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You can’t travel back in time, but you can get a passport to Virginia’s past as the Commonwealth celebrates the nation’s 250th anniversary next year. Starting Nov. 11, the Virginia 250 Passport can be picked up at any of the 70 sites across Virginia taking part in the program for free. Julie Almacy, the vice president of media and communications at George Washington’s Mount Vernon, explained to WTOP that the 64-page pamphlet spotlights sites like “the Virginia Museum of History and Culture, Colonial Williamsburg, Monticello,” and more. The passports are free, and once participants get the first stamp in their passport, they can begin to collect enough to earn them up to a 15% discount at sites that charge for admission. Once five stamps are collected, participants will be eligible to enter a drawing for prizes, including yearlong museum memberships. There’s even a chance to win cash prizes of up to $2,500. Sites from Northern Virginia to the Shenandoah Valley, Tidewater and Southwestern Virginia are included in the program. Almacy said making the passports analog-only was intentional. “Just like a passport from an international visit — you can have a passport for Virginia and be able to show all the different destinations that you visited,” she said. It’s not just a guidebook, Almacy said, but a keepsake of the nation’s semiquincentennial. The Virginia 250 Passport program runs from Nov. 11 through Dec. 31, 2026. For more information on the passport’s participating locations, visit the Virginia Museum of History and Culture’s website. Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here. © 2025 WTOP. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
