Photos and Notes: Williamsburg, Yorktown & Gloucester County (Norfolk, Newport News: real estate, apartment complexes)

[Caladium]

More General Notes...

Shopping:

We checked out a few shopping plazas while we were there. In general, we give the area a B+ for stores.

-- There seems to be a fairly good variety of shopping, including a nice assortment of mom and pop stores. OTOH we'd have to go to Newport News for some of our favorite chain stores. I didn't see a Lowes or a Target, but am assuming maybe I just didn't see them.

-- Grocery stores are ok, but not fabulous. No Wegman’s (yet) unfortunately. Costco is not as convenient as I would like. Martin's looked ok, and prices seemed fairly reasonable. We probably would shop there, since Harris Teeter can get pricey.

--The practical stores we did see (drugstores, hardware etc.) seemed large and pleasant. I give them an A in this regard. I just wish they had more of them. Also, I was very pleased to note how few empty stores we saw. There were a few (especially near Williamsburg Crossing), but not many. Not like you see in a lot of other cities these days.

--Lots of pricey gift shops near the colonial village that I will probably never buy anything in, but they were fun to look at. And it's fun to walk by the historic shops and look at the unusual signs advertising their wares, as well as the colonial window displays.






--We didn't see an enclosed mall. The outlet malls serve a similar function, but were not enclosed. I guess that's ok. I like mall walking in air conditioned enclosed malls when it gets hot, but OTOH they do waste a lot of electricity.

--A+ for the garden centers. I was very happy with the variety and quality of plants and gardening goods available.

--OK, the Pottery Factory may not be as fun as it used to be, but it's still has a nice variety of merchandise. I can see spending a pleasant rainy day there just looking at what they have.





--I know I intended to avoid the tourist spots, but one night we had 20 minutes to kill, so we stopped in this store near our hotel. I can't remember the name of the place but it was very entertaining to look around. What a wild variety of souvenirs--fine china for grandma, political toilet paper for your kid bother, and everything in between,

--Gauging by the stores, the town looks economically healthy.

[Caladium]

Two more notes on shopping:

--I hear the farmers markets and craft shows are very good. We didn't see any, but next time we go I'll make a point of looking for one.

--The 2-story bookstore that has a coffee shop on the second floor and sells tons of W&M merchandise is a fun shop. Yet another place I could see spending a rainy afternoon in.

Also, a question:

--Since Smithfield is so close, does that mean Smithfield Hams are a bargain?

[loveautumn]

thx for all the good information. I'm surprised to hear there aren't any enclosed malls since it gets so hot there in the summer. Virginia hams...yummy!

[Wild Colonial Girl]

Smithfield hams are super expensive.

There are two Targets in Williamsburg, one at the southern end of 199 by Water Country and the other at Monticello marketplace near Martins. Lowes is at the northern end of 199, along with Walmart and Home Depot.

For a closed in Mall you want the Patrick Henry Mall in NN. That's where costco and a lot of other big stores are.

Martins is a fairly low-end store. The produce is usually near the end of its life and the stench of rot by the potatoes can be overwhelming.

Actually the Scotland library is the larger of the two at 40k square feet and 180k volumes. The Norge location is 35k square feet and 150k volumes.

I never realised! It must be the high ceilings and big kids section out at Norge, the one in town is much more claustrophobic.

[Mr Williamsburg]

Caladium ,
Colonial Parkway is a very scenic bike ride but the road is a bit rough, not with holes but the concrete surface has eroded exposing the pebbles....It will vibrate your arms if you ride a road bike with thin tires. Kind of like getting a massage while you ride. I wish they would build an adjacent path for runners and cyclists. But the cost would be staggering I'm sure..

[Caladium]

I was wondering why that road seemed to have an unusual surface. So who will eventually repave it, VDOT road or National Park Service? Either way I suppose the problem right now is no funds. In the meantime, bring mountain bikes, not ten speeds, right?

What are some other good places to cycle in Hampton Roads?

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by Wild Colonial Girl

Smithfield hams are super expensive.

Does it help if you drive over to Smithfield and buy them onsite? Could be a fun reason to take the ferry.

[Mr Williamsburg]

National Park Service maintains the Colonial Parkway Some of the road surface is from the late 1930's ! But is still very usable. Mountain Bikes will be a little more comfortable.

[loveautumn]

The last few weeks, I've been doing research on apartments in the area and it seems like there really aren't very many great ones...after reading alot of reviews which were really on the low side. Many didn't even have washers & dryers in the units...and I can't go back to hauling my laundry around. Anyway, that really discouraged me because I would be a renter and I'm used to living in a very nice complex (don't need pools, gyms, etc. but a patio and w/d is really a necessity). I was pretty sold on the WB area but now I'm thinking I might have to live in one of the bigger towns nearby. I've done some research but just can't get a feel if any of the nearby towns would be a better fit for a retired woman who wants a really good apt (where I live is very important to me) with low crime. Another factor is I don't want to be surrounded by military families with young kids. Please don't get me wrong, I love the military but at my age, I'm not up for having alot of kids around, I get the feeling the housing would be mostly military family occupied and not what I would want. The 55+ places seem to be owner occupied homes. Like I said, I'm getting a little shaky on the WB idea because of the housing and I realize it is a small town so there is going to be only so much as far as apts are concerned.

[Mr Williamsburg]

Why not rent a condo instead of an apartment? What is your budget?
ps lots of nice apartments in the area, they start at $1000 a month