One of the most common questions I hear from friends as the plan day trips is, “what can we do in Williamsburg?”. As Richmonders, we hear a lot about Williamsburg – home of the world’s largest living history museum. In fact, families travel from all over to visit this city that’s only about an hour from RVA!
But, knowing Williamsburg exists, and is a popular place to visit doesn’t offer enough information for parents. When you’re taking children on a day trip, it’s helpful to know costs, how much time to allot for activities, nearby attractions, and simple modifications for age groups. And, I have got you covered with all that information and more!
Touring Colonial Williamsburg
If your children are 6 or older and your family enjoys history, I suggest purchasing tickets. This will allow you to visit the art museums, gardens, see performances, and more. You should allow about 4 hours for this experience. Tickets are $49.99 (adult) and $28.99 (ages 6-12).
For a first trip to Williamsburg, I recommend a self-guided tour. It is completely free to walk up and down Duke of Gloucester Street. You can picnic on the Palace Green in front of the Govenor’s Palace, walk through the gardens, visit farm animals, and chat with the historical reenactors at no cost. When my children were toddlers, we loved to take them to Williamsburg and walk around. My thought was, “if I’m going to be pushing a stroller around, it might as well be somewhere beautiful!”
The difference between the two experiences is how in depth the tour is. For older children, and history buffs, the tickets are a bucket list item. But, for families with very young children, waiting until they’ve studied some of these topics in school will make the experience even more meaningful.
Play in Williamsburg
While Williamsburg may be known for its living history museum, what my kids love most about it is Kidsburg! Kidsburg is a 30,000 square foot, accessible playground located at Veterans Park. This playground is day trip worthy just by itself! My children particularly love the zip lines! There is no fee to park or play at Kidsburg.
Other spots for play: Waller Mill Park, where you can rent canoes and paddle boats, or hike; and, Kiwanis Park, another playground with a zip line and picnic pavilions.
All of these parks are suitable for toddlers through tweens. Adding a playground in the Williamsburg itinerary offers a compromise for kids who may not be interested in history, and a chance to get those wiggles out.
Eating in Williamsburg
One of the most popular eateries in Williamsburg is the Cheese Shoppe, located on Duke of Gloucester Street. Offering sandwiches and the always popular bread ends, the patio is ideal for eating with children.
Other nearby restaurants for families that we’ve enjoyed are Retro’s Good Eats and Aroma’s.
Alternatively, packing a picnic has served us well. We choose a spot on the Palace Green, and it’s like being transported to Colonial Times (but with paper plates!). In this case, you could grab ice cream from Baskin-Robbins as dessert!
Hopefully now you have enough information to spend a day in Williamsburg with your family!
