Until late Thursday evening, Claire and Anthony Arno had pretty much accepted that their family vacation was ruined. After all, Hurricane Earl seemed to be the cherry on top of a disaster-prone week.

The Brooklyn-natives had just moved into their new, but unpowered, home in New Jersey, and as a result had to get ready for the trip without electricity. Then, on the long drive down the coastline, two of their daughter’s tires blew out.

Thursday’s evacuation orders, which sent tourists off the Outer Banks and either back home or to nearby shelter, sealed the deal.

So the couple, along with their four grown daughters and their respective families, threw all of their beachwear haphazardly into suitcases and headed toward a place they’d never visited before — Elizabeth City.

They wound up staying at the Hampton Inn, which like most of the hotels in town, filled quickly with displaced tourists.

Although it wasn’t the day at the beach they’d all hoped for, the couple said their family had fun Thursday night.

The hotel staff created a game room, and provided food and drinks, among other things, for the guests who had headed to nearby Elizabeth City in the hopes that Hurricane Earl would brush past the area quickly enough for them to be back on the beach the next day.

“We thought our vacation was ruined yesterday with the storm, but when we got here, they made it beautiful,” Anthony said.

The Harbor of Hospitality appeared to live up to its name for the Arnos, who like many of the hotel’s guests, checked out Friday morning and head back to their vacation spot.

If any future trip to the Outer Banks sends them packing, Claire said they’ll be coming back to Elizabeth City’s Hampton Inn.

“We took their card and said if we ever come back and we’re stuck, we’re coming right back here,” Claire said.

Meanwhile, other tourists killed time around town Friday, as they waited to hear whether they’d be able to travel back to the beach.

Three families from Arlington, Va., spent a few hours at Albemarle Lanes bowling center Friday hoping that they’d soon be able to return to Duck.

They said they’d all been watching the weather closely, fearing that their time on the beach was limited. As soon as they heard the evacuation orders, the three couples and six children packed their bags and headed to Rocky Mount.

Once they realized how far they were from Rocky Mount, they altered their plans. They decided to find a place to stay that was both close to Duck, and out of Hurricane Earl’s projected path. They found Elizabeth City.

After what turned out to be a light rain, Rebecca Fenneman said that the group was feeling relieved, and ready to get back.

“We’re hoping to get back. We just haven’t heard from the realty company,” Moira Secrest said, shortly before her turn to bowl.