We'll be stopping in Staunton, VA on our way from Cincinnati to OBX in June. If we time it right, we can arrange to be there by noon and have some time to kick around. Any thoughts on things to do or where to eat?

We will have our two young children w/us (ages 5 & 7) so I'm not sure they would appreciate Monticello yet. I heard Mrs. Rowe's for breakfast but we're most likely going to be looking for a place for dinner and perhaps a way to kill some time that afternoon. Would love the hear what those familiar w/this area recommend. Many years ago I covered Mary Baldwin College as a publishing sales rep from a distance - I never visited but I always thought it looked really charming from the brochures!

Hi,

You might want to consider a visit to the Frontier Culture Museum.

http://www.frontiermuseum.org/

Our kids really enjoyed this living history museum when they were of similar ages to your kids.

We enjoyed the Frontier Culture Museum, too. Younger kids would probably find it more interesting than Monticello or any grand historic place, because it's more interactive and because various locations and time periods are represented.

Ck out Grand Caverns not far from Staunton if you want to visit a cave instead of the Frontier Museum. The Woodrow Wilson Museum is also in Staunton, but probably not interesting for your little ones. Enjoy!

Hi Snowrooster:
That's my town! The Frontier Culture museum is probably your best bet. Wilson museum won't interest the kids.

There's also a fantastic park in Staunton if the kids just need to run around and blow off some steam. Gypsy Hill Park has a fantastic playground, a duck pond (duck food 5 cents --bring nickels), a swimming pool, and a mini-train which operates on weekends(rides are $1).
http://www.virginia.org/site/descrip...p?attrID=31660

The most kid-friendly restaurant recs are either Shenandoah Pizza
http://www.shenandoahpizza.com/(lots of fun toppings and "gourmet" options) or Baja Bean http://www.bajabean.com/main.html
which is TEx-mex but not your run-of-the-mill Tex Mex.

Depot Grille http://www.depotgrille.com/
and Mill Street Grille http://www.millstreetgrill.com/("best Ribs n the Valley"--my dh agrees)
are also very kid friendly.

Be sure to take a free ride on the trolley. Either the Lady Rebecca and the Lady Libby offer free rides with stops throughout Staunton (including Gypsy hill park).
http://www.staunton.va.us/default.as...2-6014F65AD96D

Stop downtown for a treat at Bittersweet Bakery--so many adorable sweet treats to enjoy. Or, if you aren't in downtown, head instead to Kline's Dairy Bar for ice cream--mmm. Those two are my favorites but many also like Wright's Dairy Rite, which your kids would probably like because you pull up to the order box and the wait-person brings your order to the car. http://www.dairy-rite.com/

The Mary Baldwin Campus is pretty but for walking about I prefer Gypsy Hill park. The campus just doesn't feel that "friendly" to me, but maybe that's just me.

If you walk around downtown and browse/shop a bit, Pufferbellies is the cutest toy store with the friendliest folks to help you.

Have a wonderful time and enjoy this jewel of a town!

Schlegal--Wow! I've been wanting to go to Staunton for awhile and now I'm ready to go. Great info!

longhorn:
I hope you do come to Staunton. Activities with more appeal to grown-ups include:
"Brewgrass" friday nights at the Queen City Brewing. Actually, this is pretty family friendly. Beer tasting and bluegrass music.

Blackfriar's playhouse. Enjoy Shakespeare! Even people who aren't Shakespeare buffs really have a good time at these performances. The casts are always energetic and talented:
http://www.americanshakespearecenter.com/

L'Italia for good Italian.

L'Italia is rather fancy, I wouldn't take kids there. But for adults, we love it. It has an upstairs lounge and outdoor patio and is a great atmosphere.
http://litalia.info/site/

Another great grown-ups type restaurant is Zynodoa- fantastic food with a local focus but it can be smokey--there's not any separation between the bar and dining area and the bar is large.
http://www.zynodoa.com/

And we have yet to try Staunton Grocery--nice restaurant with a philosophy of focusing on local in-season food. Great reviews but no personal experience from me. No smoking allowed. http://www.stauntongrocery.com/

I realized recently that the night we will spend in Staunton is dh's bday. I told him I'd treat him & the kids to dinner so I think we're going to try The Mill Street Grill. He loves ribs!!

I wanted to follow up and thank everyone for the tips - we really enjoyed Staunton. It is just a charming little town!

We were only stopping through on our way to/from the Outer Banks but will definitely stop there again! Mill Street Grill was really great - dh thought they had the best ribs he's ever had (and he's a tough critic). We got there at 5:30 but still had to wait 1/2 hour. It was nice though - pretty area and had a nice converation with a local who told us all about the area. Kids enjoyed the food there as well. I thought the brisket was great.

On the way home we ate at Baja Bean. Also very enjoyable. We like mexican food but this was a little different. The decor was charming and our waitress was excited to have some out of towners to expose to her restaurant.

So thank you for the recomendations - they definitely came in handy!!

Hi Snowrooster:
thanks for posting back--I was wondering how you liked our town! Glad the recommendations worked out and I hope your family had a relaxing and wonderful time in OBX.