Top Places to Visit in Virginia

Virginia's visitor attractions span the full sweep of American history and extraordinary natural scenery — from Jamestown's colonial settlement to the Blue Ridge's Skyline Drive.

Shenandoah National Park
The most-visited national park in the mid-Atlantic — Shenandoah's Skyline Drive (105 miles along the Blue Ridge crest) passes 75 overlooks with views into the Shenandoah Valley and across the Virginia Piedmont. Old Rag Mountain (the finest day hike in Virginia), Dark Hollow Falls, Bearfence Mountain, and Stony Man (the northernmost exposed peak on the AT in Virginia) are the hiking highlights. The park's deciduous forest turns brilliant in mid-October.

Colonial Williamsburg
The world's largest living history museum — the restored 18th-century capital of the Virginia colony has 300+ buildings (88 original), 1,700 costumed interpreters, and a 2-square-mile historic area representing Williamsburg as it was ca. 1770. The Capitol, the Governor's Palace, the Raleigh Tavern, the Wren Building (the oldest academic building in the US, 1695), and the Colonial Houses (period inn accommodations) make it the most complete colonial American living history site.

Monticello (Charlottesville)
Thomas Jefferson's house on a mountain — Jefferson designed the house himself in a Palladian-inspired style unique in colonial America. The dome, the alcove beds, the dumbwaiter, and the underground service tunnels reflect Jefferson's design innovations. The house tour and the Mountaintop Discovery tour (which honestly addresses the enslaved people who built and maintained the estate) are both excellent.

Colonial National Historical Park (Jamestown and Yorktown)
The Historic Triangle — Jamestown (site of the first permanent English settlement in North America, 1607), Colonial Williamsburg (a few miles away), and Yorktown (the final battle of the Revolutionary War, 1781) are connected by the Colonial Parkway (23 miles of scenic road through the tidal forest). The National Park Historic Jamestowne site (where ongoing archaeology has revealed the original 1607 fort) is separate from the Jamestown Settlement living history museum.

Arlington National Cemetery
The most significant military cemetery in the US — 400,000 graves on the hillside above the Potomac River opposite Washington. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier (guarded continuously since 1937 by the 3rd US Infantry), President Kennedy's grave (with the eternal flame), and the amphitheater for military ceremonies make this a solemn and moving national site.