A Virginia Guide to the State's Best Attractions
The state of Virginia offers travelers a wide range of attractions. From the Allegheny and Blue Ridge mountains in western Virginia, the wondrous state parks in the Shenandoah Valley and the sandy coastal plain on the Atlantic Ocean, Virginia guides can take tourists on trips to experience just about anything.

Virginia Beaches
Virginia is home to some of the East Coast's most popular tourist beaches and vacation escapes. Visitors to Virginia Beach are drawn to the 3-mile area along the city's oceanfront boardwalk, where numerous hotels guide tourists to the beach. Visitors can rent bikes and skates from many hotels and rental shops to tour the miles of bike trails, such as First Landing State Park trail system, which winds through the wetlands and along Broad Bay. Just 15 miles west of Virginia Beach's resort area is Norfolk's Ocean View Beach, which stretches continuously along nearly 8 miles of the Chesapeake Bay. Norfolk's four city beaches are wide with gentle surf, summer lifeguards, sailing, paddle boat rentals and kayaking. Buckroe Beach in Hampton is especially popular with windsurfers, and Grandview Nature Preserve, a 578-acre property that includes a 2 1/2-mile beach, is geared toward bird and wildlife watchers.

Virginia State Parks
Virginia vacation tip No. 1: The State Parks have been voted "America's Best" by The Sports Foundation and the National Recreation and Park Association so explore at least one or two while you're there. The following State Parks offer an abundance of camping in Virginia and guides to some of the best outdoor adventures, from water sports to mountain climbing. Breaks Interstate Park in Buchanan County has been called "The Grand Canyon of the South," because of its 4,500 acres of woodland with lofty rock formations and caves. Natural Tunnel, which was carved thousands of years ago by what is now Stock Creek, is the main attraction at Natural Tunnel State Park. Many fossils can still be found in and around the tunnel walls. In Grayson County bordered on the north by Jefferson National Forest, Grayson Highlands State Park is near Mount Rogers and Whitetop Mountain. These mountains are the highest in the state at about 5,700 feet. Just an hour's drive from Washington, D.C., Sky Meadows State Park has rolling pastures and woodlands, perfect for horseback riding. Along the south fork of the Shenandoah River, the Shenandoah River State Park features spectacular vistas overlooking Massanutten Mountain and the Shenandoah National Park. Finally, the Occoneechee Indians lived in the area that is now Occoneechee State Park. The park is located on Virginia's largest lake, Buggs Island Lake, also known as the John H. Kerr Reservoir.