Williamsburg and Hampton Roads: Places to Explore

Colonists founded Charles City County in 1616. This tiny county is unique, being the only U.S. county to have a native president (William Harrison) and his vice president and successor (John Tyler) take... Read more

Williamsburg was the capital of Virginia from 1699 to 1780, after Jamestown and before Richmond. Williamsburg hasn't been politically important for a long time, but now that Colonial Williamsburg is there... Read more

Founded in 1610, Hampton is the oldest continuously existing English-speaking settlement in the United States—recently celebrating 400 years. It also holds the country's first aviation research facility... Read more

City Point, the oldest part of Hopewell, was established in 1613 by Sir Thomas Dale. Across from Charles City County via the Route 106 Benjamin Harrison Bridge, Hopewell is worth a half-day exploration... Read more

The desperate strivings of Englishmen to stay alive and establish a foothold in the New World become evident when visiting Jamestown, the beginning of English settlement in this country. Its two major... Read more

Newport News stretches for almost 35 mi along the James River from near Williamsburg to Hampton Roads. Known mostly for its coal shipping and huge shipbuilding industry, the city is largely residential... Read more

Like many other old Southern towns, Norfolk has undergone a renaissance, one that's especially visible in the charming shops and cafés in the historic village of Ghent. There's plenty to see in... Read more

Portsmouth, across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk, has a well-maintained historic area called Olde Towne, which has handsome buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries.... Read more

The heart of Virginia Beach—a stretch of the Atlantic shore from Cape Henry south to Rudee Inlet—has been a popular summertime destination for decades. With 6 mi of public beach, high-rises... Read more

It was at Yorktown that the combined American and French forces surrounded Lord Cornwallis's British troops in 1781; this was the end to the Revolutionary War and the beginning of the United States. In... Read more