West Virginia is a small state in the Appalachian Mountains that is often overlooked when planning family vacations, but what people do not realize is that we have a beautiful state with activities the whole family can enjoy. Many people do not even know our state is here. You would not believe how many people still think we are part of Virginia. By the end of this essay, you will see why West Virginia should be on your list of places to visit. West Virginia is made up of several small knit communities that began with the old coal mining towns. Several coal mines are open today to help explain some of West Virginia's rich heritage and industry. Exhibition Coalmine should be one of your first places to see to help you better understand our state. The phrase “Wild and Wonderful” has been used several times in describing our state. There are some very picturesque views around West Virginia that people love to capture. The beautiful mountains are what people love the most! Blackwater Falls, Dolly Sods, and New River Gorge are only a few of the great places to see, and they're only a few hours from Charleston. If you are staying in the city of Charleston, there are a few great recreational parks that are close by if you are the type that likes the great outdoors. Coonskin Park, Kanawha State Forest, and Little Creek are just a few of the parks that my family particularly enjoys visiting. Hiking, biking, whitewater rafting, fishing, kayaking, hunting, and riding four wheelers are some activities you can enjoy in these places. Several festivals and fairs take place around the area and most are not far from the capital city of Charleston. Going to festivals is one of my favorite things about this state, and you can almost always find one to go to during the spring, summer, and fall months. Every county has a fair, and, of course, there is always the state fair. There's always plenty of food, rides, music, and good folks from around West Virginia. It is the perfect place to discover what West Virginia is really like. If you are interested in discovering more about the history of West Virginia there are several great places to see. The capitol has just recently updated the state museum and you can find out almost anything you want to know there. Independence Hall in Wheeling and Harper's Ferry are also interesting places to see and hold a lot of history for our state. Recently, our state has just celebrated it's 150th birthday. It was a great celebration in front of the capitol in Charleston. People from all over the state came to see the light show, fireworks, and join in the other festivities. It was the biggest firework production the state had ever seen, and everyone loved it! The light show was spectacular. It was projected on the front of the capital building, and it showed several things that occurred throughout history in our state. It was so good that I went to see it every day that it showed. How many other states do you know that celebrate like that for their state's birthday? As you can see, our state has much to offer even though it is so often overlooked. Whether you are young or old or like exploring the great outdoors or just enjoy learning some history, there is always something exciting to do. So the next time you are planning a trip, I hope you will consider stopping by our state. We'd love to have you!
Dear Reader: This page may contain affiliate links which may earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. Our independent journalism is not influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative unless it is clearly marked as sponsored content. As travel products change, please be sure to reconfirm all details and stay up to date with current events to ensure a safe and successful trip.
1 Reply to “Lil’ Ole West Virginia”
Comment on this article
Nice and informative post, thank you such a nice sharing, we can hope find more from you on this thank you.
This is absolutely first class
phenomenal
very informative article Travel forums provide first hand experience and advice to travelers and are a great source of information and travel tips.
for travel permissions in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh in India you can contact palaholidays.com a leading tour operator and travel guide exclusive for Jammu and Kashmir Tourism
Have you ever actually traveled with kids? It doesn’t seem like it by the tone of this article.
Hello Dr Ramesh,
If both legal guardians or birth parents of the child are traveling with the child, you will not need any other documentation, except everyone’s visas and passports. Check with your employer about medical insurance. If they will not provide medical coverage overseas, you can inquire with your U.S. based insurance company about what they provide. Some travel insurance companies sell one-year policies to cover students studying overseas and that might be another option. Safe Travels!
Sir, we both are going Europe with work visa on base of permit. Taking our 3year old child with us. Any letter or medical form/ paper we need to carry with us?
A Great Family Activity and one that will bring the family back together in the future when they all grow up!!
Take a look at our adventures. https://www.youtube.com/user/00Shaddow00 . We just started doing this to bring the family together and stop wasting our time setting in front of the television. We are filming our trips to document our adventures to remember and to share with family and friends. Maybe to motivate others to get out there with there family.
good article..
thanks for sharing the wonderful and informative details. Love this blog post. Next month coming to san francisco and looking for best hotel.
Dubai is such a nice place to stay and famous for its wonderful sightseeing’s attractions. The best trip is Dubai sightseeing’s tour and desert safari in Dubai. We had great time couple of years ago.
Everything is very open with a precise clarification of the challenges. It was really informative. Your site is extremely helpful. Many thanks for sharing
Let me add http://www.babyquip.com to the list.
With over 300 locations to serve you in North America, we help tens of thousands of families enjoy more restful and memorable outings near and far.
YAY THAT’S MY TWIN! So proud of you Tali!
Your blog helped me to plan my family trip to Bangkok and Pattaya. Just made a video blog out if it, https://youtu.be/tok17yOR1W8 please watch ang give feedback.
Ranch Vacation with family is a real fun. Here we spent quality time with each other. Truly said, we eat a lot and on-time as well. Riding is also a fun in ranch vacation, Created a perfect picture.
For great prices on water rafting, cruise, zip line, and horseback riding activities, you can check out: http://www.mauiticketsforless.com
We have actually done the ATV tour in Cozumel Mexico, and had an amazing time. We booked with Cozumel Cruise Excursions. Net which is a family business and we had an amazing time. Theres nothing better than going to another country and getting great customer service and amazing people as guides. I would highly recommend checking them out next time your in Cozumel http://cozumelcruiseexcursions.net
This sounds like so much fun! From the haunted houses to the different drinks offered. I didn’t know HHN was such a major part for Universal Orlando. Good to know! Thanks for the article!
Hello Annetta,
Yes, one Permission to Travel or Consent Letter can list more than one child on it, if the contact information for the legal guardians/birth parents is the same.
Safe travels!
Can I use one concept form to apply for two sibling from the same father
Hey, very nice site. I came across this on Google, and I am stoked that I did. I will definitely be coming back here more often. Wish I could add to the conversation and bring a bit more to the table,but am just taking in as much info as I can at the moment. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for all of these suggestions.
Chicago is a wonderful place to visit.
Excellent very nice! No doubt Dubai is very famous for more activities but desert safari is very unique activity.i love this one…
This is important topic for travel insurance for family and luggage on holiday and if you want to explore more destination you can visit here:- http://www.yourvitalventures.com
Thanks, recommendation cheap hotels is very useful for the preparation of our vacation that will not be soon. Really nice!
Nice article
Nice Travel Tips…
It’s amazing. I hope i can visit it soon T.T
Beautiful article
Our family of 3 adults booked a tour with Kalka Travels in April 2018. Our tour included transportation and accommodation in Delhi, Pushkar, Udaipur, Bundi, Jaipur and Agra. We then caught an overnight train to Varanasi where we met up with a third party contracted by Kalka Travel. Overall we were very happy with the tour company as they delivered on what we had pre-arranged with them. We upgraded our vehicle to a SUV rather than just a sedan, and added an elephant ride to Agra Fort, tickets to traditional dance show in Udaipur, a movie at the Raj Mandir theatre in Jaipur as well as water was supplied each day to us. All breakfasts were included. Our driver Ravinder was exceptional in that he was always on time and patient with us sometimes being late; the vehicle was always cleaned that morning and comfortable. He was highly attentive to our needs, very reliable, polite, and humorous, and told us what to expect at each stop. We always felt very safe with him as he was an excellent driver. His English was good in that we were able to ask many questions of him. Kalka Travels was flexible with our itinerary and our driver stopped at a few places that were not on our list of stops, unlike the other company we had considered booking who told us the drivers could not be flexible.Our wonderful driver, Ravinder, made our trip very special. Kalka Travels also only asked for a $100 deposit in advance and the remainder when we arrived in India, which put us at ease. Bobby Thakur was very quick to respond to any concerns we had. All in all, a wonderful vacation and experience with Kalka Travels.
Nice article! Wanted to point out another license plate app that has a map view showing all your plates, calculates points based on current location and includes US, Canada, Mexico and Australia plates.
For iOS: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/plates-family-travel-game/id1335335602?mt=8
For Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ebrydobby.app.plates.free
Great article & very practical. Thanks for all the tips – I’ll be thinking about them for a while as we work on our website redesign.
Great vacation ideas and post too..!!!
There are many famous forts and palaces along with wildlife sanctuaries and other monuments which has attracted thousands of visitors and some of them have become a part of UNESCO World Heritage Site as well.
We are completely in accord with these ‘not to miss 5 experiences in Dubai.’ We experienced them on a family trip last year. The one thing we missed out was the charter yacht. Now we have taken it as a priority for our next trip after reading your post.
Look like you had a great adventure trip. The ship looks awesome.
Dubai is amazing. I really enjoyed reading your article! 🙂
I just found a website that lists apple festivals all over the country! So you can find something in your area. They all seem a little bit different, which is fun. http://pickyourown.org/applefestivals.php
St john is more quite than other Caribbean islands. St John accessible only by ferry from the other U.S. Virgin Islands, St. John is a true gem in the Caribbean with crystal clear waters, lush green mountains and gorgeous white sand beaches. Though it is the smallest of the three U.S. Virgin Islands, St. John’s unspoiled beauty is perhaps the greatest found anywhere in the Caribbean.
Rajasthan is one of the most vibrant and colorful states in India with its rich culture and traditions since ancient times. It is known as the land of warriors and beautiful princess who even chose to die for saving their chastity and had a great affinity with their motherland. Whether it is the cuisine or the dress sense everything is unique about Rajasthan’s culture. There are many famous forts and palaces along with wildlife sanctuaries and other monuments which has attracted thousands of visitors and some of them have become a part of UNESCO World Heritage Site as well. The famous sites are described in this blog which is good for the history lovers and for those people who want to explore more about the diversity of Rajasthan.
Being in the city of Royal Tents in Jaisalmer of moving sand ridges, you can’t get away from the seat travel. A rough ride on a camel in the Thar Desert is one of the energizing things to do in Jaisalmer Royal Camps. It enables you to investigate the remote and segregated spots tucked amidst the abandon. Absolutely, the additional time you give on your safari, the more remote spots you are probably going to see and the more you may acclimate to and appreciate the abandon serenity.
I am going to Dubai next month thanks for sharing this information will come in handy
Nice post…
Thank you so much for sharing a great information. I appreciate your time and effort in your work. Keep posting.
Thanks, for posting such and Informatic blog. I had been to Amer Fort in Jaipur and it was an amazing experience.
I have read your full post and I want to say that this is a very nice blog. Thanks for viewing up such great information. I like this post, keep writing and give the useful post.
Every family Should explore the Australia see most attractive ACTIVITIES IN SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA.
A rough ride on a camel in the Thar Desert is one of the energizing things to do in Jaisalmer Royal Camps. It enables you to investigate the remote and segregated spots tucked amidst the abandon.
I think that is a wonderful experience at Dubai. I’ve been to Dubai and it’s pretty