The Atlas Obscura Guide To Virginia
320 Cool, Hidden, and Unusual Things to Do in Virginia
Updated May 22, 2025
Cities
Top Cities
All Cities
- Alexandria
- Arlington
- Bedford
- Bluemont
- Brandy Station
- Bristol
- Burke
- Centreville
- Charles City
- Charlottesville
- Fairfax
- Fairfax Station
- Falls Church
- Fort Belvoir
- Fredericksburg
- Front Royal
- Great Falls
- Herndon
- Leesburg
- Lexington
- Lorton
- Lynchburg
- Manassas
- Mc Lean
- Natural Bridge
- Newport News
- Norfolk
- Petersburg
- Portsmouth
- Richmond
- Roanoke
- Smithfield
- Springfield
- Staunton
- Sterling
- Vienna
- Virginia Beach
- Warsaw
- White Post
- Williamsburg
- Winchester
- Wytheville
- Yorktown
Unusual Attractions in Virginia
Cool Places to Eat & Drink in Virginia
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Unforgettable Experiences Nearby
Atlas Obscura Itineraries
The Explorer’s Guide to Road Tripping Around Appalachia
The world still doesn’t quite know what to make of Appalachia. The mountainous, multi-state region has long been defined both by mystery and misconceptions. In many ways, it’s been America’s shadow since the nation’s birth. Early settlers fretted about American Indian tribes, dark hollows, and looming wilderness in the 1600s and 1700s, while modern folks tend to worry more about the environmental degradation and concentration of Trump voters. Yet, Appalachia is much like America as a whole—it sprawls from south to north across several states, spawning local cultures marked as much by their diversity and differences than what they have in common. And these mountains are old. Rocks formed during the Precambrian era have been found in some places. Parts of the Appalachian Mountains are thought to be even older than Saturn’s rings, and millennia of erosion have given rise to one of the richest temperate ecosystems in the world. This diverse bioregion has become home to a melting pot of culture. Archaeological findings indicate that American Indian tribes inhabited the region 20,000 years ago. The first Europeans arrived in the 1500s, when Spanish conquistadors ventured up from what is now Florida. English and French settlers followed, establishing a general pattern that continues into the present: Newcomers bring their cultural traditions into the region, where they are absorbed into the greater whole.

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wants to go to Laurel Hill House
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wants to go to Nike Missile Control Site N-85
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has been to The Palisades Restaurant
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has been to Floyd Country Store