10 Best Things to Do in Williamsburg

Colonial Williamsburg is a living history museum where costumed performers show you what life was like in the early colonial days, in genuine historic buildings. The entire town has been restored to its original condition, and the performers even speak using the language, diction, and dialects of that era. Parents and kids can explore the entire town, participate in re-enactments and exhibits, listen to traditional music, and observe dance performances. When lunchtime rolls around, you can visit a local restaurant which may be decked out like an old-timey pub. It's a downtown district just 4 minutes from the center of the city.

Historic Jamestowne is the site where the original British colonists on the New World landed, and today offers over 1,000 artifacts, information, and education about those first colonists. Some of the exhibits are interactive, and you and the children can sort through excavated material looking for additional treasures. While you explore, costumed guides will take you through a living history museum representing a restored part of the settlement. You'll learn about the conflicts, hardships, and life of these colonists firsthand. The site is located on the shores of the river just about a 14-minute drive from downtown.

The Governor's Palace offers tours of an authentic 18th-century mansion with demonstrations and education regarding life, cooking, and crafts from those bygone days. In the kitchen and scullery, you can see demonstrations of chocolate making, beer brewing, and even traditional cooking. A tour of the palace shows off elegant furniture, period weaponry, and a vast grand ballroom. Outside, formal gardens offer tended walking paths with colorful flowers and a serene escape from the noise and crowds. The mansion is located only a 4-minute drive northeast of the center of town.

Busch Gardens is a huge family amusement park offering rides, games, food, live entertainment, and even live animals to thrill adults and kids of every age. The park is famed for its rides, especially its roller coasters, which rise hundreds of feet in the air and exceed 75 mph while engaging boomerangs, loop-the-loops, and thrilling corkscrews. You can also visit reconstructions of areas in Italy, France, and Germany, with exploration and thrill rides that lead you through the hearts of these old countries. After a day of pulse-pounding thrills, play some games, catch a Broadway-style show, or sit down for a great meal. All of this is only a 16-minute drive southeast of town.

Water Country USA is a waterpark offering lightning fast slides, lounge areas, wave pools, floating rivers, swimming, and other water sports for the family. There are 11 main waterslides of varying lengths and curves, plus 4 children's waterslides. The lazy river offers the chance to relax in gentle currents, while the wave pool offers that ocean tide swimming experience. The park is open in the summer every year, and multi-passes are available which allow you to access both this park and the famed Busch Gardens amusement park nearby. Water Country USA is just a 13-minute drive from the center of town to the southeast.

The Jamestown Glasshouse offers demonstrations of traditional glass blowing and the process of creating handmade works of glass art using original furnaces. The Glasshouse is still standing from the earliest days of British colonization, and glassmaking is a time-honored ancient art. While the craft didn't work out for early colonists, today it's a cherished form, and you can see everything from flasks to plates and bowls to ornaments as they're being made. The onsite gift shop lets you purchase these elegant pieces to take home.

York River State Park offers hiking, outdoor adventures, and the chance to explore fossil beds and artifacts from indigenous people and early colonists. You can tackle the various trails here on foot or horseback, and they encompass 30 miles of coastline and forested landscape. Scattered throughout the park are pavilions and playgrounds for the children to climb and run, and boat ramps allow fishing excursions. At the visitor's center, you can discover the history and habitat of the York River and the conservation efforts represented by the park. The park is just 20 minutes' drive north of the city.

Bassett Hall is a historic building and former home of John D. Rockefeller, with guided tours of the home and gardens offering a view of Rockefeller's collection. As you walk through this historic home you can see ornate furniture, figurines, art, and decorations. Regular events and speakers showcase specific forms of artwork and allow you to recreate these crafts yourself. Outside, the gardens are immaculately tended with walking paths, soft colored flowers, and plenty of green space to relax.

Great Wolf Lodge is an indoor/outdoor water park and resort in Williamsburg offering thrilling water slides, a video arcade, a water fort tree, an outdoor lagoon, and even hot springs. The breadth of activities here is sure to thrill, relax, and offer enjoyment to kids and adults of every age. Besides water attractions, you can try mini-bowling, a ropes course, a 4D theater, and even a workshop where kids can make their own custom furry friend to take home. The park is only 13 minutes to the north of the downtown center.