Nearby / Regional Attractions

Smithfield Attractions

Smithfield's Website

Isle of Wight County Museum

103 Main Street
Smithfield, VA 23430
757-356-1223

The Isle of Wight County Museum was founded in 1976 by a group of volunteers dedicated to the preservation of county history. Interpreting local history, the museum’s exhibits include prehistoric fossils, Native American and Colonial artifacts, a country store and displays regarding the ham industry and perhaps the museum’s most notable artifact: the world’s oldest, edible cured ham.

Windsor Castle Park

301 Jericho Road
Smithfield, Virginia 23430
757-365-4200

Windsor Castle Park Website

The park's 209.8 acres are owned by the Town of Smithfield. Windsor Castle Farm was originally part of a 1450 acre parcel patented in 1637 by Arthur Smith and is situated on a knoll overlooking the Pagan River. The farm was purchased with the intention of preserving the rich historic heritage of the Castle, as well as providing a passive public park on the estate grounds.

Future Amenities & Plans
Future plans include:
  • Canoe and Kayak Launch
  • Picnic, Event and Demonstration Areas
  • Historic Interpretation and Informational Displays
  • Walking and Bicycle Trails

Portsmouth Attractions

Portsmouth's Website

Children's Museum of Virginia

221 High Street
Portsmouth, Virginia 23704
757-393-5258

Children's Museum of Virginia Website

Specific Floor Features
On the first floor, rediscover some of the all-time Children’s Museum favorites. Stroll along the city streetscape with a grocery store, fire truck, pet park, and city bus. Go bonkers for bubbles, move cargo crates, board the tugboat, and track the model trains all over the state. The second floor showcases 3 all new distinct exhibit areas. In “My Backyard and Beyond” explore the inhabitants of your backyard, the wonders of water and weather, and the star-studded sky. “Dr. Forces Traveling Energy Extravaganza” brings you back to the days of a 3-ringed circus to discover forces, energy, and motion in all new ways. “CreArtivity” brings visual and performing arts to life by giving visitors an opportunity to create art while interacting with the exhibits.
  1. 1
  2. 2

Chesapeake

Chesapeake Planetarium

310 Shea Drive
Chesapeake, Virginia 23322
757-547-0153

Chesapeake Planetarium Website

Explore the wonders of the universe. Located at the Chesapeake Municipal Center, the Chesapeake Planetarium was the first planetarium built by a public school system in the state of Virginia. Free public programs, including telescope observations, are offered.

Northwest River Park & Campground

1733 Indian Creek Road
Chesapeake, Virginia 23322
757-421-3145

Northwest River Park Website

Amenities
Amenities include the following and more:
  • Bicycling
  • Camping
  • Kayak excursions
  • Fishing
  • Hiking
  • Playgrounds
  • Trails
Rental cabins and camping facilities include:
  • Dump Station
  • Fresh Water
  • Hot Showers
  • Laundry
Children and pets welcome.

Norfolk

Norfolk's official visitors website

Battleship Wisconsin

1 Waterside Drive
Norfolk, Virginia 23510
757-322-2987

Hampton Roads Naval Museum Website

The City of Norfolk has assumed stewardship of the Battleship Wisconsin, which is now included in regular Nauticus admission. Admission fees help preserve and maintain the battleship for future generations. Berthed at Nauticus, the Battleship Wisconsin is one of the largest and last battleships ever built by the U.S. Navy. Explore its deck through a self-guided or audio tour that will take you back in time to experience this majestic ship that earned 5 battle stars during World War II.

Operator
The Hampton Roads Naval Museum is owned and operated by the United States Navy and located on level 2 of Nauticus.

Museum Collection
The museum houses a rich collection of:
  • Artwork
  • Authentic Uniforms
  • Detailed Ship Models
  • Underwater Artifacts
  • Weaponry

Chrysler Museum of Art

245 West Olney
Norfolk, Virginia 23510
757-664-6200

Chrysler Museum of Art Website

Housed in an Italianate-style structure facing the picturesque Hague Inlet of the Elizabeth River, the Chrysler Museum of Art is home to an encyclopedic collection of nearly 40,000 objects spanning nearly 5,000 years of history.

Highlights
Highlights include an impressive and comprehensive survey of European and American painting and sculpture, a world-renowned glass collection, a rich photography program, Art Nouveau furniture, as well as African, Asian, Egyptian, Pre-Columbian and Islamic art.

In the words of New York Times art critic John Russell, the Chrysler boasts objects "...any museum in the world would kill for."

Virginia Zoo

3500 Granby Street
Norfolk, Virginia 23504
757-441-2374

Virginia Zoo Website

From mighty Monica, an African elephant, to their flock of small love birds, the Virginia Zoo is home to over 350 of our furry, feathered and scaly animal friends on 53 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds. Animals include exotic representatives from the African savannah, as well as friendly goats that you would find on a Virginia farm.

Virginia Beach

Virginia Beach's official visitors site

Virginia Aquarium

717 General Booth Boulevard
Virginia Beach, Virginia 23451
757-385-3474 or 757-385-FISH

Virginia Aquarium Website

Explore over 800,000 gallons of one of the best aquariums and live animal habitats in the country at the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. Check out hundreds of hands-on exhibits, outdoor aviary, nature trail, and marshlands. Plus you won't want to miss the 3D IMAX Theater.

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame & Museum

249 Central Park Avenue, Suite 230
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
757-800-1555

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Museum Website

With two stories of hands-on sports and health exhibits, this attraction celebrates nearly 300 past and present athletes and inspires future ones. Drive a NASCAR simulator, test the speed of your baseball pitch, and take your turn at the microphone as a broadcaster. Kids and adults alike will learn about fitness, nutrition and sports medicine in the Training Room, complete with virtual exercise equipment and a skeleton that rides a bike! A great place for the whole family.

Interior of Sports Hall

Contemporary Art Center of Virginia

2200 Parks Avenue
Virginia Beach, Virginia 23451
757-425-0000

Contemporary Art Center of Virginia Website

Mediums
Regularly changing exhibitions feature:
  • Glass
  • Other Visual Media
  • Painting
  • Photography
  • Sculpture
  • Video
Artists & Art Shows
These features are from internationally acclaimed artists, as well as artists of national and regional renown. By balancing its 4 primary activities-gallery exhibitions, studio art classes, educational outreach programs and outdoor art shows—the Contemporary Art Center of Virginia seeks to involve a diverse regional public in the rich and active language of contemporary visual art.

Hampton

Hampton's Website

Casemate Museum at Fort Monroe

Casemate 20, Bernard Road
Fort Monroe, Virginia 23651
757-788-3391

Casemate Museum at Fort Monroe

The largest stone fort ever built in the U.S., Fort Monroe is headquarters for the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command. Within the historic fort's stone walls is the Casemate Museum, which chronicles the history of the fort and the Coast Artillery Corps. During the Civil War, more than 6,000 slaves escaped to Union-held Fort Monroe, earning it the nickname "Freedom's Fortress."

Virginia Air & Space Center

600 Settlers Landing Road
Hampton, VA 23669
757-727-0900
800-296-0800

Virginia Air and Space Center Website

This is the visitor center for NASA Langley Research Center and Langley Air Force Base. This world-class facility features the Space Quest and Adventures in Flight galleries, and more than 100 "hands-on" exhibits that tell the story of air and space exploration. See the Apollo 12 Command Module, a Mars meteorite and a 3-billion year-old moon rock! Visit the technologically advanced Riverside 3D IMAX Theater and see a 3D IMAX film on a giant 5-story screen with 16,000 watts of digital-sound.

Newport News

Newport News' Website

The Mariners' Museum

100 Museum Drive
Newport News, VA 23606
757-596-2222

Mariners' Museum Website

From bow to stern, The Mariners' Museum is filled with fascinating stories, captured in priceless artifacts that celebrate the spirit of the open sea.

Gallery Space Features
Explore over 120,000 square feet of gallery space featuring:
  • Rare Figureheads
  • Handcrafted Ship Models
  • Civil War Ironclad USS Monitor Artifacts
  • Paintings
  • Small Craft From Around the World
  • Navigational Instruments

Virginia Living Museum

524 J. Clyde Morris Boulevard
Newport News, Virginia 23601
757-595-1900

Virginia Living Museum Website

View endangered red wolves. Get up close to a loggerhead turtle and moon jellies. See fish with no eyes and frogs that change colors. Touch live spider crabs and fossilized dinosaur tracks. It’s all at the Virginia Living Museum, Newport News, where living exhibits depict Virginia’s natural heritage from the mountains to the sea. The Museum introduces visitors to more than 250 living species native to Virginia through exhibits, discovery centers and interactive hands-on exhibits.

Williamsburg

Williamsburg's Website

Busch Gardens Williamsburg

1 Busch Gardens Boulevard
Williamsburg, Virginia 23187
800-343-7946

Busch Gardens Williamsburg Website

Journey to the unexpected. Busch Gardens offers guests a line-up of events, concerts, a new Irish show and a brand new family thrill ride, “Europe in the Air,” a motion simulator ride that takes guests on an unforgettable journey through some of Europe’s most beautiful landscapes. And the fun doesn’t stop there. Summer, fall and winter are packed full of excitement with a nighttime light show production, “IllumiNights: A Busch Gardens Encore,” “Howl-O-Scream,” celebrating all things Halloween and “Christmas Town,” the newest holiday spectacular that transforms the European-themed park into winter wonderland.

Colonial Williamsburg

Located in the center of the city of Williamsburg
101-A Visitor Center Drive
Williamsburg, VA 23185
757-229-1000 or 1-800-HISTORY

Colonial Williamsburg Website

Visit Colonial Williamsburg's Historic Area and step back more than 220 years to the eve of the American Revolution. From 1699 to 1780, Williamsburg was the political and cultural center of Britain’s largest colony in the New World.

Colonial Williamsburg is the nation’s largest living history museum encompassing 301 acres including some 500 buildings, homes, stores and taverns reconstructed and restored to their 18th-century appearances; tradesmen practicing 30 historic trades and domestic crafts; historical interpreters and character actors; and 90 acres of gardens and greens, and now featuring the live action drama, Revolutionary City, daily from mid-March to the holiday season.