This is gonna sound cheap - - re:Colonial Wmsburg

[Antonia]

I will be visiting CW in about a week. I have been before, but DS and DDIL have not. We will have a 9 month old rowdy baby with us.

I have heard that you can walk around in CW without a ticket, but in this case you cannot go into any of the buildings, etc.

Does anyone know if this is the case? DH and I may let DS and DDIL do the buildings etc and we may just stroll the baby.

We are only there one night and then we are on our way to DC and the Shenandoah Valley.

 

[Tiggeroo]

Yes, you can walk around, go in the shops but not tour the historic buildings. It's still very pretty.

 

[RachelNinja]

I second what Tiggeroo said. I wanted to do Colonial Williamsburg last year so I looked into, but once I saw the prices, I decided not to do that. I believe the people at the front desk told us that we could do that too (tour and not do the buildings, especially since only my mom and I were interested in going inside). Haha, although one reason why my mom didn't want to go to CW was because of the loud noises.

We ended up going to Jamestown instead, which was much closer to where we were staying and much cheaper, especially with a AAA discount! Had a replica of the Jamestown settlement as well as a replica of a Powhatan village. It also had people there pretending to live the life so it was definitely still educational.

The place where we were staying had a historical manor house and also had people come from Colonial Williamsburg play the fife and drum.

I do look forward to going to CW one day!

 

[Antonia]

Thanks for your replies. We may just stroll the baby and take in the sights. We are staying at the Hampton Inn in the historic district so I think we are within walking distance. Who knows?

Our next stop is DC for 3 nights to tour the town. Monuments, museums, etc. Staying at the Omni Shoreham because they supposedly have a large outdoor pool area and landscaped grounds with hammocks that we can get away from each other if need be. Hahahaha

Then traveling home through the Shenandoah Valley on Skyline Drive. Staying one night at a place called Big Meadows Lodge.

I hope this trip turns out to be fun. My family has had no input into this trip. Actually it is this way every trip we have ever taken. They just want me to plan - which I do enjoy - and they just get in the car and go. They are so trusting!

 

[*BTMRR*]

It's a very lovely stroll and there's plenty to see even without going into any of the buildings that you have to pay for. Since you're going to do so much in DC, I think you'd be very happy just looking around and taking some pictures of the scenery and exteriors of the buildings. There are also some animals to see--your baby might like that. The visitor's center has some free exhibits to look at that will tell you about the history of the area. Have a great trip!

 

[PlutoPony]

A ticket may be required for bus transportation around CW however. There is a walking path from the Visitor's Center (where you will park) into the restored area. Just be prepared for a LOT of walking if bus service is not available to you.

 

[*BTMRR*]

A ticket may be required for bus transportation around CW however. There is a walking path from the Visitor's Center (where you will park) into the restored area. Just be prepared for a LOT of walking if bus service is not available to you.

Oh yes, that's right. It definitely is a lot of walking if you don't have the bus service. It's a pleasant walk though, if the weather is fine.

 

[minniebeth]

I don't know how far the Hampton Inn actually is from the visitor's center, but I'm sure it's even more walking...there is plenty of parkng at the visitor's center.
Like others have said, it is very nice to walk around CW without going into the buildings.
Your whole trip sounds wonderful, have a great time!

 

[MrsPete]

Yes, you can do this: It's a public street, and people live in the area. However, I wouldn't recommend it. You'd get very little out of looking at the outside of the houses.

You want to be sure that you start at the Governer's Mansion and work your way towards the jail and the courthouse. The tour is set up that way, and you get lots of important background info in the Governer's Mansion. They talk about politics, dancing, and so forth. Very early in the tour there are a couple houses that I thought the glimpse into everyday life was interesting; the backyards are fascinating with the privys and the cooking houses. The later part of the tour focuses on the shops -- a print shop, a gun shop -- and I wasn't quite as interested in that.

The church isn't part of Colonial Williamsburg, but it was wonderful. It's the oldest continually-operating church in America; that is, the oldest church that is still going. The pews are set up in boxes -- one per family -- and they explained that this had to do with heat. Everyone carried an iron box of coals to church, and the heat was contained by the boxes. You can go into the church whether you have a ticket or not; they don't charge, though I think there was a donation box.

Reading the American Girls Felecity books is a good way to prepare kids for the trip, and the bookstore at Colonial Williamsburg sells (very inexpensive, I'm thinking it was $2 a couple years ago) a scavenger hunt for children. As they go through the tour, they can look for various things, and it keeps them going. If the costumed guides see that your kids have the scavenger hunt papers, they'll help them find the objects.

Skip the "authentic" taverns. Expensive and not very good.

 

[goofyernmost]

You have hit on one of my major peeves. Colonial Williamsburg, in my opinion, is one of the biggest rip offs in the country.

I'd say that roughly 85% of the buildings are privately owned and there is no public allowed, some of the "ticketed" buildings are not original, just recreations almost like Disney World but not as entertaining. You can park in "new" Williamsburg, downtown and just walk in. The outside, no ticket needed attractions are available to anyone and are really the only interesting things there anyway.

I love history, but this is only cardboard history and not worth any fee to get in. A nice stroll, perhaps, but I went there probably 20 years ago and I still feel robbed.

 

[M&N]

Thanks for your replies. We may just stroll the baby and take in the sights. We are staying at the Hampton Inn in the historic district so I think we are within walking distance. Who knows?

Our next stop is DC for 3 nights to tour the town. Monuments, museums, etc. Staying at the Omni Shoreham because they supposedly have a large outdoor pool area and landscaped grounds with hammocks that we can get away from each other if need be. Hahahaha

Then traveling home through the Shenandoah Valley on Skyline Drive. Staying one night at a place called Big Meadows Lodge.

I hope this trip turns out to be fun. My family has had no input into this trip. Actually it is this way every trip we have ever taken. They just want me to plan - which I do enjoy - and they just get in the car and go. They are so trusting!

It sounds like you have a wonderful trip planned. To do justice to CW, you need to stay longer but I think you get the historical feel by walking through. There is parking downtown. Some is free for 2 hours and there's a parking lot you can pay for. It's a hike if you park at the visitor's center. I really cannot remember how far your hotel is from CW. You can go in Bruton Parish Church and make sure you check out the gardens of the houses.
The Skyline Drive is different looking than the Blue Ridge Parkway. If you get near Luray Caverns, you may like that too.
Have fun!

 

[NCRedding]

If the Hampton isn't close enough to walk, you can park near Merchant Square (pay parking) and stroll into CW via that way. There are some outside activites that I think you can watch without a ticket. You can get a nice feel for CW, expecially with a baby.

I love CW and wouldn't want to go without being able to go into the buildings, etc. I don't think CW is a rip-off although I will say that 20 years ago they had much fewer activities to do in each building.