Hunt Club Farm Pumpkin season in Hampton Roads isn't on its way. It's already here. Three of the region's busiest farms opened their fall seasons in the span of four days last week, and the weekend lineup for October is filling up fast. Whether you want a full-day festival with pony rides and a petting farm, a quiet country store with a smokehouse out back, or a corn maze that doubles as a history quiz, the 757 has a patch for every kind of fall person. Here are six worth put

Old Dominion University just locked in $250 million for a single building, the largest capital investment the school has ever made. And it isn't another lecture hall. The new Engineering and Arts Building will put robotics labs and an 800-seat performance hall under the same roof in Norfolk, bringing together two colleges that have always operated on separate sides of campus. It's timed to open as ODU turns 100, and it says a lot about where the university, and the city aroun

If crossing the water is part of your weekend routine, October is the month to double-check your route before you leave the driveway. The Virginia Department of Transportation is repaving the roadway inside the existing Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel tubes, and the work requires a full directional closure. That means one side of the HRBT will shut down completely from Friday night through early Monday morning on select weekends this month. For a region where "which side of the w

Virginia Beach just got a new reason to skip the usual dinner rotation. Nativa Bistro is now open on Holland Road, serving Peruvian cooking with Amazonian roots, a full cocktail program built around pisco, and a dining room designed for lingering. For a region that already loves its seafood, a restaurant built around ceviche and citrus feels like a natural fit. What Is Nativa Bistro? Nativa describes itself as a Peruvian restaurant rooted in the Amazon rainforest, with a menu

Every parent in the 757 knows the feeling. The forecast says rain, the kids have energy to burn, and the list of places that can handle both gets short fast. Virginia Beach is about to get a new answer. Safari Fun Park is slated to open in 2026 at 2058 S. Independence Boulevard, in the shopping center next to Target, just off I-264 at Exit 17A. It's billed as the city's newest indoor family entertainment center, and instead of doing one thing well, it's built to do five. What

Image Courtesy of Work Program Architects (WPA) A century-old rail yard on Hampton Boulevard is turning into one of Norfolk's most talked-about places to eat, drink, and spend a Saturday. The Railyard at Lambert's Point is reworking a cluster of historic warehouses and depot buildings, some dating back to the 1920s, into a walkble mix of coffee shops, breweries, restaurants, and entertainment, all while keeping the bones of the old buildings intact. What Is the Railyard at La

Main Street in Town Center just got a little busier, and it's not because of another restaurant. Abercrombie & Fitch opened its doors at Town Center of Virginia Beach on September 1, and it's already turning into one of the more talked-about additions to the district this year. What's actually there now? The new store sits at 4537 Main Street, in a roughly 5,000-square-foot space that had sat vacant since earlier this year. According to the brand's own store locator, this is

Image courtesy of Pembroke Square Associates If you grew up shopping at Pembroke Mall, the property at the corner of Virginia Beach Boulevard and Independence Boulevard doesn't look like much of anything you remember anymore. The old mall is gone, and in its place is a $200 million redevelopment called Pembroke Square that's turning one of Virginia Beach's most familiar addresses into a live-stay-dine-and-be-entertained destination. The project has been years in the making, f

Courtesy of Cushman & Wakefield l Thalhimer If you've driven past the corner of Shore Drive and Pleasant Avenue in Norfolk lately, you've probably noticed something different. East Beach Square, the shopping center long known as East Beach Shoppes has spent the last year and a half getting a serious makeover, and the new lineup of businesses moving in is turning it into one of East Ocean View's most anticipated neighborhood hubs. What's changing at East Beach Square? Local de

Courtesy of the city of Virginia Beach + WHRO Change may be on the way for one of Virginia Beach's most scenic corridors. The Virginia Beach Planning Commission has recommended approval of a mixed-use development along Shore Drive, just across from Pleasure House Point Natural Area and the proposal is already generating plenty of conversation among neighbors. What's being proposed? The plan calls for 52 for-sale condominiums along with up to 2,500 square feet of commercial sp

There's a lot of talk about "the biggest investment in Hampton Roads history," and for once, the number actually backs it up. LS Cable & System, a South Korea-based manufacturer, is planning an $689 million advanced materials complex just off Volvo Parkway in Chesapeake's Greenbrier area practically next door to Dollar Tree's corporate headquarters. If it goes the way officials are describing it, it won't just be a factory. It'll be a marker for how fast this corner of the 75

There's a new spot in Great Neck making mornings feel a little more worth getting up for. June's Daytime opened this summer at 1328 N. Great Neck Road, Suite 104, tucked into one of Virginia Beach's most established neighborhoods and it didn't take long for the line to form. Breakfast, lunch, and a pastry case full of things baked on-site before sunrise: it's the kind of place that makes you rearrange your whole weekend around a reservation-free breakfast spot. Who's behind i

Rendering courtesy of Work Program Architects (WPA) There's a stretch of downtown Newport News where the boats come in before sunrise, where crabbers have been working the same water for generations, and where the smell of the harbor still means something. Soon, it's also going to be a place where you can grab a beer, watch the fleet unload, and pick up dinner straight off the dock. The Newport News Seafood Industrial Park — SIP, to the people who work there, is in the middle

Virginia Beach has a new Mexican spot on Laskin Road, and it's already becoming the kind of place locals build a night around. Condesa Bar & Cocina Mexicana opened at 1824 Laskin Rd, tucked into the Hilltop North Shopping Center just off one of Virginia Beach's busiest restaurant corridors. From the street level, it reads like a solid neighborhood Mexican spot. Head upstairs, though, and the energy shifts entirely. What makes Condesa different is what's happening upstairs. Th

If you've ever wondered why so many families put down roots in Hampton Roads, the school district is usually near the top of the list. A new WalletHub study just gave that instinct some hard data behind it. Virginia ranked 6th in the nation for best public school systems, part of an annual report that compares all 50 states and Washington, D.C. across more than 30 measures of academic quality and school safety. Virginia posted an overall score of 60.51 out of 100, landing at

Some neighborhoods make you drive between destinations. Virginia Beach's ViBe Creative District isn't one of them. Along a short stretch of 19th Street and Virginia Beach Boulevard, three local favorites cover an entire morning's itinerary coffee, brunch, and dessert all within an easy walk of each other. Coffee First: Three Ships Coffee Roasters Start at Three Ships Coffee Roasters, tucked into 607 19th Street in the heart of the district. The shop began as a home-roasting p

If you've been half-watching the Virginia Beach housing market from the sidelines, it might be time to start paying closer attention. The city's real estate scene has stayed remarkably resilient this year, even as national headlines describe a market that's cooling off. The Numbers Behind the Headlines According to Realtor.com's most recent local market data, Virginia Beach's median listing price climbed to $482,500 in April, up 10.5% year-over-year. Homes are also moving fas

Every so often, a national ranking comes along that simply confirms what people who live here already know. This is one of those times. WalletHub's 2026 report on the Best Cities to Raise a Family placed Chesapeake at No. 31 out of more than 180 cities nationwide a top-tier finish that puts the city in rare company among America's most family-friendly places to call home. How the Ranking Works WalletHub didn't just ask people how they feel about their city, the personal finan

There's a new reason to slow down on Shore Drive. Foodies The Local Market, the Virginia Beach market known for gourmet sandwiches, made-from-scratch meals, and a genuine devotion to local farmers and makers, has officially opened its second location at 2973 Shore Dr, Unit 113. A Sneak Peek Before the Doors Opened We got an early look at this location before it opened to the public. Foodies hosted a "Foodies After Dark" preview event ahead of the grand opening, and the evenin

Virginia Beach is officially on the world's radar. The New York Times named our coastal city one of its "52 Places to Go in 2026," landing at No. 50 on a list that otherwise reads like a passport's wish list — Warsaw, the Seychelles, Iceland, Bangkok. For a city best known to outsiders as a summer beach town, it's a different kind of recognition: proof that Virginia Beach has become a place people plan a trip around, not just a stop on the way to somewhere else. Why did the T