By Car in Williamsburg

By Car

Williamsburg is west of I-64, 51 mi southeast of Richmond; the Colonial Parkway joins Williamsburg with Jamestown to the southwest and Yorktown to the east. I-664 forms the eastern part of a beltway through the Hampton Roads area and connects Newport News with Portsmouth. I-264 runs from I-664 to downtown Norfolk, and then extends all the way to Virginia Beach. I-64 runs from Hampton to Portsmouth around the west side of Norfolk to intersect I-664.

Parking near the Colonial Williamsburg historic area can be difficult during summer months and special events. It's best to park at the visitor center and ride the shuttle to the park. The parking lot behind the Merchants Square shopping area is a good bet if you're planning a short visit or going out to eat around the area.

Virginia Beach has no shortage of parking lots and spaces. The cost for a day of parking is about $5 to $7 at the central beach lots and $4 or $5 for the remote beach areas. Municipal lots/decks are at 4th Street (metered only), 9th Street and Pacific Avenue, 19th Street and Pacific Avenue, 25th Street and Pacific Avenue, 31st Street and Atlantic Avenue, and Croatan and Sandbridge beaches. Metered spaces have a three-hour limit.

The area is well served with expressways and interstate highways, but you have to share these routes with many local drivers. Because the ragged coastline is constantly interrupted by water, driving from one town to another usually means going through a tunnel or over a bridge, either one of which may create a traffic bottleneck. The entrance to the tunnel between Hampton and Norfolk can get very congested, especially on weekends, so listen to your car radio for updated traffic reports.

In the Tidewater area, with a long list of tunnels and bridges connecting myriad waterways, it's easy to find yourself headed in the wrong direction. Highways have adequate signs, but sometimes it may be too late to merge before entering a tunnel/bridge. Traffic is highly congested during rush hour and during peak summer months, when the beach traffic can grind everything to a halt. Tune in to your car radio for traffic reports, especially during rush hours.

In congested periods, use the less-traveled I-664. The 17 1/2 mi Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is the only connection between the southern part of Virginia and the Eastern Shore; U.S. 13 is the main route up the spine of the Eastern Shore peninsula into Maryland.