The city’s pedestrian-friendly ViBe District – an artistic enclave just a few blocks in from the beach at 18th Street – is home to artists and artisans, leather smiths and candle-makers, graphic artists and marketers, baristas and bakers. Explore the fashion boutiques for jewellery and vintage clothing, and stop for sustenance at hot spots like Java Surf Cafe & Espresso Bar, the Beach Bully BBQ or Commune restaurant.
There are sculptures and murals everywhere you look, including painted parking meters and utility boxes. Poking around can take an hour or all day – whatever you have time for – and offers farmers’ markets, artist workshops, street fairs and music. Local artists are also featured in rotating exhibitions at the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art, in the ViBe’s northwest corner.
