This neighborhood art event happens every year twice per year - once in May and once again in…read moreOctober for a weekend filled with art, food, and music. A few years ago I went to the May festival and yesterday enjoyed it on a beautiful and sunny October day with perfect weather and a light breeze. There are so many artists here and so many interesting items to see. It spans the entire three sections of Stockley Gardens in the middle of the neighborhood near The Hague St. Luke's Episcopal Church. There are some food vendors (I saw around 6) and there are several scheduled bands that play live music so you can make a nice couple hours out of enjoying this. It gets pretty crowded as locals really love it. This is not your typical art show - there are some pretty high-end pieces here that go for upwards of $20,000 and the majority of the larger art pieces are no less than $1000 minimum but most are much more. I saw some jewelry, stained glass and glass art, pottery, and tons and tons of canvas and other mixed medium art pieces with a real range of talent and innovative techniques I haven't seen before. Artists travel from all over the US to participate in this event and there are tons of vendors here so it's worth an afternoon visit. It's a short walk to Colley so you can make a complete afternoon in Ghent out of it and walk around, enjoy the Hague, shop on Colley and even have dinner or coffee. Parking is a bit of a challenge if you want to be very nearby - but if you can park and walk a few blocks you should be fine finding something in one of the nearby neighborhoods.

Such a great collection of artists, food vendors, and music. Be prepared to get muddy, though, as…read moreit nearly always rains just before or during this event.

I think its great that Portsmouth is trying to attract tourists and locals out towards the…read morewaterside, but this festival really needed some more activities, vendors, and entertainment. There was a live band playing as I was disembarking the ferry. What a great welcome! However, that was probably the highlight of this festival. There were about 5 vendors selling trinkets and other items. Nothing really attracted my eye. The food vendors were only Jay's Barbecue, Shakey's, Dominos Pizza and Mr. Cream Cones. I ended up getting fries from Jay's Barbecue because I was starving and needed something to hold me over during the ferry ride back to Norfolk. There were two workers in the booth for Jay's Barbecue. One was cooking, the other was preparing food and taking the money. I found it quite disgusting that the hand that he wore a glove on was used to prepare food AND take people's money. So UNSANITARY. Unfortunately I was hungry, desperate for food, and already gave him my money. Not only was the food dirty, but they didnt have enough money to give people correct change. He shorted a LOT of people (including me) because he didnt have the right change. He considered this extra cash his "TIPS". Why am I tipping for dirty food? Never again!

Great day in the city!…read more It's usually super hot when this event comes to town, but good music by local artists/bands and the great outdoors makes for a great day along the Elizabeth River!! The event is free to attend and it's for the whole family! There are several food vendors...a few vendors selling novelty items and you may see one or two vendors selling desserts. This year the City decided to rotate acts between two stages which was a bit aggravating. One act would perform for about 90 mins then we'd be asked to move (lawn chairs) to a larger stage area to hear/see the next act. Nevertheless, the bands featured this year we're a hit while some were a miss. The crowd at 3pm... a minimum of 20. Perhaps the hot temperatures deterred people away but as time went on... the crowd began to increase. Seems as though the more popular the band the larger the crowd. This event is held yearly so definitely look out for it every Memorial Day weekend to take place in Portsmouth, Va. Parking is free in the garages and free after 6pm for street parking. Bring about $20 for pocket change. And if you plan to catch the ferry that's nearby remember you'll need the exact fare. Have fun and enjoy life

We loved going to this museum. We made it a stop on our road trip from NYC to OBX and it was the…read moreperfect place to stop and have the kids explore for a few hours. I would say leave yourself 2ish+ hrs to see and explore everything. Our kids are 4 and 1.5 years old and they both had so much fun. Make sure you buy your tickets online ahead of time. We used our AAA discount. Exhibits include a "pet vet," music space, big fire truck, library, exercise room and market. My one critique would be for the market to be better stocked/ restocked periodically. We go to a local museum where the kid's market closes a few times a day for them to "reset." This could have used a "reset." Overall it was a lot of fun!

So much for kids to do. Even my 15 and 17 year old had fun…read more They have an area called Museum, for me, was the best part. They have about 5-7 tables of attractions where you can sit and solve puzzles, build, draw and experiment. Other than that they had a prop supermarket, bank, fire station, library, train area and so much more!

The last couple times I came here were a damn BLAST! All of the slides were amazing! Though its…read moreonly four because my back got tore up because the two slides "Walk The Plank" and "Pirates Plummet" and the coconut drops and bamboo shoots get chained off cause there's no lifeguard there and while we're on the topic why do the lifeguards act so soulless like you could say "Hey how are you doing?" And some won't even respond! Like at least say something! But still amazing slides the hurricane dropped me and my brother face first so that was funny the cabana service is amazing! The lady who served us was kind and sweet pizza and fries we're amazing, Noticed a lack of double tubes at the largo loop area. So in conclusion. Wear a shirt going down walk the plank or pirates plummet, have an empty stomach (You'll thank yourself later), Dont try talking to the lifeguards, brace yourself going down the hurricane, and Maybe hold on to a tube if you wanna go down largo loop

Ocean Breeze Water Park is basically a giant chlorine-powered happiness machine. The slides are…read moreawesome, the lazy river is dangerously good at convincing you that you have no responsibilities, and the wave pool had me questioning why I ever learned how to walk. 10/10 would absolutely pay money to get sunburned, lose my flip-flops, and spend the day looking for my kids while they're having the time of their lives. Great place, great atmosphere, and plenty of fun. Just remember: sunscreen is not optional unless you're trying to come home looking like a rotisserie chicken. 5 stars. Would drown again.

Town Point Park in Norfolk is home to some of the best festivals around. Bayou Boogaloo is a…read morepersonal favorite, Embrace the Culture is another. When the sun is shining and it is at least somewhat warm, you can easily point your compass in this direction and find something worthwhile. But whoever came up with Ribtoberfest.....this person needs a medal. Crossed pig bones WITH BBQ Sauce device and cole slaw clusters. This year the combination was slowly cooked meat and slowly sizzling blues. Two of my favorite things in the universe, and the Scheduling Gawds smiled on me and kept me close enough to 757 to actually physically attend. When faced with Destiny, why fight it? If you like ribs (and who doesn't), this is Nirvana. The choices are off the charts, all varieties, all flavors. Vendors set up their makeshift kitchens and envelop the surroundings with the succulent odor of Pigs giving the Ultimate Sacrifice. For those about to roast, we salute you! For something different, I chose the Korean BBQ rib platter. (Insert protracted silence here as if remembering fallen comrades with a private moment of honor.) My words cannot do justice to the taste, even served with plastic utensils and consumed standing up at a Long Board previously used to demonstrate waterboarding techniques. The atmosphere was strangely reminiscent of when my (now deceased) Uncle Larry roared my sister and me through the sketchy parts of Los Angeles in 1975 in search of the perfect Lamb Sandwich served in a deli with no tables and bars on the windows. Imagine Ward Cleaver herding Wally and The Beav to their front row seats at Showtime at the Apollo and you will have an accurate mental picture of that day. Not to suggest that we here in Norfolk are of the sketchy variety, far from it. You see, all of those gathered were brethren. The Great Calendar had ticked past Labour Day so all of the tourist packed up their plastic beach chairs and tubs of stale Coppertone and headed back to New Jersey in contrary migratory fashion. Nope, this festival is all ours. And we earned it. So the food. Yep, it was tasty and plentiful. A few years ago, Norfolk proudly claimed the title of Fattest City in the US. Ribtoberfest will do little to put that memory into the rearview mirror. With any luck at all, we will regain our rightful title, maybe get Elizabeth River Crossing Toll Nazi Corp to include it on the inflated bills they are sending out to those without an EZPass. Kind of an ersatz sponsorship/promotional type letterhead across the top. Indeed, we could probably convince them to jack up the price of leaving Norfolk and heading to Portsmouth (our much skinnier neighbor). (Editor's note: Umm....weren't we talking about a festival here someplace?) The second wheel of this delightful scooter of a Saturday was the music. Blues cuts me to the core, I would crawl barefoot through a Chicago snowstorm to hear a guitarist torture a vintage Stratocaster, armed only with a pentatonic scale. This year had a lineup of local favorites that swaggered and electrified. The JD Slivia Band is one of my absolute favorites and they certainly did NOT disappoint. The coolest part, though, is that JD is one of the nicest, most positive people that you will ever meet. Go and hear them sometime, it will be well worth your time. As if that wasn't enough, the guy who figured this out had the foresight to also toss in a very liberal dose of local microbreweries hocking their swill. Wait, you mean I can eat ribs, hear scorched-earth blues AND imbibe Young Veterans Pineapple Grenade? Truly, in Heaven there is no Beer....because we drank it all at Ribtoberfest. So this one goes on the calendar along with Bayou Boogaloo.

These is definitely a perfect example of an awesome weekend!!!…read more A pint of cold ice beer, smoky pork ribs and band on the side - what a brilliant combo to spend a relaxing evening. Excellent choices of food and beverages. My only critics, would have been nice if they had options in terms of buying alcohol. Overall, I had a wonderful time and enjoyable experience.

First time at this event, and had a blast! Tons of burgers to choose from. Definitely will be back…read morenext year!

Really enjoyed this event and it was our first time here. The weather was great for today as it…read morewasn't too hot or too cold. I kind of wish the competitors had been in order of what was on the ticket for sides because it almost mapped out to have all of one side in the same lane to keep track. Also would have wished more cider had been involved as a lot of our party doesn't drink beer. Also would have enjoyed some wine options. Maybe next year there will be some more variety as there was a cidery present and their cider was great. The burger portions were perfect and the lines, while long, didn't have long waits. Vendors super personable and I enjoyed this being a 21+ event. Next time we will bring chairs, but kind of wish there had been more shade that wasn't for VIP.

Brought my wife and son here. This is the worst $67 I've spent in a long time. Half the exhibits…read morewere closed, and many of the open ones didn't even work at all. There's an observation deck on the third floor that has half-century-old binoculars that require quarters to look through. Quarters! 1) Who the heck carries quarters anymore? 2) I PAID $67 TO GET IN HERE AND HALF YOUR STUFF DOESN'T WORK! Save up a little more of your money, friends, and make the trip to D.C. for the air and space museum there. This place in Hampton is absurd. I will never come back here.

I recently visited the Virginia Air & Space Science Center in Hampton for the first time. Since I…read morearrived with a group on a field trip, we were permitted to park our vans alongside the building, though the parking locations were not really clear. The museum was clean and well-maintained. The gift shop is conveniently located at the entrance, and the cafe near the IMAX theater offered a good selection of snacks and drinks. The interactive games and exhibits are excellent for young children, and I particularly enjoyed riding the carousel across the lot afterwards. While I found the experience enjoyable, I believe the museum is best suited for families with children rather than adult visitors alone. Overall, I highly recommend the museum for an educational family outing.

The festival was fantastic! Very spacious, and everything was labeled. It was our very first time…read moregoing. We will be going again in the future. The festival was great. The only bummer was, which I dont think we were expecting, the temperatures were reaching 90's degrees and there were no shady areas to rest and cool down. This isnt much of the festival's fault, it's mother nature. *smiles* Lots of activities stations, lots of food vendors...lots to do. They had a petting zoo, arts & craft stations, playdoh station, play house stations, a kiddie area for the younger one like ball pits, tunnels etc. I felt like a kid all over again. I made sure that my daughter was the one doing all of the activities, even though I was itching to do some myself....Heck, I got chocolate milk brom Oberweis...delicious! Cant wait to go back next year! Wish the festival was a bit longer like a 2 day thing versus one day. It gives families options.

The reason I gave it 3 stars is because the festival was wayyy to crowded. I understand that you…read moreguys try and get as many activities as you can for the kids to have fun but there is no room to sit down. There is no room for cranky kids to just chill out because there's so much traffic. And if there are booths who aren't patient with kids then they probably shouldn't be there at a children's Festival for example there was a booth for for brain balance and she was just getting very aggravated with the kids who didn't want to do the whole cycle who did just want to do the trampoline. I'm sorry that my two-year-old doesn't want to do a whole brain activity she just wants to jump on the trampoline. Other than that the festival had great ideas for the kids to do like I said it was just too much and they should definitely do it for the whole weekend not just one day it would probably help with the overcrowding.