CHARLOTTESVILLE AND ALBEMARLE COUNTY: A FEAST FOR THE EYES, THE MIND, AND THE TASTEBUDS IN NOVEMBER

This area is a wonderful choice for a late fall getaway,
with TedX, the Virginia Film Festival, Virginia Cider Week and breathtaking fall foliage

The Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau (CACVB) invites everyone to consider the Charlottesville, Virginia area for a late fall getaway.  With plenty of events and activities, the epicenter of Virginia offers a multitude of options for recreation and entertainment.

Back for the 27th consecutive year, the 2014 Virginia Film Festival returns to Charlottesville from November 6-9, highlighted by a diverse program featuring more than 100 films, and a stellar lineup of special guests highlighted by Hal Holbrook, Jenna Elfman,  Frank Langella, Patrick Wilson, Barry Levinson, Katie Couric, Richard Roundtree, and Jasmine Guy.  The festival will feature some of the most highly anticipated titles in the film world while also showing off the talents of rising stars in the industry, offering a carefully-curated selection of transformational classics, fascinating documentaries, outstanding foreign films and more – all combining to offer up a thought-provoking creative window on some of the most important issues in our world today. Family Day, set for Saturday November 8 on the Betsy and John Casteen Arts Grounds at the University of Virginia, will be highlighted by a free screening of the all-time family classic The Wizard of Oz in addition to a variety of free, family-friendly arts offerings. For the complete VFF program, please visit www.virginiafilmfestival.org.

Then later in November, Virginia Cider Week will kick-off its third edition, which will be held from November 14 - 23.  During Virginia Cider Week, restaurants, shops and cider makers across the state will hold dinners, in-store tastings, workshops and classes promoting Virginia cider. Virginia is the first state to have an officially proclaimed “Cider Week”, and this is only the second weeklong cider celebration in the US.  Over 100 restaurants and shops in 30 cities will promote cider during Virginia Cider Week. The cider celebration includes over 60 special events taking place at various locations across Virginia, with a large concentration of events in Charlottesville and the surrounding area.  Visitors can expect cider promotions and tastings at shops, cafes, bistros and fine dining restaurants. All the details can be found at www.ciderweekva.com.

TEDxCharlottesville 2014 promises to be one of the most intriguing events this year in Charlottesville.  Hosted by TEDxCharlottesville and Starr Hill Presents, “RefleXions” will be held at the Paramount Theater on November 14.  Following the success of last year’s inaugural sold-out event, the all-volunteer committee team is dedicated to re-inspire the community with a dynamic program.  “RefleXions” will include a wide array of speakers and performers to spark deep discussion and connection.  TEDxCharlottesville committee member Chris Farina says this year’s speakers are “from all walks of life, representing the fields of design, technology, environmental studies, community empowerment, and the arts, among others; each an individual whose work is dedicated to making our world a better one, and each who has an “idea” and a story worth sharing. ”Tickets to the full-day conference include continental breakfast, complimentary lunch, and a post-event party at the Jefferson Theater. Information about this event is available at http://tedxcharlottesville.com/.

Even though the fall season is well under way, Charlottesville and Albemarle County still offer some of the most spectacular autumnal landscapes in the country.  The Shenandoah National Park Fall Color Report describes the current scenery:  “While there’s still a surfeit of green in the leaves in the lower elevations, in many parts of Shenandoah green is just a backdrop for the speckles of pumpkin oranges, carnelians, wines, and almost metallic golds and bronzes of maples, Virginia creeper, hickories, and ashes. Sumacs are still surprising with their chameleon Day-Glo tones of shocking orange, chartreuse, and pomegranate red. Sassafras’ mitten-shaped leaves seem to wave at you, in candy store shades – butterscotch, Fireball, lime, and tangerine. In places where the leaves have already started to waft ground-ward, a lone maple the color of a Tahiti sunset startles you awake. The views from Skyline Drive’s overlooks are heart-stopping magnificent. Prepare to be surprised!”  Charlottesville is located only 26 miles from the Rockfish Gap entrance to the Shenandoah National Park, which is a unique location to enjoy this colorful season either by foot with a crisp hike or relaxing drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  For more information, please visit www.nps.gov/shen.

Brigitte Bélanger-Warner
Director of Sales & Marketing
Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau
434.970.3632 – warnerb@charlottesville.org

About the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau (CACVB)
In addition to serving as the global resource for marketing the tourism assets of Charlottesville and Albemarle County, Virginia, through www.visitcharlottesville.org, the CACVB assists tour operators, meeting planners, reunions and other groups in planning visits to the destination.  CACVB’s mission is “to enhance the economic prosperity of City and County by promoting, selling and marketing the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle, as a destination, in pursuit of the meetings and tourism markets.”  CACVB operates the Downtown Visitor Center (610 E Main St) which is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and a satellite Visitor Center in the Albemarle County Office Building (401 McIntire Rd) which is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., as well as a touch-screen kiosk at Monticello’s Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center.