Top Things to do in Virginia
Top Hotels in Virginia
- 1. Best Western Plus Sandcastle Beachfront Hotel
- 2. Coastal Hotel & Suites Virginia Beach - Oceanfront
- 3. Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Charlottesville-UVA, VA
- 4. Hampton Inn Virginia Beach-Oceanfront North
- 5. Hilton Garden Inn Virginia Beach Oceanfront
- 6. Drury Plaza Hotel Richmond
- 7. Comfort Inn Williamsburg Gateway
- 8. Hampton Inn & Suites Fredericksburg South
- 9. The Hotel Roanoke & Conference Center, Curio Collection by Hilton
- 10. Hilton Vacation Club The Historic Powhatan Williamsburg
Things to do in Virginia, United States: The Best Food & Drink
Virginia can make American history come alive. Visit Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, tour Civil War battlefields, explore the living history museum at Williamsburg… the possibilities are endless (if the kids object, break up the historical sightseeing with a visit to Busch Gardens). Arlington, site of Arlington National Cemetery, is just across the Potomac River from all the major sites in D.C. In addition to beaches and historical attractions, Virginia has plenty to offer outdoor enthusiasts. Active families will love the Blue Ridge Highlands, where hiking, canoeing and tubing are just a few of the activities offered. Couples might enjoy a romantic mountain cabin in Virginia after a day of hiking in Shenandoah National Park.
Restaurants in Virginia
1. Zephaniah Farm Vineyard
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 61 reviews
Zephaniah is a family owned Farm Winery on a forth generation working farm about 5 miles from historic downtown Leesburg, VA. The Vineyard is named for the wine maker's great grand father, Zephaniah Jefferson Hatch. We hand craft wines from estate grown grapes and a few select grapes grown by good friends and neighbors. Our primary tasting room is in our 200 year old Quaker built home. Our guests enjoy relaxed seated tastings of 6-8 wines which generally last one hour or more. Groups of 6 or more people require a reservation. Children must be closely supervised by an adult at all times. Leashed dogs are welcomed on our grounds but no dogs allowed in the tasting room. open hours: 12:00- 5:30 Friday, Saturday and Sunday and Federal Holiday Mondays.
Reviewed By BarbaraB1672
We really enjoyed this winery! Went on a Saturday in November and met Bonnie (owner) who is a lovely retired teacher. As teachers ourselves, it was wonderful to meet her and she personally led us to our table and chairs. Tastings were in small cups due to Covid and all felt very safe. We brought our own picnic food to have with our wine. Absoulutely beautiful 200 year old stone house and lots of open farm land made for a relaxing afternoon with friends. I highly recommend visiting this charming winery. Bonnie communicates via e-mail and even responded to our thank you e-mail. Well worth our stop...and yours too.
2. Catoctin Creek Distillery
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 494 reviews
Catoctin Creek® Distilling Company was founded by Becky and Scott Harris in 2009 as the first legal distillery in Loudoun County since before Prohibition. We are located in Purcellville, Virginia, in the heart of the Loudoun Valley. Loudoun County, often called D.C.'s Wine Country, is home to more than twenty vineyards and wineries, and it now has a distillery. At Catoctin Creek, we believe in high quality food and spirits. Organic means higher quality: grain and fruit, sourced locally when possible, free of pesticides and chemical additives that would come through in the spirits we produce. Sure, it is more difficult to produce organically, but the results speak for themselves. The Virginia Rye Whisky!
Reviewed By dianemB8346AW
Catoctin Creek Distillery went above and beyond making a memorable experience to celebrate my husband’s birthday while ensuring customer and staff protections during the pandemic. We made a reservation online and had one indoor table waiting for us at a safe distance from other tables. We were able to attend a tour before enjoying a whiskey flight and cocktail flight. The staff were very friendly and knowledgeable and were very accommodating of our 4.5 month old puppy. Thank you for making such an enjoyable experience! We will definitely be back!
3. A. Smith Bowman Distillery
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 114 reviews
since 1934, the historic A. Smith Bowman Distillery has passionately produced premium handcrafted spirits that have gone on to win many awards, most notably "World's Best Bourbon" two years in a row. Nestled just five minutes from downtown Fredericksburg and three miles from I-95, A. Smith Bowman Distillery has a lot to offer. Complimentary one hour tour includes: Knowledgeable history of the Distillery Behind the scenes look at our distilling process Walk through to see our stills "Mary" and "George" Barrel aging warehouse Spirit tastings (21+) Gift Shop & A. Smith Bowman Distillery Museum Tours are open to all ages, Monday - Saturday and Sundays during the summer. Complimentary tours depart every hour, Monday – Saturday from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Sundays from noon-4 p.m. Gift Shop remains open until 5 p.m. Please visit our website for more details regarding your visit!
Reviewed By 327josephk - Woodbridge, United States
Yes, all FREE. a 30 Plus minute tour by an expert on the oldest continual operating LEGAL distillery in the USA. Recently winning National and World wide awards for their bourbons and other spirits. AND at the end of the tour a FREE tasting of five of their products. The good stuff too! Of course it temps you to purchase their products and promotional items at the gift shop which has an ABC License!
4. River Hill Wine & Spirits
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 116 reviews
River Hill Wine and Spirits is a family owned, farm based winery and distillery located along the Shenandoah River in Luray, Page county, Virginia. We pride ourselves in small batch high quality Wines and Whiskeys. We also have a full selection of farm raised beef and pork products as well as farm fresh eggs available for sale at the distillery building
Reviewed By renfield1969
You have to drive through a neighborhood that turns into a farm to get to River Hill, but it is well worth tracking down. It is a pretty small operation as distilleries go, but the owners are really down to earth and enthusiastic. Pop is happy to give a tour of the unassuming place: there is the tap room, and the small room behind it is the distillery. "This is my vat, those over there are my barrels." The bourbon and corn whiskey he makes are all worth picking up. If they aren't the best you've had, you will appreciate the taste of down home honesty. My wife was happy to chat with Mom and sample the fruity wines they sell (yes, including Sweet Potato.) I find those type of wines good for desserts or pancakes, but my wife likes the occasional spritzer. They were out of one that my wife selected, but she got a kick out of watching Pop decant her bottle directly from a barrel, and he let her label it and put the seal over the cork. The property itself is pretty large, and they do a number of other things aside from the distillery. You can buy meat at the counter with your wine, and they also board horses and I understand they have a shooting range. This is a place you want to visit just so you can recognize it when some author inevitably includes it as a setting in a novel.
5. MurLarkey Distilled Spirits
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 25 reviews
MurLarkey Distilled Spirits is Prince William County's only distillery. Founded in 2014 and opened in October of 2015, Murlarkey produces an assortment of Virginia Corn whiskeys and Potato vodka. Tours and tastings are available.
Reviewed By je1058 - Fredericksburg, United States
One Word… “AMAZING!!!” We’ve been going to local wineries for years (having tried nearly all of VA’s 275+ wineries and most all in MD as well), as well as several distilleries, meaderies and even breweries…. This place is hands-down in the top 5 of places we’ve visited and definitely the BEST when it comes to amazing service and the best distillery! When we went, the theme was “Speakeasy” and that just happens to be one of the themes and places we LOVE to visit! They really did it right… they did it PERFECTLY! Customer service was over-the-top attentive, friendly, helpful and explained so much you might want to know when deciding what to drink, how things are made, etc and they offer all the samples you might want to help you decide! Papi’s menu and skills are incredible and he actually loves what he does and really cares how you feel about his amazing work behind the bar, both creating these concoctions and menus and making them for service. In fact, the day we went, they had three separate menus of Papi’s drinks and each were loaded with incredibly-designed adult beverages! We met some of the crew, like Kevin, the head distiller and he was more than helpful in explaining their distillation process and even showing us how natural and amazing the process is. Definitely would highly suggest a visit to this distillery. Don’t let the “warehouse building” look fool you, this place and what they offer is first class, but with a local, friendly, “down home” approach to providing excellent service. We’ll be back, many times!!!!
6. Tarnished Truth Distilling Company
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 525 reviews
Tarnished Truth Distilling Company is the country’s first and only craft distillery operating within a working luxury hotel. Tarnished Truth is a small craft distillery producing multiple hand crafted spirits such as bourbon, whiskey and vodka. Come visit us for a tour, tasting, craft cocktail class and gift shop.
Reviewed By Tenore90 - Portland, United States
With a small group of nine people, Anna led us on a great tour of the distillery and the tasting afterwards of their Moonshine, Tarnished Truth Rye 3 year and Old Cavalier 9 year straight Bourbon. Our group quickly bonded. While in the distillery, Andrew Yancey, the owner walked through who my son knew because my son knew his parents as neighbors on the street where he formerly lived. All in all, it was a great experience to be sought out at the newly renovated Cavalier Hotel.
7. Castle Glen Winery
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 3 reviews
Reviewed By jehenson81 - Washington DC, United States
Okay, so I have been trying to go to this winery for a while and went to their website and submitted a request to visit the winery through their contact form, but never heard back, I tried again a few weeks before I was in the area and again did not hear back. I finally called their number and was informed (through an automated message) that they were open and to stop by during their business hours. So that is what I did. The winery is in a lovely spot and their tasting room is just a few weeks old. They are still working on their landscaping and will have their official "Grand Opening" in late March. I got to do my tasting with Pam, the owner, and I shared with her about the website issues and the conflict between the website and phone messages. It seems their online form is broken and they did not get the voice message I left. But they are opening during the times they said and they have a lovely selection of wines. The tasting menu is very dynamic with a little of something for everyone. They do have mainly off-dry wines, which pleased me. I liked their Vidal Blanc and Sangria the best, but the slushies they have were pretty gosh darn good. Also they still had some of their mulled wine, which was very warming and flavorful. I definite must if you are near I-95, but be sure to follow the little yellow signs that take you the back way to Narrow Path Trail as the way your GPS will take you will not get you to the winery. Also they are dog-friendly.
8. The Vineyards & Winery at Lost Creek
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 61 reviews
The Vineyards & Winery at Lost Creek is a 50-acre boutique culinary winery nestled in the rolling hills of Northern Virginia 10 minutes outside of historic Leesburg, Virginia. Tucked away between Route 15 and the Potomac River, Lost Creek Winery is a scenic destination that offers distinctively Virginia wines paired with a delectable culinary menu in a casual elegant atmosphere.
Reviewed By lindamM430VH
Signed up for a tasting. Be sure to follow the emailed directions, GPS takes you to a different entrance. Lots of parking. Plenty of tables spaced far apart. A nice drive out from the DC area. Nice staff. Plenty on the menu and a long list of wines to order from. No rush, so enjoy the wine, enjoy the day and enjoy the visit.
9. Veritas Vineyard & Winery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 445 reviews
Reviewed By JosephH778 - Beavercreek, United States
My wife and I enjoyed a superior wine tasting at Veritas Vineyard - easily the #1 winery in the local area. Compared to another mountain winery, Veritas provides tastings in glass glassware, and from glass mini-bottles. Local peers choose to provide flight tastings in cheap, fly-away plasticware. Make this your 'mountain' stop!
10. Chateau Morrisette Winery
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 431 reviews
Chateau Morrisette Winery and Restaurant is known for its quality Virginia wines, its scenic location along the Blue Ridge Parkway, its Black Dog Music Festivals and other special events, as well as its top-notch fine dining restaurant. The winery is open 7-days a week in season and Friday through Sunday during the winter months and offers wine tastings for $10 per person. The tasting includes a tour of our winery and a souvenir wine glass. Hours vary by day of the week. The Chateau Restaurant is open in season Wed-Thu 11-2, Fri - Sat 11-9, and Sun 11-4. Weekends only in the winter. Open for lunch everyday in October. Guests may purchase wine by the bottle or glass and spend time relaxing in our courtyard, in a private gazebo, or from our terrace overlooking the scenic New River Valley. Live entertainment is offered every Sunday afternoons, June through October and we invite guests to check our website for the many special events we produce throughout the year.
Reviewed By harperwspencer - Fernandina Beach, United States
We always visit Chateau Morrisette Winery & Restaurant when we’re visiting our VA vacation home. We love the atmosphere, events, and the wine - especially if it’s served by Ray!
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