1. The Whole Place Is Like A Big Yacht Club
Miles of shoreline, quiet ponds, and fish-friendly rivers that open to the treasured Chesapeake Bay along with nearly a dozen marinas and boating docks mean that pretty much everyone in
Hampton has a boat.
But not just any boat. The people in Hampton call their harbor the world’s greatest, which also means that each one of them obviously has the world’s greatest boat, too. Some of them even prefer being referred to as “nautical” sophisticates rather than boating enthusiasts.
Weekends are strictly for sailing, water sports, fishing, and dining at the harbor. Houses closest to the harbor are decorated with nautical flare. And being that close to the Chesapeake Bay, you can’t really blame them.
Hopefully they pack enough to last them through a three hour tour gone wrong.
2. Pirate Weekend Is Hampton’s Mardi Gras
Even the snootiest nautical sophisticates have to let their black beards hang loose once in a while.
If you think the Internet is a little overzealous with the pirate speak on International Talk Like A Pirate Day, just wait until you come to Hampton during Pirate weekend. The locals of Hampton turn into swashbucklers overnight for their annual and much beloved Blackbeard Pirate Festival every spring and no one in the city is safe from walking the plank.
Over 50,000 people attend the event that transforms the harbor into pirate centra, with authentic impersonators in full costume.
Some might argue a little too seriously, as the locals take their pirate pride year-round, but that there kinda sounds like mutiny.
3. Every Other Accent Sticks Out Like A Sore Thumb In Hampton
Although Hampton doesn’t fall South Of The Border, it does land underneath the Mason Dixon line. Southern accents abound throughout Hampton, but don’t tell that to the people who live there. They’ll tell you that they don’t have an accent, but that Yankee twang of yours is running pretty thick.
Hampton might not be the Deep South, but they’re southern enough to have a very different way of life than those who live in the Northeast. Their ears are so good at deciphering the vernacular of out-of-towners, they can usually pinpoint if you’re from Philly, New York, Boston, or Maine, y’all.
4. Hampton Is A City Of Military Brats
Along with many of the surrounding cities of Hampton Roads housing numerous military bases, Hampton is home to Langley Air Force Base. That means a lot of military families move here. And then eventually move out again.
Having such a heavy military population definitely has its perks. For starters, the shopping on military bases is tax free and the women of Hampton definitely don’t mind the view at all. But, like anything else, it has its downside as well. As quickly as you make friends with someone new in town, they’re gone again.
And you’re always getting corrected on your posture, which is atrocious, by the way. Straighten up!
5. And Every Day Sounds Like A Scene From Top Gun
Depending on your preference, being so closely located to such a notable Air Force Base has another side: All those jets.
When you’re new in town, they take you by complete surprise. One minute you’re walking down the street enjoying an ice cream cone in the beautiful summer weather. The next, a jet fighter flies what feels like ten feet overhead and now your cone is in the gutter. There’s a distinct possibility you’ve never heard anything so loud in your life.
You turn to your local Hampton friend who is still calmly licking their cone and ask how they didn’t hear that. Of course they heard it, they’ll say and shrug, you just get used to it.
6. Tourist Season Is Not Exactly Welcomed
It’s summer again? It’s time to start working on that eye roll because that means the tourists are coming.
It’s like a real life version of Plants Versus Zombies: Your house is the beach, the tourists are the zombies and there just aren’t enough pea shooters to keep them all away. There’s a reason that the people in Hampton don’t live in Virginia Beach and that’s because:
1. The beach really isn’t as big of a deal as everyone makes it out to be and, more importantly,
2. Because tourists are the worst.
As if traffic isn’t bad enough on Hampton roads and tunnels during the off-season, the tourists come to town on their way to other beaches and to visit the Air and Space Center and suddenly you’re living your worst nightmare. And everyone in Hampton knows the best beaches are in the Outer Banks, anyway.
7. Being A Kid In Hampton Kid Means Going To The Air And Space Center
Hampton is home to the Virginia Air And Space Center which also serves as the visiting center for NASA’s Langley Research Center and Air Force Base. As it’s one of Hampton’s biggest claims-to-fame, it’s also where every kid went on at least half a dozen school trips and where their parents take them for a day trip when they don’t want to venture out to Busch Gardens.
So naturally, they know everything there is to know about aerospace, including knowing how to personally land a real commercial jet – what with those realistic flight simulators and all.
8. If You Don’t CrossFit You Don’t Belong In Hampton
Do you CrossFit, bro? The answer is probably yes in Hampton. The fitness craze has taken over the area, with multiple gyms and sold out classes available for locals to fill.
This recent upswing in extreme fitness falls in conjunction with Hampton’s annual Virginia Sports Festival, which brings 2,000 hard bodied athletes to compete and over 10,000 visitors to spectate events like CrossFit and body sculpting championships.
And you thought California people would make you feel insecure.
9. Jimmy Buffet Is Hampton’s Hero
Jimmy Buffett is one of those musicians that you either really love or really dislike. Well, everyone in Hampton falls under the category of really –really- loving him. And they don’t mind showing it. From novelty license plates to parrot hats, Hamptoners have got it all.
Some say it’s because he’s one of them – the quintessential, laid back, beach loving dude who isn’t afraid to let his freak (or pirate) flag fly. Some say it’s because no one throws a party quite like a Jimmy Buffet fan. Cheeseburgers and margaritas, anyone?
10. Except When It’s Tiger Woods
Because of the golf, not the scandal.
Most of the coastal communities in Virginia are known for their love of golf, and Hampton is no exception.
If the locals in Hampton aren’t out on their boat or recovering from a night at a Jimmy Buffett show, there’s no better way to unwind on a quiet Sunday morning (or even just a Tuesday morning) than swinging a driver under a sunny Hampton sky. The Woodlands course is a Hampton favorite dating all the way back to 1916, and hosts multiple tournaments every year for golf fiends of all ages.
Swing by the harbor on the way home for some oysters and you have yourself an all-around perfect Hampton day.
Feature Image Source: Blackbeard Pirate Festival
