Historic Inns

Virginia

Historic Hotels & Inns in Virginia

From Colonial Williamsburg and Jefferson’s Piedmont to Richmond’s Franklin Street, the Shenandoah Valley, The Homestead’s hot springs, the Northern Neck and the Eastern Shore: every historic hotel and inn in Virginia we could verify.

35 historic places to stay in 23 towns · verified October 2026 · by Historic Inns editors

The short answer

Richmond has the most, with five historic hotels downtown, led by The Jefferson, Lewis Ginter’s 1895 Beaux-Arts hotel. In Williamsburg, book the Williamsburg Inn, John D. Rockefeller Jr.’s 1937 hotel at the edge of the Historic Area. Around Charlottesville, The Clifton is Thomas Mann Randolph’s house of about 1800, and Prospect Hill and The Inn at Willow Grove are 18th-century country houses with rooms in their main houses, outbuildings and cottages. In the mountains, The Omni Homestead stands where the first Homestead hotel was built in 1766, and Big Meadows Lodge (1939) on Skyline Drive opens seasonally. On the coast, The Cavalier has overlooked the Virginia Beach oceanfront since 1927.

Our top picks

Best overall

Williamsburg Inn

Built 1937 · Williamsburg

John D. Rockefeller Jr.'s 1937 hotel on Francis Street by Perry, Shaw and Hepburn, at the edge of the Historic Area; it…

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Best small inn

Prospect Hill

Built c. 1699 (inn's claim) · Trevilians

Twelve rooms, which the inn dates from c. 1699 to 1890, in the main house and outbuildings of an 18th-century Green Springs…

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Most haunted

The Jefferson Hotel

Built 1895 · Richmond

Lewis Ginter's Beaux-Arts hotel by Carrère and Hastings, opened on Halloween 1895, where alligators lived in the Palm Court fountains until 1948.

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Best resort

The Omni Homestead

Built 1902 · Hot Springs

The first Homestead was built at these hot springs in 1766; the present Colonial Revival hotel rose from 1902, with Warren and…

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Best lodge

Big Meadows Lodge

Built 1939 · Shenandoah National Park

Marcellus Wright Jr.'s 1939 stone and chestnut lodge at Skyline Drive mile 51, open seasonally (May 4 to November 29 in 2026);…

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Grand hotel

The Cavalier

Built 1927 · Virginia Beach

The 1927 hilltop hotel at the North End, the last of Virginia Beach's pre-World War II beachfront hotels; the Navy ran a…

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Where they are

Where to go

Richmond5 historic places to stay · founded 1737Oldest: Linden Row Inn (1847–53)See the guide →

Every historic inn in Virginia

InnTownBuiltRoomsTypePriceHaunted
Prospect HillTreviliansc. 1699 (inn's claim)12B&B–Rates
The Inn at Willow GroveOrangec. 1778 (inn's claim)25Inn–Rates
The GeorgesLexington1789–188733Boutique hotel–Rates
The CliftonCharlottesvillec. 1800–Inn–Rates
Frederick HouseStauntonc. 1810–1880s–Inn–Rates
Col Alto (Hampton Inn Lexington)Lexington1827–Inn–Rates
The Blackburn InnStaunton182849Inn–Rates
The Red Fox Inn & TavernMiddleburg183022Inn–Rates
The Martha Washington InnAbingdon183263Inn–Rates
Linden Row InnRichmond1847–5370Boutique hotel–YesRates
The 200 South StreetCharlottesvillec. 185018Inn–Rates
The Hope and Glory InnIrvington1890–Inn–Rates
The Jefferson HotelRichmond1895181Grand hotel–YesRates
The Inn at Little WashingtonWashingtonc. 1900–Inn–Rates
The Omni HomesteadHot Springs1902–Resort–Rates
The Charlotte HotelOnancock19078Boutique hotel–Rates
The CommonwealthRichmond1913–Boutique hotel–Rates
The Virginian LynchburgLynchburg1913–Grand hotel–Rates
Hotel PetersburgPetersburg1915–Boutique hotel–Rates
Quirk Hotel RichmondRichmond1916–Boutique hotel–Rates
Hilton Richmond DowntownRichmond1922–Grand hotel–Rates
Hotel 24 SouthStaunton1924–25–Boutique hotel–Rates
The George WashingtonWinchester1924–Grand hotel–Rates
Oakhurst InnCharlottesvillec. 1915–3136Boutique hotel–Rates
Hotel WeyanokeFarmville1925–Boutique hotel–Rates
The Bolling Wilson HotelWytheville1927–Boutique hotel–Rates
The CavalierVirginia Beach1927–Grand hotel–Rates
The Mimslyn InnLuray1931–Inn–Rates
Mountain Lake LodgePembroke1936–Lodge–Rates
Williamsburg InnWilliamsburg1937–Grand hotel–Rates
Williamsburg LodgeWilliamsburg1938–Resort–Rates
Hotel RoanokeRoanoke1938–Grand hotel–Rates
Big Meadows LodgeShenandoah National Park1939–Lodge–Rates
The Tides InnIrvington1947–Resort–Rates
Colony House Motor LodgeRoanoke1959–Boutique hotel–Rates

Price is a typical nightly rate: $ under $200, $$ $200–349, $$$ $350–549, $$$$ $550+. Rates vary by season; check the inn for exact prices.

Elsewhere in Virginia

c. 1800The Clifton

Built c. 1800 · Federal, with Colonial Revival additions · Charlottesville · Inn

The Clifton

Why stay Jefferson's son-in-law Thomas Mann Randolph built it about 1800 as a warehouse for a planned Rivanna River port; breakfast and parking are free.

Good to know Breakfast: included · Parking: on-site free · Pets welcome

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c. 1810–1880sFrederick House

Built c. 1810–1880s · Staunton · Inn

Frederick House

Why stay Rooms in several 19th-century houses across from Mary Baldwin University, the oldest the Young House of about 1810, joined into an inn by the Harmans.

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c. 1850The 200 South Street

Built c. 1850 · Greek Revival / Colonial Revival · Charlottesville · Inn

The 200 South Street

Why stay An inn since 1986 in a c. 1850 brick house and a cottage a block from the Downtown Mall, with 18 rooms that open for booking 60 days out.

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1890The Hope and Glory Inn

Built 1890 · Gothic Revival influence · Irvington · Inn

The Hope and Glory Inn

Why stay The 1890 Chesapeake Academy schoolhouse, Irvington High School from 1907 to 1915, with rooms in the school and in private cottages.

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Oakhurst InnPacker1028 / CC0

Built c. 1915–31 · Colonial Revival / Craftsman · Charlottesville · Boutique hotel

Oakhurst Inn

Why stay Four Craftsman-era houses by UVA Health, one the home of Dr. Paul Barringer, who was largely responsible for UVA's 1901 hospital; an inn since 2014.

Good to know Parking: on-site paid · Pets welcome

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1925Hotel Weyanoke

Built 1925 · Commercial Style · Farmville · Boutique hotel

Hotel Weyanoke

Why stay Prince Edward County's largest hostelry when built in 1925, later a nursing home; book the historic building, not the adjoining Cumberland building.

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1927The Bolling Wilson Hotel

Built 1927 · Colonial Revival / Classical · Wytheville · Boutique hotel

The Bolling Wilson Hotel

Why stay The 1927 George Wythe Hotel on Main Street, reopened in 2014 and named for Edith Bolling Wilson, who was born across the street; no pets.

Good to know No pets

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Ways in

Themes in Virginia

Williamsburg, the Northern Neck and the Eastern Shore

John D. Rockefeller Jr. financed the Williamsburg Inn in 1936–37 to carry the message of the restored colonial capital to a wider audience, and Perry, Shaw and Hepburn drew on early 19th-century models rather than the Historic Area’s strict colonial style. The Williamsburg Lodge followed as a less formal hotel by Gilbert Stanley Underwood, known for the Zion, Bryce Canyon and Ahwahnee lodges; book its 1937–38 original building or 1947 South Wing for a historic room. On the Northern Neck, Irvington has the Hope and Glory Inn in the 1890 Chesapeake Academy and The Tides Inn, a 1947 resort on Carter’s Creek, and on the Eastern Shore, The Charlotte Hotel in Onancock opened in 1907 as the Thomas White Hotel.

Jefferson’s Piedmont: Charlottesville, Orange and Green Springs

Thomas Jefferson’s son-in-law Thomas Mann Randolph built The Clifton about 1800 as a warehouse for a planned river port; it later became his house and is now an inn. In Charlottesville, The 200 South Street fills a c. 1850 brick house a block from the Downtown Mall, and Oakhurst Inn four Craftsman-era houses beside UVA Health. About 15 minutes east of town, Prospect Hill is a 12-room country inn in the Green Springs National Historic Landmark district, and in Orange, a few minutes from James Madison’s Montpelier, The Inn at Willow Grove has 25 rooms in a late-18th-century manor house and its cottages.

Shenandoah Valley and the Blue Ridge

Staunton has three: Hotel 24 South, the former Stonewall Jackson Hotel; The Blackburn Inn, in the 1828 main building of the former Western State Hospital; and Frederick House, spread over several 19th-century houses. In Lexington, The Georges puts guests in the 1789 Alexander-Withrow House and the 1809 McCampbell Inn, and Col Alto, an 1827 mansion built for future governor James McDowell, has 10 Manor House rooms within a Hampton Inn. The Mimslyn Inn opened in Luray in 1931, and on Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park, Big Meadows Lodge (1939) is open seasonally.

Resorts and railroad hotels: The Homestead, The Cavalier, Hotel Roanoke

The first Homestead was built at Hot Springs in 1766; after a 1901 fire the present Colonial Revival hotel rose from 1902, with Warren and Wetmore’s tower in 1929, and in 1943 it hosted the international food conference that preceded the United Nations. The Norfolk and Western Railway opened the first Hotel Roanoke in 1882; the Tudor Revival hotel there now dates mostly from 1938, and Virginia Tech reopened it in 1995. On the oceanfront, The Cavalier, opened in 1927, is the last of Virginia Beach’s pre-World War II beachfront hotels, and in the mountains of Giles County, William Lewis Moody Jr. built Mountain Lake Lodge of native limestone in 1936.

Road trip

Williamsburg to Staunton, inn to inn

Williamsburg

Start at the Williamsburg Inn, John D. Rockefeller Jr.’s 1937 hotel at the edge of the Historic Area, or in the Williamsburg Lodge’s 1937–38 original building.

Richmond

Stay on Franklin Street at The Jefferson or Linden Row Inn, or pick another historic hotel from our Richmond guide.

Green Springs

Stay at Prospect Hill, a 12-room country inn about 15 minutes east of Charlottesville, or at The Clifton, Thomas Mann Randolph’s house of about 1800, with free breakfast.

Staunton

End at The Blackburn Inn, in the 1828 main building of the former Western State Hospital, or downtown at Hotel 24 South, the former Stonewall Jackson Hotel.

Beyond the inns

Signature tours in Virginia

Tours from GetYourGuide

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Context

History and architecture

The first Homestead was built at Hot Springs in 1766, and Virginia’s oldest inn buildings are 18th-century houses: Prospect Hill, The Inn at Willow Grove, and The Georges’ 1789 Washington Building in Lexington, one of two buildings to survive the town’s 1796 fire. In 1830 Nobel Beveridge advertised his new stone building in Middleburg, now the Red Fox Inn, as ‘a new House of Entertainment’. Later came the Norfolk and Western Railway’s first Hotel Roanoke in 1882, Lewis Ginter’s Jefferson in Richmond in 1895 and, after a 1901 fire, the present Homestead from 1902. Main-street hotels for train and highway travelers followed, such as The George Washington in Winchester (1924) and the George Wythe in Wytheville (1927), now the Bolling Wilson, and The Cavalier opened at Virginia Beach in 1927. John D. Rockefeller Jr. then built the Williamsburg Inn (1937) and Lodge (1937–38) for visitors to the restored colonial capital, and Big Meadows Lodge opened on Skyline Drive in 1939.

Questions travelers ask

What is the oldest hotel in Virginia?

There’s no single answer. The first Homestead hotel was built at Hot Springs in 1766, though The Omni Homestead’s present building dates from 1902, and the Red Fox Inn in Middleburg stands near where a tavern reputedly stood from 1728, though its stone building is from 1830. For the oldest building, Prospect Hill dates its rooms from c. 1699 (its National Register nomination says only an enlarged 18th-century house), The Inn at Willow Grove dates its manor house to 1778 (the state register says late 18th century), and The Georges’ Washington Building in Lexington was built in 1789.

What is the most haunted hotel in Virginia?

There’s no official ranking, and our research found published ghost stories for two Richmond hotels. At The Jefferson, Haunts of Richmond, a local ghost-tour company, relays former staff and guests’ tales of a footless woman in a red dress on the sixth floor, though the hotel told WTVR it was not aware of any ghosts. The same company tells of apparitions of a young Edgar Allan Poe and Elmira Royster in Linden Row Inn’s garden. These are stories, not documented fact.

Where should I stay near Colonial Williamsburg?

The Williamsburg Inn, John D. Rockefeller Jr.’s 1937 hotel on Francis Street, is at the edge of the Historic Area and is individually listed on the National Register. The Williamsburg Lodge, in the same Merchants Square and Resort Historic District, is historic only in its 1937–38 original building and 1947 South Wing; the 1985–86 Tazewell Wing and the 2005 guesthouses are new, so ask for a room in the historic sections.

Can you stay in a historic lodge in Shenandoah National Park?

Yes: Big Meadows Lodge, built in 1939 of Massanutten stone and native wormy chestnut at mile 51 of Skyline Drive, is open seasonally (May 4 to November 29 in 2026). Book the Main Lodge for the 1939 building, as some rooms are in separate buildings we couldn’t date.

Where are the best historic bed and breakfasts in Virginia?

Most of the Virginia stays we list are inns and hotels rather than B&Bs. For a small country inn, try Prospect Hill, 12 rooms on 40 acres in the Green Springs district east of Charlottesville, or The Clifton, with free breakfast in Thomas Mann Randolph’s house of about 1800. In Staunton, Frederick House spreads its rooms over several 19th-century houses downtown.

How we chose these inns

Every place on this page is at least 50 years old, holds a credential we can check (National Register listing, a listed historic district, landmark status, or Historic Hotels of America membership), and takes bookings today. We verify each one against primary sources before it goes on the list, and last checked this list in October 2026. Read our criteria.

Sources (88)

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