General Information
Open Every Day Except November 26, December 24 and 25, and January 20, 2021
Timed-entry pass required
Parking $15 (Free after 4:00 pm)
How to Get There
Overview
Virginia Beach is a city located on the southeastern coast of Virginia. It is the most populous city in Virginia. Located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, Virginia Beach is the largest city in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. This area, known as "America's First Region", also includes the independent cities of Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Suffolk, as well as other smaller cities, counties, and towns of Hampton Roads.
Virginia Beach is a resort city with miles of beaches and hundreds of hotels, motels, and restaurants along its oceanfront. It is also home to several state parks, several long-protected beach areas, and military bases. Near the point where the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean meet, Cape Henry was the site of the first landing of the English colonists, who eventually settled in Jamestown, on April 26, 1607.
While Virginia Beach is the most populated city within the metropolitan area, it actually currently functions more as a suburb. The city of Norfolk is recognized as the central business district, while the Virginia Beach oceanside resort district and Williamsburg are primarily centers of tourism.
The city is home to several points of interest in the historical, scientific, and visual/performing arts areas, and has become a popular tourist destination in recent years. The Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art features regularly changing exhibitions in a variety of media. Exhibitions feature painting, sculpture, photography, glass, video and other visual media from internationally acclaimed artists as well as artists of national and regional renown. MOCA was born from the annual Boardwalk Art Show, which began in 1952 and is now the museum's largest fundraiser.
The Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center (formerly the Virginia Marine Science Museum) is a popular aquarium near the oceanfront that features various sharks, sting rays, sea turtles, jellyfish, and octopuses.
One of the world's largest collections of World War I and World War II aircraft is located at the Military Aviation Museum in the Pungo area of Virginia Beach.
The Virginia Beach Amphitheater, built in 1996, features a wide variety of popular shows and concerts. The Sandler Center, a 1200-seat performing arts theatre, opened in the Virginia Beach Town Center in November 2007.
Virginia Beach is home to many sites of historical importance and has 18 sites on the National Register of Historic Places. Such sites include the Adam Thoroughgood House (one of the oldest surviving colonial homes in Virginia), the Francis Land House (a 200-year-old plantation), the Cape Henry Lights and nearby Cape Henry Light Station (a second tower), De Witt Cottage, Adam Keeling House, and others.
Virginia Beach is home to 210 city parks, encompassing over 4,000 acres (1,600 ha), including neighborhood parks, community parks, district parks, and other open spaces.
Mount Trashmore Park is clearly visible from I-264 when traveling to the oceanfront. The hill measures 60 ft (18 m) high and is the highest point in Virginia Beach.
One of the major parks is Red Wing Park, a 97 acres (39 ha) park in east-central part of the city, very close to Oceana Naval Air Station. This land became a park in 1966. A unique feature of this park is the Miyazaki Japanese Garden, which is a result of its interactions with its sister city Miyazaki, Japan.
The Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1938, is an 8,000-acre (32 km2) fresh water refuge that borders the Atlantic Ocean on the east and Back Bay on the west. It is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
First Landing State Park and False Cape State Park are both located in coastal areas within the city's corporate limits as well.
Pleasure House Point is an 118 acres (48 hectares) park of undeveloped land on the shore of the Lynnhaven River. It is also the location of the Brock Environmental Center.
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Virginia Beach, Virginia", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0
