LOCAL INFORMATION

Chesapeake Attractions     |     Hotel Information     |     Sports     |     Golf     |     Area Attractions

CHESAPEAKE ATTRACTIONS

Chesapeake Planetarium
Explore the wonders of the universe. Free public programs including telescope observations are offered each week. Reservations (757) 547-0153. 24-hour information (757) 547-STAR (7827). At the Chesapeake Municipal Center, 310 Shea Drive.

Chesapeake Arboretum
Return to nature at this 48-acre "natural classroom" dedicated to promoting horticulture and environmental awareness. One of Virginia's finest trail systems meanders through a mature hardwood forest with many varieties of native plants and trees. The Arboretum headquarters is an eighteenth century farmhouse with theme gardens that include a fragrance and antique rose garden. The farmhouse was built in 1730 with an addition built in 1822. (757) 382-7060. 624 Oak Grove Road.

Fun Forest
Spread over three acres of Chesapeake City Park, Fun Forest is the ultimate children's playground, imagination center and family adventure area. It was built by over 1,800 volunteers from the community. Fun Forest was the winner of the Virginia Recreation and Parks Society "Best New Facility in Virginia" award in 1996. The playground has an area for older children that features a dragon, three-way underground telephone, shaky bridge, dolphin tunnel slide, and many more challenges. The science and learning area teaches mathematics and science while children have fun playing with mirrors, whisper dishes, and a planet walk. The toddler playground invites little ones to steer a plane or truck, swing, slide and more. Fun Forest is truly a place for the entire family. (757) 382-6411. 500 Greenbrier Road.

Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
This natural preserve began in 1973 when Union Camp Corporation donated 49,100 acres of land to the Nature Conservancy. About half of this 107,000 acre federal park is in Chesapeake with the remainder in neighboring Suffolk. These forested wetlands are home to many species of plants and animals. The 31,000 acre Lake Drummond is in the heart of this refuge. Canoe rentals are available on Route 17 at Chesapeake Campground (747) 485-0149. Call (757) 986-3705 for more information. 3100 Dessert Road, Suffolk, VA.

Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway
Thousands of boats ply the Intracoastal Waterway passing through the Dismal Swamp Canal and the Albemarle Chesapeake Canal annually. The waterway links the Chesapeake Bay to North Carolina's sounds providing a vital East Coast connection between Boston and Key West, Florida. Whether you are sailing or watching from the shore, you'll enjoy the sights along this historic waterway. Parks at Deep Creek and Great Bridge provide excellent observation points.

Deep Creek Lock Park
The park is named for the Corps of Engineers' lock that separates the salt water of Deep Creek from the fresh water of the historic Dismal Swamp Canal. Deep Creek Lock Park is heavily wooded with a pedestrian bridge and elevated walkway system to traverse a tidal inlet and marsh area. Other features include foot trails that wind through the woods. (757) 6411, 300 Luray Street.

Great Bridge Lock Park
Located along the Intracoastal Waterway just off Battlefield Blvd. this park has bleachers to permit spectators to view the many yachts that transit the lock. There is also a playground and a boat ramp. (757) 382-6411, S. Battlefield Blvd.

Northwest River Park
was developed as a natural recreation area incorporating camping, an extensive trail system, picnic shelters, play areas and an equestrian area for horse owners. There is fishing, miniature golf, the Marjorie Rein Memorial Walkway, and plenty of open areas. Rental boats, canoes, and fishing poles are available. A camp store, fragrance garden for the visually impaired and a classroom building are located at the north end. The lake stretches almost to the southern activity area on the banks of the Northwest River. (757) 382-6411. 1733 Indian Creek Road.

Camping - The campground is open April 1 through December 1. Seventy sites for family camping and four group sites for organizations. Fees: $15/night; more than 6 people, $2/ each additional person ($4 extra/ night for electric hook-up.) Facilities include hot showers, laundry, a dump station, and fresh water. Maximum 10 people/ site.

Boating - Paddle along our inland lake or venture onto the scenic Northwest River. Canoes-$5/ hour or $25/ day; jon-boats-$3/ hour or $15/ day; and paddleboats - $4 / -hour. An adult, age 18 or older, must be on each boat. No pets allowed in boat

Horseback Riding - is available to horse owners in the Park's equestrian area and horse trails. Join the Equestrian Club for $10 /person or $20 /family and ride year-round.

Fishing - Fish our stocked lake for bass, blue gill, crappie catfish and trout. A Virginia fresh-water license is required for anyone 16 years and older to fish. The Park does not sell fishing licenses.

Ropes & Initiatives Course - Groups of 8-10 can spend a day of growth and outdoor fun learning about themselves and others. Ideal for work groups, families/friends, youth groups, and scouts. The Ropes course operates daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. All equipment and certified instructors are provided. Participants need only dress for the weather and bring their lunch and beverages. Call the Park for more information about renting the course for your group.

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HOTEL INFORMATION

Holiday Inn - Chesapeake
757-523-1500 - 725 Woodlake Drive 229 Rooms, 28 Total Suites, 8 Meeting Room totaling 11,895-sq. ft., Restaurant, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free parking

Wellesley Inn
757-366-0100 - 721 Conference Center Drive 106 Rooms, 16 Total Suites, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Red Roof Inn 757-523-0123 724 Woodlake Drive 108 Rooms, Free parking

Hampton Inn
757-420-1550 - 701-A Woodlake Drive 119 Rooms, 1 Total Suites, A 543-sq. ft. Meeting Room, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free parking Motel 6 757-420-2976 701 Woodlake Drive 80 Rooms, Free parking

TownePlace Suites by Marriott
757-523-5004 - 2000 Old Greenbrier Road 119 Rooms, 35 Total Suites Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free parking Intown Suites 757-638-5000 2150 Old Greenbrier Road 132 Rooms, 132 Total Suites, Free parking

Comfort Suites
757-420-1600 - 1550 Crossways Blvd. 124 Rooms, 124 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 40 people, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free Parking

Fairfield Inn by Marriott
757-420-1300 - 1560 Crossways Blvd. 105 Rooms, 8 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 60 people, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free parking

Courtyard by Marriott
757-420-1700 - 1562 Crossways Blvd. 90 Rooms, 3 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 50 people, Restaurant, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free parking

Extended Stay America
757-424-8600 - 1540 Crossways Blvd. 132 Rooms, Free parking

Sun Suites
757-213-0222 - 1520 Crossways Blvd. 135 Rooms, 135 Total Suites, Free parking

Super 8 Motel
757-547-8880 - 100 Red Cedar Court 62 Rooms, 1 Total Suites, Continental Breakfast, Free parking

Days Inn
757-547-9262 - 1433 Battlefield Blvd. 90 Rooms, 1 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 30 people, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Free parking

Best Value Inn
757-488-7900 - 4433 S. Military Hwy 92 Rooms, 2 Total Suites, a 500-sq. ft. Meeting Room, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Free parking 52 Rooms, Continental Breakfast, Free parking

Econo Lodge
757-543-2200 - 2222 S. Military Hwy 55 Rooms, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 15 people, Continental Breakfast, Free parking

Sunset Manor Motel
757-487-2564 - 3345 S. Military Hwy. 90 Rooms, Swimming Pool, Free parking

Open 24 Lodge
757-487-2516 - 3265 S. Military Hwy. 72 Rooms, Free parking

Budget Lodge
757-487-8888 - 3009 S. Military Hwy 67 Rooms, Free parking

Colonial Motel
757-485-2800 - 877 George Washington Hwy 21 Rooms, Free parking

Days Inn
757-487-8861 1439 George Washington Hwy 53 Rooms, 4 Total Suites, Continental Breakfast, Free parking

SpringHill Suites by Marriott
757-405-3100 - 2424 Gum Road 93 Rooms, 93 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 75 people, Continental Breakfast, Swimming Pool, Fitness Center, Free parking

Chesapeake Super 8 Motel
757-686-8888 - 3216 Churchland Blvd. 58 Rooms, Continental Breakfast, Free parking

Sleep Inn
757-638-5000 - 3280 Western Branch Blvd 62 Rooms, 35 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 30 people, Continental Breakfast, Fitness Center, Free parking

Hampton Inn
757-484-5800 - 3235 Western Branch Blvd 90 Rooms, 35 Total Suites, 1 Meeting Room accommodating 35 people, Continental Breakfast, Fitness Center, Free parking

Budget Lodge
757-484-6143 - 3244 Western Branch Blvd. 54 Rooms, Free Parking

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SPORTS & RECREATION

PROFESSIONAL SPORTS TEAMS
Are you a "spectator sportsman"? Love to watch the pros? There are plenty of teams to follow and enjoy live right here in the Hampton Roads Region.

Norfolk Admirals American Hockey League team Chicago Blackhawks farm team play at Norfolk Scope. 757-363-1900.

Norfolk Tides New York Mets AAA Baseball Team play at Norfolk's Harbor Park. 757-622-2222

Norfolk Nighthawks Arena League Football play at Norfolk Scope. 757-626-0500

Hampton Roads Mariners A-League Soccer play at Virginia Beach Sportsplex. 800-955-5566.

Virginia Birding & Wildlife Trail
The sites in the South Chesapeake Loop offer a sample of habitats at the interface of pinewoods and the swampy bottom lands lining several rivers that drain the southeastern corner of the state. Visitors may encounter birds ranging from nuthatches flitting through the pines, to prothonotary warblers nesting in hollow swamp trees, to stealthy great blue herons hunting in the shallows. The City of Chesapeake is a starting point for this loop, which circles southward toward the North Carolina border and returns just south of the city. Click here to visit their site.

PUBLIC BOAT LAUNCHES

Deep Creek Lock Park
300 Luray Street, Chesapeake, VA 23323-3028 (757) 382-6411

Great Bridge Locks Park
S.Battlefield Blvd., Chesapeake, VA 23322 (757) 382-6411

Elizabeth River Boat Landing
1ž4 Mile West of the Poindexter Street Exit #4 off I-464

Route 17 Boat Ramp
US 17 just north of Ballahack Road. Boat access to Dismal Swamp Canal.

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GOLF

If golf is your game, then you've come to the right place. Chesapeake features two daily fee golf courses that challenge golfers of all levels.

Chesapeake Golf Club
The Chesapeake Golf Club is in a beautiful woodland setting. This 6,278-yard premium public golf course features rolling fairways, challenging doglegs, and some of the best greens in the Tidewater area. (757) 547-1122. 1201 Club House Drive.

"The Isles Golf Links"
at Cahoon Plantation was inspired by the great links style courses of the British Isles. Enjoy the smoothest, greenest playing surface available on the only bent grass golf course from tee to fairway to green in the Williamsburg, Virginia Beach and Outer Banks of North Carolina corridor. (757) 436-2775. 1501 Cedar Road.

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AREA ATTRACTIONS

Chesapeake is minutes away from outstanding professional theater, opera, dance troupes, symphony and museums.

Virginia Symphony
Serves the community of Hampton Roads and is one of the nation's leading regional symphony orchestras. (757) 892-6366. www.virginiasymphony.com.

Virginia Opera
"One of the nation's very best regional companies" according to NBC Nightly News. Five productions are staged annually during the opera season. Harrison Opera House in Norfolk. (757) 627-9545. www.vaopera.com.

Norfolk

Chrysler Museum
Visitors can enjoy the museum's world-renowned Tiffany-glass collection, Art Nouveau furniture, works of art from African, Egyptian, Pre-Columbian, Islamic and Asian cultures, and an extensive European and American collection of paintings, sculpture and decorative arts. (757) 664-6200. 245 West Olney Road.

D'Art Center
A working art studio where artists create, display, and sell their work. (757) 625-4211. 125 College Place.

Douglas MacArthur Memorial
The MacArthur Memorial's extensive collection of military and personal artifacts allows visitors to discover the compelling story of General of the Army Douglas Macarthur and the millions of American men and women who served our nation through five wars. (757) 441-2965. Bank Street and City Hall Avenue.

Virginia Stage Company
Southeastern Virginia's premier professional theater company. Performances are presented May through September. Well's Theatre in Norfolk. (757) 627-1234. www.vastage.com.

Nauticus, The National Maritime Center
A fun and exciting interactive science and technology center exploring the power of the sea. It features more than 150 exhibits including computer and video interactives, films on a giant screen, exotic aquarium, touch pools, shark petting, national-caliber traveling exhibits, and the Hampton Roads Naval Museum. Battleship USS Wisconsin is berthed next door. (757) 664-1001. 1 Waterside Drive.

Battleship Wisconsin
Located next to Nauticus, The National Maritime Center, the USS Wisconsin is the largest and last battleship ever built by the U.S. Navy. Explore this majestic ship through a self-guided or audiotape tour. (757) 664-1001. 1 Waterside Drive.

Norfolk Botanical Gardens
155 beautiful acres intertwined by bridges, coastal waterways, and 12 miles of pedestrian trails. With one of the largest collections of roses, azaleas, camellias and hollies on the East Coast, Garden guests are surrounded with year-round beauty. (757) 441-5830. Azalea Garden Road between Norview Avenue and Little Creek Road.

Virginia Zoological Park
With over 350 animals including the new 10-acre Okavango African habitat, Reptile and Nocturnal Gallery, Barnyard and Botanical Gardens, a day of discovery awaits guests when they come to the Virginia Zoo. (757) 441-2706. 3500 Granby Street.

Virginia Beach

Virginia Marine Science Museum
Numerous aquariums and over 60 hands-on exhibits detailing Virginia's marine environment. (757) 425-3474. 717 General Booth Boulevard.

Virginia Beach Center for the Arts
Changing exhibits feature 20th century American art. Theatre, dance, and musical concerts are also offered. (757) 425-0000. 2200 Parks Avenue.

Ocean Breeze Festival Park
Family fun and adventure; wildwater and speed slides, autorides, and miniature golf. (757) 422-4444. 849 General Booth Boulevard.

Verizon Wireless Virginia Beach Amphitheater
State-of-the-art outdoor concert facility hosts more than 35 events April through October. (757) 368-3000. 3550 Cellar Door Way.

Portsmouth

Olde Towne Historic District
Showcases the largest concentration of antique houses between Alexandria, VA and Charleston, SC. (757) 393-5111.

Children's Museum of Virginia
The state's largest children's museum, offering more than 80 hands-on exhibits, temporary rotating exhibits, a 64-seat planetarium and an antique toy and model train collection. (757) 393-8393. 221 High Street.

Virginia Sports Hall of Fame
The Hall of Fame honors Virginia sports heroes from golfer Sam Snead to tennis star Arthur Ashe. (757) 393-8031. 420 High Street.

Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Museum
Pays tribute to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard. Memorabilia includes uniforms, cannon balls, models of ships and a piece of the CSS Virginia (the Merrimac). (757) 393-8591. 2 High Street.

Ntelos Pavillion at Harbor Center
This pavilion-style performance venue accommodates 6,500. Comparable in size and quality to Wolf Trap in Northern Virginia and Chastain Park in Atlanta. 901 Crawford St. (on the waterfront, south of City Hall). For ticket information: (757) 391-3260.

Suffolk

Riddick's Folly
This twenty-room Greek Revival house briefly served as Union Headquarters during the Civil War and is now a museum and cultural center. (757) 934-1390. 510 North Main Street.

Suffolk Museum
An educational facility that provides workshops, classes, cultural events and volunteer opportunities. (757) 925-0448. 118 Bosley Avenue.

Hampton/Newport News

Virginia Air & Space Center
Features more than 100 hands-on exhibits that tell the story of air and space exploration plus a five-story high IMAX? Theater. Call for hours of operation. Open daily except for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. (757) 727-0900. 600 Settler Landing Road, Hampton.

Casemate Museum/Fort Monroe
Exhibits chronicle the history of Fort Monroe and the U.S. Army's presence in Hampton Roads. (757) 788-3391. Casemate 20, Bernard Road, Hampton.

The Hampton Carousel
One of only 170 antique carousels in existence in the U.S., this waterfront merry-go-round beckons families to take a whirl. (757) 727-0900. 602 Settlers Landing Road, Hampton.

Air Power Park
Learn about Hampton's space and aviation history at this outdoor display of aircraft. (757) 727-1163. 413 W. Mercury Blvd., Hampton.

Mariner's Museum
World-renowned marine museum. Has 15 galleries with figureheads, ship models, small crafts, paintings, scrimshaw, decorative arts, and more. (757) 596-2222. 100 Museum Drive, Newport News.

Virginia Living Museum
Beautiful nature museum. Live native animals in natural settings, gardens, aquariums, planetarium, observatory, and nature classes. (757) 595-1900. 524 J. Clyde Morris Boulevard, Newport News.

Colonial Williamsburg

Colonial Williamsburg Historic Area
Over 500 buildings, house museums, restored homes, exhibits, and shops populated by artisans using tools and techniques from colonial times recreate life in the 18th century. Located off I-64 midway between Norfolk and Richmond. 800-HISTORY.

Busch Gardens
360-acre family fun park featuring nine different authentically detailed 17th century European hamlets. Over 40 rides, live shows, European shops with demonstrations. (800) 343-7946.

Water Country USA
40-acre family water park with rides, slides, pools, and shows. (800) 343-7946.

Yorktown Battlefield/Colonial National Historical Park
American independence was won here in 1781. Visitor center, museum, battlefield, auto tour. (757) 898-3400. Old Route 238 and Colonial Parkway.

Jamestown
Site of America's first permanent English settlement. (757) 229-1733.

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