250th anniversary powering local hotel stays

It's July 28th. We dig into the growth in hotel occupancy and rates during this 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Plus, a guest opinion about threats to our drinking water supply.

Drone view of crowd at CW’s July 4 celebration on Palace Green (image courtesy Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)

America’s 250^th anniversary has been good to Williamsburg, according to figures from the Virginia Tourism Corporation.

Complete figures are difficult to obtain because many properties do not report their occupancy figures.

But those who did report show that in the four weeks leading up to July 4, Historic Triangle hotels saw a 6.7% increase in occupancy rate. That was double the statewide average increase.

Room rates increased by $12.71, to $164.57 a day, $20 higher than the state’s average rate.

The week leading up to July 4 was even stronger, with occupancy at 71.6% for the region vs. 66.3% for the state. Hotel rates jumped to $186.04, nearly $40 above the state average.

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The week following the holiday was also strong, with a 10.3% increase in occupancy, although the room premium decreased to $157.77. That was still above the state average of $139.75 and an increase of 5.1% from the same week in 2025.

Williamsburg Tourism Council figures showed southern York County hotels had the biggest occupancy rates in the 28 days through July 11 -- 85.8%

James City County hotels reported the area’s largest increase in occupancy rate but ranked third in the region after the city of Williamsburg and York County. James City hotels had the steepest daily room rate, at $172.95 vs. $167.50 for York County and $161.93 for the city.