Hanging out on this beach in October made me feel like I'd somehow stolen a secret summer. The…read moreweather was lovely, the sand was perfect, and the water was balmy. I refuse to comment on whether or not I ignore warning signs. ps. Sunset here is lovely too!

If you go to the waterfront of Cape Charles, but you've neglected to bring your swimsuit, just kick…read moreoff your shoes on the clean white sand, roll up your pants, and wade out about 100 feet. The slope of the beach is very gradual, the water temp in mid-October was fabulous, and there was only the occasional dog walker. Some big rocks are good to lay on, if you are the type to ignore warning signs (you know who you are!)

It's a strange thing to try to put a Yelp rating to, because this is a small park. When they say…read moreonly eight parking spots and nowhere else in the area to park or access the trails, they mean it. And when you hit the beach, you'll struggle to walk far in either direction amongst the driftwood. It was maybe a little over an hour visit for me, and maybe you could push it a little more if you did all the side trails. But I guess the thing for me is that I don't really have any desire to see them do anything different with the space. While much of the shoreline is developed or inaccessible, this area offers a fascinating variety of landscapes. The flora shift dramatically and suddenly, and you don't need signage to tell you where one zone ends and another begins. The diversion off of the main highway is not a huge one, and it is an interesting and worthwhile site.

Full disclosure. We weren't able to fully experience this area because sunset was already…read morehappening. If coming from downtown Cape Charles, the parking lot will be on your right. Look for the kiosk sign, it's a small dirt parking lot. It's easy to miss if you don't pay attention. The lot is said to house 8 cars. Trails are not paved and consist of a mixture of dirt, root laden and sand terrain. There is a small boardwalk to cross on one of the trails that leads to beach access that veers to the right. The trail that leads to the right is roughly Half a mile to slightly a 3/4 mile to the beach. I recommend wearing shoes and not flip flops. I did have shoes on. The starting trails have plenty of shade. We only took one of the three trails due to limited time and it was dark by the time we made it back. They do close the gate by sunset. I happened to be too busy looking at my phone on the way back and actually walked right into the gate. If you do go to catch the sunset, make sure you give yourself at least 10-15 minutes to get back or else you will be stuck using your cellphone flashlight to find your way back or maybe bring a headlight just in case. Also, I didn't have cellphone service, so make sure if you visit in the evening, that you let people know of your whereabouts, prior to heading out in case of an emergency. On the website they say there are no bathrooms, but I happened to see a port a potty on one part of the trail. It looks like a nice place to take walks and explore. I would like to go back and check out the other trails.

I just had a wonderful experience with Ray (I think that is his name?) from Poseidon…read moreWatersports/bike rentals. My daughter's bike chain broke. Poseidon is the closest bike-related outfit we found in Cape Charles. Even though we didn't rent the bike from Poseidon, Ray went right to work to repair the chain. Most of the links in his toolbox were sized for beach rentals and too wide for my daughter's bike chain; nonetheless, Ray engineered a solution on the spot. After a few adjustments the chain engaged smoothly thru the gears. The bike now rides beautifully! Ray did not expect payment for his kind service, even though he spent considerable time with the repair. Ray was determined to find a fix, even though I interrupted his lunch and he was also preparing a boat for an afternoon outing. Of course I insisted on compensating! This experience makes me so happy and grateful to have encountered such a good, helpful, and talented person as Ray!

We've been renting pontoons from Raven for several years and we always really enjoy the experience…read more Raven is an expert in the waterways around Cape Charles and he is very thoughtful about suggesting excursions that will make your rental time as much fun for your group as possible. We highly recommend!

Nice small trail not much parking but enjoyable good view of the woods saw a deer squirrel lots of…read morewildlife very nice secluded little noisy from the factory next-door but overall pretty nice

Round up to 3.5 stars If you have to cross the CBBT like us…read moreand pay the hefty toll, I would tack on other places to check out while in Cape Charles. It's not an extensive area as I had thought with lots of access. I would say it would take 30 minutes to explore the area. Maybe 45 minutes to an hour if you just want to sit for a while and look at the overlooks from the boardwalk of the bay. The boardwalk to the right dead ends to the beach, and then if you back track there is another boardwalk that leads to another dead end that overlooks the woods with a partial view of the water. The trails to the right are shaded. But the ones to the left are more open but still surrounded by trees. There are three access points via the boardwalk on the left of the sign. If you have a wheelchair or knee scooter or stroller it may be better to access the boardwalk right in front of the Fuji film building since it's paved from the street. However the access point to the left from the park sign has a dirt path before you reach the boardwalk. All the boardwalks to the left do not connect directly to one another. One has to go to another dirt path to reach the other parts. Bring bug spray. The lot is small. There are two places where you can park. One is in front of the sign that can hold two cars and then adjacent to that a spot that can hold another two cars. It's a nice quiet tucked away area to take a short walk. We went across the street to see if there was more to it. We didn't think the area across the street is part of it, so we didn't head that way. It didn't seem to be a part of it? Not sure. Definitely don't go to the end of the street. We thought for sure it was part of the preserve, but there was a sign that was clearly marked PRIVATE PROPERTY no trespassing, so we turned around. We didn't see much wildlife at the preserve, except a ghost crab on the beach and one squirrel. Unfortunately, we ended up seeing a deceased fawn. :-( It looked like it had just recently passed away and was still intact.

This was our family's first trip to Sun Outdoors Virginia. We originally booked an 8-night stay but…read moredecided to leave a day early because we had run out of things to do. The campground is in a fairly secluded location, so entertainment options are limited, especially on hot days. Cape Charles is about 15 minutes away and is a quaint, charming town with a few boutiques and three ice cream shops. Many of the shops and restaurants have limited hours, and the dining options tend to be more upscale than family-friendly, which made it a little harder to find meals that appealed to our younger kids. Virginia Beach is about an hour away if you're looking for more activities, but keep in mind you'll pay about $15 each way to cross the bridge-tunnel, adding roughly $30 in tolls to every round trip. The campground itself is very large. Our kids loved the pools, although they close at 8:00 p.m. The jumping pillows were also a big hit, but they have very little shade, making them difficult to enjoy during the hottest part of the day. They also close at 8:00 p.m. The private beach is a nice feature. Since it's on the bay, the water is shallow and calm with no waves, making it great for younger children. However, the beach could benefit from more regular grooming. There was quite a bit of debris in the sand, and daily raking like many public beaches do would make a noticeable improvement. One concern we had was the lack of rule enforcement. Staff members were frequently driving around in golf carts, but we rarely saw them addressing unsafe behavior. There were many clearly underage kids driving golf carts and riding around at high speeds with little regard for pedestrians or cyclists. My husband was nearly hit by an intoxicated golf cart driver while riding his bike, and my son was knocked completely off his bike by a child on a motor scooter. We also witnessed a group of young girls parked beside the pool fence openly smoking marijuana. While I don't expect an overly strict campground, a greater focus on safety would have made us feel much more comfortable. Our campsite was clean, level, and well maintained. One thing we found odd was that there were no fire rings. It appeared they may have been removed, which led many campers to create their own fire pits directly on their sites. That didn't seem like the safest solution. Depending on your site's location, mosquitoes and other bugs can also be quite bad, particularly near taller grass or standing water. The multiple dog parks were a nice amenity. However, one of the waste bag stations remained empty until our sixth day, and many owners apparently didn't bring their own bags. As a result, there was quite a bit of dog waste left throughout the park. We also noticed several people leaving their dogs unattended inside the dog parks while they returned to their campsites. The on-site café was convenient and offered a good option for grabbing a meal without having to cook, especially during the hottest part of the day. Overall, we enjoyed our stay at Sun Outdoors Virginia, and I would still recommend it to others, particularly families with younger children looking for a relaxing camping trip. For our family, though, we found ourselves getting bored after about five days due to the limited nearby attractions. If we return to the area, we'd likely choose a campground closer to Virginia Beach where there are more activities to keep the kids entertained.

We had an amazing first stay at Sun Outdoors Cape Charles…read more From the moment we arrived, the staff welcomed us and made sure we had a great trip. The greeting we received from the friendly bearded gentlemen at the gate station set the positive tone and made us smile. The sites are relatively flat and took minimal effort to level our camper. Good water pressure and a solid Wi-Fi signal. Our initial site had a view of the pond and the bay. Unfortunately, there was a small electrical issue the first morning of our visit. I called maintenance and within three minutes they arrived and began trouble shooting the issue. Very friendly and professional. The team (Cody & Steve) worked to identify the issue (faulty breaker inside the travel trailer parked beside us). We understood their frustration and offered to move sites if that would work. The team quickly got us a new site in a different loop and within 30 minutes we were packed and set up on the new site, which had amazing views of the bay. The maintenance team stopped back that evening and the next day to check on us, which was very impressive. Amenities were great from the adult only pool beside the water and the family pools to the fun activities planned each day. The general store was well stocked and the café had a nice range of menu items, including huge scoops of Hershey's ice cream. The only minor minus we encountered is the bayside beach is lackluster and not inviting to lounge on, but the pool made up for that. There is a shuttle that will take you into town and runs on a regular/as needed basis. Walt is the man in the shuttle and is more of your personal tour guide. Give him a call and he will take you where you need to go! Overall, it was an amazing visit and we will definitely be back and hope to see the amazing staff again next year.

This is a very nice and well-maintained fishing pier. It snakes out for quite a while and gives…read moreyou a gorgeous view of the beach and inlet. It's located at the end of the Main Street in town where there is plenty of street parking along both sides of the street and where there are public restrooms and a cute "LOVE"-themed photo op. We always walk down here and enjoy walking to the end where there is a covered gazebo with some seating if you want to sit and enjoy the water for a while with shade.

Full disclosure: I didn't fish here, but while in Cape Charles, I enjoyed driving the golf cart up…read morehere and taking in the views. The fishing pier is located at the end Randolph Street of the small downtown. It has a well-groomed walking path to the pier, a few picnic tables and a very sweet Little Free Library. The walking path is like a wooden deck but has sand on it, so don't wear your favorite shoes. The grounds are clean and offer a quaint view of the Bay. Coming from Cleveland, it took me by surprise to see water with no waves. Apparently this part of the Bay is waveless. It was so nice to see families staked out on the pier trying to catch local fish. Worth a stop if you're cruising around Cape Charles or taking a walk!

My happy place. This place is filled with personal touches and the owners are amazing. Its not…read morejust a tiny house, its a whole experience. From the fire pit, to the music in the summer to trips into town, its a go to vacation for me.

My husband and I spent last weekend at Cape Charles Tiny Livin in the Mermaid house and we…read moreabsolutely loved it. They are located about 6 minutes from downtown Cape Charles, easy to find, and we received an email and text with all the info we needed for our stay including wifi, check-in and out time, policy on pets (they are welcome in certain homes only) and the code for the door. Everything is well-loved and taken care of here. Our room was tiny, but included a full bathroom with shower, a sitting area with a TV, wifi, a small kitchenette with coffee provided and a small fridge and microwave with a sink and full assortment of kitchen items like bowls, plates, silverware, etc. We spent most of our time in town walking, shopping and eating, but the owners are always on site, very personable and friendly, and always have a fire going in the main area at night to hang out if you'd like to socialize. The bed was super comfy, the room was spotless and well appointed with towels, soap, toilet paper, etc. We didn't want for anything and it was easygoing and stress free the entire weekend! I couldn't speak highly enough about this gem. So cute. They do have a small venue area for micro weddings or events, I could see renting this out for your small wedding and everyone gets their own little house for the weekend, how cute!

I have taken several trips with Burnham Guides and all have been outstanding. The trips have been…read moreprofessionally organized, with special attention to safety and the skills & interests of the customers. Bill and Mary have a wealth of information on the history and ecology of the shore, I learn something new each trip I take. I highly recommend as an excellent way to experience the Eastern Shore.

Fantastic guides with a wealth of knowledge and personal experience. Every detail is well thought…read moreout and taken care of. I completed the Costa Rica Trip and it was fantastic. I highly recommend Bill and Mary.​

This was a great experience and I can't wait to come back and do other trips with them…read more Kevin was very friendly and helpful. He knows a lot about the Great Dismal Swamp and its history and wildlife, which made the trip even more interesting.

Fantastic experience! Friendly tour guides brought us nose to nose with the natural wonders of…read moresoutheastern Virginia. Three hours of fun in the cypress wetlands and rivers of Virginia Beach. Witnessed numerous osprey, turtles, herons, fish and other wildlife. Boats were stable, water-free and easy to use. Basic instruction provided at the beginning of the tour. Guide was both friendly and an expert waterman. Highly recommended!