Williamsburg Transportation

When I parked my car at the parking lot, we first went to the Visitors Center to buy tickets and get some info and the map.

Then we took the shuttle which went from the southeastern part of the building every 5 - 15 minutes. The blue line bus, on my picture, took us close to the Governor's Palace which took a few minutes. Alternatively, we could walk through the footbridge and marked path which would take us the same time.

There are two lines of the shuttle:
- Blue Line is the loop line which goes around the Colonial Willimasburg with 7 stops daily 9.00 am - 10.00 pm and it starts/ends by the Visitors Center from 5.00 pm to 10.00 pm only with the first stop close to the Governor's Palace,
- Red Line goes from the Visitors Center to the Governor's Palace and back daily 8.50 am - 5.00 pm only.


Each line is free for holders of any valid ticket to the Colonial Williamsburg.

The historic area of colonial Williamsburg include over 500 historic houses but it is only about 1 mile (1.6 km) long and half a mile (0.8 km) wide. It's mostly closed for motor traffic but open for bicycles and resgistered carriages drawn by horses.

AXIS OF COLONIAL WILLIAMSBURG
We were walking along the main avenue and east-west axis of the colonial Williamsburg, the Duke of Gloucester Street, on my picture. Most of tourist attractions are located along, only the Governor's Palace is placed a little bit north. There is the Capitol at the eastern and Wren Building at the western end of the streeet. There is a shuttle bus stop and Merchants Square full of colonial stores before the westernmost Wren Building.
Follow the link below and tour the town with flash player.

The compact area of colonial Williamsburg (approx. 1.0 - 1.5 mile) is mostly closed for motor traffic and small enough to walk around. Anyway, I found a few visitors riding a bycicle there.

Personally I think that riding a bicycle around Williamsburg is not the best option but not because of possible bike thefts - the area is upclass and very safe - but because of probably high price for renting a bicycle, short enough distances to walk and free for ticket holders shuttle buses which drive around the historic colonial town. Bicycle is good option for visitors who want to visit neighborhoods and surroundings of Williamsburg like for example James River Plantations in Charles City.

You may hire a two-horse deawn carriage (for up to 6 persons) with a costumed coachman for a tour around Colonial Williamsburg. We arrived at the early afternoon and they were all sold out. Sometimes they are available just after opening. Anyway, my recommendation is to book a carriage a day before the visit. Call (free from the USA): 1-800-history. Ask them about the price and a type of carriage available (covered in rainy weather).

We didn't think seriously about a carriage tour because it's expensive (we already spent $45.00 per person) and not worth the price especially that we were a gropu of 3 (not 6). We preferred to walk around to get closer to small and large miracles of the colonial city. Besides, despite the jetlag, we were able to walk it and keep up with Nat. The historic area is only about 1 mile (1.6 km) long and half a mile (0.8 km) wide. When you do walk, the horses leave little fragrant patties in the roadway to remember them by, so mind the step!

There are maps put in right many places of the Colonial Williamsburg. The first one I found was put by my parking lot. Keep in mind that there are many huge parking lots located on one level around the entrance to the Colonial Williamsburg. No wonder, there are over 4,000,000 visitors each year of which most get there by car.

Thanks the red sign "YOU ARE HERE" I easy found my way to the Visitor Center which was marked on the map by red-dotted line. We got the information leaflets and bought tickets (the key-to-the-city package for $45 each) in the Visitor Center :-).

Cars are not permitted into the colonial area, however we did drive through part of it, in a permissible area during the evening.

The shuttle bus from the visitor's centre is your best choice to get there if you dont fancy the walk. The bus stops are I think more or less on the outskirts of the colonial area.

Travelling between Richmond and Norfolk on I64 - exit 238.

There are green and white signs to the Visitors Centre.

Some buildings are not open every day there is a time table telling you what is open and can be obtained from the visitor's centre or online.

For a Christmas gift to each other, my husband and I decided to take a train trip to Williamsburg. We left Harrisburg, PA at 9AM and changed trains in Philadelphia and arrived Williamsburg at 6PM. Not the fastest means of travel but since it was a bright sunny day the trip was a delight for a change.