Raleigh Durham
You're flying out of Raleigh-Durham Airport, you have 90 minutes to kill, and you'd like to do better than a Pret. Good news: airport drinking has improved more in the last five years than the previous fifty. Pre-flight drinks at Raleigh-Durham Airport range from chain reliability to surprisingly polished hotel-style bars in the airport hotels. This is barsforKings's editor-curated guide to drinking better at Raleigh-Durham's airports.
Downtown Raleigh · $$$
Triangle's most awarded cocktail bar.
Downtown Raleigh · $$$
Speakeasy reached down a staircase off Fayetteville Street.
Five Points · $$$
Wine-and-cocktail bar with one of the Triangle's best Italian wine lists.
Warehouse District · $$
American whiskey bar with a long bourbon-and-rye list and serious bar food.
Want a real drink before flying? The fastest play is to get to airport hotels next door — most run polished bars that beat anything post-security. We list them at the bottom. If you've got 60 spare minutes pre-airport, see our shortlist of bars in Raleigh-Durham proper at the end.
Plays for Raleigh-Durham Airport: post-security, pre-security, lounges, and the airport-hotel cheat code.
Pre-flight drinks, hotel-bar reviews, and the openings we're watching across 176 cities. Friday mornings, no filler.
Looking beyond Raleigh Durham? See our guide to the best airport bars worldwide, or compare airport bars city by city.