We visited Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia in mid-November 2025 while staying at the Thousand Trails Williamsburg RV Park about 10-miles away. There was so much to see on the 300-acre site we visited twice about a week apart. We started our visits at the visitor center which is located about a mile away from the historic district, with both a shuttle and walking trail that takes you to the historic district and back. During our visits we took both the walking trail and the shuttle bus on different occasions.
Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in Williamsburg, Virginia. Its 301-acre historic area includes several hundred restored or recreated buildings from the 18th century, when the city served as the capital of the colonial era Colony of Virginia. The district also includes 17th-century, 19th-century, Colonial Revival, and more recent structures and reconstructions. Costumed employees work and dress as people did during the colonial era. The costumed employees provide tours and presentations at the various major buildings as well as working and demonstrating in the various trades shops scattered throughout the site.
Both the shuttle bus and walking trail enter the historic district near the Governor’s Palace at the north end of the site. We took a guided tour of the Governor’s Palace which included most of the main rooms. The guide provided interesting historical context about the building and its history, particularly in relation to the events around the revolutionary period of the 18th century. We walked south along the green belt known as the Palace Green towards Duke of Gloucester Street which is the main East-West thoroughfare through the historic district. It is bounded at the West end by William and Mary College, and at the East end by the Capitol Building.
There were a lot of things to visit along Duke of Gloucester Street including historic homes, stores, and workshops. We made our way to the east end of the street, visiting various places along the way. At the east end of the street, we reached the reconstructed Capitol Building. We took a self-guided tour of the building that included period-costumed presenters in various rooms who talked about the history of the building and the events that took place there. Most notably, this building was the home The House of Burgesses, the lower branch of colonial Virginia’s General Assembly, elected by property-owning voters throughout Virginia. Having first met in Jamestown in 1619, the Burgesses gathered in the Williamsburg Capitol from 1705 until 1776. Many of Virginia’s leading revolutionaries, including Peyton Randolph, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Patrick Henry, served as Burgesses.
Allen remembered visiting Colonial Williamsburg on a 7th Grade school trip. He had some general memories of the town and buildings, and a specific memory of having beef and barley soup for lunch at the Kings Arms Tavern. We decided to have lunch there on our visit some 45-years later, and enjoyed a good lunch based on colonial era recipes. During lunch, we were entertained by a minstrel who sang and played a period guitar as well as telling stories about some of the period songs and tavern-life from the 18th century.
The Historic Trades and Skills community at Colonial Williamsburg uses 18th-century tools and techniques to apprentice in and eventually master more than 20 historic trades and skills. The trades shops help produce materials and equipment that are used in the ongoing restoration of Colonial Williamsburg and demonstrate their skills in period workshops scattered throughout the site. We visited several trade shops including a furniture maker, tinsmith, and blacksmith. They all talked about how the shops would have operated in the revolutionary era, and showed examples of their work, all prepared using period tools and equipment.
There was a lot to see and do at Colonial Williamsburg, and you could easily spend several days visiting multiple buildings and taking tours. We were able to see all of the main buildings and walk around all of the historic district during our two visits.
Pictures of our visits are provided below. Click on the thumbnails for the full size images.
