Virginia Welcome Center

Very nice and spacious rest area.
Being the welcome center on the VA/​NC line, in addition to the usual restrooms and vending machines there’s also a large lobby and counter where you can get all sorts of VA tourist information.
The place is kept very clean and the parking area very well lit at night so feeling safe never really an issue. Plus there is a constant flow of people all the time, even at night.
I stop here almost every trip back from visiting my parents. There is a fair amount of shaded grassy area too if you just want to stretch your legs or walk the pup.
Have taken refuge here when driving through the monsoons that precede a hurricane and caught 40 winks at all hour of the day when I was just too tired to keep driving safely.

Of all the travelling I did from home here in Virginia to Mississippi and back, this was the best rest area of all the states we crossed through (North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi). This rest area also seems to be the most technologically advanced ones as well.
The rest area is located just inside the Virginia state line at mile marker one. The outdoor landscape when you drive in is well manicured and kept up. Of all the rest areas I went to on this recent trip, this was the only rest area to actually have a playground for children. This is great when you’re travelling with a five year old.
The inside of this rest area is beautiful. There are plenty of vending machines with many options available to you. Use cash if you can when using the vending machines, as the cost increases ten cents when using credit instead. Also, there are big kiosks where you can get directions and just about anything else you need. The restrooms here are well maintained as well. I’ve noticed overall Virginia welcome centers tend to have some of the cleanest and well maintained restrooms around. The restrooms and vending are open 24 hours daily.
There is a visitor center in here as well, which is open daily from 8:30 am to 5 pm. You can get maps of the state, directions and setting up hotel reservations if needed. I didn’t need any reservations since I was on my way home. However, I do like to pick up the state transportation map when I do come back.
This is a great rest area for everyone, including those with children. With a great outdoor landscape, picnic tables, and a stellar visitor center and restrooms, you just can’t go wrong coming here. If this rest area is along your route, you should definitely stop in here. You’ll be able to get just about anything you need about Virginia.

Not your average highway rest area, this welcome center has the usual bathrooms and vending machines but there is also a large lobby with helpful people who will get you set up with Virginia hotels and other tourist destinations. Not sure where you are? There’s a big map with «You are here.»
Bathrooms were VERY clean.

Very nice, spacious and exceptionally clean rest stop. There were a few friendly gentlemen there thoroughly cleaning when we stopped in. There is a visitor center open until 5pm, bathrooms and vending machines with snacks and drinks. Everything was well lit and felt safe. Bonus: the adorable litter of feral black and white kitties ! We fed them biscuits :)