Origin
Oak Island, NC
Morning in Oak Island on Saturday
Local time
7:26 AM
EDT
Current temp
82°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Oak Island, NC to Wilmington, NC
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
43m
Distance
30.1 mi
48 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$5
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 40m
★
6 AM
0h 43m
8 AM
0h 50m
10 AM
0h 46m
12 PM
0h 45m
3 PM
0h 46m
5 PM
0h 50m
8 PM
0h 41m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Oak Island, NC
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
The drive from Oak Island, NC to Wilmington, NC covers 30.1 miles and takes about 43m behind the wheel. This route is realistic as a one-day drive if you keep your stops efficient.
The route leans on Ocean Highway East, Midway Road Southeast, North Middleton Street for much of the mileage, and the overall profile is turn-heavy local drive. The longest uninterrupted segment is about 16.2 miles on Ocean Highway East. At current regular gas prices, budget about $4.71 one way before food or hotel costs.
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 43m. Total distance: 30.1 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
43m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (0%). Straightforward navigation.
Scenic Drive
Turn-heavy local drive route profile.
Drive Character
Expect a 43m drive with frequent turns across 30.1 miles of local and secondary roads.
This route has more turning and local-road decision points than a simple highway run.
There are about 12 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
Ocean Highway East is the longest continuous segment at about 16.2 miles.
How Hard Is This Drive?
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes around 10.9 miles in near US 17 Business; NC 906 / Old Ocean Highway.
Driving Effort
3/10
Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a straightforward 43m drive. You will face about 4 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 10.9 miles (US 17 Business; NC 906 / Old Ocean Highway): Navigation decision point; at 12.6 miles (US 17 / Ocean Highway East): Lane positioning matters here; at 25.6 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully.
Critical Maneuvers
4 of 4 key pointsThese are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.
3
10.9 mi into trip
|
~15m in
|
US 17 Business; NC 906 / Old Ocean Highway
Turn right onto US 17 Business; NC 906 / Old Ocean Highway
Navigation decision point
5
12.6 mi into trip
|
~18m in
|
US 17 / Ocean Highway East
Turn right onto US 17 / Ocean Highway East
Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight lane.
5
25.6 mi into trip
|
~36m in
Keep slight right at fork toward US 17
Highway fork - watch signs carefully
Toward US 17
3
30 mi into trip
|
~42m in
|
US 421; US 17 Business / South 3rd Street
Turn left onto US 421; US 17 Business / South 3rd Street
Navigation decision point
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Ocean Highway East | 16.2 mi | 22m |
| Midway Road Southeast | 6.5 mi | 8m |
| North Middleton Street | 4.1 mi | 5m |
| Main Street | 0.9 mi | 1m |
| Cape Fear Memorial Bridge | 0.8 mi | 1m |
| Old Ocean Highway | 0.8 mi | 1m |
| South Middleton Avenue | 0.3 mi | <1m |
| South 3rd Street | 0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
Ocean Highway East
— 16.2 mi, about 22m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Oak Island, NC and Wilmington, NC.
1
Start on NC 906
0.3 mi
·
36 sec
·
South Middleton Avenue
2
Continue on NC 906
4.1 mi
·
5 min
·
North Middleton Street
3
Continue on NC 906
6.5 mi
·
8 min
·
Midway Road Southeast
4
Turn right onto US 17 Business; NC 906
0.5 mi
·
41 sec
·
Old Ocean Highway
5
Continue on US 17 Business
0.9 mi
·
1 min
·
Main Street
6
Continue on US 17 Business
0.3 mi
·
35 sec
·
Old Ocean Highway
7
Turn right onto US 17
13 mi
·
18 min
·
Ocean Highway East
Use the straight lane.
8
Keep slight right at fork
0.5 mi
·
37 sec
Toward US 17
9
Continue on US 17; US 74; US 76
3.1 mi
·
4 min
·
Ocean Highway East
10
Continue on US 17; US 76; US 421
0.8 mi
·
1 min
·
Cape Fear Memorial Bridge
11
Turn left onto US 421; US 17 Business
0.1 mi
·
15 sec
·
South 3rd Street
12
Arrive at destination
US 17 Business
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.71 one way
$9.41 round trip
$3.97/gal
25.4 MPG avg
11 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.34 | $5.15 | $10.29 |
| premium | $4.70 | $5.57 | $11.14 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $6.65 | $13.29 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$5
Estimated CO2 emission: 10.5 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 64% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 9 | 0 | $3.16 | $1.44 |
| Efficient EV | 7.5 | 0 | $2.63 | $1.20 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 12 | 0 | $4.21 | $1.93 |
Gas CO2
11 kg
EV CO2
4 kg (64% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Wilmington, NC
Morning in Wilmington on Saturday
Local time
7:26 AM
EDT
Current temp
52°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
30 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
43m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
The drive from Oak Island, NC to Wilmington, NC covers 30.1 miles and takes about 43m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.
The main roads are Ocean Highway East, Midway Road Southeast, North Middleton Street. Expect a mix of highway and local road driving.
This is a comfortable same-day trip.
The midpoint is about 15.1 miles from Oak Island, NC. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.
At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $4.71 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.
Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.
This is a straightforward 43m drive. You will face about 4 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
The main spots that need attention: at 10.9 miles (US 17 Business; NC 906 / Old Ocean Highway): Navigation decision point; at 12.6 miles (US 17 / Ocean Highway East): Lane positioning matters here; at 25.6 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully.
The route from Oak Island, NC to Wilmington, NC does not surface many named destination signs beyond the main corridor.
How this page is built
Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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