Historic Triangle (Williamsburg)

Home of Colonial Williamsburg, America's largest living-history museum, forming the Historic Triangle with Jamestown and Yorktown, plus the Busch Gardens theme park.

Williamsburg sits on the Virginia Peninsula in southeastern Virginia, between the James and York rivers, and was the capital of the Virginia Colony from 1699 to 1780. Together with Jamestown about 10 km to the southwest (founded in 1607 as the first permanent English settlement in North America) and Yorktown about 20 km to the east (site of the decisive 1781 battle of the Revolutionary War), it forms the "Historic Triangle." The three are linked by the Colonial Parkway and together tell the story of America from colonization to independence. The heart of it all is Colonial Williamsburg's Historic Area: hundreds of 18th-century buildings line Duke of Gloucester Street, costumed interpreters and tradespeople re-create colonial daily life, and you can tour the Governor's Palace, the Capitol and Raleigh Tavern with a guide. At the western end of the street is the College of William & Mary, founded in 1693. Beyond history, Busch Gardens and Water Country USA are popular with families, and Route 5's plantation route along the north bank of the James River passes historic estates such as Shirley and Berkeley. Climate: spring and fall are mild and the best seasons; summer is hot and humid but peak time for the theme parks and outdoor activities; in December the Historic Area's doors are hung with decorations made of fresh greenery and fruit, creating a festive holiday atmosphere. Getting there: Richmond is about an hour away and Washington, D.C., about 2.5–3 hours by car; Amtrak stops in town, and there are airports in Newport News and Richmond. Sights are spread out, so driving is recommended, but walk within the Historic Area. Plan on 2–3 days: one day for Colonial Williamsburg, one for Jamestown and Yorktown, and one more for the theme parks. Look into Colonial Williamsburg passes and Historic Triangle combo tickets in advance, and bring sun protection and insect repellent in summer.

Top sights

• Colonial Williamsburg Historic Area – America's largest living history museum, recreating the original look of the 18th-century capital of colonial Virginia, where costumed acto…
• Historic Jamestowne – The site of England's first permanent colony in North America, founded in 1607. Archaeologists are still excavating James Fort, and the chu…
• Jamestown Settlement – A living history museum recreating Jamestown in 1607, where visitors can board replicas of three ships, enter the fort and visit a Powhatan…
• Yorktown Battlefield – Where in 1781 Franco-American forces compelled Cornwallis and the British to surrender, effectively ending the American Revolutionary War…
• American Revolution Museum at Yorktown – A state museum that tells the full story of the American Revolution. Indoors there is an immersive theater, and outdoors a Continental Army…
• Busch Gardens Williamsburg – A large theme park themed on European villages, often rated the most beautiful theme park in America, with several famous roller coasters i…
• Governor's Palace – The residence of colonial British royal governors, where the entrance hall lined with muskets and swords, the orderly English-style gardens…
• Capitol (Colonial Williamsburg) – Seat of the Virginia House of Burgesses, where Henry, Washington and Jefferson debated; in 1776 Virginia passed a resolution here pushing f…
• Bruton Parish Church – An Anglican church completed in 1715 and still in use, where Washington, Jefferson and other Founding Fathers worshipped; its historic grav…
• Raleigh Tavern – The most famous tavern of the colonial era, where legislators met in secret after the governor dissolved the assembly to discuss boycotts o…
• George Wythe House – The brick home of George Wythe, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and Jefferson's law teacher; Washington used it as his headquar…
• Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg – Comprising the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum and the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, with colonial-era furniture and Amer…
• Merchants Square – A colonial revival shopping street at the west end of the historic area, lined with restaurants, cafés, bookstores and gift shops, ideal fo…
• Wren Building, College of William & Mary – The main building of the second-oldest university in the United States, begun in 1695; it is the oldest academic building still in use in t…
• Colonial Parkway – A 37-km scenic road linking Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown, winding along the James and York rivers, closed to trucks.
• Yorktown Riverwalk Landing & Historic Village – A riverside area in the old town of Yorktown on the York River, with a beach, promenade, restaurants and 18th-century streets; you can take…
• Water Country USA – Virginia's largest water park, with many high-speed slides, a lazy river and a wave pool, a top choice for families in summer.
• Jamestown–Scotland Ferry – A free car ferry that crosses the James River in about 20 minutes, with views of Jamestown Island; it is Virginia's last 24-hour ferry.
• Williamsburg Winery – One of Virginia's largest wineries, set among country vineyards where you can taste local wines; it has a restaurant and a boutique hotel.
• Shirley Plantation – Founded in 1613 and run by the same family ever since, one of the oldest family businesses in North America; its 18th-century mansion and b…
• Berkeley Plantation – Ancestral home of two US presidents, Berkeley is where English settlers held what is considered one of the earliest Thanksgiving celebratio…
• The Mariners' Museum and Park – One of the largest maritime museums in the US, housing original components of the Civil War ironclad “Monitor,” including its gun turret an…

Where to eat

• The Fat Canary – An upscale New American restaurant beside Merchants Square in colonial Williamsburg, open since 2003 and long holding a…
• King's Arms Tavern – An 18th-century tavern reconstructed in historic colonial Williamsburg, where servers wear period costume. Its peanut s…
• Amber Ox Public House – A popular American tavern with a seven-vessel craft brewhouse, ranked No. 1 in Williamsburg on Tripadvisor. The menu ch…
• Berret's Seafood – A longtime seafood restaurant in Merchants Square known for Virginia crab cakes and she-crab soup, and a regular winner…
• Shorty's Diner – A 1950s-style family breakfast and brunch spot with oversized pancakes and biscuits with gravy, at affordable prices.

Itineraries

• Virginia Mountains & Founding History – Travel east from Shenandoah through Charlottesville, Richmond, and the Historic Triangle to the coast.
• Washington, D.C. to Shenandoah & Colonial Triangle – Head north from Washington, D.C. to historic battlefields, drive along the Skyline Drive on the Blue Ridge, and visit C…