Sally A Baker, LCSW

Without a doubt, the First Landing/Seashore State Park is Virginia Beach's crown jewel attraction. This National Natural Landmark draws more than a million visitors a year, and with good reason. As the state's most popular state park, the area features facilities for such fun activities as hiking, biking, camping, fishing, boating, crabbing and swimming. The facilities for camping are top notch as they include a camp store and laundry facilities. The park was established in the 1930s, and also is noted for being the northernmost point at which temperate and subtropical plants coexist. The park also features handicap accessibility and offer cabin rentals.

If you're searching for something truly unique, then make your way to the Virginia Beach Spring Craft Market. This festival, held every March, welcomes the warmer season with an incredible selection of items that include fine arts, hand crafted jewelry, wood, glass, photography, candles, woven baskets, clothing, toys, folk art and specialty food, among many other items. The event happens at the Virginia Beach Convention Center from Friday through Sunday and its efforts benefit the work of the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia.

The two of you will enjoy escaping the present and journeying to Virginia Beach's dramatic past when you plan a romantic date at the Francis Land House Historic Site. This is a 200-year-old plantation home that has been restored down to the last detail and is open for guided tours and special events. Each room in the house is decorated to reflect the furniture and other items of the period, complete with stunning antiques and reproductions that offer visitors a rare opportunity to peer into how the gentry class of the area used to live.