10+ Fun Free Things To Do In Wilmington, NC

Free Things To Do In Wilmington, NC

Visit The New Hanover County Arboretum

If you love flowers and botanical gardens, you’ll love the New Hanover County Arboretum (6206 Oleander Dr.). The seven-acre arboretum has a children’s garden, an herb garden, a Japanese garden (my favorite!), and more.

There’s also staff on hand to answer any questions that you may have about the botanical garden itself or your home garden. If you do live locally, there are educational classes and special events offered at the arboretum too, which are worth attending — and free to the public.

If you like Pokémon Go, it’s a great place to play. There are a few gyms and stops at the arboretum.

And, even though general admission to the arboretum is free always, you can become a member of the garden. That’ll give you perks like 10% off at the gift shop. The New Hanover Country Arboretum is part of the American Horticultural Society Reciprocal Admissions Program, which allows complimentary reciprocal admission to over 300 gardens in the country.

Quick note, though: Airlie Gardens participates as well, but enforces a “90-mile exclusion” rule, so you can’t visit Airlie for free with an Arboretum membership.

Hours: Garden Hours: 8 am to 5 pm (daily); Plant Clinic and Gift Shop: 10 am to 4 pm (Monday through Friday)

See Live Music At The Marina Grill Concert Series Or Eagles’ Dare

There’s a ton of live music at bars and breweries in Wilmington on the weekends, so if you just head into one, you’ll find someone playing.

If you’re looking for something free to do in Wilmington in the spring or summer, check out the music series at Marina Grill (18 Harnett St). Local bands play on the pier behind Marina Grill on Friday and Saturday nights as part of the restaurant’s Sunset Live Music Series. This year (2025), it goes from April 4 (Azalea Fest weekend) to October 18. Our wedding band (although with lots of different members now), Port City Shakedown, plays May 10.

You can see the full schedule here.

Alcohol is available for purchase on the pier (although, budget-friendly note: drinks are cheaper inside Marina Grill and you are able to bring them onto the pier). It’s standing room, mostly. There’s a section at the back of the pier that’s designated for folding chairs, which guests need to bring for themselves.

The Eagles’ Dare (420 N 3rd St) also has a great free Friday night concert series during the summer. Just like with Marina Grill, it’s free to attend at drinks are available to purchase inside the bar.

Learn At The Cape Fear Museum Park

The Cape Fear Museum Of History And Science (814 Market St) is a really great museum if you want to learn about the history of the Cape Fear region.

There’s a space exhibit inside, one about Michael Jordan, and a full exhibit upstairs that changes often. It has been dinosaurs and then changed into an exhibit about a giant sloth. Of course, to go inside, there’s a fee.

But outside the museum is the Cape Fear Museum Park. There are interactive exhibits outside, a walking path, history about the area, and more.

The Cape Fear Museum Park, which is adjacent to the museum, is free and open to the public. You can spend a lot of time there without actually going inside the museum.

Hours: dawn to dusk (daily)

Walk The Wilmington Riverwalk

Wilmington has a really great downtown area. Front Street is filled with bars, restaurants, and local shops. But one block over is the aptly named Water Street. And then, on the other side of the street, is the newly updated Riverwalk.

The Wilmington Riverwalk runs nearly two miles, nearly going from the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge to the Isabel Holmes Bridge. It goes along the Cape Fear River, passes behind where the Coast Guard’s USS Diligence was stationed, through Wilmington’s historic district, and more.

Across the river, you can see the USS Battleship North Carolina and it’s one of the best places to take a photo of it.

And again, my Pokémon Go playing friends, this walk is filled with gyms and stops.

Play At Long Leaf Park

If you’re looking for a great park in the Port City, Long Leaf Park (previously known as Hugh McRae Park) (314 Pine Grove Dr) is it.

The free town park has an inclusive playground (including a Liberty Wheelchair Swing), splash pad (opened seasonally), a basketball court, a dog park, an outdoor gym, a walking trail, a garden area with pond and gazebo, tennis courts, and more.

But that’s not all. There’s also a StoryWalk, which is a children’s picture book along a walking trail. Parents and children can walk and read the story together. So yeah, this park has everything for, really, everyone and is one of the best things you can do with your family to get some sunshine.

Hours: 8 am to 10 pm (daily)

Go On A Self-Guided Ghost Tour

Wilmington as such a sordid history between pirates and slaves and the Civil War. So, the town is filled with ghosts … if you believe in that sort of thing.

And if you do, you need to go on a ghost tour. You can pay for one (to be honest, the one we did wasn’t that great) or you can go on a self-guided ghost tour.

We have a post with all the haunted places in downtown Wilmington that you can use as a guide. It’s filled with all the ghost stories and addresses of the places you may see a spirit.

Visit Greenfield Lake Park And Gardens

Wilmington has a ton of local parks, and another really good one is Greenfield Lake Park And Gardens (1739 Burnett Blvd). Greenfield Lake Park is exceptional because it’s 250-acres of park.

There are tennis courts, a 5-mile walking/biking trail, playgrounds, and picnic areas. We actually thought about having our rehearsal dinner at Greenfield Lake Park, but the picnic area is on a first come, first serve basis and we couldn’t risk that. (Fun fact: We had it in another local park, Halyburton Park, instead.)

Fishing is permitted at the park, and there’s water access if you have a boat (with trolling motors that are 3hp or less), kayak, or canoe. Keep in mind, though, there are alligators and water moccasins in the lake, so you’ll be up close and personal with nature.

Greenfield Grind Skate Park is located there too. The 9,000-square foot concrete park has hips, rails and ledges for skateboards, inline skates, and BMX freestyle bikes. There’s no cost to use the skate park, which is open when the park is.

Quick note: The park is adjacent to Greenfield Lake Amphitheater. That’s a live venue that has concerts often. However, in the summer, there’s a production of Shakespeare in the Park that’s free. We went last year because it was my favorite Shakespeare play (Much Ado About Nothing) and it was so good.

Hours: sunrise to sunset (daily)

Shop At The Riverfront Farmers’ Market

Wilmington has a lot of farmers’ markets, but the OG market is the Riverfront Farmers’ Market. That’s where Pete used to sell his small batch marinara sauce, Rita’s Wooden Spoon.

The name has been a bit of a misnomer for the last few years, due to construction that’s happening on the riverfront. The Riverfront Farmers’ Market was originally on Water Street/on the Wilmington Riverwalk. In 2016, it was moved to a parking lot on Water Street for a season and in 2019 it was moved to Dock Street. The next year (and half of the one after), it was in the parking lot next to Waterline Brewery.

It’s back on Dock Street now, and runs from 2nd Street to Water St. So it’s close to the river, but not in front of it.

The market runs from April until November and is free to just walk through and browse.

Hours: 8 am to 1 pm (Saturdays from April until November)

Take A Historic Walking Tour

If you like history, you’ll love the monthly free walking tour hosted by the Historic Wilmington Foundation (211 Orange Street). It takes place on a Sunday each month (the dates vary) at 2 pm and lasts for about 90 minutes. The walking tours are about an hour.

The theme varies each month. Previously the tours have covered places of worship, Wilmington’s Soda Pop District (the up and coming area where the new Hi-Wire Brewing is), Lantern & Lore (The History Behind the Ghost Stories), and Wilmington’s Halls, Lodges, and Castles, which focuses on historic buildings (like the ones housing the Children’s Museum of Wilmington and the Slice of Life pizza parlor).

It’s a great way to learn about the local history of the area, plus get a bit of exercise while you do it.

You have to register for the tour ahead of time and can do that here.

Visit the Stanley Rehder Carnivorous Plant Garden

Here’s a fun fact. Venus flytraps only grow within 70 miles of Wilmington, NC. That’s it. They don’t grow anywhere else. So, if you’re in the area, you should definitely see some in the wild.

The best place to do that is the Stanley Rehder Carnivorous Plant Garden (3800 Canterbury Rd) in the spring. The park is open year round, but the spring is the best time to see the carnivorous Venus flytraps.

Each June, the Flytrap Frolic is held at the park. It’s a free event with garden tours, hikes, arts and crafts, and more. The event is open to the public and definitely worth checking out if you’re in town for it.

Hours: Daily from dawn to dusk

Take a Dawson’s Creek or One Tree Hill self-guided tour

There’s a lot of filming done in Wilmington, so much that it has been dubbed Hollywood East. Two of the most popular shows filmed in the area are Dawson’s Creek and One Tree Hill. Most recently, The Summer I Turned Pretty filmed in Wilmington (the upcoming season is its last).

If you’re a fan of those shows, you can take a self-guided tour of some of the show’s hot spots.

To make it easier, check out this Dawson’s Creek Locations Tour list and this One Tree Hill Locations Tour list. Those have been put together by the town, so just follow them along instead of trying to find them yourself.

The photo above is Blue Post, one of our favorite bars in Wilmington, and where Brooke and Lucas went on a tattoo date.

Which of these free things to do in Wilmington are you adding to your list? Let us know in the comments.