8 Best Sights in Northern Virginia, Virginia

More than 400,000 Americans who died during wartime, as well as many notable Americans (among them Presidents William Howard Taft and John F. Kennedy, General John Pershing, and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg), are interred in these 639 acres across the Potomac River from Washington, established as the nation’s cemetery in 1864. Prior to 1857, the land was a plantation owned by George Washington Parke Custis, grandson of Martha Washington. Enslaved people built Arlington House, which became the country’s first memorial to Custis’s step-grandfather, George Washington; the house and plantation were later passed down to Custis’s daughter, Mary Anna Custis Lee, the wife of Confederate general Robert E. Lee. Arlington was very much a typical working plantation before it was a cemetery, with 196 enslaved individuals living and working on the property when the Lees inherited it. Beginning in May 1864, the former plantation, which had been seized by the U.S. Army in 1861, became a military cemetery.

Today Arlington is the most famous national cemetery in the country, with an average of 27 to 30 funerals held every weekday and another six to eight funerals on Saturday for people who did not require or request military honors. You can visit dozens of notable grave sites, monuments, and even an arboretum. Sections 27 and 23, two of the oldest parts of the cemetery, are a particular must for modern-day visitors. Fifteen-hundred African American soldiers who fought in the Civil War and the ensuing Indian Wars are buried here, as are over 3,800 nonmilitary African Americans (including many who were formerly enslaved); they are buried in graves marked only as “citizen” or “civilian.”

Tour-bus services are provided for a fee every 30 minutes (buy tickets in the Welcome Center or at  www.arlingtontours.com). Wheelchairs and strollers are not allowed; handicap-accessible vehicles are available upon request. For a map of the cemetery or help finding a grave, download the cemetery’s app, ANC Explorer, or use the computers at the Welcome Center.

The Georgian-style mansion has some of the finest hand-carved ornamented interiors in the country and is the handiwork of the 18th-century's foremost architect, William Buckland, originally an indentured servant from England. Construction of Gunston Hall took place between 1755 and 1758. Buckland went on to design several notable buildings in Virginia and Maryland, including the Hammond-Harwood and Chase-Lloyd houses in Annapolis. It is believed he worked closely with another indentured servant, William Bernard Sears, to complete the house. Unlike other Virginia colonial homes, which tended to be very simple, Gunston Hall was, possibly, the only or one of a few houses known to have had chinoiserie decoration. The interior and the outbuildings have been meticulously restored.

While it is alleged that one of the reasons Mason didn’t sign the Declaration of Independence is that it didn’t stop the importation of enslaved people, Mason was himself a slaveholder of at least 300 people in his lifetime, many of whom lived at Gunston Hall. While touring the property, you have the opportunity to learn about the lives of some of these individuals, although there is currently not a permanent exhibit focusing on them.

The Riverside Garden currently is being restored; you can view the Potomac from the garden terraces. There are three hiking trails on the 500-plus-acre property. Guided tours are offered daily at 10 am and 11 am, as well as at 1, 2, 3, and 4 pm.

The former plantation of George Washington and his wife, Martha, Mount Vernon sits on the banks of the Potomac River about 10 miles south of Alexandria. Washington’s great-grandfather, John Washington, was awarded the land grant in 1674 for what would become Mount Vernon. It grew into 5,000 acres with four operating farms by the time the future president inherited it all in 1761. Washington used his wife’s financial wealth and hundreds of enslaved people to transform the main house from an ordinary farm dwelling into what was, for the time, a grand mansion. The red-roof main house is elegant though understated, with quite ornate first-floor rooms, especially the formal large dining room, with a molded ceiling decorated with agricultural motifs.

You can stroll around the estate’s 500 acres and four gardens, visiting workshops, a kitchen, a carriage house, a greenhouse, quarters for enslaved African Americans, and, down the hill, the tomb of George and Martha Washington. There’s also a four-acre, 18th-century farm site with costumed interpreters and a reconstructed 16-sided treading barn as its centerpiece.

Throughout Mount Vernon, you can learn about the more than 300 enslaved people who lived here, and whose labor you see all around you. Relevant tours include “The Enslaved People of Mount Vernon” tour and the "Through My Eyes" tour, both of which explore the lives and experiences of the people who lived here and the role slavery had in the life of Washington and how he built and ran this estate.

Visitors, especially children, tend to enjoy the Museum and Education Center’s 23 galleries and theaters, including hundreds of artifacts, interactive displays, and a 4D theater that brings Washington's story to life. Actors in period dress, General Washington and his wife, welcome visitors at special occasions throughout the year, including President’s Day, Mother’s and Father’s Day, and July 4.

The Confederacy won two important victories—in July 1861 and August 1862—at this battlefield, also known as Bull Run. General Thomas Jackson earned his nickname Stonewall here, when he and his brigade stood "like a stone wall." When the second battle ended, the Confederacy was at the zenith of its power. Originally farmland, the battlefield bore witness to casualties of nearly 30,000 troops. The Stone House, used as an aid station during the war, still stands. In 1911, 50 years after the first, battle, President Taft led a "Peace Jubilee," a peaceful reunion of thousands of veterans here.. .A self-guided walking or driving tour of the park begins at the visitor center, whose exhibits and audiovisual presentations greatly enhance a visit. Manassas is a 30-mile drive from Washington; from Arlington and Fairfax take I–66 west to Exit 47B (Sudley Road/Route 234 North). Don't be fooled by the earlier Manassas exit for Route 28. The visitor center is ½ mile north on the right.

The glassy atrium of this 120,000-square-foot homage to the military's finest soars into the sky next to the Marine Corps Base Quantico. The design was inspired by the iconic photograph of marines lifting the American flag on Iwo Jima. Inside the museum, visitors can experience the life of a marine. The museum is an interactive experience and has a staggering collection of tanks, aircraft, rocket launchers, and other weapons. There is even a rifle range simulator, where guests of all ages can learn how to hold a laser rifle and practice hitting targets. Service animals are welcome inside the museum, and pets are permitted on the grounds (look for designated relief areas).

Torpedoes were manufactured here by the U.S. Navy during World War II, but now the building houses eight galleries, as well as the studios and workshops of about 165 artists and artisans. You can observe printmakers, jewelers, sculptors, painters, potters, textile artists, and glass makers as they create original work in their studios (and buy their artworks). The Torpedo Factory also houses the Alexandria Archaeology Museum, which displays artifacts such as plates, cups, pipes, and coins from an early tavern, as well as Civil War soldiers' equipment.

A major venue in the greater D.C. area, Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts hosts a wide variety of performances throughout the year in a beautiful outdoor setting. In warmer months popular and classical music, opera, dance, and comedy performances are given in a partially covered pavilion, the Filene Center, and in the Barns at Wolf Trap—two 18th-century barns transported from upstate New York—the rest of the year. Many food concessions are available; picnicking is permitted on the lawn, but not in the fixed seating under the pavilion.

Children's programs are emphasized at the outdoor Theatre in the Woods, including mime, puppetry, animal shows, music, drama, and storytelling. (No food or drink other than water is allowed in the theater.) At any event, allow extra time for parking, and expect a traffic jam after the performance. The 100-plus acres of hills, meadows, and forests here are closed to general use from 90 minutes before to one hour after performances. Parking is free, and on performance nights Metrorail operates a $5 round-trip shuttle bus between the West Falls Church Metrorail station and the Filene Center. The fare is exact change only, and the bus leaves 20 minutes after the show, or no later than 11 pm—but it's almost unheard-of for any show to last longer than that.