We spent a wonderful week in Williamsburg, Virginia with my in-laws earlier this month and it was one of our favorite vacations ever!
Our kids are at just the right ages to enjoy a trip like this. It was lots of walking, lots of history and touring, and a lot of information. I have mentioned multiple times that if they’d been much younger, they would have been bored and if they’d been much older, uninterested.
Here are the highlights of what we did in Williamsburg:
Sunday & Monday:
We arrived late Saturday and had our plan in mind. We spent two full days at Colonial Williamsburg. We felt like two days was just the right amount of time. It was very wet and rainy and therefore, we didn’t have to wait to visit any trade-shops and the crowds were minimal. We were able to devote almost two, eight-hour days to this sightseeing.
If it had been hot, sunny, and crowded we would have definitely needed an additional day. However, we believe that a third day may have been pushing it with the kids’ interest. We visited nearly every shop, ate at a few of the restaurants, and even got special ticketing for a few of the shows/scheduled activities. Some of our highlights were seeing the cobbler, participating in the dance class, and the kids especially loved the Powell House.
{Bonus: We were there during their free military admission for the Memorial Day holiday, so our tickets were free! $178.45 savings!}
Tuesday:
We spent Tuesday laying low around the condo. It was sunny and so we had a pool day!
Wednesday:
We visited Busch Gardens and loved it too! The park is awesome, well-maintained, and offers wonderful rides our kids raved over.The park was clean, rides were thrilling, and we spent an entire day there as well! The final hour of the park hours, the skies opened up so we sprinted to the car!
{Bonus: Because of their Waves of Honor Program and a kind and generous ticketing attendant all five of us got in for free! $365 savings!}
Thursday:
We loved this attraction almost as much as the others. As part of the National Parks Service, Jamestowne was quite a learning opportunity. We were able to meander around at our own pace and hear from very knowledgeable archeologists concerning the settlement.
{Bonus: Thanks to the NPS America the Beautiful passes for military (again), we were able to gain free admission. $28 savings!}
Friday:
The Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg
Another highlight of this trip was the art museums which rivaled Smithsonian collections and artifacts. We spent several hours looking at all of the furniture, instruments, artwork, silver, and even a mental hospital exhibit. Definitely worth planning some time to visit here.
{Bonus: Thanks to the Blue Star Families program we were able to get free admission here as well. $45.50 savings!}
If you’re counting, and as a TYPE A person, you know I am…that is a total savings of $616.95 in gate admissions for the week! Thank you, Ryan, for your service!
All in all, we loved Williamsburg. It is definitely a “learning” vacation and one that will engage the minds of everyone in the group, young and old. Our kids are already talking about wanting to go back again; or better yet, they want to get stationed in Virginia!
Some of the places we ate while there:
Food for Thought || Duck Donuts || Fat Canary || Trellis Pub & Grille || Second Street || Sal’s By Victor || DoG Street Pub || Raleigh Tavern Bake Shop || Surry Seafood Company
You can see a complete listing of attractions we have visited by clicking here.
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