Is it nice?

I%26#39;ve heard for years Virginia Beach is run down and not very nice. We were thinking of planning a trip and have been to Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach before. How does Virginia Beach compare to those places?

Is it nice?

Evidently you haven%26#39;t talked to anyone who%26#39;s been here recently. The boardwalk and tourist areas have undergone a facelift. Very clean and lovely.

VB is much smaller than Myrtle Beach and doesn%26#39;t have the show venues. On the other hand, VB is much more walkable - you can park your car and never get it out again until it%26#39;s time to leave.

I don%26#39;t even know how to compare it to HH. I%26#39;ve been there once, but our hotel was a drive to the beach and it felt like we drove a long time. In fact, everything felt like a long drive - restaurants, shops, beach.

You might type ';Myrtle Beach'; and ';Hilton Head'; into the search box above this screen. Your question has been asked and answered several times.

Is it nice?

You%26#39;ve come to the right place to research destinations and get travel advice. I use TA when planning any trip. On the left column click ';traveler photos'; and you%26#39;ll get an idea of the resort beach (nice and wide) and the boardwalk (wide, concrete, 2 1/2 mi). The other selections on the left will provide you good info also, and as Wendymath suggested, read some of the prior forum posts comparing Va Beach, Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach etc. (I haven%26#39;t been to the others). Since I live here, I may be a bit bias; I think Va Beach has a nice beach (not Maui but a nice beach), great boardwalk, I go often just to walk, good restaurants, good selection of hotels, lots of things to do if you get tired of sunning and nearby (20-30 min) is downtown Norfolk for more things to do and many more wonderful restaurants. If you have specific interests, or have more questions include them in a post and we%26#39;ll try to help. Good Luck.

Personally i love VA beach for many reasons. One is its a family friendly vacation spot. There is also resturants,shopping and the inlet. There are so many places and things to do while at VA Beach!

Hope this info will help!=]

Well, about 2.6 million visit VB annually, spending $828 million. The typical tourist group is a family with an average income of about $85,ooo. VB%26#39;s top states of visitor origin are Virginia, Pa., and Ohio third (550 miles away). So I%26#39;m thinking you%26#39;re talking to the wrong Ohioans.

Virginia Beach is one of the fastest growing, most successful cities not only in Va, but in the country.

There are newer accommodations built and being built, older ones renovated; the newer Town Center cost multi millions; some stores are flagships.

In 2006 Money Magazine named VB 6th best big city among it%26#39;s ';Best Places to Live';, attesting to the local undergirding to keep the beach nice for tourists. Median family income, purchasing power, residents with a health plan, higher ed, home prices, air quality all rank high, as do restaurants, public golf courses,and libraries. Ranking low are number of bars...there%26#39;s enough....and cardiac mortality.

FBI and US Census Bureau, 2006 declard VB on of the safest cities in the country. Reader%26#39;s Digest recognized VB in 2006 as one of the nation%26#39;s top seven %26#39;seaside strolls%26#39;. Mens Fitness ranked it in the top 25 fittest cities in the USA;Prevention ranks it among top 10 Best Walking Cities, full of people who walk for fitness, health and to get to and from work...and the list goes on.

Check this out, among many: http//www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g58277-i63-k1420531-l8586696-What_kind_of_area_is_Virginia_Beach-Virginia_Beach_Virginia.html#8586696:

Check out the ';things to do'; in the list on the left and click on the articles, one of which is ';Family Travel';, which covers ball games, the nature areas, hiking, kayaking, museums, the historic, etc., etc.

tripadvisor.com/Travel-g58277-s401/Virginia-…

You might also wiki Virginia Beach. The boardwalk is one of the longest, the 300 ft. wide beach one of the widest in the world. Lots of festivals. Look up vbfun.com.

We%26#39;ve been to many beaches and they all have a different %26#39;flavor%26#39;. So it%26#39;s comparing apples and oranges to compare beaches just on the face of it. It depends on needs, mood, dreams of the group or individual at that moment.

What are you looking for in a beach vacation?

I HAVE A SECRET.....Maybe you%26#39;re hearing vb is run down from selfish people like me who dont want to SHARE a beautiful beach. Because I don%26#39;t want to see it get overcrowded like other beaches.

I%26#39;ve been going to vb since I was 2 weeks old! (45 years),I%26#39;ve seen vb when it was at its low and I%26#39;ve seen it grow to it%26#39;s best. My husband and I average about 2 visits a month during a year. We don%26#39;t own a house there, we stay at ocean front hotels. We love the boardwalk. Once we arrive on friday nights,we dont get back in our car till monday morning to go home.

It is all that this forum is saying. My favorite is the ';NO CURSING'; law. It is a very family friendly resort and always has events going on all year long.

PLEASE SHARE VB WITH ONLY YOUR SPECIAL FRIENDS!

Virginia Beach....... best vacation spot in the U.S.

We have been up and down the eastern seaboard for vacation and keep going back to VB. We have been there about 7 times for vacation. Each time seems nicer than the previous.

Looking forward to being there again this June.

Topcat in Ohio

I live in VB, so I might be biased, but I think it is great. I haven%26#39;t been to Hilton Head, but I have been to Myrtle Beach years ago. I felt that Myrtle Beach wasn%26#39;t nearly as nice as VB. Also, in terms of the region, if you want to leave the beach area, Town Center in VB is fairly new with a lot of nice restaurants. There is also good nightlife in Norfolk on Granby. Overall, VB is a nice. clean, safe, and fun place.

Hi there,

I am now residing in Cleveland myself temporarily and i cannot wait to get back to my home in Va. Beach. Virginia Beach is really wonderful, but try to see it as a local and not as much as a tourist. There boardwalk and oceanfront are beautiful and the city has spent millions in recent years to make it absolutely gorgeous. The new Hilton Hotel at 31st street on the beach is magnificent. Sandbridge beach is nice, there is so much to do with regards to kayaking, water sports, boating, etc

Check out the ENTIRE area, not just the waterfront because there are so many fabulous restaurants and so many other waterways throughout the Hampton Roads area. If you decide to go, email me what you would like and I can give some recommendations.

I%26#39;m leaving in 2 weeks to go back and can%26#39;t wait!!!

Susan

I love VA Beach. My family and I have visited VA Beach every July for the past 5 summers and we love it. It%26#39;s clean, family friendly, and beautiful. This year we are planning on visiting Myrtle Beach (never been there). If your are planning on going to VA Beach, go! You won%26#39;t regret it!

Just to add our tuppence worth, my girlfriend and I are coming to Virginia Beach in June and are counting the days.

We were in Myrtle Beach last year (really loved it) and Hilton Head (not as enjoyable)so it will be interesting to compare.I just know we%26#39;re in for a good time.