Historic Downtown Leesburg, about a 15-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, has a number of places to eat, drink, and shop.
Oatlands Historic House & Gardens, about a 10-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, is a site for The National Trust of Historic Preservation and dates back to the late 1700s when a descendant of one of Virginia's first families inherited farmland.
Morven Park, about a 20-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, is a 1,000 acre historic estate that also houses an equestrian center.
Leesburg Animal Park, about a 10-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, is a small family-owned zoo with attractions, such as animal petting and feeding and live animal shows.
Leesburg Premium Outlets, about a 15-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, can solve any last-minute wedding fashion emergencies with over 100 designer and name-brand outlet stores.
One Loudoun, about a 25-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, is an up and coming town center with a variety of places to eat and shop to choose from.
Red Rock Wilderness Overlook Regional Park, about a 20-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, has 67 acres of hiking trails and views of the Potomac River.
Topgolf, about a 25-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery and located across from One Loudoun, is where John first taught Erin how to golf.
Harpers Ferry Adventure Center, about a 45-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, offers tubing, rafting, kayaking, zip lining, and rope courses.
The LoCo Ale Trail connects the nearly 40 breweries in Loudoun County. The trail is broken down into clusters based on location (including one in downtown Leesburg), so grab an Ale Trail Map & Passport from the website, collect stamps at each brewery in a cluster, and win prizes. One of our favorites is Bear Chase Brewing Company and one on our list to get to is Vanish Farmwoods Brewery.
Loudoun County is known as DC's wine country with nearly 40 wineries and tasting rooms. If you didn't get enough wine at Stone Tower, look at the list of wineries (broken down into clusters based on location) and hit a few on your own or check out some of the local tour offerings, such as DiVine Wine Tours of Virginia.
Mt. Defiance Cidery and Distillery, about a 25-minute drive from Stone Tower Winery, offers hard ciders and spirits if the LoCo Ale Trail and Wine Country aren't to your taste.
About a 45-minute drive the Leesburg area, Fairfax County, Virginia is where we live. Mosaic District This town center is where we call home. There is a large turf area to hang out on and a bunch of places to shop and eat; however, we recommend the Greek restaurant, Our Mom Eugenia, the taco place, BarTaco, and the brewery, Caboose Commons. Great Falls Nat'l Park The park features numerous hiking and walking trails that run alongside the Potomac River. We were on a hike here at the beginning of quarantine when we decided, for fun, to look at dogs available for adoption. 48 hours later, Lincoln was at home with us.
Arlington, Virginia is located about 45 minutes from the Leesburg area. Monuments and Memorials Arlington is home to Arlington National Cemetery (including the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier), Iwo Jima, the U.S. Air Force Memorial, and the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial. Clarendon A neighborhood within Arlington, there are a number of bars and restaurants, including Spider Kelly's, where we met, and the Lot, which is a parking lot turned bar.
Alexandria, VA is located about an hour from the Leesburg area. Old Town Old Town Alexandria's King Street is lined with over 200 shops and restaurants, including outdoor dining on the waterfront. Growing up, John often went to the Fish Market Restaurant with his dad. Potomac Riverboat Company The Potomac Riverboat Company has a water taxi service that will take you from Alexandria to 2 locations in DC - Georgetown and The Wharf (another area that we suggest checking out for fun along the waterfront) and National Harbor in Maryland.
The National Mall is located about 45 minutes from the Leesburg area. In this area, you can visit the Lincoln Memorial (a favorite of ours for obvious reasons), the Reflecting Pool, the World War II Memorial, The Washington Monument, the White House, the U.S. Capitol, and the Supreme Court among many Smithsonian museums as well. The Tidal Basin is a short walk from the National Mall and features the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, FDR Memorial, and the MLK Jr. Memorial. If you want to see a lot, but aren't sure how to get it all in, we highly recommend looking into Big Bus Tours, which is a hop-on, hop-off double decker bus ride that hits all the big stops in DC.
Georgetown is located about an hour from the Leesburg area. Georgetown Waterfront The Georgetown area not only has historic cobblestone streets lined with endless shopping and dining options, but it also has a riverside promenade perfect for summer nights. Filomena Ristorante We had dinner here the night that we got engaged. Come hungry, leave full and with the majority of your meal in a takeout container. Georgetown Cupcake Famous for its TLC show, DC Cupcakes, this shop is right around the corner from Filomena for you to treat yourself to dessert.
Navy Yard is located about an hour from the Leesburg area and is where Erin lived when she moved to DC. Bluejacket This brewery is right across the street from Erin's old apartment, so we spent a lot of time here, especially before and after Nats games. District Winery We went here together for the first time over LDW 2019 when we had our first all-day date. It's also right across the street from Erin's old apartment, so we went to the tasting bar quite often too. We highly recommend the Unoaked Chardonnay and a patio seat for waterfront views. Osteria Morini This was also a stop on our all-day date. We love this place for good pasta. Erin's pick is always the Capelletti. Nats Park Grab some tickets to a game if the Nats are in town. If not, walk down Half Street to the Bullpen and watch the game on the big screen. Él Bebe Tacos + Tequila A few steps from Nats Park, you'll find some of the best nachos ever.