This spring when visiting Virginia Beach, instead of stepping into the sand and surf, visitors can step through the gates of some of Virginia’s most beautiful gardens, homes and historic landmarks. Historic Garden Week, which runs April 18 – 25 in various locations in Virginia, gives visitors a great reason to visit the beach in April. The Virginia Beach tour will be held April 22, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and is sponsored by the Princess Anne and Virginia Beach garden clubs. Visitors should follow the signs and green arrows to the homes on the tour. Properties may be visited in any order.

Here is a sampling of what you will see

1500 OLD BAY COURT: This stately and elegant house, a blend of old and new, was completed in 2008. The brick exterior has four outstanding chimneys accenting the traditional Georgian architecture. The home was built on the Old Oak Hill Farm property. A welcoming curved bluestone walkway leads to the mahogany front door, and inside, the gracious traditional “center through” hall is reminiscent of old Virginia river homes. On the water side of the house is an inviting covered bluestone terrace with an open balcony above and generous windows and French doors, all to capture the breezes and views of Linkhorn Bay. This home is open for the first time.

1068 CATON DRIVE: The Federal-style dwelling was built circa 1830 with brick formed and fired on the site and possibly constructed upon an earlier house, as there is a remnant of an old foundation in the present basement. The exterior was constructed with horse-hair plaster applied to 13-inch-thick brick walls. 1809 GREEN HILL ROAD: Built in 1974, this handsome Georgian-style house is a replica of Gunston Hall, home of George Mason, author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights. Flemish bond brick exterior, cement roof tiles and hand-blown glass in the windows add to its impressive exterior. The home has four chimneys, seven fireplaces and wide pine floors. Elegant millwork was done locally. This home is open for the first time.

1721 LOVETT’S POND LANE: Green Hill is a venerable Georgian brick house built in 1793. Originally, the home consisted of four rooms, but in 1956 wings were added during a renovation sensitive to the original 18th century architecture. Near the roofline, a brick with the date 1793 was discovered. Green Hill has its original mantels, cornices, deeply recessed window moldings, window panes, stair rails and beautiful heart-pine floors. The 1.7-acre property has magnificent 250-year-old oaks, large magnolias and a generations-old crape myrtle.

1930 LYNN COVE LANE: Lynn Cove was built in 1939 on a cove off the Lynnhaven River. The traditional house with wood shingles and a slate roof has been evolving ever since. Now a herringbone brick walk leads to the front door. The handsome wood paneling and doors of the living room were patterned after the Raleigh Tavern in Williamsburg. Under a canopy of magnificent old trees, the landscape of more than two acres is filled with massive beds of daylilies, ferns, perennials, camellias, azaleas and roses. This home is open for the first time.

2732 RIVER ROAD: This tranquil and gracious property on a cove of the Lynnhaven River is entered from the driveway through a wooded front yard of magnificent oaks, hollies, natural ferns and cinnamon ferns. A brick entrance path leads to a small welcoming terrace opposite the front door with a bench surrounded by boxwood, poet’s laurel and two large pots of colorful plants. From the back of the house is a spectacular view across the sweeping lawn down to the river. The vista is framed by wooded areas of large oaks, dogwood, mountain laurels and oak-leaf hydrangeas.

2717 SHOREHAVEN DRIVE: Built in 2000, this Country French house crests two-and-a-half acres along the Lynnhaven River. The elegant foyer contains a French buffet, a 19th-century English ecclesiastical coffer, an antique armchair with original needlepoint, hand-painted walls and a limestone floor. Overlooking the yard, pool and dock are a spacious patio with a fountain and a screened porch with an outdoor kitchen and bluestone floor. The landscaping was designed to act as a buffer to protect the river and was planted with drought-resistant native plants.

Historic Homes

Historic homes will be open at no additional charge with a full ticket for the Virginia Beach Garden Tour on Wednesday, April 22, 1 – 4:30 p.m., and also on Thursday, April 23, at regularly scheduled hours. The homes are The Adam Thoroughgood House, Atlantic Wildfowl Heritage Museum, DeWitt Cottage, Ferry Plantation House, Francis Land House, Lynnhaven House and Upper Wolfsnare.

WHEN YOU GO

FULL TOUR TICKET: Full tickets are $25 if purchased prior to tour day and $30 on tour day. Tickets include admission to six private homes and gardens and six historic homes. Single-site admission is $10. Tickets are available at all private homes on the tour.

DIRECTIONS TO TOUR AREA: Take I-264, the Norfolk-Virginia Beach Express¬way East, exit on First Colonial Rd. North for 1.2 mi. Turn right on Will-O-Wisp Dr. and go 0.5 mi. Turn left on Caton Drive to the corner of Caton Drive and Old Bay Court. Parking is available on the south side of Old Bay Court for 1500 Old Bay Court and 1068 Caton Drive.

For information, visit www.VAGardenweek.org.