Colonial Williamsburg Natural Light

The hotel offers an extremely good location for visiting Colonial Williamsburg (a 10-minute walk) and the College of William & Mary (across the street). A low-rise building in keeping with the architectural restrictions of a historic area, there can be long walks to your room; so make sure you book the room you want and need.

We had a large double room with a full bathroom and a second sink and makeup mirror. The room had a coffee maker and good coffee provided, but no mini-fridge and a very limited amount of closet space. High speed Internet connection available, but no telephone on the desk! Obviously they are updating the rooms. A luxury in modern times, the window in our bedroom opened! Most of the hotel's room has two double beds. With our booking, a full breakfast was included, with very good and friendly service in the restaurant off the courtyard. This is not always the case, so verify whether breakfast is included or not when you book.

There is free covered parking in the hotel for guests. Parking in the area is at a premium. It is often a better decision to leave your car at the hotel and walk to your destination, than to try to find a parking place away from the hotel.

The staff was friendly and extremely knowledgeable about the Williamsburg area. We asked a lot of questions and they helped us to make decisions.

This hotel is about 1 hour from the Richmond airport by taxi or shuttle bus. I took a shuttle bus to the hotel, and returned to the airport by taxi for about $20 more. Shuttles from the hotel can be unreliable.

I arrived in Williamsburg tired and hungry. Our hotel, the Williamsburg Hospitality House, lived up to its name when the front desk managed recommended this fine restaurant to us. A 10-minute walk from the hotel, along the edge of the College of William & Mary Campus, the restaurant is a few steps from the famous "confusion corner" intersection of South Boundary Road, Duke of Glouscester Street, Jamestown Road, and Scotland Road.

I really appreciated having a beef selection in a seafood restaurant, and it was excellent. My sweetie wrapped himself around a beautiful plate of crab cakes, and we both had warm blueberry pie for dessert. A winner!

I ordered a half pint of home brewed ale, a very reasonable $3.50 per serving. A tasty treat in this world of factory brewed beers.

In fine weather, there is outdoor seating at the Raw Bar, which refers to the oysters for sale—not nude customers. We dined by soft light in the colonial-style restaurant, with white table clothes and a full service of silverware. Real silverware! What does that tell you?

During the height of tourist season, when events are happening at the College and on weekends, you must book a reservation or you will be disappointed.

You may walk the streets of Colonial Williamsburg for free, but if you want to enter one of the historic buildings, you need a ticket for the day (or multi-day or annual pass); however a work around is to have a meal in one of the famous taverns. You can see a historic building as part of the cost of your meal. It was a great treat for me to dine at the King's Arms Tavern both due to the food and the atmosphere. All the employees wear carefully authentic period costumes, the tableware is as close to authentic as can be found and the dishes are colonial with modifications for modern taste and dietary expectations. We don't cook food swimming in lard any more.

Even the cocktails, wines and beers have a colonial flare. After all this is a real tavern. Be careful of the opening hours as they are limited and the tavern does close mid afternoon for several hours.

I don't know why he did it, but my sweetie ordered a hamburger. He said it was very good. OK. I ordered a pottage pie, a wonderful creation under a crust that most resemble a chicken pot pie in nature. We both had a large helping of handmade dessert. Gee, it was a vacation.

I ordered a cup of tea. Tea. One the day that Colonial Williamsburg was recreating scenes from the Revolutionary War. Carrying authentic to a fine point, no real tea was available but they did find me some herbal tea to get by on!

The restrooms are up an extremely steep flight of stairs; so plan ahead if you need a rest stop prior to lunch and visit a rest room elsewhere that you can get into. A bit of advice, the restroom signs aren't the modern blue ones, but are in time with the colonial period.

We had so much fun, we dined at this great place 2 days in a row.

I dined twice at this fine restaurant: one dinner, one lunch. It was that good an experience. Be prepared for a long sit as the food is made fresh and isn't sitting around waiting for you to order. Our wait stuff for both meals was friendly but efficient in a big city sort of way. In the evenings there is live music, but in the daytime it is loud from a great deal of conversation.

A favorite with visitors and locals alike, you need to telephone for a reservation.

The restaurant is heavily marketed on the Internet at www.dessertstodiefor.com and www.thetrellis.com The 'to die for' reference has to do with the fact that the recipe for the famous 'death by chocolate' dessert was created at the Trellis. One of my friends ordered that dessert. It was enormous. I stuck with healthy fair for dinner with a salmon entree and a sorbet for dessert. I'm so good!

The wine list is fairly priced both by the glass and by the bottle with a selection that is broad enough to include most tastes and size of wallet.

Located in Merchant's Square between the College of William and Mary and Colonial Williamsburg, not far from 'confusion corner' where Richmond Road, Boundary Road and Duke of Gloucester St come together with Scotland Road and the nearby Jamestown Road.

We faced our departure from Colonial Williamsburg with regret, but on our way out of town stopped for one more meal in a Merchant's Square restaurant. My Sweetie's choice, the Blue Talon Bistro. What a good choice! Although crowded at lunch time, the atmosphere was relaxed and civil. The tables have cool marble tops and the colors are pleasing. Full wine bar and cocktail selection. We weren't driving ourselves, so one more glass of wine for the road.

We toasted our wonderful Williamsburg vacation and lunched on the freshest of fresh foods. Finally Sweetie got off his crab cake kick and ordered a turkey sandwich. I had a Virginia ham salad. Until you have enjoyed real Virginia ham, you haven't had ham. Ham salad recipes are passed down in families. I haven't had one this good in decades.

Of course we had dessert. We would begin calorie control when at home again. Our lunch topped off our wonderful trip, but we departed Williamsburg vowing to return. We mean it. We bought annual passes!

Some public parking near this restaurant but be care of limits on how long you can park.

Most food service within Colonial Williamsburg stops after 2pm and doesn't resume until at least 5pm when the taverns reopen. That leaves a long hungry and thirsty gap in the afternoon. Dreams of having a glass of wine while looking at colonial sites was dashed when all we could find for sale was soda and bottles of cold water.

Even the Raleigh Tavern was alcohol free in the afternoon! So we trekked the mile down Duke of Glouscester Street to Merchant's Square and found the Cheese Shop open and doing a huge business. No wonder! They have wine and beer for sale by the serving in glass bottles. You must sit in their restaurant or on their outdoor terrace to have your drinks, but it is a solution to the mid-afternoon dry spell.

We also had big beefy sandwiches, having walked so much we were hungry again!

All the food is fresh and tasty with a vast selection of take away items. Full wine store in the cellar.

Beware that this shop has short hours and shut promptly at 6pm on the day of our visit. Why, when they were so busy? Some sort of Williamsburg regulations? Absolutely no idea.

Plan your meal stops ahead and save yourself some long walks up and down Duke of Glouscester!

Follow the driving directions carefully to find this wonderful winery. It is about a 15-minute trip from Colonial Williamsburg, if you make every turn properly. We arrived for a sunset wine tasting and dinner. Fantastic! The rich red wines and the sweet whites make it hard to believe this winery has only been open since 1985. Telephone ahead to book tours April through October, and to get those directions. The rich Virginia soil is idea for growing wines with modern methods, creating the success that Thomas Jefferson could only dream about in his day. The prices of the wine by the bottle are quite reasonable, so consider making some purchases to enjoy at home.

www.williamsburgwinery.com

Our tasting was in the Gabriel Archer Tavern which has been featured in the New York Times. Our food was wonderful. The environment of the vineyard is beautiful and extremely green. Put this winery on your "must-do" list if you enjoy fine wines.

A dream of a lifetime came true for me at Colonial Williamsburg. I can't tell you how long I wished for this to happen. I got lucky as I had a meeting in Williamsburg and was able to extend my stay for 3 full days to enjoy my passion for history.

The ticketing process can be confusing. You can walk through Colonial Williamsburg at any time of the day or night for free. There are no gates—this isn't Disney World. Students from nearby College of William and Mary use 'CW' as their jogging path, picnic grounds, and as a fine place to sit and study. It isn't unusual to see a beautiful co-ed jogging by in the briefest of outfits as the actor playing General Washington is giving a speech! Makes for some very interesting photos.

You can buy a day ticket (doesn't include the Governor's Palace tour), a day ticket which does include that tour, multi-day tickets or annual passes. The website and the ticket sellers will help you work that out. www.colonialwilliamsburg.com or telephone 1-800-HISTORY.

The Visitor's Center offers free parking and shuttle buses that go as far as the ring road around CW. Another shuttle bus route goes around the outside of CW all day long and into the evening.

There is no option but to walk within CW unless you purchase a carriage or wagon ride. For some people this is a serious issue. CW is a full mile in length and at least 1/2 mile wide. That's a lot of walking and it can be hot and muggy.

CW is a private foundation which began in the 1930s. Many of the buildings are actually of the Colonial era and/or were built or rebuilt over 70 years ago. There are access issues. Many of the pathways are crushed oyster shells or gravel. Very hard going for those using wheel chairs. There are a few handicap accessible toilets. If you need one use your Visitor's "This Week" map to full advantage.

CW is a living town as nearly 90 people live there fulltime. You can stay in a hotel in CW, rent an entire house, or come visit when you please. It's not a fake. If the buildings look too new and polished up it is due to the fact that they are presented to you as they would have been in 1776. Getting them up is an ongoing project with some work happening all year long. The workers wear colonial garp and may use oxen to haul materials, but they keep the place up to standards.

Daily handouts, the website, posters, and the Visitor's "This Week" maps keep informed of what is going on. Always something! Children and adults are invited to take part in hands on experiences. In fair weather you can even rent costumes for children. The theme of CW is accuracy. In speech, attire and behavior the CW interpreters spend their working days in character. Some have worked there for decades. www.history.org

So how does it all go for visitors? The answer is 'sometimes confusing'. If you are on a 1 day visit you have to work out what you want to see and when to see it. The "This Week" map has daily schedules of what is happening and which buildings are open on which days of the week. We waited for the right day to visit the Gunsmith's Shop and Saddle and Harness Shop, and managed to catch the Arsenal when it was open. You have to read the instructions!

CW rotates its presentation of events of the Revolutionary War called 'Revolutionary City'. We were there enough days to see the entire cycle of 3 days. Events are played out with talented people doing the speeches of famous folk of our history. Many are British so the accents are period appropriate. You may take as many photos as you wish. They are used to it.

Small details of CW change as the town goes through the 3 day cycle. Interpreters carry on conversations with each other and with visitors discussing the affairs of that day in history. Prices going up, tea banned, coffee becoming the patriotic American drink, casualties of war, and worries of the time.

All extremely well done! Beautifully done!

Would a family with small children enjoy CW? Absolutely! Great efforts are made by CW to please and bring children into events. Most children love animals and CW is full of them. In the craft shops, crafts people take great care in demonstrating their work, often giving children a chance for hand's on. You can buy CW made goods in Prentis Store. I bought some wonderful wool yarn grown by a rare breed of sheep in CW. You admire and perhaps buy wonderful sterling silver wares of various sorts also.

The saddle and harness makers keep up the equipment used in CW. Several men work full time at the task. The same is true with the gunsmith and the blacksmith. They aren't just passing time showing off their skills, but keeping CW going.

The beautiful Visitor's Center can be your home base while at CW as you can also get a free shuttle bus to Jamestown and Yorktown when you buy tickets to visit those places. There is a restaurant and very nice rest rooms that are accessible and meet all the modern rules and requirements.

If you walk from the Visitor's Center to CW, you pass through the Home Farm which is an active, real farm using colonial methods, animals, and crops. Don't miss it.

Also take time to visit the grand recreation of the Governor's Palace and gardens. A special ticket is required but well worth it.

You will understand more of our early history after a visit to Colonial Williamsburg. Don't miss the Ghost tour also!