Things to do At Virginia Beach

We%26#39;re spending the last week of April in Williamsburg, and we%26#39;d like to spend a day in Virginai Beach. Are there any places that we should visit there or sites we shouldn%26#39;t miss? Can anyone recommend an affordabe place for a family to eat?

Thanks!

Things to do At Virginia Beach

I hope I%26#39;m not falling into the trap of taking my own area for granted or failing to appreciate what makes it great, but I can%26#39;t honestly think of a thing that is a ';must see'; or ';must do'; aside from the beach itself. If you click on the ';Things to Do'; link (in the table to the left), you%26#39;ll see the full list. The Marine Science Center %26amp; Aquarium is probably the best of the bunch.

As for affordable places to eat, that should be no problem. There are lots of restaurants clustered at Town Center, mostly upscale chains but still very good (vabeachtowncenter.com). If you like Italian, Bravos is really good. For seafood, you might drive down Shore Drive to Surf Rider, One Fish Two Fish, Bubba%26#39;s, or Hot Tuna (these are not all ON Shore Drive but in the vicinity). For Mexican, try Guadalajara.

Things to do At Virginia Beach

I%26#39;m with Wendy, if you only have a day in Va Beach, then just come and enjoy the beach. If you had a few more days, there are some other sites I would say to take in such as museums and state parks.

If you are down at the oceanfront, I would also suggest Watermans Restuarant. It is on the south end of the boardwalk, I think around 5th street. It has outdoor and indoor dining. Great atmosphere and scenery as well as good food.

Well, it would be nice to walk in the sand which stretches at some places from the boardwalk out 300%26#39; to the ocean.

The boardwalk is something like 42%26#39; wide and also has a path for bikes and surries.

The boardwalk is one of the reasons VB gets it%26#39;s fittest city designation I think. Virginia Beach is in the Guinness Book of World Records for its longest pleasure beach...of which the 3 miles boardwalk is a big part. That%26#39;s where the small stages ... some bigger... are for the nightly music and the beachfront bigger concerts and festivals and sporting events and at Christmas the great drive through Christmas light show.

Allow me to paste something I wrote recently about things to do and see along the boardwalk:

The street one block from the beach...on the front of the hotels as opposed to the back of the hotels...is where the shops are.

The Boardwalk is terrific for walking, jogging, you%26#39;ll see moms with those big wheel baby carriages fast walking; great for skating, biking, fun in the surries with the fringe on top.

I think it%26#39;s about 45 feet wide and the surries and bikes have their own landscaped path. The ocean is, in some places, about 300%26#39; out...so lots of great sand to walk, run and play in.

Bring your binoculars to see the boats and freighters in the ocean....maybe some sea life.

Exploring the Boardwalk you will see the Atlantic Wildfowl Heritage Museum in the historic DeWitt Cottage at 11th, one of the oldest on the oceanfront;

The Virginia Legends Walk at 13th off the Boardwalk; honoring Virginians who have made important national and world contributions in their lives;

The Fishing Pier at 15th and the boardwalk;

a fun sort of old school amusement park is at 15th...I say ';old school'; in that it%26#39;s not one of the mega hyper commercial ones.

The Old Coast Guard Station at 24th and the Boardwalk in the historic 1903 Life Saving Station cottage.

The Naval Aviation Monument is at 25th and the Boardwalk. It is actually many bronze sculptures paying tribute to Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard from the early 1900s to the present. There are laser-etched granite storyboards since this is outdoors so you know what you%26#39;re looking at. The sculptures are of people in outfits from the period...real people...depicting significant events in history.

Neptune%26#39;s Park, adjacent to the Hilton, has entertainment...many nights in the summer...maybe weekends in May. Right beside the boardwalk.

Stages for outdoor entertainment are at 7th, 17th (a park actually), 24th and 31st.

The shops are, as the previous poster said, the next block from the beach....which is actually the front of the hotels while the boardwalk and ocean are the back of the hotels.

Also check out www.vbfun.com and www.beachstreetusa.com for events for when you%26#39;re coming.

There%26#39;s also kayaking and hiking in the nature areas.

Take a look at ';Thing to do'; and the travel articles such as Family Travel: tripadvisor.com/Travel-g58277-s401/Virginia-鈥?/p>

I don%26#39;t know if by the last week in April ...that would include those few days in May.

Taking a quick look at vbfun.com there%26#39;s the Va. Arts Festival at various locations; Gospelfest; the Atlantic Coast Kite Festival.