Things to do around Williamsburg, VA (or between there/DC?)

[ohyouknow]

My parents are coming out at the end of October. I live in the DC area. Our neighbors had $500 worth of Williamsburg gift cards that they were given but couldn't use before they moved away, and they gave them to us, so I have $500 I can use at a variety of shops, hotels, and restaurants in Williamsburg, so we are going there to spend at least one night.  I spent an afternoon at Williamsburg 8 years ago and I found it boring, so I don't think we will want to spend more than a day at the most.  On the way TO Williamsburg, we are planning at stopping in Charlottesville for a night for a family-friendly wine festival.  We probably won't spend more time in C'Ville because both my parents and I have spent time touring there before. 
Does anyone have other recommendations for stuff either within a couple hours of Williamsburg, or between W'burg and D.C. for our trip back? I thought of Assateague Island maybe? Anything else? I'll have a 5 year old and 7 year old with me too. We are willing to spend a night or two anyplace around/between those places.

[osumelissa]

Maybe Virginia Beach, although at the end of October, what you can do will depend on the weather.

[CrazyLucky]

Can you go to an amusement park? Like Busch Gardens? Are you into history? Appomattox is about 2 hours away.

[Wanderista]

It might be worth checking out Richmond if you haven't already.

[orval]

Doesn't sound like you are into history, but we spent a week around Williamsburg this summer and still didn't see it all. The national parks - Jamestown, Yorktown, Fort Monroe - all very interesting. Busch Gardens if fun.
Richmond is a great and interesting place as well.

[ohyouknow]

Thanks for the recs. Busch Gardens is closed except for weekends, and we will be there during the week. Appamottox is a great suggestions. Do you all have any suggestions on what to do in Richmond? That would be right on our way I think, I just don't know what is there.

[Wanderista]

Richmond has some different areas, a lot of dining and shopping. It has a lot of college students kind of like Charlottesville but is more "urban" feeling than Cville. Cary Town is a popular nightlife neighborhood. There is also some gorgeous architecture. A lot of the history is geared towards the Civil War just fyi. Richmond was the capitol of the Confederacy and so some of the historic sites reflect that. Monument Avenue is a street that has a bunch of statues of Confederate generals and historic houses. (I am just describing what is there). It's really part of a historic district but admittedly one from a difficult part of American history.

Two parks there include Belle Isle which is by the James River and Maymont which is a beautiful garden/park with various themed gardens (Italian, Japanese, a petting zoo, some open hills and woods). Like I said, there's a variety of dining and shopping depending upon what your interests are. There are some good bbq places, some modern dining, and some higher end dining. It is not a bad place to shop for clothes. There's the thrift store scene (not really my thing but I know some people who like it) and also some of the malls are quite stylish. I like Stony Point, personally, which is an outdoor open air mall. Basically, Richmond is a southern city. I have not been to the museums or art galleries but I have heard that they are good. Also, the area around the Virginia State Capitol is scenic.

Edited to add: If you want fine dining and an upscale type of environment, the area called Shockoe Bottom is a good one to look for a restaurant. It is kind of the "foodie" area.

[dragonfly08]

Sept 19, 2014 9:23:15 GMT -5 @mx said:

The Richmond Children's museum is not bad.

My older DD did a Girl Scout overnight there and enjoyed it a lot.  It's not huge, but was pretty engaging for the girls.

Another alternative is the Children's Museum of Virginia in Portsmouth, but that's about another hour south.  My girls loved it there.

I haven't been there myself, but DD #1 also thought Jamestown was amazing (it's where our 4th graders go for their big class field trip every year).

[Deleted]

I'm partial to Richmond, because I live here! We don't have kids, but the Children's Museum and Science Museum are right next to each other, and both are very popular with families. October should be beautiful weather, Maymont Park is a great idea. Keep an eye on RVANews.com for weekend festivals and special things going on. There are also canal boat rides and trolley tours to get a taste of Richmond history.

In my opinion, Carytown is the best area to walk around in - it's very family-friendly, and there are places to shop and stop for lunch. There are several other great neighborhoods, but Carytown is ideal to walk around, shop, eat. There are great boutiques and kid-friendly stores.

We have amazing restaurants across the board, I can give you recommendations in any neighborhood. If you want something iconic, Buzz & Ned's BBQ is locally famous and it is right near the two museums mentioned.

If you're looking at hotels and have questions about the neighborhood or area, feel free to PM me!

[ohyouknow]

Awesome!!! Thank you everyone. Travelbug, I'm going to look up those recs you gave!

[udscoobychick]

Sept 22, 2014 8:41:01 GMT -5 ohyouknow said:

Awesome!!! Thank you everyone. Travelbug, I'm going to look up those recs you gave!

What wine festival are you going to in C'ville, if you don't mind me asking?  I'm always looking for new ones to hit up!

[ohyouknow]

We are planning on doing this! www.visitorangevirginia.com/index.php/home/events_listing/autumn_barrel_tasting

When we were there in August the winery told us about it. They said it's family friendly and low key and a lot of fun.

This is in Maryland, but we are also going to this next weekend: www.sotterleyplantation.com/winefest-sotterley-plantation.htm

I'm really excited about that one too.

[udscoobychick]

Oh, that's too funny...DH and I were at Barboursville about 2 weeks ago, and they were talking up the barrel tasting.

The MD one looks fun, too. We usually try to do Great Grapes in Reston, but we missed both the spring and the fall ones this year...we did the Beer, Bourbon, and BBQ festival in Tyson's instead, which was awesome.