Norfolk, VA area - tell me everything you can about it!

[StaceyinLA]

Dd moves there in a few weeks. I'm going for a couple of weeks to help them unpack and get settled with the kiddos. They will be in base housing, so that's not an issue, but what about:

 

Good pediatrician (all non-military docs)

Good family doctor or gp

Good ob-gyn

 

Good places to eat

Good, budget-friendly grocery shopping

Fun, local stuff to do

 

Fun, short distance things to do

 

Thanks for any help!

 

 

[Mama Geek]

The Rover Tall Ship sailing excursion in Norfolk

The Aquarium in Virginia Beach (not Norfolk)

Yorktown

Jamestown

Williamsburg

The free Ferry at Jamestown

The Colonial Parkway for a pretty drive

Busch Gardens in Williamsburg

Bills Seafood in Newport News

Anna's Pizza on Warwick Blvd in Newport News

The Noland Trail in Newport News is a 5 mile walking trail

 

I lived on the Pennsula rather than in Norlfolk so that is where most of these ideas are from.

[nukeswife]

I'm out in Chesapeake, I don't know many that actually live in Norfolk, so I can't really give help on Drs. For Good budget friendly grocery shopping I recommend the Commissary that is just outside the base. There is always Kroger, Farm Fresh, Harris Teeter and Food Lion, but I've found them all to b pretty much the same on prices and high compared to the commissary or walmart. So if I don't go to the commissary then I just go to wal-mart. You really can't beat the commissary prices. I'm also not much help on good restaurants. Basically we stay out of Norfolk unless we need to go there, mostly because it's just pretty crowded as well as traffic is crazy here on I64 unless it's the dead of night.

 

The zoo is a pretty fun place they sell a military family membership for $75 which covers 1-2 adults and all the children in the household under 18. It's not a huge zoo but they do have a good amount of animals. The aquarium out in VA beach is nice too, but a bit pricer than the zoo. One of our favorites is the Children's museum in downtown Portsmouth. Lots of fun hands on exhibits there, they just did a 14,000 sq ft remodel a couple years ago too, so it's pretty big place. There are lots of other museums in the area. The base bowling alley is always fun too and they have good prices during the day, and the staff is very friendly.

 

I'd be happy to answer any other questions you think of to the best of my ability.

[nukeswife]

The Rover Tall Ship sailing excursion in Norfolk

The Aquarium in Norfolk

Yorktown

Jamestown

Williamsburg

The free Ferry at Jamestown

The Colonial Parkway for a pretty drive

Busch Gardens in Williamsburg

Bills Seafood in Newport News

Anna's Pizza on Warwick Blvd in Newport News

The Noland Trail in Newport News is a 5 mile walking trail

 

I lived on the Pennsula rather than in Norlfolk so that is where most of these ideas are from.

 

 

Did you mean the aquarium in Va Beach? I don't know of one in Norfolk, but I don't go there much so if there is one I'd be curious to know.

[Onceuponatime]

Did you mean the aquarium in Va Beach? I don't know of one in Norfolk, but I don't go there much so if there is one I'd be curious to know.

 

 

The aquarium is in Va Beach. The Norflok zoo used to have free Mondays, I don't know if it still does.

 

In the Greater Hampton Roads area:

 

There is also Nauticus, the Mariner's Museum, the Hampton Air and Space Museum. The Virginia Symphony does "Peanut Butter and Jam" concerts. I think the Chrysler Museum of Art is free on Wednesdays, but that might have changed. The Tides is the local baseball team and is family oriented.

 

There are u-pick strawberry farms in the spring in the outlying areas and a strawberry festival in Pungo. Of course there is always the beach.

[NavyMommy]

We're out in Chesapeake, but this is the second time we've lived here. I'm not familiar with civilian doctors since we go to the Naval Hospital, but CHKD is wonderful, my daughter was there for a month when she was born for a specialized treatment and I can't say enough good things about them.

 

As far as grocery stores if she's living on base I would use the commissary. There's really no reason to go out in town, you're not going to get better deals (unless you're a hardcore couponer) and the hassle factor isn't worth it. There are commissaries at all three of the major bases so there should be one by wherever she's living.

 

As far as things to do I would highly recommend she check out the Y. We love it, not only can I exercise and have a couple of hours of free childcare, but they have wonderful classes for the kids, from basketball to ballet and they're much more reasonable than the same classes out in town. Plus a couple of times a month ours has a free Parents Night Out.

 

We also have a membership to the Children's museum in Portsmouth like PP have mentioned and love it. It's very clean, and with the expansion last time we were there we didn't even get to see everything. The zoo is nice, but it's to cold now. If she's looking for a beach I highly recommend the one on the Dam Neck base. It has lifeguards and is almost always empty. The Botanical Gardens are nice, I haven't been there yet with kids, but if I remember it had a nice area for kids to play in.

 

When baseball season starts up again that's a fun way to spend an afternoon or Evening, the Norfolk Tides have a beautiful facility.

 

There used to be family oriented movies at the theater on Little Creek for a dollar or two, that might have changed since we were there though, the bowling ally over there is really nice though.

 

The aquarium is nice, but it's a bit of a haul, it's all the way out near the oceanfront.

[Onceuponatime]

I second the Dam Neck Beach. My dh is retired and we live away from the area, but we still make a trip out there once a summer. The commisary is cheaper with meat and dairy, but prices have been rising on some things so they might want to comparison shop in the first month.

 

I forgot about the Living Museum in Newport News. It's a cross between and zoo and children's museum.

[StaceyinLA]

So how big is Norfolk that the traffic is so horrible? And how far are some of these places (Portsmouth, VA Beach) from Norfolk?

 

Also, certain things dd buys have to come from Whole Foods or Trader Joes - how far from Norfolk? Is there a Costco or Sam's nearby?

[Xanadu]

So how big is Norfolk that the traffic is so horrible? And how far are some of these places (Portsmouth, VA Beach) from Norfolk?

 

Also, certain things dd buys have to come from Whole Foods or Trader Joes - how far from Norfolk? Is there a Costco or Sam's nearby?

 

 

Sam's in Virginia Beach and Chesapeake, Costco in Norfolk (Both the Sam's are about 20 min from anywhere in Norfolk w/ interstate system)

 

New Whole Foods opened in October in Virginia Beach, almost right next to Trader Joes & Fresh Market (very much like Whole Foods). All three of these are about 20-30 min or less from anywhere in Norfolk. Only other *close* Trader Joe's is in Newport News.

 

Most of these places/municipalities are within 20-40 min from Norfolk. Its kind of hard to explain, but the area is so built up and the interstates/roads so interconnected that many people work/live wherever and just communte. That is the traffic issue. With as many military bases as we have in one area, we have noticeable rush hour traffic. (don't even attempt the HRBT tunnel on I64 or the Downtown/Midtown tunnels in Norfolk after 3:30pm-6:30pm is one example) It is also why the area is commonly referred to as Tidewater or Hampton Roads....People move freely around to shop/visit/work. Bases in the area include Fort Eustis, Yorktown Naval Weapons Station ,Camp Perry, Little Creek Amphib, Norfolk Naval, Oceana, Langley AFB...a coast guard base and I'm sure a few I've missed.

 

All the places to go/see in the surrounding cities mentioned previously by others are within a 20-45 min drive or even less from anywhere in Norfolk...If you look on a map you'll see that norfolk is borded by the Chesapeake Bay, then circled by these other areas. Virginia Beach, Suffolk, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Newport News & Hampton. The interstate/roads are almost like a spiderweb over top (unlike many areas that have one major road/path in and out, the tidewater area has major interstate/roads connecting everything together. (They will definatly need an updated GPS to figure it out at first, then it just becomes second nature)

 

HTH

[NavyMommy]

There is a Costco in Norfolk, it's the only one in the area and small but it passes. I don't know about a Sams. There is a Sams out in Greenbriar, and there may be one closer, I'm not sure. I'm assuming she's going to be living at Norfolk Naval? Depending on the time of day no where is really far once you get onto the interstate, but you have to learn how the traffic works to figure out when you can go certain places. There is a Whole Foods and a Trader Joes but they're both way out near the oceanfront so they would be a bit of a drive. We do have Harris Teeter though and I find they often have a wonderful selection of natural / organic products that I can't find elsewhere.

[Tess in the Burbs]

They covered most of it above. Traffic is horrible b/c it's a small area and only a few ways in/out. Add in back up tunnels/bridges and it backlogs getting into or out of. My husband worked at the base and coming down Hampton Blvd to get out of town could be 30 min or 4 hours. Seriously. It's awful. There are some neat restaurants in Norfolk you don't have elsewhere in the area. CHKD is very good for kid Drs. But to give you an idea about traffic: I got tired of getting in and out of Norfolk for the kids appts that I now prefer to drive 30 min to the Newport News office instead. I know it's 30 min there and back but at least I know I will be moving and it's only 30 min. Going to Norfolk too early or late in the day is bad stuff. So being in Norfolk the best bet is to learn the roads to avoid the problem spots. Hampton Blvd is bad most of the time. LOL

 

Hope she likes the area. Tons of fun stuff. And Norfolk is central to it all. Just know the roads are bad and traffic horrible in the morning and starts bad again around 2pm

[nukeswife]

Like others have mentioned it's really more of an area with lots Hampton/Newport News being on one side of the tunnel and Norfolk/Portsmouth/Virginia Beach/Chesapeake on the other. To get from where I live in Chesapeake to the Naval base in Norfolk is about 30 minutes if there isn't much traffic, but like others said traffic can be bad because of the bottle necks/back ups at the tunnels and bridges. There's a lot of water in this area so lots of tunnels/bridges around to help you get around the area. I prefer living out in Chesapeake because it's more of a suburban area than a good part of Norfolk. Chesapeake and VA beach are more of the suburbs with Portsmouth and Norfolk being more urban, but it's hard to explain because there are parts of norfolk that have a more suburban feel as well. Here's a basic outline map that kind of shows you where these cities are. http://www.norfolknavyhomes.com/communityinfohamptonroads.asp

 

I go to a Costco in VA Beach off of Military HWY (in an area known as Janaf) and I don't find it to be small, but I'm not sure if this is the one referred to by others.

 

I know you mentioned she has base housing, Is this all lined up already? I'm just curious because I know for some ranks the amount of housing is pretty small. We never even bothered trying to get into it because we would have been on the wait list longer than his assignment to the duty station.

[skyday]

We live in Norfolk. Dh is stationed on a ship at Norfolk. Door-to-ship from our house to his ship is 8 minutes. Today it took him 45 because of traffic getting on base (right now there are 5 carriers in port). I work in Virginia Beach (by the Trader Joe's and Whole Foods) and it takes me 30 minutes to get to work. Our doctor is located in Chesapeake, and our dentist is located in Virginia Beach so we travel through a couple of cities/ day. We are both born and raised here (Virginia Beach/Norfolk) and know our way around the area. There is a Sam's Club that is located in Virginia Beach that is probably easier to get to than the one in Chesapeake. The commissary is definitely the cheapest place to get groceries. I've tried Food Lion, Farm Fresh, Kroger, and Harris Teeter and my bill is always less at the commissary. Norfolk also has the "World's Largest Navy Exchange", so we go there for pretty much everything but the kids clothes (not a goods selection, imo). But they do have a good baby section. Have they considered renting out in town? The base housing here in Norfolk is pretty old (I've never been inside, though). Also, they had problems with the base housing in Virginia Beach having mold issues. Everyone else gave great tips for fun things to do around the area.

[StaceyinLA]

They have housing lined up for move in on February 4th. Paperwork and lease are all signed. The outside of the housing looks really nice, as does the area. Her dh is there already and went by and took pics. They actually got the handicap-accessible and it's 4 bedrooms with an elevator to the 2nd floor!

 

I think they're neighborhood is pretty close to the NEX if that gives anyone an idea.

 

He will actually be in Norfolk for 3 years, so there's a chance they'll move once they familiarize themselves with the area, but this is where they're starting out.

[Mama Geek]

Yes the aquarium in in VA Beach not Norfolk. It has now been several years since I lived there.

 

Traffic can be crazy at other times but it is always bad at rush hour. The tunnels and bridges just can't support that much traffic in that area. If it snows, stay home, if it floods, stay home.