• Visit Arlington National Cemetery (website: www.arlingtonnationalcemetery.org), where an eternal flame burns at the gravesite of John F Kennedy.

• See the Iwo Jima Marine Memorial (website: www.nps.gov/gwmp/usmc.htm), dedicated to all Marines who have given their lives in defence of America.

• Tour George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate (website: www.mountvernon.org), and enjoy the gardens that overlook the Potomac River.

• Explore the intriguing Edgar Allan Poe Museum (website: www.poemuseum.org) in Richmond, which highlights his life and career with photos, relics and writings.

• View some of the Virginia's beautiful mansions: Thomas Jefferson's beloved Monticello (website: www.monticello.org); the 216-hectare (535-acre) Ash Lawn plantation that belonged to President James Monroe (website: www.ashlawnhighland.org); and James Madison's home, Montpelier (website: www.montpelier.org).

• Follow Daniel Boone's famous pass to the west through what is today commemorated as Cumberland Gap National Historical Park (website: www.nps.gov/cuga).

• Follow the Blue Ridge Parkway (website: www.blueridgeparkway.org) along the spine of the Appalachians. This drive, one of America's most scenic, overlooks lush farmland, fertile valleys and winds through forests vibrant with rhododendrons, azaleas and wildlife. 

• Visit the Jamestown Settlement (website: www.historyisfun.org) and see a full-scale replica of James Fort on display, along with reproductions of three 17th-century ships that brought the English settlers to Virginia.

• Travel back in time to ‘Colonial Williamsburg', a recreated colonial village with working artisans in period costume (website: www.history.org). Formerly the state capital, Williamsburg is the largest restored 18th-century town in America and home to William and Mary, the country's second-oldest college.

• Follow the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (website: www.cbbt.com) to Virginia's Eastern Shore, a 112km- (70-mile-) long peninsula bordered by the Atlantic on one side and Chesapeake Bay on the other.

See Contact Addresses for further tourist information.