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Highlands · Hotel shortlist

Hotels with a restaurant in the old town, Highlands

Sofia Marchetti

Sofia Marchetti Italy

Updated 1 September 2026 · 23 Highlands hotels assessed

These are my five favourites in Highlands, out of the 23 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.7 down to 4.4.

The Hive is the one I would book myself.

The Hive

Highest rated of the five

The Hive

★★★★★4.7 from 230 reviews

The Hive comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.7 from 230 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.

It is a 4 star property, found under old town and around $312 a night on the dates we checked.

23 hotels in Highlands qualified for this list and five made it. Port City Guest House is the one I would book if the first is full.

Why it works for this trip

  • Air conditioningthe one that decides a summer trip
  • Restaurantdinner downstairs on the night you land
  • Kitchenettebreakfast on your own schedule
  • Gymopen to guests, not a partner pass down the road
  • Parkinga real consideration if you are driving in

Check rates Read more

All five, ranked

  1. The Hive1

    The Hive

    ★★★★★4.7 from 230 reviews

    • Gym
    • Restaurant
    • Parking
    • Kitchen
    • Pet friendly
    • Air conditioning

    Check rates Read more

  2. Port City Guest House2

    Port City Guest House

    ★★★★★4.9 from 43 reviews

    • Restaurant
    • Parking
    • Pet friendly
    • Air conditioning

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  3. Home2 Suites by Hilton Wilmington Wrightsville Beach3

    Home2 Suites by Hilton Wilmington Wrightsville Beach

    ★★★★★4.6 from 653 reviews

    • Pool
    • Gym
    • Restaurant
    • Parking
    • Kitchen
    • Pet friendly

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  4. Graystone Inn4

    Graystone Inn

    ★★★★★4.5 from 89 reviews

    • Spa
    • Restaurant
    • Parking
    • Air conditioning
    • Airport shuttle

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  5. Golden Sands Carolina Beach Oceanfront Tapestry by Hilton5

    Golden Sands Carolina Beach Oceanfront Tapestry by Hilton

    ★★★★★4.4 from 1,181 reviews

    • Pool
    • Spa
    • Gym
    • Restaurant
    • Bar
    • Parking

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How this list was put together

23 Highlands hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating, then on class, and took the top five.

Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.

The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.

What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.

Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.

Sofia Marchetti

Sofia Marchetti Italy

Refuses to fly anywhere reachable by rail. Four sleeper-train crossings of Europe, a collection of old transit maps, and building sketches drawn from carriage windows.

Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.