Things To Do in Norfolk

Downtown Norfolk's centerpiece is the MacArthur Center, a 1-million-square-foot shopping mall covering the 9 square blocks bordered by Monticello and City Hall avenues, Freemason Street, and St. Paul's Boulevard (tel. 757/627-6000; www.shopmacarthur.com). The main entrance is on Monticello Avenue at Market Street. Anchored by Nordstrom and Dillard's department stores, it has most of the mall regulars, an 18-screen cinema, a food court, and full-service restaurants.

Built in 1983 between Waterside Drive and the Elizabeth River, the Waterside Festival Marketplace (tel. 757/627-3300; www.watersidemarketplace.com), which everyone calls simply the Waterside, was the catalyst for downtown Norfolk's revitalization, like Baltimore's Inner Harbor, Boston's Faneuil Hall, and New York's South Street Seaport. The Elizabeth River Ferry and harbor cruises leave from the dock outside this glass-and-steel pavilion. With so much of its shopping business now going to the MacArthur Center, the Waterside now is primarily a dining and entertainment center.

In Town Point Park, to the west of the Waterside, don't miss The Homecomer, a statue of a returning sailor greeted by his wife and child, and the moving Armed Forces Memorial, where bronze letters written home by fallen sailors and marines litter the ground. The park's amphitheater features a full schedule of free events all year -- concerts, children's theater, magic shows, puppetry, and more. Beyond the park stand the riverfront's most conspicuous buildings, the huge gray NAUTICUS, The National Maritime Center and the glass-enclosed, semicircular Half Moone Cruise and Celebration Center, the city's modern cruise-ship terminal (www.cruisenorfolk.org).

East of the Elizabeth River bridges and I-264, Harbor Park, a 12,000-seat stadium, is home to the Norfolk Tides, a Class AAA International League baseball team affiliated with the Baltimore Orioles (tel. 757/622-2222; www.norfolktides.com).

Norfolk's Cannonball & Civil War Trails

Two self-guided walking tours of downtown will take you through 400 years of Norfolk's history. Beginning at the Freemason Street Reception Center, 401 E. Freemason St., sidewalk inlays and medallions mark the route of the Cannonball Trail through downtown, along the waterfront, and through the historic Freemason neighborhood. The local version of Virginia's Civil War Trails follows much the same route but with an emphasis on Norfolk in 1862. Pick up maps and brochures at the visitor centers.

You will have a guide as you follow the Cannonball Trail with Segway Tours of Hampton Roads (tel. 775/412-9734; www.segwayofhamptonroads.us). The 90-minute tours on the stand-up Segway machines depart daily at 10am, 1pm, and 3pm from Machismos Burrito Bar, 409 York St. They cost $60 per person. Reservations are essential.

Harbor Cruises to Where the Ironclads Fought

Three cruise boats docked at the Waterside or NAUTICUS offer cruises on the Elizabeth River, Hampton Roads, and the Chesapeake Bay. You will pass the naval base with nuclear subs and aircraft carriers and cross the site of the Civil War battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac.

The best for the money is the 2-hour Victory Rover (tel. 757/627-7406; www.navalbasecruises.com) cruise from NAUTICUS to the Norfolk Naval Station -- or as close thereto as security will permit. It has summertime trips departing at 11am, 2pm, and 5:30pm, and at least one trip a day (usually departing at 2pm) the rest of the year. Fares are $17 adults, $10 for children. Combination tickets with admission to NAUTICUS cost $24 adults, $17 for children.

From April to October, there are cruises on the American Rover (tel. 757/627-7245; www.americanrover.com), a graceful schooner modeled after 19th-century Chesapeake Bay schooners. Prices for the 1 1/2-hour midday cruise and the 2-hour 3pm cruises along the Elizabeth River are $14 and $16 for adults, $8 to $10 for children 11 and younger, respectively. It also goes on sunset voyages and adults-only Saturday night party cruises. Call for exact times and reservations.

Also departing from the Waterside, the sleek Spirit of Norfolk (tel. 866/304-2469 or 757/625-3866; www.spiritofnorfolk.com) is like an oceangoing cruise ship, complete with dancing, good food, and entertainment. Call for prices, schedule and to make reservations.

A Ferry Ride to Olde Towne Portsmouth

Across the Elizabeth River from downtown Norfolk, Portsmouth's Olde Towne section traces its roots back to 1752. Like those in Charleston and Savannah, its homes present a kaleidoscope of architectural styles: Colonial, Federal, Greek Revival, Georgian, and Victorian. Plaques mounted on imported English street lamps point out their architectural and historical significance.

Ferries were the main means of getting across the river until the 1950s, and the paddlewheel Elizabeth River Ferry (tel. 757/222-6100; www.gohrt.com) still makes the short but picturesque trip. During summer it departs the Waterside marina every 30 minutes Monday to Friday from 7:15am to 11:45pm, weekends from 10:15am to 11:45pm. Off-season service ends at 9:45pm Sunday through Thursday, 11:45pm Friday and Saturday. Fare is $1.50 for adults; 75¢ for children, seniors, and passengers with disabilities (exact change required). There is no ferry service on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day.

Get off at the second stop, Portsmouth's North Landing Visitor Center, on Harbor Court (tel. 800/767-8782 or 757/393-5111; www.visitportsva.com), and pick up a walking tour brochure and map. The center is open daily 9am to 5pm.

Worth seeing are the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Museum, 2 High St., and the nearby Lightship Museum (tel. 757/393-8591 for both; www.portsnavalmuseums.com), in Riverfront Park at the foot of London Boulevard. The Lightship Museum is the lightship Portsmouth, built in 1915 and anchored offshore until the 1980s to warn mariners of the dangerous shoals on the approach to Hampton Roads.

Tree-lined High Street, the main drag running inland from the harbor, has several restaurants and coffee shops, including the Bier Garden (tel. 757/393-6022) and Cafe Europa (tel. 757/399-6652).

For a rundown on events, pick up a copy of Veer Magazine (www.veermag.com), a weekly paper free at the visitor information offices, most hotel lobbies, and the Waterside. The "Daily Break" section in the local rag, The Virginian-Pilot (www.pilotonline.com), is also a good source.

The Performing Arts

From opera to riverside rock concerts, Norfolk has a wider array of performing arts than any city in the state, and the choices keep growing.

If your brow is high, the Virginia Stage Company (tel. 757/627-1234; www.vastage.com) puts on dramas and musicals from October through April in the Wells Theatre, 110 Tazewell St. (tel. 757/627-6988), at Monticello Avenue opposite the MacArthur Center. Built in 1913, this restored Beaux Arts gem is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Virginia Symphony (tel. 757/892-6366; www.virginiasymphony.org) often plays at Chrysler Hall, Charlotte Street and St. Paul's Boulevard, and the Virginia Opera (www.vaopera.org) sings at the Harrison Opera House, 160 E. Virginia Beach Blvd. at Llewellyn Avenue (tel. 757/623-1223).

Chrysler Hall and the Harrison Opera House are part of the Norfolk SCOPE complex (tel. 757/664-6464; www.sevenvenues.com), which also includes the futuristic Norfolk SCOPE Arena, Brambleton Avenue and St. Paul's Boulevard, which seats 12,000 for the circus, ice shows, sports, concerts, and other events.

Norfolk SCOPE also manages the restored Attucks Theatre, on Church Street at Virginia Beach Boulevard (tel. 757/664-6464; www.attuckstheatre.org), which was built by African-American entrepreneurs in 1919 and named for Crispus Attucks, a black man who was the first American patriot to die in the Revolutionary War. Duke Ellington, Cab Calloway, Count Basie, and many other famous musicians performed here from the 1920s through the early 1950s, when it was among a row of nightclubs, restaurants, and stores on Church Street that comprised one of the liveliest African-American neighborhoods in the segregated South. Today you might hear the Preservation Hall Jazz Band or Jerry "The Iceman" Butler.

Town Park, between the Waterside and NAUTICUS on the Elizabeth River, is the scene of constant outdoor entertainment during the warm months, most sponsored by Norfolk Festevents (tel. 757/441-2345; www.festeventsva.org). These include Friday night concerts, the annual Norfolk Harborfest in June, Cingular Norfolk Jazz Festival in July, and the Cingular Town Point Virginia Wine Festival in October.

The Best Time to Be Entertained -- The best time to be entertained in Norfolk -- or anywhere in Hampton Roads, for that matter -- is during the Virginia Arts Festival (www.virginiaartsfest.com) from mid-April through mid-May. That's when the likes of Itzhak Perlman, the Martha Graham Dance Company, and the Tokyo String Quartet appear at venues from Williamsburg to Virginia Beach. Call tel. 877/741-2787 or 757/282-2800 for information, 757/671-8100 for tickets. Adding to the fun, the arts festival coincides with Norfolk's International Azalea Festival.

The Bar & Club Scene

Most grownup club action these days is found along Granby Street between Main and Charlotte streets, where some of the many restaurants and bars have live music. Take a stroll any night, especially on weekends, and you're bound to hear tunes to your liking. Check out Scotty Quixx, 436 Granby St. (tel. 757/625-0008), and Hell's Kitchen, 124 Granby St. (tel. 757/624-1906). Because the scene changes significantly from night to night depending on which bands are playing where, pick up a copy of the local alternative newspaper, Veer Magazine (www.veermag.com), which will give a good rundown of what's going on when you're here.

A block to the east, opposite the MacArthur Center, the Norva Theater, 317 Monticello Ave. (tel. 757/627-4547; www.thenorva.com), hosts rock, reggae, and other bands. With lounges overlooking the stage from three levels, it's more a big club than a theater these days.

Once the center of Norfolk nightlife, the Waterside Festival Marketplace attracts a mostly young after-dark crowd these days. Here you'll find Jillian's (tel. 757/624-9100), a noisy emporium with a restaurant, sports bar, billiards and electronic games, and a dance club with music to thrill the soul of any 18-year-old. I like to stroll through the Waterside to see what's going on, and then head over to Granby Street.