Average daily rates at Greater Williamsburg hotels rose 8.8% in July compared with a year earlier, reaching $165.74, according to data from the Virginia Tourism Council shared by Visit Williamsburg. The tourism council attributed the increase to Independence Day celebrations tied to the country’s 250th commemorations. While average hotel rates increased, overall room demand was down slightly in July year over year, dipping 2.1%.
RevPAR, or revenue per available room, a combined measure of occupancy and rate, rose 16.3% to $113.48 from $97.60. Room Revenue increased 6.6%. Year to date, Williamsburg’s numbers follow a similar pattern. Occupancy is up 7.0% through July, while ADR has grown 1.2% and RevPAR 8.2%. Room Revenue is down 2.7% for the year, with room supply off 10.1% and room demand down 3.8%.
By comparison, Virginia statewide saw July ADR rise 5.6% alongside a 4.9% increase in room demand, and the Norfolk-Virginia Beach region posted a 5.3% ADR gain with room demand up 3.4%. Nationally, ADR grew 5.7% as room demand rose 2.8%. Williamsburg’s rate growth outpaced each of these markets even as its room demand moved in the opposite direction.
In other news:
Education
William & Mary Law School sees record giving in 2025-2026 fiscal year William & Mary Law School reported its third-largest fundraising year, according to Emily Webb writing for the William & Mary Law School news site. Donors gave $6,219,768 through 2,667 gifts, supporting scholarships, public service internships, loan repayment assistance, and new initiatives like the Center for Energy Law & Policy. Dean A. Benjamin Spencer credited alumni and friends for helping the Williamsburg school recruit top students and faculty while easing financial burdens for future citizen lawyers.
WJCC Schools outlines rules and expectations for 1:1 device program Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools details its 1:1 device program, which supplements student learning with digital tools for research, collaboration, and accessibility features. Elementary students use classroom device sets, while those in grades 6 through 12 take an assigned device home. Participation stays optional though encouraged, and WJCC clarifies its acceptable use policy, filtering practices, damage protection, and lack of a bring your own device option, giving Williamsburg and James City County families clear guidance on device rules.
Jefferson Lab physicists find new particle structures in quark research William & Mary physics professor Justin Stevens, spokesperson for Jefferson Lab’s GlueX Collaboration, said newly discovered subatomic structures help investigate whether excited gluons contribute to particle formation, calling the results just the beginning of new hadron spectroscopy work. Newswise, a technology news site, reports the GlueX team detected two unexpected structures while searching for a known strangeonium particle using a photon beam. The findings, published in Physical Review Letters, connect Williamsburg based research to a significant advance in particle physics.
William & Mary named friendliest students in Princeton Review’s 2027 college rankings The Princeton Review released its annual Best Colleges rankings for 2027, based on survey responses from 172,000 students across 392 schools. Among the 50 category lists, William & Mary topped the Friendliest Students ranking, earning the top spot nationally in that category. The Williamsburg school’s recognition appears alongside honorees like Reed College and Vanderbilt in the newly published guide, The Best 392 Colleges: 2027 Edition, from Penguin Random House.
William & Mary welcomes new faculty across Arts and Sciences for 2026-2027 William & Mary’s College of Arts & Sciences announced 16 new full-time faculty members joining for the 2026-2027 academic year, alongside 24 visiting or adjunct professors, according to the school’s staff report. The new hires bring expertise spanning government, biology, economics, health sciences, mathematics and the arts, with backgrounds from institutions like Princeton, UC Berkeley and Johns Hopkins. Their arrival strengthens teaching and research across the Williamsburg campus in fields ranging from European politics to cardiovascular physiology.
Business
Williamsburg based OTH Hotels Resorts expands portfolio with two East Coast hotels OTH Hotels Resorts added two East Coast properties to its third party management portfolio, the Heritage Hotel & Conference Center in Southbury, Connecticut, and the DoubleTree by Hilton Binghamton in New York, according to LODGING Magazine. The additions mark OTH’s entry into both state markets and bring 370 guestrooms and more than 33,000 square feet of event space under its management. Chief Development Officer Scott McMahon said the deal builds on the properties’ existing amenities. Over the past year, the company also acquired multiple properties in Maryland, including hotels in Jessup and College Park and one in Pikesville, along with a Courtyard by Marriott near Washington, D.C.
Recreation & Events
James City County Library to host second annual fall plant share The John Clayton Chapter of the Virginia Native Plant Society reports that the second annual Williamsburg Regional Library Fall Plant Share will take place October 25 at the James City County Library on Croaker Road. Gardeners can donate potted plants, browse information tables, and take home free native plants and seeds. Tracy Melton of the Historic Rivers Chapter of Virginia Master Naturalists will speak on replacing non-native species to support local wildlife in James City County.
Yorktown museum lecture to explore life in revolutionary Virginia backcountry The Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation announces that William & Mary professor Sarah McCartney will give a talk on Virginia backcountry settlers during the Revolution at the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown on November 12 at 6 p.m. The event ties into the museum’s Give Me Liberty exhibition and lets guests preview the exhibit starting at 5 p.m. Tickets cost 5 dollars, with a discount for members, bringing scholarly programming to the Yorktown museum campus this fall.
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