High tide: Carolinas beaches aren't coasting.

• Author: Burnette, Kristen
• Position: Regional Focus: SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

Water and sand. Those are about all the beach communities from Portsmouth Island in North Carolina to Hilton Head Island in South Carolina have in common. There are differences in the way the beaches were developed, how they're accessed and what's available for travelers. Here's a look at some of the Carolinas' major tourist attractions.

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In North Carolina's Crystal Coast region, which encompasses the southern Outer Banks from Portsmouth Island to Emerald Isle, visitors can explore more than 80 miles of beach. Morehead City and Beaufort are on the mainland. To the west is Bogue Banks, a developed barrier island. To the east are the Cape Lookout National Seashore--made up of North Core Banks, South Core Banks and Shackleford Banks--and Portsmouth Island. The islands are relatively unchanged since the pirate Blackbeard lurked there nearly 300 years ago.

The Crystal Coast draws many outdoors-loving visitors each year to enjoy diving, kayaking, beach camping, sportfishing and other activities. In 2003, Morehead City was named one of the best diving destinations in North America by Rodale's Scuba Diving magazine. "The numerous ocean wreck sites just off our coast offer an easily accessible and varied ocean environment for divers to enjoy," says Robert Purifoy of Olympus Dive Center in Morehead City. One of the most-visited wreck sites is the U-352, a German submarine that the Coast Guard sank in 1942.

Back on land, the wild horses of Shackleford Banks earned the Cape Lookout National Seashore its own plaudits as one of the 2002 Rand-McNally Atlas' 29 Best of the Road attractions in the United States. The horses are the island's only residents and have been there more than 400 years.

Carteret County, home of the Crystal Coast, ranks 12th in tourism among North Carolina's 100 counties. Domestic tourism generated nearly $207 million in 2002, a 1.2% increase from 2001. According to the state Department of Commerce, nearly 3,200 jobs in Carteret County were directly related to travel or tourism in 2002. Among the county's attractions are the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores, Core Sound Waterfowl Museum, Fort Macon State Park, historic Beaufort, the North Carolina Maritime Museum, Cape Lookout National Seashore and lighthouse, Crystal Coast beaches and fishing.

Farther south is the Cape Fear Coast, which includes Wilmington and Carolina Beach, Kure Beach and Wrightsville Beach. New Hanover County ranked eighth in Tar...