Budget Friendly Travel: What to do in Fayetteville, North Carolina

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These are highly recommended establishments and these are the places we frequented while on a budget. If you happen to be around Fayetteville, we suggest to visit one of these.

Places to Eat:

1.     Asian Express Restaurant

This restaurant offer authentic Thai and Chinese cuisines. They have a small quiet place and their service is fast and they have a nice and friendly staff too. Their food menu prices are inexpensive and especially when you are on a budget you can buy at a very reasonable price at a large portion. Before you order the food, make sure you inform the server to not put MSG and ask the spice level of the food they will serve. The restaurant is quiet and clean. There are three Asian Express stores conveniently located here in Fayetteville and all are in the same family owned restaurant which belongs to one of the Saephan family.

My husband and I love to order the Thai soup which is the tom yum chicken, spring rolls, pepper steak and the panang chicken. The soup is very good and healthy. We just love their food and its one of a kind.

Three convenient locations:

·         Address: 528 S Reilly Rd, Fayetteville, NC 28314

Phone Number: (910) 864-5556

Business Hours:

Sunday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 08:00 PM

·         Address: 2622 Hope Mills Rd, Fayetteville, NC 28306

Phone Number: (910) 426-9828

Business Hours:

Monday-Friday: 11:00 AM – 08:00 PM

Saturday: 01:00 PM – 08:00 PM

Sunday: Closed

·         Address: 5066 Yadkin Rd Fayetteville, NC 28303

Phone Number: (910) 868-5559

Business Hours:

Sunday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 08:00 PM

2.     Vietnamese Restaurant

We love also this restaurant because they offer healthy food menu and at very affordable price. They have friendly staff, fast service, the ambiance is clean and the place is filled mostly with families and couples. They serve a very delicious, healthy dishes and pho soups in huge servings. They also serve fresh vegetables in a large platter that are crunchy and taste palatable. The meat is so tender and the pho is absolutely flavorful. 

One of our favorites is the Pho, spring rolls; their flounder is so huge serve in a platter, C42 combination, and P10, one of the highly recommended dishes.

·         Address: 5352 Yadkin Rd, Ste 104, Fayetteville, NC 28303-3293

Phone Number: 910-867-1108

Business Hours:

Tuesday-Sunday: 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM

3.     Sapporo Restaurant

We have been here in this place for several times with my husband. We always love their sushi, jap-chae and sashimi. The service is fast and they have friendly staff too. Their menu prices are at affordable price. We always love their free miso soup with two cubes of tofu and few shreds of seaweeds. They have also free slices of orange as dessert at the end of the meal. They also offer catering services.

·         Address: 649 N Reilly Rd #103, Fayetteville, NC 28303

Phone Number: (910) 867-8884

Business Hours:

Monday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Sunday: 12:00 PM – 09:00 PM

4. Big Apple Restaurant & Sports Pub

People living here called this place “a premier night life hotspot” in Fayetteville. This restaurant offers a variety of menu from American, Italian, Asian cuisines. It has a nice atmosphere, great food, good drinks, big TV screens, pool tables, dance, play poker and lively music. A great place to visit with a group of friends. Guests who often visit here are usually the military people.

·         Address: 5066 Yadkin Rd Fayetteville, NC 28303

Phone Number: (910) 868-5559

Business Hours:

Monday-Friday: 11:00 AM – 02:00 AM

Saturday-Sunday: 12:00 PM – 02:00 AM

5. Mellow Mushroom

We went to this place for the first time when we were invited by mu husband’s relatives. We highly recommend the Holy Shiitake Pizza which Olive oil and garlic base, mushrooms, caramelized onions, and mozzarella cheese. Garnished with fresh chives and shaved Parmesan, calzones and pretzels. The food was delicious and great tasting pizza. The place was packed a lot of TV screens. The service is good and friendly. This place is a great for families and friends. 

We would recommend this place to any pizza lover.

·         Address: 301 N McPherson Church Rd, Fayetteville, NC 28303

Phone Number: (910) 779-2442

Business Hours:

Monday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Sunday: 11:00 PM – 09:00 PM

6. Wendy's

Choosing fast food restaurant can be tasking ordeal especially when there are numerous selection to choose from. The restaurant that we choose was Wendy’s because the latest consumer report always state that this establishment is better than the rest of the fast food industry. The combination selections are enough to which you are not confused on which to choose what to eat. The double cheeseburger combination is the first time we ordered when I got here. The meat with its dressing has a mouthwatering flavor, it taste delicious and savory. The square patties burger made with fresh ground beef is so tender and moist. We keep buying their burgers, French fries, and frozen desserts and these are all in affordable prices especially when you are on a budget.

·         Address: 5740 Yadkin Rd Fayetteville, NC 28303

Phone Number: (910) 868-5410

Business Hours:

Monday-Sunday: 10:30 AM – 12:00 AM

7. Mellow Mango

This is a frozen yogurt store that has a 16 yogurt flavors. The Mellow Mango features low-fat, non-fat and no-sugar-added (NSA) choices, as well as non-dairy premium frozen yogurt. These are all tastes yummy and delicious. This is a self-service which you can choose in your own and customized your ice cream and yogurt combo exactly the way you want it to be. Their toppings are available in fruits, candies, chocolates, nuts, whipped creams and syrups. The price is based on the weight of the cup so choose the toppings to those you love. The place is quiet and clean. They have fast service and friendly staff. Plus free Wi-Fi.

My husband and I love this place. We dated simply here once in a while.

• Address: (The Highland Centre) 2800 Raeford Rd, Suite 3 Fayetteville, NC. 28303

Phone Number: 910-433-0770 

Business Hours:

Monday-Thursday: 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Friday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 11:00 PM

Sunday: 02:00 PM – 10:00 PM

• Address: (Traemoor Plaza) 3007 Town Center Dr. Fayetteville, NC 28306

Phone Number: (910) 223-9656

Business Hours:

Monday-Thursday: 11:00 AM – 09:00 PM

Friday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Sunday: 01:00 PM – 09:00 PM

•  Address: (Ramsey Commons) 4401 Ramsey St,  Suite 108 Fayetteville, NC 28311

Business Hours:

Monday-Thursday: 11:00 AM – 12:00 AM

Friday-Saturday: 11:00 AM – 01:00 AM

Sunday: 02:00 PM – 12:00 AM

Asian Market Store: If you are planning to buy for some Filipino products then this is the best available store you need to go.

1.     Sun Asian Super Market

This Asian Supermarket is a Korean owned store. The store has a high volume traffic in which their product is always rotating and never have a problem with expired merchandise like those around town. They have meats, seafood, fresh fruits, vegetables and wide varieties of ice cream from Magnolia, Selecta. We always buy our Filipino food here because of their vast variety products from the Philippines. The place is a medium size supermarket.

·         Address: 404 Santa Fe Dr # 100, Fayetteville, NC 28303

Phone Number: (910) 868-9954

Business Hours:

Monday-Saturday: 09:00 AM – 09:00 PM

Sunday: 12:00 PM – 07:00 PM

Tool Warehouse: Affordable tools what you are looking for, visit Harbor Freight!

1.     Harbor Freight

This store has a wide variety of affordable repair tools, car & maintenance tools such as vehicle repair kits, house & industrial tools such as compressors, paint tools, heavy duty drills, welding & machine shop tools, quality tool storages, electric power tools, battery powered & maintenance tools, industrial wrenches, saws, and all other types of machineries. They have also a website which you can also purchase with them. They distribute their weekly newspaper ads with coupons and sale discounts in their store and also to those who subscribe online. We always love to buy here especially we are on a tight budget.

·         Address: Eastside Shopping Center, 1330 Clinton Rd, Fayetteville, NC 28301

Phone Number: (910) 484-2180

Business Hours:

Monday-Saturday: 08:00 AM – 09:00 PM

Sunday: 09:00 AM – 06:00 PM

1. St. Ann Catholic Church

The things we love about this church are the friendliness of the church members, church goers and as wells as the traveling visitors. The atmosphere is very welcoming feeling the moment you enter the church. There are mixtures of demographics who attended to this church from newborn, children, teenagers, young adults and older people. This church has a nice homage with the Filipino culture that dedicates their service with Filipino mass presiding in Tagalog. They have also a weekly church leaflet that is sent to all members and church goers of the church every Sunday. It is a short written report that tells about the recent activities, plans of the church and also the homily for that day. 

Recreation Park: A must try experience! 

1.     Mountain Bike/Hiking Trails/All American Trail in Smith Lake, Fayetteville NC

Bike Trails are open year round. There is a beginner, intermediate, and advanced trail, which can be ridden as individual segments or all together (8 miles total).  Annual passes are $20 and day passes are $5.

The All American Trail is a ten to fifteen foot wide unpaved pathway designed for use by hikers, runners, and bicyclers. Horses are not permitted. The trail (currently eleven miles long) follows the perimeter boundary of Fort Bragg through North Carolina’s Sandhills Region and includes a 1,000 foot boardwalk that crosses Rockfish Creek and its wetlands. The terrain is mixed with sections ranging from nearly flat to fairly hilly.

The All American Trail will eventually extend through Cumberland, Hoke and Moore Counties — linking Fayetteville with Southern Pines.

Smith Lake Recreation Area Office Phone:  (910) 396-5979
Location:  Bldg. Q-2812 Smith Lake Road.
Entrance to Smith Lake Recreation Area (Park, Army Travel Campground and Beach) is accessible off of Honeycutt Road onto Smith Lake Road.  The access road off of Murchison Road is now permanently closed.  Please view Honeycutt Road Access Map onto Smith Lake Road. 

Hours of Operation

§  Smith Lake Recreation Area Office:  Thu-Mon (closed Tue & Wed): 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM

2.     Fishing in Wilmington

The distance from Fayetteville, NC going to Wilmington is 1 hour and 42 minutes. There are many options when you go fishing in Wilmington. There are fishing charters that are available all year around and fishing fish from a pier have always been an excellent way to enjoy fishing in NC. Unfortunately fishing piers have been under increasing financial pressure from real estate development and hurricanes and more are closing every year. 

Wilmington Fishing Charters provides fishing excursions for the Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Bald Head Island, Southport and Topsail areas of coastal North Carolina. Learning the patterns that fish follow including depth, water temperature, types of bait they are biting and time of the year will help you catch more fish. 

Wilmington Fishing specializes in near shore and off shore sport fishing. These are estimated price range when planning fishing. Sunset cruises are available, boat rides and tours also available.

• 1/2 day (5 hrs) $450
• 3/4 day (7 hrs) $650
• Full day (9 hrs) $750
• Rates for up to 4 passengers

It's not all just about the fishing. They can customize the trip to meet your specific needs according to what you would like to do, see, or catch and everything will be prepared. The pier also features a great tackle shop with bait and a restaurant with a great view. The pier is open seasonally from spring to fall and offers well-lit night fishing. 

·         Island Camping - Rates based on distance & equipment

·         Sunset/Scenic Cruise - $75 an hour (max 6 people)

·         Family Explorer Day

o    4 Hours- $350

o    6 Hours- $450

o    8 Hours- $550

o    Rates are for 4 people, $50 for the 5th and 6th person

·         Seafood Smorgasbord-$100 an hour

·         Birdwatching/ Nature Tours-$75 an hour

1.)   Wilmington Fishing Charters

Address: 101 Keel Street Wrightsville Beach, NC 28480

Phone Number: 910-620-7046

2.)   Carolina Beach Fishing Pier 

Address: 1810 Canal Drive Carolina Beach, NC 28428 

Phone Number: 910-458-5518 

3.)   Kure Beach Pier 

Address: Avenue K Kure Beach, NC 28449 

Phone Number: 910-458-5524

4.)   Outer Banks Fishing Pier 

Address: 8901 Old Oregon Inlet Road Nags Head, NC 27959 

Phone Number: 252-441-5740

5.)   Nags Head Fishing Pier 

Address: Nags Head, NC 27959 

Phone Number: 252-441-5141

6.)   Avalon Fishing Pier

Address: 2111 Beach Rd Kill Devil Hills, NC 27948 

Phone Number: 252-441-7494


3.     37 Public Shooting Range Gun Club

This place has excellent varieties of weapons on sale, staff and firearms instructors as they are all certified and have many years of experience in either in U.S Special Forces or U.S Special Operations Command. They are very knowledgeable in weapons and tactics. The facility has a simulation on ambush on outside and inside of the car. They also have a gun shop for all types of firearms. They provide everything for rental equipment from pistols, revolvers, rifles to ear and eye protection. They provide training and education courses for those aspirants who want to learn fun and safe shooting experience. Although this place is pretty far from Fort Bragg area it is highly recommended for private citizen. The shooting range has multiple settings from the 25 yards to 1 mile and recommended you make appointment for the longer ranges for clearance.

·        Address: 1331 Loop Road, Bunnlevel, NC 28323

Phone Number: (910) 893-9887

Business Hours:

Monday-Thursday: Closed

Friday: 02:00 AM – 07:00 PM

Saturday: 10:00 AM – 07:00 PM

Sunday: 01:00 PM – 07:00 PM

*Happy Travels!

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