Little Island Beach sits on a narrow barrier spit where First Landing State Park spills into the bay, a quiet margin of sand most Virginia Beach visitors never discover. The shore here slopes gently into water warmed by shallow flats, turning bathwater-tepid by midsummer. Behind you, maritime forest crowds close—loblolly pines and live oaks draped in Spanish moss—while ahead, sailboats tack across the Chesapeake's silvery expanse.
“It's the only Virginia Beach strand where bay and forest meet, offering tidal-pool calm minutes from the high-rise oceanfront.”
Credit: FlickrOn my own little island
Families spread blankets on the coarse tan sand, hauling coolers and collapsible wagons across the modest parking area. Children crouch at the tide line, scooping hermit crabs into buckets while parents wade knee-deep, testing the gentle surf. The beach curves in a crescent, sheltered from the Atlantic's full force, so waves arrive as soft ripples that barely wet your ankles.
Bring binoculars: osprey nest in the pines, and great blue herons stalk the shallows at dawn. The sunsets here paint the bay in persimmon and plum, the water so still you can see every brushstroke reflected. Pack out what you pack in—there are no concession stands, no umbrellas for rent, just this unadorned stretch where the land decides to stop and the water begins.
