Virginia Air and Space Center, Hampton, Virginia, United States of America
Virginia Air and Space Center is situated in Hampton, Virginia, the place where America’s space program originated. It serves as the visitor hub for Langley Research Center, NASA’s oldest field center that strives to amuse, educate, and inspire people of all ages. Also, it is a museum that displays historical and contemporary radio equipment, aircraft, and spacecraft, as well as some moon rocks and the command module that was used for Apollo 12. A hands-on space gallery is also housed at the building, wherein visitors can see four different exhibits relating to space.
Besides exhibitions, Virginia Air and Space Center also conducts summer camps for children in which activities will be based on space and aeronautics. Not far from the center is Fort Monroe's Casemate Museum, which is another great museum in Hampton as it showcases Fort Monroe’s military history. The Virginia Living Museum in the city of Newport News is also worth visiting as it is an open-air museum that includes a science center, aquarium, botanical preserve, aviary, and a planetarium. The Newport News Park is also a must-visit site since different activities can be done here, like biking, picnicking, hiking, and more. Meanwhile, in the neighboring area of Yorktown, loads of hotels are set up. The Hampton Marina Hotel is a 4-star hotel that is near the space center. This lovely hotel has a rooftop pool with sun loungers, as well as a restaurant, bar/lounge and concierge services. The budget-friendly Super 8 by Wyndham Hampton is also nearby. There are vending machines in the hotel as well as free WiFi and a laundry room.