The Roanoke Star

Drive, hike, run, bike or mosey on up here for a beautiful view of the valley and city below and a perfect spot for a road trip selfie. There are bathrooms. The parking lot is small, I would assume you’d have to wait during busy times, we went Thanksgiving week on a sunny morning and there were 5 – 6 cars there.

Good view of the city. If you like to run up and down hills there’s a path for doing all that physical stuff. Route to the star is not as well marked as it could be. Great if you have visitors from out of town or want a good place to watch the fireworks on the 4^th.

Good time to visit with the family; had a great time walking up looking out @ the entire Roanoke valley. :-)

You’ll get one of the best views in Roanoke at the Roanoke Star! It’s just a short drive up the mountain, and totally worth it whether you’re visiting or if you’ve lived here your entire life.

It’s only a short trip from downtown and it’s free! The view of Roanoke is incredible and more than worth your time to head up the hill. We were short on time and were unable to experience any of the walking trails or zoo. It’s a great spot for photos and kids burn off some penned up energy.

What a magical and spectacular place! So of course I gotta give the star of all stars, 5 stars!
Driving into Roanoke on a random road trip, we could see the star at the top of Mill Mountain, overlooking the city. I thought it was just an awesome decorative piece, so you can imagine my excitement, when I was told it was a park with a spectacular city and mountainous view.
We went twice in one day, once during sunlight and again at night. Both experiences were quiet, private, and enjoyable. I preferred the evening view — the sky went from pinks and then to blues, and it was a joy to watch the city and Star all lit up.
Tips:
Great place for a romantic evening.
I would call this the Mecca of Romance for this area.
Bring walking/​hiking shoes for the trials.
Possibly carpool in the summer — I didn’t notice loads of parking.
Bring a camera, a nice picnic lunch or some cocoa, and enjoy the views!

I’m a proud Roanoke and I absolutely love my city and I love this view!!! The trails around the star are peaceful, lots of photo ops, I took a awesome picture of a beautiful cardinal here, some of the squirrels cooperate too.

Stunning view of Roanoke and to the north. See pic.
Easy to locate and drive up the mountain.
I was in awe of joggers and bikers making their way up the mountain. Kudos!
Next time think I may hike up rather than drive.
Tip: watch speed limit en route to mountain through the residential neighborhood. Don’t become a victim and donor to city revenue generation.

If you live in the Roanoke area, and you are thinking of getting married, this is where you are to go to propose. Yes, you’re going there. It’s beautiful. The nighttime views of the city are unmatched. Don’t get lost on the trail, though. It’s perfectly romantic!

A visit to the star is extremely easy. You can drive right to it, literally.
It is also located right by the zoo. –haven’t visited.
If you are in Roanoke you must go to the star. Although the appalachians are not even comparable to the Rockies they are still beautiful especially during the fall when the deciduous trees are changing colors.

Born and raised in Botetourt Co. I’ve been to the star several times. Brought a friend from out of town up there this past weekend to see our local landmark and boy, was it crowded! There were lines of cars waiting for people to back out so they could get in. The observation deck was crowded and tons of people were taking photos in front of the star. I suppose there were a lot of out of towners in town for the 4^th weekend.
Usually, it is very quiet with only a few people who have made the trek.
The star is one of those things I think you take for granted… growing up under the white glow of the Star City. For as long as I can remember I’ve seen that star glowing on the top of the hill over the city of Roanoke every single night.
I now live in Virginia Beach and when I came home for the weekend to see family and friends this 4^th of July seeing that star shining red, white and blue was a subtle reminder of Roanoke and how glad I am to have grown up there.

Love it, it’s one of the nice tourist attraction to take it. There is limited parking, but I’ve never had and issue in all the year’s that I’ve been going there. Can’t beat view of Roanoke Valley.

On this trip to Roanoke I finally decided that I had to visit the famous Roanoke Star.
Impressive structure, with an equally impressive story behind the star. Wonderful viewing platform allows to you have good photo angles for the star and a superb view of the Roanoke area.
My only negative comment is that road signage directing you from the highways to the top of Mill Mountain need to be improved.