Coffee Road Trip: Wrightsville Beach

Wrightsville Beach
on a cloudy fall morning -
just steps away from a coffee shop!

So a coffee shop may not be the first thing on your list when planning your beach vacation, but wait . . . don't you need a good cup of coffee or chai just the same as you do at home? Don't you miss your favorite coffee shop where everyone knows your name (or your dog's)?

Lucky for vacationers at Wrightsville Beach, NC, there's Cafe del Mar on Lumina Avenue - just a few yards from the ocean. This tiny cafe offers locally roasted coffee, espresso, smoothies, biscuit sandwiches and breakfast wraps.

You can play it the Triad Coffee Shop way and enjoy your favorite coffee shop beverage with the neighborhood regulars (people and pooches). Or, you can get your drink and a breakfast sandwich to go and carry it just a few yards to the ocean front. What tastes better than a great cup of coffee on the beach, with a view like this? So what's a few grains of sand on your sausage biscuit or blueberry muffin?

Cloudy, breezy, cool fall days like the ones we had this weekend are perfect "coffee drinking on the beach" weather, especially in the mornings. No one asks, "Isn't it too hot to drink coffee?" No one yells, "Come on in, the water's fine." (Like CoffeeCat would fall for that one).

Triad Coffee Shop fans, don't forget to support the local coffee shops wherever your travels take you . . . and please tell CoffeeCat about 'em. I need more excuses for random road trips and travel destinations off the beaten path.