Fuel your next road trip from Raleigh with our team’s favorite pit stops.
Everyone knows it’s all about the journey, not just the destination. So when it comes to road trips, pit stops are essential—whether you’re fueling up on food, drinks and/or gas, or just simply need to stretch your legs. In honor of our July/August travel feature touting 25 easy road trips from Raleigh, we tapped the Raleigh Mag team for their essential stops when hitting the road. Take notes!
“Wilber’s Barbecue in Goldsboro on the way to the beach!”
—Gina Stephens, Publisher, @ginasdawgs
“If I had my way, nowhere—but when duty calls, I’m a bathroom aficionado. I even have a budding bathrooms Instagram, @_intheloo_ (!)”
—Melissa Howsam, Editor-in-Chief, @mahowsam
“I like to be prepared for my inevitable sweet/salty cravings, so I typically grab gummy worms and some sort of chip (s/o Nacho Cheese Doritos!) for the road from a gas station (Sheetz is the go-to).”
—Lauren Kruchten, Associate Editor, @laurenn_nicol
“Sheetz—best bathrooms and best snacks!”
—Anna Beth Adcock, Editorial Assistant, @_annabethadcock
“Any local BBQ spot along the way.”
—Debby Serena, Account Executive
“Any small-town breakfast diner—they always have the best food.”
—Cam Rhinehardt, Account Executive, @camrht
“My favorite road trip stop is any fruit stand on the side of the road! The ones near the border of South Carolina are the best.”
—Heidi Reid, Editorial Intern, @heidi.laurel
“Big Oak Drive-In & Bar-B-Q in Salter Path along the coast for shrimp burgers! Or Cook Out—duh.”
—Eric Ginsburg, Contributing Writer, @eric_ginsburg
“My husband and I have a tradition of stopping at the Bojangles on Jones Sausage Road each time we head down to Wrightsville Beach.”
—Matt Lardie, Contributing Writer, @matt_lardie
“Our road trips always start with coffee: hot for us parents and iced for our teenage daughter.”
—Emily O’Brien, Contributing Writer
“Chick-fil-A and Starbucks (could it get more basic?!)”
—Chelsea Sutton, Contributing Writer, @chelsearsutton
“Chick-fil-A!”
—Kelsie Barton, Contributing Writer, @kelsie_barton
“When visiting my brother’s family in Winnabow, NC, we always find an excuse to go to Southport even for a couple of hours.”
—Susan Holt, Contributing Photographer, Susan Holt Photography, @susanholtphoto
“If I’m headed toward Beaufort, New Bern, etc., I like to stop by the Nahunta Pork Center to load up either going or coming. It’s a big ole spot in a strip mall that has every possible porky thing you can imagine.”
—Forrest Mason, Contributing Photographer, @fmasonmedia
“Youngs Pecans in Florence, SC”
—Felicia Trujillo, Contributing Photographer, Food Seen, @foodseennc
“Grabbing coffee on the way to the mountains at Press Coffee in Graham.”
—Sean Junqueira, Contributing Photographer, @seanjunqueira
