First Williamsburg Trip

Planning our first trip to Williamsburg with 2 boys (14 & 11). Is it worth getting tickets? Seem to be mixed reviews on this. What do they get me, entry to a few buildings? Also, what about Jamestown? Any suggestions/advice much appreciated.

Next poster's advice is so much better ... I personally am NOT a big fan of Colonial Williamsburg ...

I'm not sure what you're asking but I'll give it a stab. We just came back from our Williamsburg/VA Beach trip.

If your boys like amusement parks, I would suggest going to Busch Gardens or Water Country USA. Its one of the better ones in this area.

If you want educational, then go to Colonial Williamsburg or Jamestown. If memory serves me right, there is a Presidents Park with a bunch of giant head statues of Presidents. Also the Virginia Living Museum which was pretty neat.

If you want more active, try the Eco Discovery Park. They have Canoes/Kayaks and paddle boards for rent. They were really friendly to us. You also have mini golf options and go karting options too.

There so much to do there. If its your first time there I would suggest going to Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown (both the fort and ships).

Virginia beach is about 45 minutes away so if you want, head to the beach for a day.

Based on your kids age, I would make some time to go to Busch Gardens and/or Water Country. You can get a fun card which will allow unlimited access until Sept 1. Also check retailmenot.com for discount tickets if you choose single day.

Hope that helps.

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We went last summer for a week with two 12 year old boys. We were thinking of getting a "Bounce" pass for a week at Colonial Williamsburg, Water Country and Busch Gardens. However, the boys let us know in advance that they had no interest in the history. We ended up getting four combination tickets good for a week at Water Country and Busch Gardens. We went to Water Country the first day and then they went to Busch Gardens every day after that. The two-park tickets do not cover parking. On a tip we purchased a Bounce pass, which includes parking at all of the parks, for one of the boys and saved a bit. If you do this, buy the Bounce pass for the younger boy. It is cheaper and will still get parking for you.

You can walk through the Williamsburg Historic area, without having to pay admission. But that won't allow you to enter some of the buildings and listen to the guided tours, etc.

But it is a nice walk, and can give an overview of the historic area. And there are restaurants and stores in the area. We love looking at all the old houses and structures and gardens.

You may be able to pick up free brochures at the Welcome Center. And they always can use donations.

What many people don't realize is that the Historic Williamsburg area is actually right in the middle of downtown Williamsburg. You can see a variety of eras in one six block area.

Jamestown is out in the country and more confined to the historic area.

Enjoy and have fun!

NKN

rob621 said:

Planning our first trip to Williamsburg with 2 boys (14 & 11). Is it worth getting tickets? Seem to be mixed reviews on this. What do they get me, entry to a few buildings? Also, what about Jamestown? Any suggestions/advice much appreciated.

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To the OP what kind of tickets are you seeking ? The Bounce Pass for Busch Garden & Water Country USA (this one is good for the whole summer) or the Colonial Williamsburg Pass (this one is to visit the historical attractions in Colonial Williamsburg [ Jamestown Island & Fort, Yorktown, & the historical buildings in Colonial Williamsburg] .

Your sons probably would liked the unlimited enter to Busch Garden and Water Country USA for the summer. This pass is for the park admission only. A good deal if you visit these attractions more than two times during your stay in Williamsburg.

Remember this it is hot and humid in Williamsburg during the summer months.

When is the trip? Weather makes some of the activities better than others. Same with the season.

President's Park

I think this is closed.

Nancy

Nancy said:

I think this is closed.

Nancy

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Yes, President's Park has been closed for several years.

Try walking around colonial Williamsburg and see what you like. Then buy a ticket if you want to do more such as the tours and shows. There is a very nice farmers market on Sunday mornings

Farmers Market is on Saturday.

They also have a thing called Second Sunday where they block off streets and have crafts and musicians. Could be that's what you are referring to. It's each month on the second Sunday of the month.

Both are worth doing.

dwojo said:

Try walking around colonial Williamsburg and see what you like. Then buy a ticket if you want to do more such as the tours and shows. There is a very nice farmers market on Sunday mornings

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Regarding the Williamsburg "restoration", what kid doesn't like to see cannon being fired, officers riding around on horseback and soldiers marching through town to fifes and drums? Check the schedule to see when this is happening and don't bother with a ticket...they are public streets.

Jamestown and Yorktown have two parks, state and national. The national parks are the historic sites and might bore young kids. The state parks are recreations and, again, what kid wouldn't enjoy visiting an old fort and climbing around on a sailing ship? Both state parks have life sized dioramas recreating colonial times and re-enactors dressed as soldiers and townspeople.

If you go to Norfolk, they can visit Nauticus and visit a battleship. This is on the way to Virginia Beach.

Theme parks are a dime a dozen if you do a lot of family travel and, a few years from now, they won't remember if a particular coaster was in Williamsburg or at Universal or six flags. They'll never forget being on a battleship or watching soldiers march through town.

We visited Williamsburg last month with kids, ages 12 and 15. Everyone likes different things, so I will just tell you what we enjoyed very much. Oh, and we are big National Parks and Monuments people, so that is what attracts us.

Jamestown. Kids enjoyed seeing the foundations and reading about what went on there. Probably 2 hours would be enough time.

Yorktown. Got super lucky and showed up on the one day per month where the volunteers set off the cool canon and it's really interesting and very loud. Kids loved Yorktown. Probably 2 hours is enough time, too.

We walked around Colonial Williamsburg and we went into the shops. From what I have read, the whole experience is very different than it used to be 20-30 years ago, and all the shops sell the same items (true) and you need tickets to go into all other buildings. We talked to a guy on a horse, who was nice. Most of the actors didn't necessarily stay in character like we had heard, so we didn't buy any tickets (would have cost us close to $150 for four of us). We were able to walk around and soak up plenty of history and sun.

Before booking the trip, I did not realize it was like a theme park with actors. I should have figured this out, but was too busy to research anything beforehand . Still, we enjoyed Jamestown, Yorktown, and the pool at the timeshare . We had four nights there, which I thought was too long, so I was looking to leave early and book a Dulles hotel, just to visit the Udvar-Hazy Space Center near the airport. Ended up staying the last night, but left early so that we could spent three hours at the best kept secret museum in the D.C. area. Highlight of our trip, better than the White House !

My teenager (15) must be rare. He loves Williamsburg. He actually asks if we can go every year. We buy an annual pass so we can go when ever a good getaway on interval or AC unit works with our schedule. He loves the place so much he has his heart set on going to the college of William & Mary. We do make several side trips while we are there. We go to few of of the plantation homes on the James River, Norfolk, the Caverns, Monticello, Montpelier etc. we run out of days to do all that we want. I am sure everyone's vacation choices are different. I would request a Virginia is for Lovers travel guide. (Virginia.org) Let your kids be involved with the planning so they are excited about the trip. We choose a couple of places each time and then take a vote.