The 8 Best Beaches in Virginia for Avoiding Crowds
These beach hideaways located near America's birthplace will have you coming back for more sun, sand and surf.
While Virginia is known as America’s birthplace, visitors can also enjoy a side of beautiful shoreline along with their history lesson. Home to a number of secluded beaches along the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean, locals and travelers alike will enjoy these eight hidden beach destinations for their next weekend getaway.
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1. Yorktown Beach, Yorktown, VA
Located in Historic Yorktown, Yorktown Beach offers guests both a relaxing day on the water and an energetic night at Riverwalk Landing, a popular dining and shopping experience for beachgoers. The two-acre beach offers a variety of activities the family will love–boating, fishing, picnics by the water, and more–without the worry of large crowds.
2. Buckroe Beach, Hampton, VA
With a gentle surf and a serene shoreline, Buckroe Beach offers its guests the beauty of the Chesapeake Bay all summer season. While the beach doesn’t allow pets during the summer, it offers visitors on-duty lifeguards and kayak and picnic table rentals to make their beach visit a vacation to remember.
3. Sandbridge Beach, Virginia Beach, VA
Don’t let its location fool you–Sandbridge Beach is found 15 miles south of the popular resort area, making it the perfect hideaway for you to enjoy. This beach lets guests breathe in the beauty of the Atlantic Ocean, view diverse wildlife and scenery, and explore the nearby 130,000 acres of natural land, debunking any resort perceptions and leaving behind only secluded sunbathing and swimming.
4. Jamestown Beach, Williamsburg, VA
Jamestown Beach is noted as a hidden gem by the Virginia Tourism Corporation, and with good reason. Undergoing renovations along its shoreline, the beach is open year-round for visitors to soak in the sunshine and ocean views at its observation pier and, for the history buffs in the family, the historic Jamestown Settlement located nearby.
5. Huntington Park, Newport News, VA
Visitors will want to spend a few days exploring Huntington Park Beach with its multitude of things to do. Guests can spend a day fishing from the longest fishing pier on the East Coast, take in a ball game at the local city league ballfield, explore the Huntington Park Rose Garden, or visit the Virginia War Museum and Vietnam War and Holocaust Remembrance memorials.
6. Fort Monroe Beach, Hampton VA
Fully surrounded by water, Fort Monroe Beaches offer diverse experiences for guests visiting the Chesapeake Bay area. For nature lovers, the beaches are home to approximately 89 bird species, 9 tree species, and 249 types of plants, and for those wishing for more, the Paradise Ocean Club offers memberships to access their private beaches, snack bar, restaurant, and club equipment.
7. Grandview Beach, Hampton, VA
Officially known as Grandview Nature Preserve, the beachfronts offer all kinds of activities. Guests wishing to hike or canoe have programs available to experience the beauty of the wetlands. For others who prefer the comforts of the shore, Grandview beaches are uniquely ideal for beach combing along the tide and discovering shells, driftwood, sea glass, and more.
8. Ocean View Beach, Norfolk, VA
Although Ocean View Amusement Park memorialized in the 1977 movie Rollercoaster is now gone, visitors can still enjoy the 6.5 acres of exciting shoreline and boardwalk. Considered by locals to be the jewel of Ocean View, the park also offers green spaces, band shells for the park’s regular festivals, and beaches newly widened by 60 feet with new sand–talk about an upgrade!