Williamsburg Trip Overview
Don’t just learn about American history… live it! At Colonial Williamsburg, America’s Colonial past comes to life through beautifully restored architecture and authentic reenactors. Stroll down these historic streets while this tour tells you everything you need to know about Williamsburg, early America, colonial life, and more.
Williamsburg has a long and complex history that predates the creation of the United States by almost 150 years! Dig into the town’s origins, the dramatic struggles which unfolded here during the revolution, and the people who put Williamsburg on the map.
Within 30 min, we’ll send you two things: a password and an app. Download the app, enter the password & download the tour. When you arrive, go to the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center to start the tour. Stick to the tour route for the best experience.
NO EXPIRATION — THE TOUR IS AVAILABLE FROM THE MINUTE YOU BOOK UNTIL FOREVER!
THIS ISN’T AN ENTRANCE TICKET.
Additional Info
Duration: 1 to 2 hours
Starts: Williamsburg, United States
Trip Category: Cultural & Theme Tours >> Cultural Tours
Explore Williamsburg Promoted Experiences
What to Expect When Visiting Williamsburg, Virginia, United States
Don’t just learn about American history… live it! At Colonial Williamsburg, America’s Colonial past comes to life through beautifully restored architecture and authentic reenactors. Stroll down these historic streets while this tour tells you everything you need to know about Williamsburg, early America, colonial life, and more.
Williamsburg has a long and complex history that predates the creation of the United States by almost 150 years! Dig into the town’s origins, the dramatic struggles which unfolded here during the revolution, and the people who put Williamsburg on the map.
Within 30 min, we’ll send you two things: a password and an app. Download the app, enter the password & download the tour. When you arrive, go to the Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center to start the tour. Stick to the tour route for the best experience.
NO EXPIRATION — THE TOUR IS AVAILABLE FROM THE MINUTE YOU BOOK UNTIL FOREVER!
THIS ISN’T AN ENTRANCE TICKET.
Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product
Stop At: Colonial Williamsburg Visitor Center, 101 Visitor Center Dr, Williamsburg, VA 23185-4565
The tour of this beautifully preserved slice of Colonial America begins at the Visitor Center, where you can get your first taste of the nation’s largest living museum.
Duration: 10 minutes
Stop At: Peyton Randolph House, 100 W Nicholson St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
Your first stop is at the doorstep of the Peyton Randolph House, the former home of a fiery revolutionary and one of the oldest buildings in Williamsburg! You might not have heard of William Randolph, but he was a trusted ally of folks like Thomas Jefferson
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Colonial Williamsburg Capitol Building, W Duke of Gloucester St, Cool, Williamsburg, VA 23185
Keep your ears open at our next stop for the iconic fife and drum parade which marches through the town regularly. Here, you’ll also learn about the military significance of these old-timey instruments
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Bassett Hall, 522 E Francis St, Williamsburg, VA 23185-4207
A simple two-story 18th-century white frame farmhouse nestled on 585 acres of lawn, garden, and woodlands, Bassett Hall once was the Williamsburg home of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and his wife Abby Aldrich Rockefeller .Philip Johnson, a member of the House of Burgesses from King and Queen County, Virginia, is believed to have built the 18th-century frame house sometime between 1753 and 1766.
Purchased by Burwell Bassett around 1800
Union cavalryman George Armstrong Custer guest in home during the Civil War
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Colonial Williamsburg Capitol Building, W Duke of Gloucester St, Cool, Williamsburg, VA 23185
Built between 1701 and 1705, the first Williamsburg statehouse served the colony of Virginia until fire destroyed the building in 1747.The first floor of the west building was for the General Court and the colony’s secretary, the first floor of the east for the House of Burgesses and its clerk. Arched windows marched across the facades. Stairs on one side led to the Council Chamber, a lobby, and the Council clerk’s office
stairs on the other side led to three committee rooms. A second-floor conference room connected the classically corniced structures, and a six-sided cupola on the ridge of the hipped and dormered roof crowned it all. Though the west wing was completed by July 1703, it took Cary until November 1705 to finish all the work.
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Secretary’s Office, E Duke of Gloucester St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
Next is the unassuming little Secretary’s Office, where all the documents needed to reconstruct Williamsburg’s colonial days were stored
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Raleigh Tavern, W Duke of Gloucester St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
After that, you’ll arrive at the Raleigh Tavern, where rebellious Virginians met to plot a possible revolution against their British rulers. These meetings even welcomed famous names like Thomas Jefferson!
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Colonial Williamsburg Magazine, 103 E Duke of Gloucester St, Williamsburg, VA 23185
Then you’ll come to the Colonial Williamsburg Magazine, the site of a tense standoff between American patriots and British soldiers trying to steal all the gunpowder from the town before it could fall into rebel hands
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Colonial Williamsburg Courthouse, 101 W Duke of Gloucester St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
Directly opposite the Magazine, you’ll find the old courthouse, where residents of Williamsburg heard the Declaration of Independence read aloud for the very first time
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Playhouse Theater, 466-0A-00, #058, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
Up next is the Play House Stage, a recreation of one of America’s first theatres. The original may have failed terribly, but this one still puts on shows on a regular basis!
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Governor’s Palace, Northern End of Palace Green Colonial Williamsburg, Williamsburg, VA
Then you’ll see the extravagant Governor’s Palace, and maybe start to get a sense of why the residents of Williamsburg didn’t particularly care for their British royal governors!
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: George Wythe House, Palace Green Street, Williamsburg, VA 23185
Up next is the house of George Wythe, a signer of the Declaration of Independence who stands out from most of his compatriots because of one simple fact: he was an abolitionist. In Virginia, a state which used a huge amount of slave labor, this didn’t exactly make him a lot of friends!
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Bruton Parish Episcopal Church, 201 W Duke of Gloucester St (Next to Palace Green), Williamsburg, VA 23185-4201
Continuing on, you’ll arrive at the oldest building in Colonial Williamsburg: the Bruton Parish Episcopal Church. Here, you’ll learn not just about the church’s surprising history, but also about how it’s the whole reason Colonial Williamsburg exists in the first place
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: Bowden-Armistead House, 205 W Duke of Gloucester St, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
After that is the Bowden-Armistead House, the history of which showcases some of the deep divisions which cut through Williamsburg around the time of the Civil War. See, the owner was a northerner, and you can probably imagine how his Virginian neighbors felt about that…
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: The College of William and Mary, 102 Richmond Rd, Williamsburg, VA 23185-3616
Your route takes you next onto the campus of William & Mary College, the oldest college in the United States
Duration: 5 minutes
Stop At: The Wren Building, Wren Bldg, 111 Jamestown Rd, Williamsburg, VA 23185, USA
The final stop on your tour is the Wren Building, an impressive structure which isn’t just the oldest building on the William & Mary Campus, but the oldest college building in the entire United States!
Duration: 5 minutes
