Family Trip: Williamsburg, VA

Maddox and I enjoying the sights at Sweethaven Lavender Farm.

At the beginning of summer we planned a last minute getaway to Williamsburg, VA. We chose the destination for a few reasons. 

• It was close enough for us to drive and, due to Covid, we weren’t comfortable flying yet with Maddox 
• We were going Memorial Day weekend so we wanted to avoid any beach towns that would be insanely crowded
• Outdoor activities and beautiful places to walk around were plentiful

It ended up being the perfect family friendly place to spend our first real getaway as a family. Below I am sharing some of my favorite places we visited and my recommendations from our trip. Keep in mind, Covid restrictions were still in place it this point so we aimed for outdoor activities and outdoor dining when possible! Coming from Baltimore, the drive was around three and a half hours so totally doable with a little one in tow!

Maddox's first brunch.

​Where to Stay
We stayed at the Historic Powhatan Resort, which was perfect for what we needed. We had a two bedroom condo with a full kitchen. This was ideal for so many reasons. Maddox was still drinking bottles all day so the kitchen made it easy for us to store and clean them. We were also able to keep our own food/drinks/snacks handy. The second bedroom was a game changer since we could have Maddox set up to sleep separate from the main living space and our room. At that point he was going down for bed around 7pm, and we were not going to turn in for the night at that point. Every night we waited to have dinner until he went to bed and ordered something to be delivered. I picked up a mini charcuterie plate and wine downtown so we could have our own happy hour in the room while we waited on our dinner to arrive. We could then freely watch movies and hang out without having to worry about waking up the baby!

The grounds of the resort are beautiful and were great for walking Maddox around. We also had a full deck which overlooked a pond. It was perfect for blowing bubbles and showing Maddox all of the ducks swimming by. 

Out on our deck one morning blowing bubbles and watching ducks.

Lots of family snuggles went down here.

​Start Here: Merchants Square

The center of the downtown area, this is where you can find some of the best restaurants and local shops along with seasonal events like the farmer’s market. This is where we started all of our days. We strolled around in the morning to grab coffee and sometimes breakfast. I recommend Aromas, which was our favorite. They have to go orders and seating available indoors and outdoors so you have options depending on what your schedule allows. Whether you stop to grab a bite to eat or pop into a shop, the area is beautiful and very stroller friendly so I would recommend this as a must. 

​Don’t Miss

The Cheese Shop: Gourmet food and every type of cheese and meat you could imagine. You can make your own charcuterie board using their assortment of delicacies or buy a spread pre made. This is where I grabbed some appetizers for our in hotel happy hours with Maddox. There is also a wine shop in the basement that has a good selection and very decent prices.

The Farmers Market: Saturday mornings starting at 8am in Merchants Square. It was rainy when we went, but we still had a great time perusing through the stands of local merchants. Some of our favorite finds were a quality gluten free pasta, fresh pressed juice, and fresh tzatsiki dip. 

Finds from The Cheese Shop were perfect for our at home Happy Hours with Maddox.

​Where to Eat:

Berret’s Seafood - Daily rotating specials of fresh, seafood centered meals. Outdoor seating is first come first serve, so we went a little after the lunch rush and has no issues grabbing a table. Their seasonal cocktails were delicious as well!

Blue Talon Bistro - This place is a must for breakfast with mouth watering sweet and savory options. We had to wait a bit for outdoor seating here, but you can put your name in and shop around while you wait. 

Amber Ox Public House - Out of everywhere we tried, this was my favorite! The whole vibe of the place was relaxed, but also very cool. There was ample outdoor seating and we were able to get a table to a weekend brunch. The menu has unique snacks and features a lot of “boards”. I am a huge fan of that concept! They also have full entrees as well if you are looking to get your own meal. All of the food we got was very fresh and tasty so I certainly am planning to head back during our next trip to try their dinner menu. The cocktails were also very fun and they also have some handcrafted mocktails if you want to skip the booze! 

Brunch spread at Amber Ox.

​What to Do:

Visit Sweethaven Lavender Farm

This was my favorite stop of our entire trip! The charming farm is home to lavender fields along with other flower gardens. They also have a barn with a gift shop and area to try some lavender flavored treats. We picked lavender (Maddox sort of helped but mainly ate dirt) and then tried some lavender lemonade and a lavender snow cone. We spent a couple hours just hanging around the grounds. It is a beautiful place to walk around or sit and relax in one of their cute seating areas. There is plenty of space for kids to run around and the whole family to enjoy the beauty of the outdoors. 

Sweethaven Lavender Farm

Picking lavender to take home with us.

Maddox enjoying himself in the beautiful weather.

Such an Insta-worthy aesthetic.

Lavender lemonade outside the barn.

If it Rains:

I had to add this in here because we, of course, found ourselves with less than favorable weather for a portion of our getaway. Taking precautions for Covid, we were hesitant to head to any indoor activities with Maddox. We ended up at the outlets, which actually worked out pretty nicely. One of us ran into stores and shopped while the other walked Maddox around under the covered areas. He got to be outside and see new things while we got to score some deals on new clothes (mostly for him, of course). 


Next Time:

On our next visit definitely want to make sure to get to some of the historic sites. We wanted to wait until Maddox is a little older before we get into some of the more historic attractions. 

Overall I would rate this a very successful first family getaway. We didn’t worry much about sightseeing  since we are planning to visit the historic sites when Maddox gets older. We tried to take on the town in as leisurely of a way as possible and this was a great place to do just that. We also spent a decent amount of time just playing around with Maddox at the resort, which is another reason I am so happy we opted for a family friendly spot with more room for us all. 

Cheers to a successful family getaway!

​Let me know if you end up visiting Williamsburg, VA and check out any of my favorite spots! Feel free to share your top restaurant or activity so I can add it to my list for our next visit!

xx