Virginia Beach, Virginia
Virginia Beach, officially the City of Virginia Beach, is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of Virginia, United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census.[2] Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city in Virginia, fifth-most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic and the 42nd-most populous city in the U.S. Located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, Virginia Beach is a principal city in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area which has more than 1.8 million inhabitants and is the 37th-largest metropolitan area in the U.S.[6]
"Virginia Beach" redirects here. For other uses, see Virginia Beach (disambiguation).
Virginia Beach
United States
None (Independent city)
1906
1952
Bobby Dyer (R)
497.50 sq mi (1,288.52 km2)
244.72 sq mi (633.83 km2)
252.78 sq mi (654.69 km2)
10 ft (3 m)
457,672
1,877.53/sq mi (724.92/km2)
1,451,578 (US: 36th)
3,013.6/sq mi (1,163.6/km2)
1,799,674 (US: 37th)
51-82000[4]
1500261[5]
Virginia Beach is a resort city with miles of beaches and hundreds of hotels, motels, and restaurants along its oceanfront. Near the point where the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean meet, Cape Henry was the site of the first landing of the English colonists who eventually settled in Jamestown; modern Virginia Beach was established in 1906. It is home to several state parks, protected beaches, and military bases. Virginia Wesleyan University, Regent University, Christian Broadcasting Network, the U.S. headquarters of Stihl, and the Association for Research and Enlightenment are based in Virginia Beach. It also hosts the annual East Coast Surfing Championships and Neptune Festival.
The city is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as having the longest pleasure beach in the world.[7] It is located at the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, which was the world's longest bridge-tunnel complex[8] until the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge opened in 2018.[9]
Media[edit]
The Virginian-Pilot, based in Norfolk, is the daily newspaper for Virginia Beach. Other papers include Veer and the New Journal and Guide. Inside Business focuses on local business news.[194][195]
The Hampton Roads/Norfolk/Portsmouth/Virginia Beach area is served by a variety of radio stations on the AM and FM bands, with towers located around the Hampton Roads area.[196]
Virginia Beach is also served by several television stations. The Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News designated market area (DMA) is the 42nd largest in the U.S. with 712,790 homes (0.64% of the total U.S.).[197] The major network television affiliates are WTKR 3 (CBS),[198] WAVY-TV 10 (NBC),[199] WVEC 13 (ABC),[200] WTPC-TV 21 (Trinity Broadcasting Network), WGNT 27 (CW), WTVZ-TV 33 (MyNetworkTV),[201] WVBT 43 (Fox),[202] and WPXV 49 (ION Television). The Public Broadcasting Service station is WHRO-TV 15. Virginia Beach residents also can receive independent station WSKY broadcasting on channel 4 from Camden County, North Carolina. Some can also receive PBS affiliate WUND 2 (UNC-TV), Home Shopping Network affiliate W14DC-D from Portsmouth, Daystar Network religious television station WVAD-LD TV 25 from Chesapeake and RTV affiliate WGBS-LD broadcasting on channel 7 from Hampton. Virginia Beach is served by Cox Cable. DirecTV and Dish Network are also popular as an alternative to cable television in Virginia Beach.[203][204] In addition a large portion of the city is served by Verizon FIOS.[205]
Virginia Beach serves as the headquarters for the Christian Broadcasting Network, located adjacent to Regent University. CBN's most notable program, The 700 Club originates from the Virginia Beach studios.[206][207] In 2008, Virginia Beach became the home to the Reel Dreams Film Festival.
In popular culture[edit]
The Monopoly Here and Now: The US edition (2015) of the game, released in honor of the game's 80th birthday, included Virginia Beach as a property that could be bought, sold and traded. The city was included after Hasbro held an online vote in order to determine which cities would make it into an updated version of the game. Virginia Beach received the fourth highest number of votes in the online contest, earning it a green spot on the board. The top Boardwalk spot went to Pierre, South Dakota.[307]
In the television series, The Man in the High Castle (2015–2019), which is set in an alternate 1960s, Virginia Beach is mentioned as being the site of a D-Day style invasion by Nazi Germany, which led to the defeat of the United States and its occupation.[308][309]