Backroads of America: Vintage Virginia: FULL – Call for waitlist!

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The very best that historic and beautiful Virginia has to offer presented in R & J Tours unique backroads style!

Our next destination to explore in our Backroads of America series is Vintage Virginia. This historic path through the Virginias will perhaps take us through more history than any backroads journey thus far. We will tour more museums, homes of former presidents, old historic buildings, and old, old towns and cities. Much of what we will experience will take us back to “the way it was,” the very foundation of our country.  If you love history, historic main streets, beautiful rolling countryside and largely undisturbed, peaceful landscapes, do come along with us on this journey to a time in our history that was for the most part charming, uncomplicated, and full of excitement, both tragic and otherwise. Walk with us in the footsteps of our forefathers that paved the way for us and our future.  Virginia is full of small towns, authentic Americana such as local diners, soda fountains, quaint B&B’s, and a nostalgic vibe that takes away everyday stresses and transports visitors to a simpler time. When you visit Virginia’s historic downtowns, you can almost hear the echoes of historic events that took place on the cobblestone streets or in historic buildings where architecture is pristinely preserved.  Virginia is an American history icon with hundreds of sites that date back to the first permanent English settlement at Jamestown, and cover every important period of American history from 1607 to the present. Step into the homes of patriots, presidents, and solders. Visit the sites where major moments in American history were immortalized.  We will explore this beloved state the way it should be done, via the backroads.  There really is nothing in our country more Vintage than Virginia!

Day 1 – Home to Bloomington, IL

Welcome aboard! It’s a travel day today. Enjoy the color of Wisconsin as we journey to Bloomington, IL. Lunch and dinner is on your own at convenient locations.

Hotel: Holiday Inn Express 

Day 2 – Bloomington to Ashland, KY

Included breakfast at our hotel this morning before we depart for another travel day. More great scenery unfolds outside our windows as we travel across Illinois and central Indiana. Crossing the beautiful Ohio River, our chosen route across north eastern Kentucky is the John Brown Parkway, one of the most pleasant drives in the country, especially this time of year. Enjoy our Welcome Dinner this evening, anticipating the adventure that begins in the morning.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner 

Hotel: Holiday Inn Express 

Day 3 – Ashland to Roanoke, WV

Breakfast is conveniently served at our hotel. We don’t mind our early departure because we are soon boarding the New River Train. This world-renowned train excursion through the beautiful New River Gorge in southern West Virginia, is one of the newest national parklands, the “Grand Canyon of the East” along the New River, is majestic and breathtaking with fall colors. The train traverses the former Chesapeake & Ohio mainline from Huntington, WV to Hinton, WV, allowing for a front-row seat to some of the most spectacular scenery in the country. Landmarks and scenic locations on the route include downtown Charleston and the State Capitol building, Kanawha Falls, Hawks Nest Dam and bridge, the famous New River Gorge Bridge, Stretcher Neck Tunnel, Sandstone Falls, and numerous historic towns from the New River’s rich coal mining era. We arrive in the classic small mountain valley village of Hinton just in time to enjoy the Railroad Days Festival and lunch on your own. Our motorcoach meets us and we really get our “backroads” adventure underway as we wind our way along the river valleys of West Virginia and across the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia to Salem and Roanoke. Enjoy our scrumptious dinner at Shaker’s, while reflecting on the delights of the day.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner 

Hotel: Best Western Plus – Valley View 

Day 4 – Roanoke to Petersburg, VA

Following breakfast we traverse the backroads through the foothills to gorgeous Smith Mountain Lake and the Booker T. Washington National Monument. Booker T. was born in slavery on this 207-acre tobacco farm. Visitors are invited to step back in time and experience firsthand the life and landscape of people who lived in an era when slavery was part of the fabric of American life. Lynchburg is our next destination where we have an opportunity to view Liberty University, one of America’s premier Christian Universities as well as founder Jerry Falwell’s Thomas Road Baptist Church’s new 6,000 seat Worship Center. Sunday lunch is included at the Depot Grille in the historic downtown area. A short distance away is Appomattox. Conveniently located in the “Heart of Virginia,” Appomattox invites us to experience the timeless, charming appeal of small town America and the Appomattox Court House National Historic Park, forever written on the pages of Civil War History. Highway 460 rolls its way across the appealing countryside of the “Heartland of Virginia,” through the little known hamlets of Prospect, Farmville, Wilsons, Ford and Sutherland to Petersburg, our destination for the night. Genuine Virginia Bar-B-Q awaits us this evening at King’s award winning restaurant.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Hotel: Holiday Inn Express 

Day 5 – Petersburg to Willamsburg, VA

First thing this morning a local expert step-on guide joins us for an escorted tour of Petersburg, a unique city at the crossroads of American history. Scores of historic and architecturally significant structures are located in Old Towne Petersburg, famous most recently as the filming site for many scenes in the movie “Lincoln.” According to location manager Colleen Gibbons, “one thing that attracted the filmmakers to the city was the 180-degree vista of historic structures” which is “very rare.” Following the tour, we are treated to lunch at The Brickhouse Run, a friendly and welcoming British pub and restaurant in a historic 190 year old building in Old Towne Petersburg. Traveling the back roads, we take Route 36 through the little settlement of Hopewell, crossing the James River via the Benjamin Harrison Bridge on our way to the Shirley Plantation. Four hundred years old as of 2013, it was Virginia’s very first plantation and is known to be the most intact plantation of the Colonial era. Departing Shirley we take the scenic byway, Route 5, along the James River on our way to Williamsburg. We relax in comfort the next two evenings at the Homewood Suites.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner (at Homewood)

Hotel: Homewood Suites (2 Nights) 

Day 6 – Colonial Williamsburg

Homewood Suites is well known for its full hot breakfast, much appreciated before the exciting full day we have in store. Colonial Williamsburg is the most elaborately restored and reconstructed colonial site in America. Meet the tradespeople, shopkeepers, political figures, women, and the enslaved that call Williamsburg home. Learn of their hopes, struggles, and fears in these uncertain times. As you explore the challenges of daily life set against the backdrop of revolution, get caught up in the historic moments taking place around you. You are part of a living, breathing colonial village. Enjoy lunch at an authentic period eating establishment of your choice. Following lunch we travel the Colonial Parkway a short distance to the Jamestown Settlement, the “beginning of America.” This little island looks almost the way it did when those 3 small ships landed in the new world. Tethered at the shoreline are replicas of the Susan Constant, the Godspeed and the Discovery and visitors are welcome aboard the 110’ Susan Constant, where “colonials” in knee-britches are happy to explain what it was like to cross the Atlantic in such a “ship.” Nearby we make a stop at the Jamestown Glasshouse, observing skilled artisans in colonial muslin shirts stoking the beehive kilns and blowing glass the old way, twisting their blowpipes into the molten glass, then blowing and turning the fiery globs into shapely green vessels and vases. Enjoy dinner and another relaxing evening at our lovely hotel.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner (at Homewood) 

Day 7 – Williamsburg to Fredericksburg, VA

Today we journey the Colonial Parkway again to Historic Yorktown, on to Tappahannock, and finally to Fredericksburg. Almost 300 years old, Fredericksburg is one of the most vibrant historic cities in America. Enjoy lunch along mainstreet before we embark on a fascinating, narrated trolley tour with more historically significant sites within a few blocks than is possible anywhere else in this country. Next is Ferry Farm, George Washington’s Boyhood Home and the site of such legendary stories as “I cannot tell a lie” Cherry Tree fame and “throwing a silver dollar across the Potomac River” (which, we learn, was actually the Rappahannock.) Generous time here will help you appreciate these “timeless treasures” of our heritage. Dinner is on your own this evening at very convenient restaurants near our hotel.

Included Meals: Breakfast

Hotel: Holiday Express Southpoint 

Day 8 – Fredericksburg to Orange, VA

Appropriately, the story of our first President continues this morning as we are privileged guests at George Washington’s Mount Vernon. Humbly but regally overlooking the beautiful Potomac, this 250 year old home of the beloved “father of our country,” is one of America’s most revered shrines. As part of this unforgettable experience, we enjoy lunch in the warm hospitality of the Mount Vernon Inn hosted by a familiar “character” of Washington’s day. Just a short distance down the road we visit Washington’s Old Gristmill before more back roads travel to our destination for tonight: Orange, VA. Here we discovered one of the most serenely located hotels we’ve ever seen. It’s another Holiday Inn Express but the setting is simply stunning overlooking the rolling countryside of the Blue Ridge foothills. Dinner this evening is “backroads friendly” at a quaint, local main street establishment.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Hotel: Holiday Inn Express 

Day 9 – Orange to Charlottesville, VA

This incredible day begins with a delightful morning view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Just a few minutes away we are making our approach to Montpelier, home to President James Madison, Father of the Constitution and Architect of the Bill of Rights, and Dolley Madison, America’s first “First Lady.” Montpelier offers 2,650 acres of rolling hills, spacious horse pastures, and spectacular views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. We’ll have a guided tour of the mansion and time to enjoy the gardens and grounds. Lunch is included at Michie Tavern where we will “Get A Taste of the 18th Century.” The tavern has welcomed guests for over 200 years, offering homemade southern fare from 1784 in a truly authentic setting. Just around the corner and over the hill is Monticello, the mountaintop home of Thomas Jefferson, third president of the United States and author of the Declaration of Independence. This incredible, iconic place is one of the most cherished and visited locations in all of America. Again, just a few miles away is Ashlawn-Highland, the home of President James Monroe, the Founding Father who fought in the Revolution, negotiated the Louisiana Purchase, and issued the Monroe Doctrine. Ashlawn-Highland is a classic working plantation atmosphere and rounds out our four amazing historical experiences of the day.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Hotel: Hampton Inn

Day 10 – Charlottesville to Staunton, VA

Just when you think your scenic senses can’t handle much more, our drive this morning will prove it can only get better! We cruise the first 45 miles of the northern stretch of the Blue Ridge Parkway at what is historically the peak of autumn colors, making a few scenic overlook stops for those keepsake pictures. Descending from the Parkway we begin to get glimpses of our destination for the next day and a half, that legendary place called the Shenandoah Valley. Lexington, where we enjoy lunch at another local eatery, is the first of many small towns we will explore as we travel famous Hwy 11 through the valley. The Shenandoah Valley is well known for its vineyards and wineries. We have selected to visit the charming Rockbridge Vineyards for its casual & relaxing atmosphere, breathtaking views, and award-winning fare. Nearby we discover McCormick Farm, the home of Cyrus McCormick and his first Mechanical Reaper. At this peaceful National Historic Landmark, we are welcome to tour the blacksmith shop, gristmill, workshop, family home and pastoral scenic sites. Downtown Staunton, well known for its historic architecture, is where we discover the life and legacy of Woodrow Wilson at his birthplace, museum, and research library, which is the only presidential library in Virginia. Our restful home tonight is here in Staunton, with dinner on our own at restaurants nearby.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch

Hotel: Hampton Inn 

Day 11 – Staunton, VA to Winchester, VA

We spend the entire day traversing the Valley Highway on our way to Winchester. Just a few highlights of the day include Meems Bottom Covered Bridge, James Madison University, New Market Battlefield, the Southern Kitchen for Sunday dinner, Old Town Winchester, and the home of Patsy Cline. The Shenandoah Valley in all its Autumn splendor is our “stomping grounds” on this special day!

Included Meals: Breakfast, Sunday Dinner

Hotel: Hampton Inn 

Day 12 – Winchester to Sugarcreek, OH

As we depart this morning we will soon bid farewell to Virginia but not to the incredible seasonal beauty that unfolds as we make our way through northern West Virginia, western Maryland, southwestern Pennsylvania and into Ohio. Interstate 68, named The National Freeway, is some of the most gorgeous freeway mileage in the country. US 40, The National Road, adds to our memorable travel experiences for today. We abide in comfort and style this evening at the Carlisle Inn in the heart of Amsih Country in Sugarcreek, Ohio, while our awesome included dinner is at Dutch Valley Restaurant right at the village. You’ll be looking for a little more packing space to take home some of their delightful homemade products.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Hotel: Carlisle Inn 

Day 13 – Sugarcreek to St. Charles, IL

Travel day today through Ohio and Northern Indiana as we make our way to St. Charles, IL. Dinner is included this evening at wonderful Sweet Tomatoes.

Included Meals: Breakfast, Dinner

Hotel: Hampton Inn

Day 14 – Sugarcreek to Home

More travel today, mostly through Wisconsin, as we observe the contrast of the brilliant fall color we witnessed when we left 13 days earlier with the “fading glory” we are viewing today. We share our farewell meal together at one of our long-time favorite spots, Burnstad’s, in Tomah. What an extraordinary journey through vintage Virginia we’ve had!

Included Meals: Breakfast, Lunch