Yorktown, Virginia: Learning History and Sustainability

My parents always made a point to make family travel a combination of fun and learning and, to this day, I follow that approach with every vacation I plan. Yorktown, Virginia, is the perfect option for that approach, giving families the ideal place to teach both history and sustainability in a beautiful location.

Yorktown has been a pretty big deal ever since George Washington defeated the British there in 1871, making it a significant destination to teach kids about the Revolutionary War. But Yorktown’s history goes back much farther, way before it was even called Yorktown. The area was inhabited by Indigenous peoples for thousands of years before Europeans settled it. 

Today, you can visit the historic battle site, American Revolution Museum of Yorktown, Victory Monument and more. But the city has also been hard at work asserting itself as a lesson in sustainability for visitors of all ages. 

Yorktown is a member of the Virginia Green Program, which means it aims to offer eco-friendly living for locals and visitors alike. You’ll find sustainability efforts across town, like in the shops and restaurants at the city’s popular Riverwalk Landing area — the buildings are heated and cooled with geothermal energy, you won’t find any plastic straws at local restaurants, and Riverwalk Landing Piers participate in the Virginia Clean Marine Program in an effort to maintain a clean and sustainable marine ecosystem.

Residents and visitors are encouraged to walk or bike whenever possible to keep unnecessary cars off the road, and if you want to take a tour of the city, you can book an electric-powered bicycle or Segway tour through Patriot Tours & Provisions. You’ll find similar initiatives and practices all over town, such as plants attracting pollinators and others are designed to repel mosquitoes around Yorktown Cottages (a collection of charming vacation rentals) to avoid the need for harmful insect repellent.

While the Virginia Green Program isn’t new (this work has been going on for more than 20 years), when you combine the city’s sustainability efforts with American history heritage, you’ve got the perfect place to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday.