TOUR THE SHORE: Small town sojourns Listed from South to North
Nearby at the premier Bay
Creek Resort & Club, two nationally
ranked golf courses designed by golf legends Jack Nicklaus and
Arnold Palmer intersect along stunning water vistas. Sunsets are
serene on the town’s quiet mile- long beach or from the deck
of a classic schooner with cruises available out of Bay Creek Marina.
Fishing is free at the town’s fun pier. For more Cheriton & Oyster: This mini-Mayberry, a tiny, friendly town with handsome Victorian homes makes for a pleasant Sunday drive any day of the week. Turn north on Sunnyside Road between the two historic churches and follow it to the authentic fishing village of Oyster. Watch watermen haul in their catch of famed blue crabs, oysters and clams near the public boat ramp and future site of the Watermen’s Memorial. Eastville: The historic courthouse green and the nation’s oldest continuous court records lend a genteel sense of history to this pretty community where wide porches are shaded by graceful old oaks. Northampton’s county seat since 1631 where a stylishly restored inn serves up gourmet lunch and dinners while a no frills bar and grill is the locals’ favorite for wing night. A unique shopping experience can be found at a European inspired atelier (studio/workshop) where an artisan couple lives and sells their creative wares. Lush flower gardens surround the town B & B, a good place to call it a night.
Exmore: An antiquer’s paradise the small downtown also includes a café bakery, charming B & B and gift shops along with a designer tile and gift showroom. The town’s retro diner is the real thing. At the counter you might even sit at the same stool where Elvis rested his blue suede shoes. www.exmore.org Willis Wharf: “Behind” Exmore on the seaside this secluded village is an aquaculture capital raising clams and oysters in the pristine waters. Try some served in a variety of ways here at the 1850 general store turned lunch restaurant. Catch a sea breeze on the screened porch and taste why The New York Times wax poetically about their clam fritters. Wachapreague: The “Little City by the Sea” shines
with small town friendliness. A few Melfa: Along Rt. 13, the visitors center at
the Eastern
Shore Chamber of Commerce will provide more information
on sites to see up and down the Shore. Go a
bit further inside the
Accomack Airport Industrial Park where Blue Crab Bay Company
offers award-winning specialty foods and gifts celebrating Eastern
Shore traditions. Their retail shop and 30-seat covered picnic
area set in woodlands are open to the public ( www.bluecrabbay.com). Onancock: With a pretty, petite harbor, rows
of gingerbread porches, clapboard steeples and old-fashion glass
storefronts it’s hard not to be smitten with this charmer
chartered in Tangier Island: Sail back in time from Onancock
harbor to this tiny Chesapeake Bay Island Accomac: The best way to see this quintessential
Southern town and admire its historic buildings and garden-filled
homes is to stroll the shady streets. The Accomack County seat
was established here in the 1600s with many of the present day
homes constructed in the late 1700s through the late 19th century.
The town center is the Courthouse Green at the intersection of
Front St. and Courthouse Ave. The Victorian brick Clerk’s
office holds historic court records dating back to 1663 and the
cannon located here is from the American Revolution. The most well
known town building is Debtor’s prison built in1783 as the
county jailor’s residence until it was converted in 1824
to incarcerate debtors.
Bloxom: The Shore’s first official winery
is located on a 6 acre Victorian-era farm a mile west of Rt. 13.
While the wine lasts, a tasting room is open and pizza and breads
are available to visitors who can enjoy a bottle alfresco amidst
the picturesque setting. Chincoteague: This seashore family resort town
is famed for its annual Pony Penning. Wild ponies swim from their
refuge home on Assateague Island across the channel to |
information,
go to 
Machipongo: Just further north along Rt. 13 at
the historic former “poorhouse farm” is the Barrier
Islands Center. Though the Eastern Shore’s chain of seaside
barrier islands are mostly deserted now the museum preserves through
amazing relics, photographs and written accounts the fascinating
tales of those who once called these shifting sands home. 
Nearby the family owned Chatham Vineyard whose 2002 Church Creek
Merlot recently won the silver medal in the 2005 Governor’s
Cup is opening a new tasting room and winery on its 300-acre estate
set on the banks of a bay creek. Call for hours and directions
(757) 678-5588. 
interesting shops sell local
art and gifts but its setting along emerald green marshes is the
scene stealer. Marinas provide an active charter fishing fleet,
boat slip rentals, bait and tackle shop and boat rentals to explore
the pristine barrier islands and bird life. Dining on great seafood
with water views is provided by two restaurants and sandwiches
perfect for picnics can be had at the quaint general store. 
No
doubt the majestic bronze sculpture of battling white tail bucks
showcased outside the chamber office will entice art and
animal lovers alike to see the amazing array of internationally
acclaimed wildlife sculptures at Turner Sculpture just minutes
north in Onley. The foundry and gallery is home to
the talented father and son team who find their creative
inspiration in the woods and waters of the Eastern Shore. 
1680. The small town sophisticate harbors the most
restaurants on the mainland from cafes to an Irish pub. Dinner
and a movie take on a delightful twist with local theater spotlighted
at the North Street Playhouse and the far from the multiplex madness,
the endearingly retro Roseland movie theater. Shopping opportunities
abound for art, antiques, organic and gourmet food, wine and garden
and home furnishings. The wharf provides safe harbor for visiting
boaters as well as sports fishing and charter tours. A boutique
hotel and several welcoming B & Bs make extended stays more
than tempting. 
to experience life lived
in the tranquil rhythm of the tides. Watermen still carry on the
centuries-old tradition of harvesting the waters and visitors can
enjoy the fresh bounty at several of the island’s nationally
recognized home-style restaurants. Rent bikes or Tangier taxis – golf
carts to cruise the nearly carless isle or take a tour with a native
telling island tales in their unique sing-song Elizabethan twang.
A handful of shops provide perusing while the pristine sandy shores
are excellent for relaxing and scouting Native American arrowheads.
Take a nature cruise with a Tangier captain to fish crab pots and
discover the island’s legendary soft-shell crab “farms”.
Come twilight, rock on the porch of a quaint B & B and listen
to the creatures of the marsh softly serenade the island. 
Parksley: Norman Rockwell would have loved this
vestige of small town America especially if he was a railroad buff.
With the meticulously restored railroad station situated in the
town square surrounded by quaint shops, the 1885 town has the look
of an old-fashion model train village. A Five and Dime, the Eastern
Shore Railroad Museum, Antique Car Museum and attractive Victorian
homes only add to the nostalgic atmosphere. Homespun eateries won’t
let you leave hungry. Located 2 miles west off of Rt. 13, about
20 minutes south of the Maryland line.
Chincoteague
Island to be auctioned off as immortalized in the 1947 children’s
book and later movie, Misty of Chincoteague. But with
all it has to offer it’s far from a one horse town. Shopping
in the pedestrian-friendly downtown ranges from decoys to dresses
and antique to art. Fresh off the dock seafood is found in a variety
of restaurants, but Italian, Vietnamese and Thai cuisine add to
the dining options. Lodging is equally varied from family-owned
motels to charming B & Bs. A 1945 movie theatre is a place
to catch a flick the old-fashion way. Unspoiled beaches and natural
trails along with the Assateague Lighthouse provide outdoor adventures
on the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. 
Eastern Shore of Virginia Tourism ~ P.O. Box 72 ~ Tasley
Virginia ~ 23441
E-mail: info@esvatourism.org ~ BUSINESS
INFORMATION ONLY: 757.787.8268
Photography
and Artwork credits. ~
Website designed / maintained by Webwise
Site Design and Services