Virginia Beach Oceanfront

The Virginia Beach Oceanfront is the defining resort district of Virginia Beach, Virginia, stretching three miles (4.8 km) along the Atlantic Coast in the eastern portion of the city. The Oceanfront encompasses the boardwalk and North End residential areas, located north of the Rudee Inlet Bridge and directly southeast of First Landing State Park, including the pathways of the boardwalk itself, Atlantic Avenue, and Pacific Avenue. Drawing visitors from across the eastern United States and beyond, over six million people come to the Virginia Beach Oceanfront every year. The district is anchored by its famous boardwalk, a collection of historic hotels, public monuments, and a year-round schedule of festivals and entertainment that have made it one of the most recognized coastal destinations on the Atlantic seaboard.

History

With the construction of a rail system in 1883, tourism in Virginia Beach began to grow. Soon after, the Virginia Beach Hotel opened, offering the first overnight accommodations. More tourists began to spend their summers in Virginia Beach along the shore, and construction began on the boardwalk in 1888. The original boardwalk was made of wooden planks and was only five blocks long at first.

The Virginia Beach Hotel was opened and operated by the Norfolk and Virginia Beach Railroad and Improvement Company at the oceanfront, near the tiny community of Seatack. The hotel was foreclosed and the railroad was reorganized in 1887. The hotel was upgraded and reopened in 1888 as the Princess Anne Hotel. In 1891, guests at the new hotel watched the wreck and rescue efforts of the United States Life-Saving Service for the Norwegian bark Dictator. The ship's figurehead, which washed up on the beach several days later, was erected as a modest monument to the victims and rescue along the oceanfront for more than 50 years, and then became the inspiration for the current Norwegian Lady Monuments which were dedicated in 1962 in Virginia Beach, and Moss, Norway.

During the Gilded Age, the boardwalk ran next to Peacock Ballroom, where artists including Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, and Tommy Dorsey performed. By the early 1900s, Virginia Beach had become a well-known vacation destination. The growing resort of Virginia Beach was incorporated as a town in 1906.

Although the resort was initially dependent upon railroad and electric trolley service, completion of the concrete Virginia Beach Boulevard extending from Norfolk in 1922 opened access for automobiles, buses, and trucks, and passenger rail service was eventually discontinued.

The Cavalier Hotel Era

In 1927, The Cavalier Hotel opened as Virginia Beach's first grand hotel. Typified by exquisite plaster ornamentation atop columns, The Cavalier's Jeffersonian-inspired architecture was designed in the spirit of Monticello, with nods to locations such as Woodlawn and The Lawn at the University of Virginia. The Cavalier eventually hosted seven U.S. Presidents: Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon. The hotel attracted celebrities including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Bette Davis, Jean Harlow, Judy Garland, Will Rogers, and Fatty Arbuckle.

During the 1930s through the 1950s, the Cavalier hosted popular big bands including Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, Xavier Cugat, Cab Calloway, and Lawrence Welk. The opulence came to a halt when the hotel was surrendered to the U.S. government during World War II. In October of 1942, the U.S. Navy became a resident and turned the hotel into a site for radar training.

In 1973, a sister hotel to The Cavalier opened on the oceanfront. The Cavalier Oceanfront was constructed to be 11 stories overlooking the Atlantic Ocean but was not a replacement for the original Cavalier, which reopened in 1976. After years of decline, the historic original building was restored. Now listed on the National Register of Historic Places, The Cavalier offers 85 reimagined guest rooms and suites.

Mid-Century Modernism and Historic Preservation

Beginning in the postwar decades, the Oceanfront district underwent a significant architectural transformation. Added to the Virginia Landmarks Register and National Register of Historic Places in 2021, the Virginia Beach Oceanfront Resort Motels and Hotels (1955–1970) Multiple Property Document (MPD) highlights this significant period in the development of the city's beach frontage. Architecturally, these new motels were streamlined, open, accessible, and above all "modern." Designers and builders utilized materials and architectural features associated with the high-style Modernist movement, including pre-stressed and pre-cast concrete elements, steel framing, expansive plate glass windows, and decorative breeze blocks lining open-air breezeways and ample parking lots.

To date, the Oceanfront Resort Motels and Hotels MPD has facilitated the nomination of four motels to the Virginia Landmarks Register and National Register of Historic Places. Three of these motels — the Crest Kitchenette Motel (1963) on Atlantic Avenue and the Jefferson Manor Apartments (1963) and Blue Marlin Lodge (1965) on Pacific Avenue — were designed by prolific Virginia Beach architect William Burton Alderman and exhibit highly expressive Modernist designs.

The Boardwalk

Stretching from 2nd to 40th Streets along the Oceanfront, the Virginia Beach Boardwalk is considered the quintessential Virginia Beach experience. The boardwalk, substantially updated in 1988, is a concrete path linking forty hotels and other attractions via pedestrian walkway and a separated bike path, which in turn connects to nearby trails and surface streets.

Bikes for individuals and families are available for rent all summer, accommodated on a bike path that stretches the entirety of the boardwalk. Lifeguards are on duty from mid-May to mid-September, 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Another major tourist attraction at the Oceanfront is the 14th Street Fishing Pier. It is one of many fishing piers located in the state of Virginia and the only pier accessible from the boardwalk. The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier is a popular spot to cast a line and fish for striped bass, rockfish, tautog, flounder, and more.

The Virginia Beach Boardwalk has been noted as one of America's favorite boardwalks by the Discovery Channel, and as a destination by magazines such as Coastal Living, Southern Living, and National Geographic Traveler.

Monuments and Public Art

The Virginia Beach Oceanfront is distinguished by an extensive collection of public sculptures and commemorative monuments distributed along the length of the boardwalk. The oceanfront features many monuments to Virginians who have impacted the history of the state.

A main monument is the statue of King Neptune — a colossal 34-foot-high bronze statue that rises from the sand at 31st Street and Atlantic Avenue, overlooking Neptune Park. He stands over 30 feet tall and holds a gigantic loggerhead turtle. There are two dolphins behind him and an octopus to his left.

Some of the monuments are located at the Naval Aviation Monument Park, which was formally dedicated on May 6, 2006, by the Hampton Roads Squadron of the Naval Aviation Foundation Association. Planned since 1997 in partnership with the City of Virginia Beach, the park features heroic-scale statuary and reliefs to tell the history of Naval Aviation.

The Virginia Legends Walk features famous historical Virginians such as Pocahontas, Edgar Allan Poe, and George Washington. The Virginia Legends Walk was built to honor Virginians who have made significant differences to the country and the world. The walk features plaques with the name of each person and information about their achievements and origins, ranging from Patsy Cline to Thomas Jefferson.

Other attractions include various forms of artwork between hotels and other buildings. Many are sculptures including different starfish, dolphins, and sea turtles painted in many colors.

Events and Entertainment

The Virginia Beach Oceanfront hosts a robust schedule of events and entertainment across all seasons. The Oceanfront is home to Beach Street USA, which lines up entertainment events during the summer months for tourists. Most events are free and include local and visiting performers, from magic shows and musical talents to psychics and palm readers.

During the summer months, "Live! On Atlantic" brings music and other entertainment to four beachfront stages, with most events free of charge. Major annual events include the American Music Festival, Latin Fest, Sandstock, and FunkFest.

Every year, 32 world-class sand sculptors use nearly a million pounds of sand to compete along Oceanfront Beach for a prize purse of $58,000.

One of the most well-known events at the Oceanfront hosted by Beach Street USA is McDonald's Holiday Lights at the Beach, where guests can sit in their car and drive along the boardwalk to view many different holiday light setups.

Virginia Beach native Pharrell Williams organized an oceanfront festival called Something in the Water, in part as a response to negativity surrounding the annual arrival of college students for spring break. The event featured other popular music performers from the area including Missy Elliott and Timbaland, and drew appearances by Jay-Z and Snoop Dogg.

Tourism and Economy

Real estate, defense, and tourism are major sectors of the Virginia Beach economy. At the south end of the Oceanfront, Rudee Inlet serves as a hub for on-the-water adventure, including fishing, jet skiing, parasailing, and waterside dining. The Oceanfront extends beyond the beach and boardwalk. Nearby, visitors can immerse themselves in the city's cultural arts community in the ViBe Creative District, a hub for artists, museums, locally-owned restaurants, a weekly farmer's market, and more.

Virginia Beach also hosts the annual East Coast Surfing Championships and Neptune Festival. The city is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as having the longest pleasure beach in the world.