What exactly are the must do's?

Alright I%26#39;m starting to just make a list of what I HAVE to do. I went to CW less than a year ago, and I didn%26#39;t realize that I hardly saw anything! We will be spending about 3 full days just there, then probably doing something else for the other day. Sorry that I%26#39;ve posted some of it before. I would just love an altogether list.

DON%26#39;T WANT TO DO:

Jamestown

Yorktown

Busch Gardens

(Yea I know, we were one of the few who didn%26#39;t care for them. I%26#39;m all about CW. sorry. And as for Busch Gardens we didn%26#39;t even have when it was free for us. :/)

A list from each of you would be so nice!!!! Thank you! Here%26#39;s what I%26#39;m looking for mainly.

-What I must do and see in CW specifically. I didn%26#39;t know about half the stuff they had. I looked at the events calendar but I know there%26#39;s ongoing events.

-Where I have to eat in Williamsburg

-What Plantations I have to see. should i see any? that was what our mystery day was going to be.

-Any stores or attractions I must see. (Yankee Candle! LOVED!)

-Just plain anything you think is a must that I didn%26#39;t list! :) I%26#39;m going with my daughter, who is a teen, but an odd ball one. She is much more into kid stuff but at the same time mature. Like a kid who could love a toy store but wouldn%26#39;t be bored one tiny bit at CW. So hopefully that helps!

THANKS!

What exactly are the must do's?

';Cry Witch'; is a great evening program. It%26#39;s one of the most popular.

One of my favorite stores is the Candy Factory Warehouse up on Richmond Road. This is run by the same company as the Wythe Candy store in Merchants Square. Lots and lots of chocolates, my fave, the giant chocolate turtles, old time retro candy, funny hats, silly kid candy, and when I was there the last time, there was a room full of gourmet items. We stayed in there over an hour and had so much fun. I hear it is in a new bigger building now.

A tour of the Governor%26#39;s Palace and gardens, in case you didn%26#39;t do that on your last visit.

Have you been to the De Witt Wallace/Abby Aldrich Rockefeller museums? Folk art, paintings, furniture, etc. This stays open till 7 (maybe 7:30 not quite sure). That would be a nice place to visit after the CW buildings are closed, or if it%26#39;s raining.

Tons and tons of things I haven%26#39;t done either. And I%26#39;ve been there 8 times.

Good luck with your planning tutu. Oh, yeah, I remember you from your last trip. Glad you enjoyed CW.

What exactly are the must do's?

1. Palace Tour- make time to see the Gardens,as well as the kitchen. Ask lots of questions!

2. Revolutionary City- I personally hadn%26#39;t experienced this until recently (even though I have been visiting CW since I was 5!), and it is BY FAR one of the most interesting pieces to the CW puzzle.

3. If your daughter was older, I would highly recommend visiting Chowning%26#39;s Tavern for the evening Gambols (tavern games and light food, but I think there may be an age limit in the evening)- meeting fellow CW fans and discussing our Williamsburg day over ale and colonial games has been a favorite past time of me and my fiance!

3. Any and all of the trade shops- your daughter may love the millinery shop, the cobbler, etc. You never know when a particular trade will catch your interest!

4. Dining: I love Christiana Campbells for seafood. Off site: Food for Thought is excellent. There is an interesting food experience at A Chef%26#39;s Kitchen- it is a cooking demonstration as well as restaurant- very interesting, as well as delicious! I love The Cheese Shoppe for lunch. Walk around Merchant%26#39;s Square to get ideas!

5. The Peanut Shoppe of Williamsburg. I don%26#39;t know how to explain it, except that when I was little this was THE place to get peanuts and specialty food as souvenirs for everyone (and yourself!). I love the butter toffee peanuts.

I really could go on forever!

The suggestions from OP%26#39;s above are good. Here are a few that I would add as ';must do%26#39;s';:

See the movie, The Story of A Patriot, in the CW Visitors Center, at the beginning of your visit. It does an excellent job of laying the groundwork for your visit to the restored area.

Visit the brickyard. The brickmakers are making bricks now, and you can help by taking off your shoes and getting in the mud with them. Young and old alike find doing this and watching this a real treat.

Visit the wigmaker. Ask her questions about your own hair, and be prepared for some unexpected answers.

Tour the Colonial Capitol. No other place gives the historical overview of the political climate of the time than it does.

Take a carriage ride. To sit in a carriage or wagon and ride about town is special, relaxing and fun. If you decide to do this, make your arranagements early at the Greenhow Lumber House. Be prepared to have your picture taken often by other guests as you ride through town. You%26#39;ll feel special, believe me.

Visit Bruton Parish Church. Religion was a very important of colonial history; to sit in one of the pews and stroll through the graveyard will give you a sense of religous life in the Colony.

Currently the Governor%26#39;s Palace and the Capitol are offering special mid day tours which tell the story of the recreation of these buildings, both of which were reconstructed 75 years ago. These interpretations are excellent, as many visitors wish to know more about how our old town got ';redone'; to its colonial splendor. The ';This Week'; brochure gives exact tour times.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your visit.

Your energy and enthusiasm are palpable ... you%26#39;ll have a great time! You shouldn%26#39;t feel any anxiety about ';doing it right this time';. For a person with a lively interest in almost any aspect of American history or western culture, Williamsburg will deliver abundantly.

One thing I would do is try to involve your daughter(s?) in the planning. She/they can comb the website for topics of interest. I would especially recommend using the search box to explore subject areas. An example would be ';child life'; or ';toys';, which are of special interest to them, I see.

That kind of background research may or may not present you with discrete events to attend or places to visit, but it will give you context that will enrich everything you see and hear in Williamsburg. And, one hopes, that research will contribute to forming a new generation of Williamsburg enthusiasts.

Best of luck, and enjoy your summer travels!

Per your ';mystery day';, I myself enjoy an occassional drive down Rt. 5 visiting the plantations. If you go to just one it should be Berkeley Plantation. It has the most unique history.

It was home to the Harrisons - a historic father (signer of Declaration of Ind.) and son (President) duo. It was site of first Thanksgiving. It was where ';Taps'; originated. And my personal favorite...I read something about it being where bourbon was first distilled.

Shirley Plantation and Sherwood Forrest Plantation are also popular choices.

On the way back from a plantation drive I recommend going off the beaten path in Charles City and dining at a tucked-away waterfront restaurant called The Blue Heron. Good seafood and sunsets.

All the above suggestions are excellent. One program not to miss is one which features a historic character such as Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, George Washington or the Marquis de Lafayette. One of them has an ';audience'; in the Palace garden each morning at 10:00 a.m. (currently, time may change during summer). Three days a week, there is a ';conversation'; with one of them at the Kimball Theatre. Reservation tickets may be picked up at any ticket location. These men are outstanding in their portrayals of our founding fathers.

You can pick up a supplementary brochure entitled ';We recommend you see....'; at any ticket location which lists the Palace, Capitol, Courthouse, Randolph House, Magazine, Printing office and Bindery and Blacksmith as must- sees while in CW, especially if here for a short time. It would still take two days to see these sites.

The 75th Anniversary tours of the Capitol take place from 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Mon, Wed. and Fri.; at the Palace from 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tues, Thurs. and Sat. These tours are longer, more in depth look at the history and significance of these buildings, so are not recommended for small children. Your teen may or may not enjoy this program so plan your tours accordingly.

The plantations along Rt. 5 are a great way to spend your open day. But Sherwood Forrest is not open to the public any longer - just the grounds. Shirley and Berkeley are the only ones still open for house tours.

Speaking of toy stores: The Toymaker on Merchant%26#39;s Square is a delight for all ages. Stop in to see unique toys and games and one-of-a kind specialty items. Mary mentioned the candy store on Rt.60 W. It is no longer part of the Wythe candy shops but an independent store that still has all the same delicious sweets plus many discounted gourmet and snack items.

Not sure if I overlooked it, but I would recommend going to President%26#39;s Park. It is up for sale, but I think it is still open. It features large bust of all the Presidents except the current President. It has a lot of interesting facts like, which President got a speeding ticket while riding a horse to Washington DC or which President only had a 3rd grade education, yet became the President of the United States??? Your family would enjoy it. I will warn you that it is not as well upkept as it once was, but the facility is about 4 years old and if you can look past some of the damage on the bust, you would really enjoy it!!

Thank you all so much! I am just loving all the help an its getting me so excited! :D I love the advice that Williamsburg will deliver no matter what(along the lines of that), because thats so true. Its hard to not miss anything at all, so I should just remember that I know I%26#39;ll love it regardless! Thanks for the tips about the founding fathers! I REALLY don%26#39;t want to miss them this time!

So many helpful tips! I%26#39;m going to try to incorporate as much as I can! I think we%26#39;ll definitely see the plantations...unless we can%26#39;t bear to leave Williamsburg! haha

I agree with the above posters, great ideas all! I%26#39;d add a Crystal Concert, with Dean Shostak. The glass armonica music is heavenly, and the other glass instruments he plays and talks about are just as interesting. Love the Crystal Concerts!

This thread is great! We%26#39;re going to Williamsburg next week and I%26#39;ve added quite a few things to my list.