Summer RV trips in Virginia

Chincoteague Pony Swim & Pony Week 2027. Every late July the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company drives the wild ponies of Assateague across the channel at slack tide to Chincoteague Island, where foals are auctioned — the 102-year-old tradition made famous by 'Misty of Chincoteague.' Pony Week runs July 24-31, 2027, with the Pony Swim on Wednesday, July 28 and the foal auction July 29. It draws tens of thousands to a small barrier-island town, so RV planning matters: Chincoteague Island's private campgrounds (Maddox Family Campground, Tom's Cove Park) and Toms Cove in Assateague Island National Seashore put you minutes from the swim and the wild beach — book many months ahead, this is the island's biggest week.

Martinsville Fall Race Weekend 2026. Martinsville Speedway's fall weekend runs Friday, October 30 through Sunday, November 1, and the track sells it as the final race before the field heads to Homestead: the last chance to gain points before the championship is decided. When we checked on September 25, most of the speedway's reserved camping sections carried sold-out labels, while general admission camping, grass sites with no hookups, was still listed. What makes a no-hookup weekend workable here is the service fleet: a propane partner fills tanks on site, and non-potable water and pump-out trucks roam the campgrounds from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., cash only, stopping when you wave a driver down. Plan the drive home too. After the race the speedway holds campground traffic for about two hours so the crowd can cross the railroad tracks safely, and campers leave by turning left toward Business 220.

Martinsville Spring Race Weekend 2027. Martinsville Speedway lists its spring 2027 weekend for Friday, April 16 through Sunday, April 18, and bills it as a short-track showdown: tight turns, hard contact and the grandfather clock that goes to the winner. Camping here is plain and close. On the speedway's fall 2026 camping page, most sections were grass sites measured at 18 by 40 feet with no hookups, one tow or companion vehicle per site, and everything you bring has to fit inside the space; a paved Class A section adds 50-amp power and water access. Check-in wants the camping ticket saved to a phone wallet and a photo ID, and the speedway gives 680 Clover Rd, Ridgeway, as the address for navigation. Rigs that need full-service camping can base at Salthouse Branch on Philpott Lake, a Corps of Engineers campground northwest of Martinsville with water and electric sites and a dump station, open from April.

Marine Corps Marathon 2027. The Marine Corps Marathon, known as The People's Marathon, runs from Arlington through the monuments of Washington D.C. and finishes at the Marine Corps War Memorial — with active-duty Marines staffing the course end to end. It offers no prize purse by tradition, and entry for most runners goes through a lottery in spring. The race is typically held on the last Sunday of October — October 31 in 2027 by that pattern; the organization confirms the official date annually. The capital region actually has strong RV logistics for this event: Cherry Hill Park in College Park, Maryland is a long-established full-service campground with transit connections toward the District, and Bull Run Regional Park in Centreville, Virginia offers a quieter wooded campground west of Arlington. Late October is peak fall-color season across the mid-Atlantic, so campgrounds carry foliage demand on top of race weekend — 8 weeks of lead for both pad and rig is realistic. Metro is the only sane race-morning transport; park the rig and ride.