The year was 1913. Jazz was on the rise, Houdini was performing his great escapes, Woodrow Wilson was inaugurated as the 28th president, and Lynchburg’s premier grand downtown hotel, The Virginian, opened.
The Beaux-Arts style building, designed by Verus T. Ritter, stood five stories tall at the corner of 8th and Church Streets. Its arched windows on the first floor, ornate lobby with 30-foot barrel-vaulted ceilings and curved skylights, and grand marble stairs with wrought iron railings exuded luxury.
As the building entered the 2010s, a new chapter began. While its grand ballroom had been quietly hidden from view for decades, much of its original marble, ornamental plaster, millwork, and ironwork remained intact. In their first hotel project, George Stanley and Blair Godsey led a gifted team of designers, trade artisans, and construction managers to painstakingly restore and enhance a building that had all but disappeared for 40 years.
The Virginian underwent a four-year complete renovation starting in 2014 that was meticulous in every detail. Supported through a City of Lynchburg performance agreement and utilizing historic tax credit programs administered through the National Park Service and Virginia’s Department of Historic Resources, the building meets rigorous preservation standards. Partnering with Hilton, The Virginian Hotel joined the international chain’s elite Curio Collection of one-of-a-kind luxury properties. Today, the hotel offers the finest modern amenities, while saving the best of its historic character. The hotel won the 2021 Hilton Connie Award, has the #1 ranking on Trip Advisor, and has consistently achieved AAA’s four-diamond rating. A passionate and gifted management and operational team is bringing the Virginian to the highest level.
With 14-foot ceilings, stylish art deco furnishings, sumptuous bedding, spacious tiled bathrooms, luxurious Gilchrist & Soames toiletries, and magnificent bathrobes, our rooms and suites are not only beautiful, they’re also meticulously clean. The Kingsdown mattresses are made exclusively for The Virginian and are covered in a plush mattress pad with Northern Feather pillows and custom decorative pillow shams. While guests love our rooms, they rave about our personalized service. We get to know our guests and anticipate their needs in the true spirit of Southern hospitality.
Downtown views, beautiful decor designed to bring together the best of the past and present, and servers who go above and beyond to ensure you have an incredible meal. Our three on-site restaurants provide the perfect setting for both memory-making and business meetings.
We love the William & Henry Restaurant, but don’t miss the Skyline rooftop bar & restaurant either! And that’s just the onsite venues – Lynchburg has a varied and delicious food scene.
Whether you like to walk, run, climb, bike, or skate, Lynchburg has something to offer you. Downtown Lynchburg is just a 30-minute drive from the Blue Ridge Parkway, America’s most scenic drive that extends 470 miles linking Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains National Parks. Or you can go for a stroll along the James River to Percival’s Island. The trail passes by Lynchburg’s picture-perfect LOVE sign. Check out the link below for a full list of outdoor activities close by.
