School is out, Summer is officially here, and our area is bursting at the seams with activities for the season. Coastal Virginia Magazine has come up with, what we think is, an awesome Summer Bucket List. Get your sunglasses ready, as we spend the next week working through this list.
1. Take your photo with one (or several) Norfolk mermaids.
Norfolk is home to more than 100 mermaids painted and decorated by local artists during the last 15 years. Spend a day traipsing around Norfolk, seeing how many you can spot and take a #selfie with each one.
2. Host a crab fest.
You can’t go wrong with a bushel of blue crabs to share amongst your friends and family, and Coastal Virginia is the right place for it! The crabs are caught fresh each morning, so be sure to call ahead and reserve the “Jimmy #1s," which is crab slang for large male crabs. Ask the friendly fishmongers steam to them for you, and they’ll even season them in an Old Bay bath! You will not be disappointed with Shore Drive’s Dockside Seafood Market and Marina or Welton’s Fresh Seafood Market on Laskin Road.
3. Grab a pint at a local brewery.
In the past couple years, Coastal Virginia has been brimming with quality local beer. With summer in full swing, the breweries often have live music and local food trucks. Many of the breweries offer tours and have taprooms as well. Virginia Beach is home to Beach Brewing Company,Back Bay Brewing Co. and Young Veterans Brewing Company. Norfolk hosts Smartmouth Brewing Company and O’Connor Brewing Company. In Hampton you’ll find St. George Brewing Company, and in Williamsburg there’s Alewerks Brewing Company.
4. Go to a festival.
Craft beer, wine, barbecue, oysters, Greek fare, bacon… Coastal Virginia has festivals for everything you could possibly think of. Go to one! Socialize with people who enjoy the food you enjoy or experience something new you never thought you’d try. Start looking for festivals in Coastal Virginia!
5. Ferry across the Elizabeth River from Norfolk to Portsmouth.
While most of us say the name “Hampton Roads” without giving a second thought to its origins, most sources believe it began with Henry Wriothesley, the Third Earl of Southampton. The “Roads” of “Hampton Roads” actually derives from the old nautical terms “road” and “roadstead,” which refer to safe water passages. “Hampton Roads” in its entirety, then, refers to the channel linking the James, Elizabeth and Nansemond rivers with the Chesapeake Bay and was first identified as such in 1755.
This summer, take a ferry trip across the Elizabeth River. The Elizabeth River Ferry is operated by HRT and travels between the Waterside Festival Marketplace in Downtown Norfolk and North Landing and High Street in Portsmouth. In addition to being fast and economical (it costs $1.50 to ride the ferry across the river one way), the ferry offers a memorable view of the river and the cities’ respective waterfronts.
6. Plan a day trip to Tangier Island.
You’ve been saying how you’ve always wanted to check out this mysterious Eastern Shore island, so make plans to actually do it. Eat a soft shell crab sandwich, rent a golf cart and visit the museum. Whether you fall in love with the quaintness of the island or not, it’s best to visit while you still can.
7. Swing dance.
Summer invokes a certain nostalgia of days gone by, so pick a Sunday evening to head down to Ocean View for some big band music and reminisce over the tunes—even if you weren’t around in the ‘40s. Bring a blanket and some snacks and get your dancing shoes on under the gazebo at Big Bands on the Bay.
8. When at the Virginia Beach boardwalk, do as the tourists do.
If you are a Coastal Virginia native or have lived in the area for even a few years, it’s easy to forget that Virginia Beach is home to the world’s longest pleasure beach and an award-winning boardwalk. The 3-mile stretch parallel to the boardwalk is a literal mecca of brightly-colored beach kitsch and tantalizing, tasty fun. So, the next time you find yourself at the Virginia Beach boardwalk, do as the tourists do. Rent a surrey and cruise down to 31st Street and Catch up with King Neptune, or leisurely stroll your way through the boardwalk’s best offerings. In addition to the beckoning waters of the Atlantic Ocean, you can revel in street musicians and magicians courtesy of Beach Street USA, precariously tall soft serve cones from the Kohr Bros, old-school skee ball machines at Flipper McCoy’s and those infamous orange crushes from Waterman’s.
Make sure to look for tomorrow's post as we highlight more of the Coastal Virginia Summer Bucket List!
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