Virginia Beach is the most populous city in Virginia, sprawling along the Atlantic coast where the Chesapeake Bay meets the ocean. The oceanfront boardwalk — three miles of hotels, restaurants, and souvenir shops — is the busy, family-friendly face of the city. But the quieter side is more interesting: the Sandbridge area to the south has a wilder beach without the boardwalk crowds, and the First Landing State Park preserves the spot where the Jamestown colonists first came ashore in 1607.
The Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, at the city's southern tip, is one of the best birding spots on the mid-Atlantic coast, with thousands of migratory waterfowl in autumn and winter. False Cape State Park, accessible only by foot or bike through the refuge, has an isolated beach that feels nothing like the resort strip fifteen miles north.
The Cape Henry Lighthouse, built in 1792, stands at the bay entrance and is the oldest government-commissioned lighthouse in the United States. For something different, the Virginia Aquarium has a good collection of local marine life and runs seasonal boat trips to see dolphins and, in winter, humpback whales.