Visiting Chincoteague and Assateague Islands

Chincoteague and Assateague Islands are located along the Atlantic coast. Chincoteague is solely located in the state of Virginia, but Assateague is shared by both Maryland and Viriginia. These two islands are located next to one another and both draw millions of tourists every year.

Chincoteague Island has a gorgeous waterfront where you can see fishing boats coming and going during the day and night. You'll also find beautiful recreational boats that are worth millions of dollars. I can see why millions of people flood to this area during their annual summer vacations.

On the island itself you'll find small hotels, motels, bed & breakfast inns, guest houses and camp grounds for your lodging accommodations. Some are relatively affordable and other's can cost you a pretty penny. You should do some research inline before booking your reservations if you plan on staying overnight. You'll find no high-rises or boardwalks here.

Chincoteague is Virginia's only beach resort island. You'll find plenty of things to see & do while you're here. You can rent bicycles and go bike riding, walk the beach & waterfront, go fishing, boating, water skiing, jet skiing, sunbathe, play miniature golf, kite flying, go shopping, crabbing, clamming and all kinds of other things.

Assateague Island is known for their wild ponies (horses) which are believed to be descendants of the survivors of a Spanish Galleon that sank on it's way to Spain during a fierce storm. With that said, many people state that it's a myth and that they're really descendants of the domesticated horse. Many of them run wild on the island and that's one of the attractions that draws thousands of visitors to this place every year. I have to admit, this is what initially drew me to the area too!

Assateague is the home of Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and is a barrier island that lies east of Chincoteague. The entire island is a wildlife sanctuary and is protected from development. The entire length of the island is approximately 38 miles long. The northern portion of this beautiful island is in the state of Maryland with the southern portion being in the state of Virginia.

Here you can find pleasure by sitting on the beach, taking a swim in the Atlantic ocean, go horseback riding on the beach, go birdwatching, clamming, crabbing, hike or walk some of the beautiful nature trails, go bike riding or visit the world famous Assateague Lighthouse, which offers free tours to visitors.

We recently spent 5 days and 4 nights visiting the area and I wanted to share some photographs with all of you today. If you want to spend some time in one of the prettiest coastal areas on the east coast, these two islands are definitely the place you want to be. My photos are in no particular order.

Note: You can click on each photograph in this travel feature which will open up the photo in a new browsing window and it will automatically enlarge in size. This will allow you to see all of the smaller details up close and personal. We keep our photos a decent size here on this blog to accommodate mobile readers (smartphone users) and those who also access the blog via a tablet.