Hot Springs · $$$$ — Top in state
Road trips · Virginia
Virginia road trips & hidden gems.
Virginia runs from Shenandoah’s Skyline Drive and Blue Ridge peaks to Chesapeake beaches and four centuries of history at Williamsburg and Monticello. Spring and fall are glorious. Virginia is for road-trip lovers.
Best time to visitSpring & fall
Don’t missSkyline Drive in autumn
Gem Hunt nominees10 candidates
Hikes11 curated
Scenic drives2
Worth-the-detour corridors
Drives through Virginia
Ranked city-to-city drives that cross Virginia — each with honest +N min detours on the shelf.
Gem Hunt nominees
What locals say you shouldn’t miss.
Community-nominated candidates. Add yours and vote to help choose the first published finalists.
Kiptopeke Concrete Ships
Nine WWII-era ships built from concrete instead of steel were sunk here in 1948 to make a breakwater, and they still loom just off the beach like a half-sunk ghost fleet near Cape Charles.
Grand CavernsThe oldest continuously operating show cave in the country, open since 1806, where Civil War soldiers scrawled their names between towering "shield" formations, in the Shenandoah Valley near Grottoes.
Breaks Interstate ParkLocals call it the Grand Canyon of the South, a thousand-foot gorge where the Russell Fork River carves clean through Pine Mountain, tucked in Virginia's far southwestern corner on the Kentucky line.
The Big PencilA 30-foot No. 2 pencil juts off the side of an old office-supply store in Wytheville, a 1960s stunt that outlived the business — the perfect goofy photo stop where I-77 and I-81 cross.
Crozet PizzaA tiny two-room pizzeria on a railroad-town backroad that's hand-made the same dough since 1977 and once got crowned best pizza in the world by a travel guide, eleven miles west of Charlottesville.
Natural Tunnel State ParkAn 850-foot limestone tunnel that Appalachian trains still rumble through, with a chairlift dropping you 250 feet into Stock Creek Gorge, in the far southwest corner near Duffield.
The big ones
National parks in Virginia.
The bucket-list landscapes — when to go and what not to miss.
Explore by interest
Everything else worth a stop in Virginia.
Start with a few highlights, choose one interest, or explicitly open the full state guide.
Showing General guide and Scenic routes highlights. Choose a category or Show all for the full state guide.
Scenic drives
Scenic routes through Virginia.
More worth the detour
The general guide to Virginia.
Museums, monuments, historic sites, and local-only stops from Roamward's shared place map.
Appomattox Court House NHP
Where Lee surrendered to Grant, April 9, 1865; reconstructed village around the McLean House parlor.
Ashland railside downtownCenter-of-town double-track CSX mainline with trackside cafes and the historic Amtrak station running right through Main Street — a magnet for railfans.
Barrier Islands CenterMore than 7,500 artifacts and oral histories reconstruct the fishing settlements and hunt-club communities abandoned on Virginia's barrier islands after destructive 1930s hurricanes. Many exhibits are upstairs without elevator access, though a virtual tour is available.
Bluff Mountain TunnelThe Parkway's engineers refused to blast through mountains except when there was no other way -- this 630-foot bore is the *only* tunnel on the entire 217.5-mile Virginia section, making it a genuine oddity on a road famous for going around things, not through them.
Cape Charles Historic DistrictVictorian railroad-boom town on the National Register with turn-of-the-century architecture lining its streets, plus a free public bay beach at the harbor.
Carl's Frozen Custard1947 walk-up custard stand with the original Electro-Freeze machines, on the National Register of Historic Places; seasonal (mid-February through the Sunday before Thanksgiving).
Boots on
Best hikes in Virginia.
From family-easy to bucket-list — trails worth the detour, great for the RV & camping crew.
Apple Orchard Falls
a tall cascade off the Blue Ridge Parkway
Crabtree Fallsa 1,200-foot waterfall hike reached via VA 56 from Blue Ridge Parkway milepost 27.2
Dark Hollow Falls (Shenandoah)the closest waterfall to Skyline Drive
Devils Marbleyarda vast field of quartzite boulders to scramble
Dragon’s Toothrock scrambles to a spire of Tuscarora quartzite
Hawksbill Summit (Shenandoah)the highest peak in Shenandoah National Park
Beyond the parks
Wild lands in Virginia.
National forests, wilderness, and monuments — the big scenic public land between the parks and the gems.
Bucket-list wonders
Scenic landmarks in Virginia.
The iconic slot canyons, overlooks, and rock formations — and how you actually get to visit each one.
Where to wake up
Camping in Virginia.
The most scenic places to pitch a tent or park the rig — each with how to reserve and how RV-friendly it is.
Raise a glass
Breweries, distilleries & wineries in Virginia.
The trip-worthy taprooms, distilleries, and wine country.
A. Smith Bowman Distillery
a historic Virginia distillery behind award-winning bourbons.
Blue Mountain Brewerya farm brewery with Blue Ridge views near Wintergreen.
Catoctin Creek Distillinga flagship of Virginia’s rye whiskey revival in horse country.
Devils Backbone Brewinga Blue Ridge basecamp brewery with a scenic mountain taproom.
Hardywood Park Craft Brewerya Richmond favorite known for its Gingerbread Stout.
Monticello Wine TrailJefferson’s dream realized — Blue Ridge wineries around Charlottesville.
Where to eat
Road-trip dining in Virginia.
Restaurants, diners, and food halls that fit the drive — curated by town, not scraped from a phone book.
Blue Mountain Brewery
A Rockfish Gap brewery meal right where Skyline Drive hands off to the Blue Ridge Parkway.
The Farmhouse at VeritasVineyard-set contemporary American restaurant pairing inventive courses with Veritas's own estate wines.
Elaine'sAward-winning modern Mediterranean on Queen Street inspired by Alexandria, Egypt, with French, Greek and Italian influences.
Hank's Oyster BarUpscale beach-shack oyster destination now on three floors with a rooftop bar, pouring its proprietary Salty Wolfe oysters.
RT's RestaurantDel Ray institution since 1985 serving authentic Louisiana Creole and Cajun, a Washingtonian Top 100 regular.
Vaso's Mediterranean BistroCozy King Street bistro blending Greek and Italian traditions, from gyros to shrimp scampi and Greek wine.
Snow season
Best ski resorts in Virginia.
Big-mountain steeps, all-mountain variety, and family hills.
On two wheels (road)
Best cycling in Virginia.
Scenic road rides, iconic climbs, and car-free rail-trails.
Skyline Drive
Shenandoah’s ridge-top road, glorious in October.
Virginia Creeper Traila mostly-downhill 17-mile coast through the Blue Ridge, shuttle-served.
W&OD Trail45 paved miles from D.C.’s suburbs into Virginia horse country.
Virginia Capital Traila paved 52-mile route between Richmond and Williamsburg.
Knobby tires
Best mountain biking in Virginia.
Trail systems, bike parks, and gravel routes.
Soak it in
Best hot springs in Virginia.
Resorts, historic bathhouses, and wild primitive soaks.
Sand & surf
Best beaches in Virginia.
Family sand, surf breaks, wild shores — find your vibe.
Assateague Island (VA)
a wild seashore famous for its free-roaming ponies.
Buckroe Beacha calm, historic Chesapeake Bay beach with gentle water.
Cape Charles Beacha bayside town beach famous for sunsets on the Eastern Shore.
Chincoteague BeachAssateague surf, dunes, and pony-country marsh reached from Chincoteague.
Colonial Beacha Potomac River beach town with boardwalk calm and Northern Neck sunsets.
Croatan Beacha quieter surf-friendly stretch just south of the Virginia Beach resort strip.
Chasing water
Best waterfalls in Virginia.
From roadside stops to bucket-list hikes — easy ones flagged for the RV & family crew.
Crabtree Falls (VA)
a five-cascade waterfall hike reached via VA 56 from Blue Ridge Parkway milepost 27.2.
Apple Orchard Fallsa tall cascade off the Blue Ridge Parkway near Peaks of Otter.
Statons Creek Fallsa long sliding cascade near the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Whiteoak Canyon Fallsa canyon of six falls and swimming holes in Shenandoah.
Fallingwater Cascadesa tumbling cascade on a loop near the Blue Ridge Parkway.
Abrams Fallsa county-owned, permit-access plunge waterfall in a rugged Washington County hollow.
Tee it up
Public golf you can book in Virginia.
Meadows of Dan · $$$$
Williamsburg · $$$
Leesburg · $$$
Radford · $$$
Providence Forge · $$$ — Irish linksland dropped into Virginia
Beacons
Lighthouses in Virginia.
Plan the Virginia trip
Get the scenic route, the stops, and the timing.
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Where to stay
Find a place to stay near Virginia.
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