Their spring trip to Cape Hatteras is as much a part of their stoke schedule as that first cup of coffee every day. Some guests have told us this is their first spring not in Cape Hatteras for over twenty years. Others we know are well beyond that number. Cape Hatteras sessions kick off everyone’s spring in a big way, and with no kick off party, it has everyone really cherishing how much they value their time in the water off the Outer Banks.

This spring followed one of the mildest winters we can remember. The prolonged warmer temps launched us into spring with water that was noticeably warmer than normal, and an active wind and wave pattern. We’ve always said the Pamlico Sound temp is a three day average of the air. It’s so shallow it just heats up, or cools down, that quickly. Air temps regularly in the 70’s meant we were shedding rubber and exposing skin before the first of April. Can you remember the feel of warm SW wind and the sound of sea grass blowing? The SW wind machine has been in full effect, syncing with all this warm weather. In fact, it’s been ALL SW until a recent front switched it back to NNE.

On the surf front, we’ve had quite a few good swells in the last month. With Dare County closed to visitors, it’s been like a time machine buzzing us back to before surf forecasting. Yes, there’s still 10-20 surfers (socially distancing) on “the best” spot, but every other break is completely empty for private sessions. The water temps are seasonally warmer than average with northside sessions now in 4/3mms and southside sessions even milder.

On the foil front, the backyard has been busy with flyers enjoying the recently named “Watermen’s Foil Garden”. Whether it be behind a kite, a wing, or a ski, there’s not a day that goes by that someone isn’t out there enjoying some sort of flight. Whether it be someone’s first time on foil, or first time time kiting or “winging” with one, the thrill of learning and progressing is keeping everyone in The Stoke Zone.

Where does all this put us now? For one, we can’t wait to have everyone back here. We’re ready to re-open as soon as the time is right, and have so many new improvements in our facilities for you to enjoy. But it’s not just our facilities that make this such a great vacation, it’s our staff as well. Each and every one of them misses you and the excitement you bring. Your smile, your stoke, your laugh, your shaka. The further we head into spring the more we miss it all, but the more it motivates us the be ready when it turns back around.

For now, remember what Cape Hatteras means to you. National Parks Week is April 18-26 and we’ll be posting some of our favorite Cape Hatteras National Seashore memories on our social media. Follow us there and get ready to come back. We’re counting down the days…

Meet Mark Dawson and take a look at the winter surf scene on the Outer Banks. Mark stayed with us at Watermen’s Retreat January through March, and shares his experience as well as some of his best winter surf sessions.

If you’re looking to get some winter tubes, give us a call at 252-987-6060 or book online 🤙🏽❄️