Newport News and Hampton
Newport News is home to Newport News Shipbuilding, the massive ship works that was established in 1886. NNS is the nation’s sole designer, builder and refueler of nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and one of only two shipyards capable of designing and building nuclear-powered submarines.
Although the shipyard isn’t open to tour groups for security reasons, a driving tour or step-on guide for motorcoach groups can pass by so visitors can see the cranes “which are just enormous,” said Barb Kleiss, group marketing manager for Newport News Tourism.
Visitors can immerse themselves in maritime history at the Mariner’s Museum, which has over 90,000 square feet of galleries that showcase maritime artifacts dating from Norse explorer Leif Erikson to the enormous AC-72 wing-sail catamaran that Oracle Team USA sailed in the 2013 America’s Cup.
Although visitors can explore on their own, Kleiss recommends groups opt for a free docent-led tour to hit the massive museum’s highlights because “there’s no way you can see it all in one day.”
The Virginia War Museum traces American military history from 1775 through modern times. There, visitors will find Adolf Hitler’s signature, part of the Berlin Wall and a piece of the World Trade Center towers.
Another popular attraction for groups is the Virginia Living Museum, which is “anything but a museum,” Kleiss said. “They’re a zoo, they’re an aquarium, a planetarium, a greenhouse — it’s everything indigenous to this state.”
Ten miles south of Newport News, the city of Hampton sits at the southeastern tip of the Virginia Peninsula, just across the water from Norfolk.
Guided tours for groups of 10 or more are available at Fort Monroe National Monument, a decommissioned military installation, where visitors can also explore the Casemate Museum.
In Hampton, groups can board the Miss Hampton II for three-hour, narrated Harbor Tour cruises that pass by Fort Monroe; the Old Point Comfort Lighthouse, and Blackbeard’s Point, where the pirate’s head was displayed on a pike after his capture. The cruise takes passengers to Fort Wool, a Civil War island accessible only by boat, for a 45-minute walking tour, then passes Norfolk Naval Base for views from the water.
“One time, I was on the Miss Hampton, and we saw a submarine coming in; it was so cool,” Kleiss said.
For more information on a trip to Virginia contact the Virginia Tourism Corporation at 800-759-0886 or go to www.virginia.org.
