Norfolk, VA Road Trips

Norfolk has always been a Navy town, home to the world's largest naval base. Town Point Park is a waterfront park area right downtown that hosts several festivals and events throughout the year. Granby Street is the main downtown thoroughfare, lined with restaurants and bars. Ghent is a historic district adjacent to downtown. Filled with historic homes, tree-lined streets and beautiful old churches, it is a good mix of residential and business. Colley Avenue and 21st Street are the main shopping and dining areas, with dozens of locally-owned boutiques, shops, antique stores, restaurants and bars. The Naro theater on Colley Avenue is the region's sole movie theater with indie flicks. Ocean View is Norfolk's beach community, and features relatively uncrowded beaches on the Chesapeake Bay. During the 1950s and 1960s, Ocean View was in its prime and was a major beach destination for families and sailors. During the following decades, the beach community fell into a bit of a slump, succumbing to crime. The city has been turning things around and now Ocean View is on its way to becoming one of the region's most sought-after neighborhoods. Neighboring cities are Virginia Beach, Chesapeake and Portsmouth. The climate is humid subtropical with cool winters and long, hot, and humid summers. In the summer months heat indices average around 94 °F (34 °C) during the day and 74 °F (23 °C) at night. On some particularly hot and sweltering days, the temperature can climb as high as 107 °F (42 °C) during the day and 81 °F (27 °C) at night. Visit Norfolk website

1 Chrysler Museum of Art, One Memorial Place, ☏ +1 757-664-6200. Tu-Sa 10AM-5PM, Su noon-5PM. Walter Chrysler, Jr., son of the Chrysler automobile company founder, donated his art collection to Norfolk, the hometown of his wife. His donation along with other donors formed the collection of this museum. A large variety of art can be found in the museum, including paintings, glass, porcelain, clay, sculptures and photos. Art from different geographies are also present, such as African, Asian, Egyptian, Greek and Pre-Columbian/Mayan. A glass studio located in a separate building south of the museum hosts a free glass art demonstration daily at noon. Free. (updated Jan 2018) 2 Nauticus - National Maritime Center, One Waterside Drive. Naval Museum exhibits maritime artifacts. Next to it is the decommissioned USS Wisconsin (BB 64) battleship, now serving as a museum ship. Visitors get a self-guided tour the interiors of the ship such as sleeping quarter, medical bay, sonar room, mess hall, ship's convenience store and the main deck. Alternatively, visitors can pay extra for guided tour of the engine room, or to the bridge and captain's cabin (additional $20 per person). Adult $15.95, child (ages 4-12) $11.50, child (ages 3 and under) free, seniors (age 55 and up) and AAA member $14.95. 3 West Freemason Street Area Historic District (along West Freemason Street, west of Bosch Street). 24 hours. National historic district with houses and churches in Federal, Greek Revival, Late Victorian and Gothic Revival styles. Free.

Go on a 2 hour cruise around the Norfolk Naval Base. A guide will give a little bit of area history and describe some of the ships as you cruise past. Spirit of Norfolk cruise / tour. Watch a Triple-A baseball game between Norfolk Tides and another minor league team at the 1 Harbor Park, 150 Park Avenue (Take The Tide to Harbor Park station or Amtrak to Norfolk station). (updated Feb 2018) Watch a concert, ice hockey game or performance at 2 Norfolk Scope, 201 East Brambleton Avenue. (updated Feb 2018) Watch a concert, live music and other performance at 3 NorVa Theatre, 317 Monticello Avenue, ☏ +1 757-627-4547. (updated Feb 2018)

1 Doumar's Cones and BBQ, 1919 Monticello Avenue, Ghent. M-Sa 9:30AM-10:30PM. Doumar's is known as the birthplace of the ice cream cone. This location opened in 1934, and still has a vintage drive-thru. Hamburgers, sandwiches, fries, and other diner items. Try an ice cream cone or banana shake. 2 Todd Jurich's Bistro, 150 West Main Street, ☏ +1 757-622-3210. Casual elegance, an upscale restaurant two blocks from waterside(they do not require suit and tie). They have a four diamond award for their food and an award of excellence from Wine Spectator. For a deal, Todd's Bistro appears on every one of Norfolk's Restaurant Weeks. (updated May 2023) 3 A.W. Shucks, 2200 Colonial Avenue, ☏ +1 757-664-9117. It is tucked behind a mini-mall Ghent, but it is a popular restaurant and watering hole with great burgers, seafood and beer selection. (updated May 2023) 4 No Frill Bar and Grill, 806 Spotswood Ave, ☏ +1 757-627-4262. Features inexpensive, yet delicious American cuisine with numerous vegetarian options and a good selection of alcoholic beverages. (updated May 2023) 5 The Pagoda Restaurant and Tea House, 265 W Tazewell St. An American restaurant located inside a Chinese structure donated by Taiwanese government. The garden is also landscaped in oriental style. (updated Feb 2018)

Three sections of Norfolk have concentrations of bars and nightclubs: Ghent, Granby Street, and the Waterside Festival Marketplace. Ghent is the most laid-back, Granby Street is a trendy place for dates, and the Waterside is the wild place for the kids. Just follow the noise. 1 Charlie's American Cafe, 1800 Granby Street. A cafe by day, and nighttime music venue and club that hosts independent music artists. (updated May 2023) 2 The Edge, 4814 Hampton Blvd. Located near the Old Dominion University campus, this bar features good food, a dance floor, and is the spot for all the college kids. (updated May 2023) 3 The Wave, 4107 Colley Avenue. The biggest LGBTQ dance club in the Hampton Roads region for over 20 years. If you want to dance, this is the place to be. (updated May 2023) 4 37th and Zen, 1083 37th Street. Enjoy drag queens, drink specials, food, and live music at this popular spot with an outside patio and backyard area. (updated May 2023)

Norfolk's good hotels are clustered downtown and near the airport. 1 DoubleTree by Hilton Norfolk Airport, 1500 N Military Hwy. 248 deluxe guest rooms. 15 meeting rooms. 3 restaurants. 2 Ramada Limited Norfolk, 515 N Military Hwy, ☏ +1 757-461-1880. 3 Sheraton Norfolk Waterside, 777 Waterside Dr (Downtown). The only downtown hotel on the waterfront. Connected to the Waterside Festival Marketplace. Moderate walk to the cruise terminal. Request a water view. 4 Norfolk Waterside Marriott, 235 E Main St, ☏ +1 757-627-4200. Check-in: 4PM, check-out: 11AM. Set in the heart of the historic district, this award-winning Norfolk hotel is just steps away from the vibrant, revitalized waterfront. 5 Residence Inn by Marriott Norfolk Downtown, 227 W Brambleton Ave, ☏ +1 757-842-6216. (updated Feb 2018) 6 SpringHill Suites by Marriott Norfolk Old Dominion University, 4500 Hampton Blvd, ☏ +1 757-423-4100. (updated Feb 2018)

1 Norfolk International Airport (ORF IATA), 2200 Norview Ave (1 mi (1.6 km) east of Interstate 64 Exit 279), ☏ +1 757-857-3351. Located northeast of the city center. If you have time to kill at the airport, there is a nice botanical garden just north of the airport that you can sneak into for free from the parking lot to the northeast of the main building. There are non-stop flights to Norfolk Airport from the following cities (some cities may be seasonal or only offer service certain days of the week): Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas Fort Worth, Detroit, Houston, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Memphis, Miami, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Nashville, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, St Louis, Tampa and Washington. (updated Jan 2017) Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport (PHF IATA) is another option which may save you money. It is about 20 minutes north of the city in Newport News, Virginia. Hampton Roads is only second in the state to the suburbs of Washington, D.C. for horrendous traffic, especially during the summer season when many tourists throughout the United States and Canada flock to the beaches of Virginia Beach and the Outer Banks in North Carolina. Be aware of the alternative of I-664/Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel instead of the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, where back ups of more than 40-50 minutes usually occur, long before rush hour even begins. Route 460 is an alternative to the heavily used I-64 route.

Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) operates the bus service in Norfolk. There are many routes in Norfolk, and the service can get you to almost any spot in Norfolk. Most buses run seven days a week early morning to late evening, and are relatively reliable. The fare is $2.00 for a single trip. $4.50 will get you an all-day pass which is usable on most buses, the ferry, and Tide Light Rail. Certain express buses cost more ($4.00 single, $2.00 supplement on a regular all-day pass, $7.50 for an all-day express pass). Bus drivers do not carry cash, so be sure to bring the exact fare for each rider. Hampton Roads Transit runs a passenger ferry from Portsmouth. Service is seven days a week and runs every half hour with more frequent service during rush hours. The fare is $2.00 one way, and $4.50 for an all-day pass. The ferry's crew does not carry cash, so be sure to bring the exact fare for each rider. There is also a privately run boat taxi that will take you around the Norfolk and Portsmouth waterfronts. The fare is 7 dollars per person. Call 757-439-8294 and the captain will pick you up anywhere on the waterfront. The Tide Light Rail, a light rail line, extends from the Newtown area at the Norfolk/Virginia Beach border to Downtown Norfolk and Sentara Hospital by the Midtown Tunnel. The Tide runs seven days a week every half hour with service increasing to every ten minutes during rush hours. The Tide is air-conditioned and has free WiFi access. The fare is $2.00 one way, and $4.50 for an all-day pass which is usable on the Tide, the ferry and HRT buses.

Crime levels have lowered since the 1990s, but is still higher than the national average. Use caution at night, especially alone, as there's been a recent spike in violence in the Granby Street area at night. Make sure to lock your car doors, as car theft is not uncommon. As the city is close to sea level, intense rain or high winds often can cause localized flooding on roads especially near the downtown area.