Visitor’s Guide
Hotels
We make travel easy! We have exclusive discounted room rates with our hotel partners for our Chartway Virginia Beach 10 Miler presented by Sentara guests!
Common Visitor Questions
Where can I eat and drink?
When it’s time to fuel up or wind down, here are a few of our favorite hangouts to do both!
- Baker’s Crust – They have savory crepes, delicious bruschetta boards and, of course, our soups, salads and gourmet sandwiches on their well known artisan breads.
- Murphy’s Irish Pub – You can’t visit Virginia Beach and not stop by Murphy’s Irish Pub. Live music, great food and a heated outdoor patio to enjoy all that Virginia Beach has to offer.
- Mannino’s Italian Bistro – Mannino’s is an “Olde World” Italian Bistro whose goal is to give our guests delicious Italian food at a reasonable price point with wine choices to match.
- Quemar – Quemar is a Latin American & Mexican restaurant featuring traditional, 100% made from scratch dishes that highlight the flavors and techniques true to the region.
- Mellow Mushroom – They are the originators of hand tossed, stone baked classic southern pizza. Our spring water crust is unique and flavorful, and all our pies are made with high quality, fresh ingredients.
Where can I get groceries?
If you’d rather stay in and cook, or just grab some snacks or have certain dietary restrictions, we’ve assembled some near by grocery stores that are ready to accommodate your needs!
- Trader Joe’s – Small grocery store with unique items
- Whole Foods – Large grocery chain with many organic and plant based options
- Harris Teeter – Friendly neighborhood supermarket just blocks from the Oceanfront
- Heritage Market – Aisles of natural groceries, a delicious cafe, and convenient take-out entrees include only the finest wholesome ingredients.
What are the sights?
You went to packet pickup, made some dinner reservations or picked up groceries and now you have some time to kill. What should you do? Check out some of our favorite spots.
- Virginia Aquarium – Experience one of the best aquariums in the country, with incredible exhibits and amazing animals representing hundreds of species.
- Ocean Breeze Water Park – Ocean Breeze Waterpark is only 2 miles south of the Virginia Beach Oceanfront and the only full-scale water park in Hampton Roads.
- Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) – Virginia MOCA presents ever-changing exhibitions where neighbors, strangers, students, families, communities, and cultures are invited to explore our shared humanity, through locally relevant and nationally resonant, contemporary art.
- ViBe District – Nestled within the Oceanfront area is the ViBe Creative District, Virginia Beach’s cultural arts enclave, which is a hub for artisans of all disciplines ranging from culinary, music and traditional art to leather working and woodworking.
Where can I run on my own?
While the streets and boardwalk are always open for a shakeout run, give one of our parks a try!
- First Landing State Park – First Landing State Park is a 2,888-acre park that fronts the Chesapeake Bay and features 1.25 miles of beach and more than 19 miles of interpretive hiking trails through protected salt marsh habitat, freshwater ponds, beach, dunes, forest, tidal marsh and cypress swamp.
- MT. Trashmore Park – The world renowned Mount Trashmore Park encompasses 165 acres and is comprised of two man-made mountains, two lakes, two playgrounds, a skatepark and vert ramp, and multi-use paths.
- Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge – The Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge is a 9,108-acre refuge that is made up of barrier islands, dunes, beach woodland, freshwater marshes, maritime forests, ponds and ocean beaches.
What else is happening in the city?
Before or after your race, these locations will take your race weekend to the next level!
- Start the day with a locals breakfast at Doc Taylor’s
- Climb your way to new heights and zip line across the Adventure Park just minutes from the Oceanfront.
- If you prefer to get to new heights over water, then parasail over the Oceanfront with Pirate Parasail.
- Nothing beats a picnic at Mount Trashmore (yes, that’s it’s real name). Trust us, the view is great and so is the small climb up.
- Dolphins! Go kayaking with the dolphins and get extremely close to these beautiful Virginia Beach locals with Chesapean.
- Is shuffleboard more your speed? Take a step back in time with the atmospheric Beachside Social.
- We can’t forget the exciting Live the Life Music Series happening right here at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. Live music all weekend along!
Getting Around Town
What are my transit options?
The Wave Trolley
Operated by Hampton Roads Transit (HRT), the popular Wave Trolley makes it easy to get around Virginia Beach’s Resort Beach area, while soaking up all that the Virginia Beach Oceanfront has to offer.
The Atlantic Avenue Shuttle (Route 30) leads to restaurants and oceanfront attractions, with daily service every 15 minutes, 8 a.m. – 2 a.m., May through September.
Seasonal Shuttle
HRT also operates two seasonal shuttle routes from the Resort Beach, making it easy for guests to get from the Oceanfront to other area attractions and shopping destinations:
The Bayfront Shuttle (Route 35) runs from the Virginia Beach Oceanfront (Resort Area) to First Landing State Park, through the North End beaches and up to the Bayfront along Shore Drive (Bay Area). Daily service is offered every 45 minutes, 8 a.m. – midnight, May – Labor Day, and Friday-Sunday, Sept. 8 – Oct. 1.
Single fares for all shuttles are $2 or less – you can pay with cash onboard or use cash, debit or credit cards to purchase multiple-day passes and fare cards at Sunsations locations along Atlantic Avenue or at ticket vending machines along Atlantic Avenue at 13th, 17th, 29th, 37th and 41st Streets. For a full list of shuttles available, real-time updates and route maps, visit HRT Online.
Are there ride share options?
Freebee
Freebee provides convenient and FREE door-to-door, on-demand public transportation for residents and visitors throughout the resort area in all-electric Tesla Model X vehicles. The vehicles operate seven days a week, from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and are available to everyone. Visit here for more info.
Rideshare
Virginia Beach does have Uber and Lyft options.
How do I get to the Oceanfront from the airport?
The closest area airport is the Norfolk International Airport which is located about 20 minutes from the Oceanfront.
Another option is the Williamsburg-Newport News International Airport which is located about 50 minutes from the Oceanfront.
Traveling from the airport to the Oceanfront, we suggest using Uber or Lyft.
What if I drive myself to Virginia Beach?
Virginia Beach is just 3 ½ hours from the Washington DC Metro area and about 3 ½ hours from Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina. Parking in Virginia Beach is dependent on where you are staying but the beach does offer many other hourly and daily garages.
For more info on parking visit the city’s parking website here.