Newport News :: Recreation & Culture

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Newport News

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Business leaders and executives, managers and employees will enjoy quality leisure time in Newport News, resulting in increased productivity and higher retention rates. Newport News and the Hampton Roads region provide diverse cultural offerings and plenty of entertaining things to do. Recreationally, Newport News offers thousands of acres of parks and opportunities to enjoy the outdoors. Culturally, Newport News residents are treated to a varied diet of music, dance, art, drama and film.

Newport News Recreation Facilities

Community Parks		6 (9,200 acres)
Neighborhood Parks		12
Public Tennis Courts		54
Athletic Fields		40
Golf Courses
	Public	2
	Private (Peninsula area)	7
	Military (Peninsula area)	4
Swimming Pools
	Public	2
	Private association/apartments	124
	Fitness Centers/Spas	9
Marinas
	NEWPORT NEWS	3
	Area	11
Boat Ramps		3
Source: City of Newport News Department of Development

PARKS

Newport News boasts 31 parks, located throughout the City. They vary in size from 0.3 acres to over 8,000 acres. At 8,065 acres Newport News Park is not only the largest in the City, but is the second largest municipal park in the country.

SPORTS AND FTINESS

The Midtown Community Center is a multipurpose center with 80,415 square-feet of recreation space including a 500–seat natatorium with a 50–meter indoor pool, ten competitive scored and timed lanes, a three-meter diving board, two one-meter diving boards and a 14-foot diving well. Numerous health clubs and fitness centers offer a variety of options for citizens and the region offers facilities for soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, volleyball, wrestling, track and field, tennis, ice hockey, archery and football.

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WATER

One of the major recreational assets of Newport News and Hampton Roads is the water that surrounds the area. Whether it’s fishing on the James River, sailing on the Chesapeake Bay or sun bathing at the Atlantic Ocean beaches, you don’t have to travel very far.

FESTIVALS

Newport News, as well as the larger Hampton Roads region, promotes a full schedule of events and festivals throughout the year. Outdoor summer entertainment is prevalent in warmer months and includes drama, dance and music.

MUSEUMS

Designated by Congress as America’s National Maritime Museum, The Mariners’ Museum in Newport News offers a captivating look at centuries of seafaring adventures from around the world and holds one of the most complete representations of maritime history in the world.
The Virginia Living Museum in Newport News combines the elements of a native wildlife park, science museum, aquarium, botanical preserve and planetarium with living exhibits depicting Virginia’s natural heritage from the mountains to the sea. The Museum introduces visitors to more than 250 living species native to Virginia through exhibits, discovery centers and interactive hands-on exhibits.
US Army Transportation Museum — The story of the Army's Transportation Corps, from horse-drawn wagons to all-terrain, armored vehicles, is told through models, dioramas and full-size vehicles and equipment. Visitors to this unique museum can explore the world of Army transportation from steam locomotives to the experimental rocket belt. Indoor and outdoor pavilions.
American military history unfolds at the Virginia War Museum. Outstanding collections of personal artifacts, weapons, vehicles, uniforms, posters and much more trace the development of the U.S. military from 1775 through the present.

Numerous other museums can be found throughout Hampton Roads, including The Hermitage, Chrysler Museum of Art, and Nauticus in Norfolk and the Virginia Air and Space Museum in Hampton.

ARTS

Newport News offers a number of impressive venues for performances, as does the Hampton Roads Region. The Virginia Symphony, the Virginia Opera Association, the Virginia Ballet, Virginia Arts Festival and the Virginia Shakespeare Festival are all highly anticipated by arts lovers in the area. Ongoing theatrical performances also occur at the Peninsula Community Theater, Christopher Newport University and various dinner theaters and national acts visit venues like the Hampton Coliseum, the Scope, and amphitheaters in Portsmouth and Virginia Beach.

SHOPPING

Newport News provides an ever–evolving mix of new and exciting retail experiences. Whether your shopping tastes lean toward the upscale and downtown or the laid–back and hometown, you’ll find a place that fits your style. And virtually every neighborhood is only minutes away from extensive shopping opportunities.

Patrick Henry Mall is located in mid City, containing 685,000 square feet of retail space and surrounded by outparcels featuring popular restaurants. Mixed–use areas City Center and Port Warwick offer numerous retail options, both local and national.

Some very unique shopping opportunities are available to Newport News residents in nearby Williamsburg and Yorktown; handcrafted items in the colonial style can be purchased there. These include items made of silver, pewter, glass, leather and wood, as well as furniture, candles, hats and other items. In nearby Lightfoot, the famous Williamsburg Pottery Factory and other factory outlets offer a wide variety of unusual and everyday items at discounted prices.

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