Chick’s Beach

This is my favorite beach in the area. I love that there are no crowds, plenty of space to veg out and I don’t have to worry about my daughter and waves. Plus when the weather is nice it is perfect for SUPing.
Parking is an issue but that is what keeps it unpopulated :)

I can’t help but laugh at the people reviewing this beach. There are a few things I’d like to point out.
— You guys don’t like tourists on «your» secret beach, yet reviewing the beach on Unilocal will cause more people to visit.
— Some of you complain about parking, and some of you claim to have good secret parking. Exercise and reduce traffic by riding your bikes to the beach, and hide them in «secret» bushes
–Parking in homeowners/​tenants parking spots and driveways is not cool. Not all of the beach-​houses have driveways.
–Funny thing is, if you are using a car to get to chic’s beach («your» secret beach) and fighting each other for secret parking, then my friends… you are the visitor… you are the tourists!
I live on the Northend, and people parking up and down the street is just part of living at the beach (the actual oceanfront), I have never had anyone park in my yard or driveway because our visitors are not like the local-​tourists that invade Chic’s Beach. This next part is going to BLOW YOUR MINDS; Oceanfront residents walk and ride bikes up to 40 blocks (sometimes further) to enjoy the neighborhoods, the people, the restaurants/​bars, and the beaches.
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Great local beach for the people who don’t like tons of noise from the hotels. Very relaxing beach.

This place is fantastic. I am so glad it is tucked away from the usual tourist traps.

Great experience when kids are involved. Parking and the water was with close proximity. With the calmness of the water, I didn’t have to worry for the safety of my kids. Great place.

I love coming to this beach. Great to get away for a bit, drink some booze, and water isn’t too deep. Good for me since I dread waves and I can’t swim well haha. Be careful where you park. Neighbors are out and about even late at night! A lot of them run and walk their dogs. Be mindful, for this is a private beach can’t be too wild. This is also a great beach for kids.

I had a great time here and the beach atmosphere is quiet, relaxed, and enjoyable. Parking however was a nightmare! Chick’s Beach is new to me so when my friend asked me to meet her and her 2 year-​old her I had no idea what I was in for. I went where she told me she usually parks and I drove through every street of that neighborhood twice-​no luck. I found a spot 4 – 5 blocks away in a different neighborhood and we all got to experience a new section of the beach.
The water is shallow pretty far out which I think makes this a great beach to take your little ones to.

As far as beaches go, this is pretty standard. Since it is on the bay, the waves are pretty minimal, so don’t go here for surfing. I was surprised by how narrow it was (i.e. I didn’t have to walk across a mile of hot sand to get to the water!). Despite the advantages, parking is an atrocity for anyone not local enough to walk from their home, so that’s a downfall.
Overall, nice beach. It won’t be replacing my usual beach choice, but it’s a good option for those not in the military (I usually go to the beach on a military base).

Definitely the best beach in the area, especially because it is mainly a locals beach! No offense to tourists, they are always welcome, but there is a charm to this beach for not being overflowing with beach towels and parasols to the point you can’t step your foot into the sand.
Calm and relaxing. Water is Perfect for paddle boarding!
A happy place, for sure.

Why would a resident of Chick’s Beach not want to promote it on Unilocal,or other social forums? Well it becomes obvious once you have tourist invading your beach, front yard and disrespecting your neighborhood with constant litter, noise and letting dogs run off leash. Is this one of Hampton Roads best kept secrets. YES without a doubt it is. But I hope no one will be disappointed that this review will not divulge local parking spots.
The close knit swath of homes and beach affectionately known as Chick’s Beach is strong in community, with a well organized civic league working to both promote the beach, at the same time actively protecting it. The league also works to enforce environmental and zoning codes. As well, residents work closely with law enforcement and have neighborhood watch zones. Rarely are there issues of any type involving a serious crime. This may be the sleepiest two mile run in Virginia Beach. Now you begin to understand why it’s so desirable and cloaked in secrecy.
In the early 90’s most residents of this very quiet conservative area wanted nothing to do with the name Chic’s, or Chick’s Beach believing it was wrong to rename this historic area. However, the name caught on so much that it was later endorsed and became a major marketing tool for the area with branding of CXB on shirts, hats, magnets and alike.
Chicks Beach is tiny, running just two miles along the shoreline. It stretches from the Lynnhaven Inlet to just west of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, or basically East of the amphibious base Little Creek. The homes in this area are eclectic to say the least. Old beautiful beach cottages along with newer larges homes and condos and even duplex’s make up this geography. It is a melting pot that residents embrace.
The name Chic’s originated from longtime hot dog stand owner Chic Ledington who owned his small beach side stand where the current Alexander’s on the Bay now stands. At this point there is no business open at this location since earlier this month.
There are few business’s that operate in Chick’s Beach proper which I consider off of Lookout Rd. HK on the Bay and Green Parrot Grille are two restaurant/​bars that are currently operational. A small market is also on the main drag and is mainly used by tourist, or those hard up enough to not travel a small distance to a nearby full service grocery.
Some fun history about the area: Blackbeard and his crew did frequent the current geography known as Chick’s Beach in a period around 1716. It depends on who you ask where the name Lookout Rd. derived it’s orgin. This small road runs right down the middle of East Chicks Beach. Research has found the pirate and his men enjoyed houses of ill repute to the North giving it the name Pleasure House (s), which is present day Pleasure House Rd in Chick’s Beach/​Bayside. The name lookout legend has it came from Blackbeard literally not wanting to get caught with his pants down. He positioned his men on «LOOKOUT» to warn him of ships preparing to attack. Current Bay Lake Pines neighborhood dedicated this pirate heritage by naming their roads in theme. Such as Black Beard, Treasure Island and Long John Silver.
Chick’s Beach is beautiful, the sunsets spectacular and the views are one of a kind. This is a family beach, so keep this in mind when visiting. The cat has been out of the bag on Chick’s Beach for a long time. Enjoy the beach responsibly picking up any litter and NO GLASS on the beach. All are welcome to discover and enjoy this scenic part of Virginia Beach.

Great beach experience for day trips with kids. A few things to note:
1. the beach area is a fraction of the size of the oceanfront, so don’t expect sprawling beach, which actually makes it much more pleasant getting in and out of the water. 2. the water is perfect for kids. very shallow during low tide and still very managable in high tide. minimal current, so easy to stay in the water for awhile without wearing yourself out trying to stay in the right place and of course, very small waves. CAUTION: there is some rocks/​debris right at the entry into the water (concrete pieces, large rocks, etc) once you get past them (about 1 – 2 feet out — which of course is still very shallow) it was fine, but i do recommend water shoes for little ones so they don’t cut their feet. Also because the water is so calm, traditional floats and other water toys seems to do just fine.
3. there are NO PUBLIC RESTROOMS close by — the convenience store a few blocks away does offer one — the level of cleanliness is highly suspect
4. read all of these reviews — the parking tips are accurate, the feedback on police patrols is also accurate. As long as you follow the rules you won’t have any issues.
5. on a related note, there were a couple of folks who felt the need to share their musical preferences with me — it wasn’t so overbearing that i was highly aggrevated (that’s largely in part because they happened to be playing music in my preferred genre) but it is one of the behaviors i most loathe in any public place — so be prepared that others may not follow standard protocol when in public. either come armed with headphones or a good attitude, both will serve you well.
Overall it was a delightful experience, the crowd was small (compared to oceanfront activity), polite and well mannered. The water was perfect and we had a blast playing in it all day.
As a side bar, I did not stay for any «after hours» activity at the local restaurants/​bars but i could easily see how some of the negative experiences documented here occur regularly.

My old lady’s hips kept us from the beach and we finally had to put her down. I really think my Aussie was a tad bit excited because she knew that soon it would all be about her. She is right, we have been going to the beach to walk on the sand instead of hot pavement.
Chick’s Beach is a much shorter drive for us than VA Beach and far less crowded before 10am. Yes, we have to be off the beach by 10. Today we arrived just before 9 and a nice lady, who was leaving, told me that tickets are being handed out after 10am.
This was our third trip in the last week and today I noticed quite a bit of broken glass on the sand. Also, there were cigarette butts littering the sand, gross! I like to walk bare footed but today I went back to ‘our spot’ and got my flip flops. I navigated around it for my little friend.
Many dog owners take advantage of this opportunity to exercise their four legged friends, some off leash. Now, I know that they are supposed to be on leash but these owners all seem to have outstanding verbal control of their dogs, I’m good with it. Hey, I did it too, how can she retrieve the frisbee on a leash? I would have to run with her and that’s just not going to happen.
People, get some red solo cups and keep the glass off the beach. Then use a cup for your cig butts. There are trash cans all over the place. USE THEM.

This is an extremely cool area. Hell’s Kitchen is a nice hot spot with bands. The whole area has a beachy feel. Which goes along with the fact that it is a beach of course. I have friends who live here and I am a little jealous. The beach part is alright. I like having tourists around me when I am on the beach though. It’s more fun that way. Some nice houses here.

Alex and I have a name for this area. We call it the «Lunatic Fringe» or just «the Fringe». This comes from my firsthand experience of having lived there for a time. The city of VA Beach in its infinite wisdom to increase tax revenues let people tear down their single family homes and put up multi-​family units all over the place. It was
1. Good for the property owner=more money.
2. Good for VA Beach = more money
3. Bad for just about everyone else. Especially those living there. Now you have a nice family, living in a nice home, surrounded on all sides by rentals and their sorted tenants.
This area has it all. Drunks who lost their driver’s license and live in the shed out back (TRUE!), ex Vietnam war vet with a container in his backyard full of who knows what (TRUE), people riding bikes everywhere because of all their DUI’s, lonely/​sad/​crazy divorcee’s looking for love in all the wrong places… and did I mention drunks? Falling out of all the restaurants on Lookout Road, hanging out on the beach, letting their dogs run wild and poop everywhere. They should open a local AA chapter in HK. Dogs are everywhere. Everyone who lives within a 25 mile radius brings their dog to this beach because no one monitors it.
Now for the good parts. From about 5am-6:30am, it is a great place to go for a run on the beach. Alexander’s on the Bay is a nice place to eat. Zia Marie has always had good food. There are some very nice people who live there, and once you meet them, you can stand together and shake your heads at the lunacy.

Chicks Beach is a great neighborhood beach on the Chesapeake Bay. I like to walk the beach at 5 AM when I get out of work accross the lesner bridge from there. There are some great sunrises to be seen from this beach. I also like to walk this beach in the afternoon before I go into work. There is a great beach community along the beach and the people that live here and enjoy the beach are friendly and add to the personality of this cool beach. I’ve added some photo’s that I’ve taken here.

Tranquility at its best! When you’re wanting to avoid the touristy crowds on the oceanfront, this should be your go-​to spot. It’s a beautiful beach with a breathtaking view of the water. You aren’t going to find huge waves here, but it’s awesome for taking a swim. We brought some snacks, chairs, our books and sunscreen. That’s really all that was needed for the most relaxing Sunday ever. For parking, you kind of have to get creative. We usually park in the residential area and find a spot off on the side the road. I’m honestly a fan of any and all beaches (hello, I’m from Indiana) — but this is a perfect one to get a feel of where the locals go. Can’t wait to go back and stick my feet in the sand. Mmm.

This is a nice beach. I’ve been here a few times and it’s not too crowded and pretty clean. I usually park near Alexander’s, but not at Alexander’s, cuz I’d get a ticket. But you can park in the neighborhood and then it’s just a short walk to the beach :)

I adore this beach. This is a GREAT beach if you are looking to get away from the touristy beaches of VA Beach. Get there early to find good parking, and make sure you observe the parking signs/​rules because they WILL tow you. We stayed 4 hours and I saw a tow truck both times I walked back to my car for something.
This is an awesome beach if you have kids — especially smaller ones. The waves are very gentle and calm. My only real complaint was when the tide reaches a certain level, there is a dropoff of about a foot, perhaps more. If you have toddlers, you have to kind of watch out for that.
Lot of folks walking their dogs on the beach. Other commenters have complained about unruly dogs, but so far, I haven’t seen any of that. The animals we saw were very friendly and left people’s things alone.
We will definitely be going to Chick’s beach as our «usual» spot.

Great beach where the locals go. No huge hotels, no bikers or rollerbladers, no crazy restrictions, and no dealing with crowds or traffic on Atlantic avenue or parking fields or garages.
Great place to go when you know where to park. Very relaxed atmosphere to enjoy a cool alcoholic beverage if you choose, play frisbee or football without worrying about crowds crowds crowds, and enjoyable water off the Chesapeake bay.

I’m not a beach person (if you can’t tell by my pasty-​white complexion) but this is a pretty nice spot to take a load off and relax for a bit. While I don’t do the beach thing often at all, I do enjoy coming out to this spot a couple of times per summer. Best thing about it? No tourists! It is peaceful and quiet and I can usually read a book without screaming children or couples making out all around me.
I guess we consider this a ‘secret local treasure’ and I hope it can stay that way.