Exploring Williamsburg and Jamestown Virginia in 24 hours! Here’s how it went…..
Williamsburg, VA is a charming city in the state of Virginia and played a significant role in the American Revolution (1699 to 1780). Nearby is historic Jamestown and Yorktown. The heart of the city is Colonial Williamsburg which is a must see! Colonial Williamsburg has actors depicting daily Colonial Life in the streets and shops and is a great destination for both families and couples!
We had the opportunity to make a quick stop in Colonial Williamsburg on the way to the Outer Banks, North Carolina in the beginning of July (just before the Fourth!) Although our trip was short, it was jam packed with a lot of sight seeing! Summer is a great time to visit – we found it was very pleasant weather to do a lot of walking around and exploring.
Day 1 (Friday): Arrive in Williamsburg, VA
We drove from Allentown, Pennsylvania to Williamsburg, Virginia. Our first stop when we arrived was the visitor center in Colonial Williamsburg where we parked our car, purchased tickets and walked to the historic colonial Williamsburg streets to explore shops, restaurants and sight see!
Dinner at Kings Arms Tavern
It was recommended to us that we eat at Kings Arms Tavern. This is a very popular restaurant and reservations fill up quickly! We were not able to secure a reservation before our trip but decided to do a walk-up as soon as the restaurant opened for the evening. This turned out to be a great idea because the hostess took our name and said we would be able to get on the wait list if they had any last minute cancellations or no shows. Lucky for us, there was a cancellation/no show and we were able to get a table right away!
After dinner we continued to walk around and took some time to check out the Williamsburg Inn.The Inn is right in the heart of colonial Williamsburg and we highly recommend checking it out if you have time! After checking out the inn, we found ourselves on the William & Mary College campus which also had a few shops, restaurants and a delicious ice cream parlor!
Hotel – where we stayed in Williamsburg, VA
We stayed at the Kingsmill Resort. The Kingsmill Resort is just 12 minutes away (about 5 miles!) from Colonial Williamsburg so it makes for a very convenient stay close to all of the sightseeing!
This is one of Williamsburg’s top golf and spa destination. The resort is very large and has golf courses, cottages on the rivers, condominiums, various recreational activities and a spa. Not only did the resort have an exceptional indoor and outdoor pool but it also has a “river pool” with a lazy river! This was definitely our favorite spot to hang out after exploring Williamsburg and Jamestown!
Day 2 (Saturday): Exploring Historic Jamestown
Before hitting the road in the afternoon to our final destination of the Outer Banks, we woke up early, had breakfast at our resort (there is a very convenient clubhouse that has breakfast sandwiches and coffee next to the tennis courts!) and headed out to explore Jamestown.
Jamestown was about a 20 minute drive (10 miles) from the resort. Jamestown is comprised of historic ruins from the first permanent English settlement in North America. Nearby the historic Powhatan Indian Village is the Archaearium archaeology museum. We didn’t plan out our visit too much and just spent most of our time exploring the settlement. The parking and the museum were all within close proximity to each other. Check out the Historic Jamestowne website for more planning tips!
And thats a wrap on our quick trip to see Williamsburg on our way to the Outer banks! It was definitely worth the trip and you can certainly spend a few more days exploring this family-friendly historical area which has so much to offer!
