2026 Staunton-Area Bucket List

---

January 1 means a new year and a new you. You’ve probably put a lot of time into making New Year’s resolutions and plans to improve yourself, but have you spent time planning how to seize the day and have fun? It’s time to start making your bucket list for 2026. Put down the barbells and the salad forks and exchange your “I shoulds” for “I coulds.” Here’s a Staunton-area bucket list to help you live your best life and brighten your new year with the things you really want to do!

See a Live Show

Staunton has an incredible performing arts scene! 

• Sit on the stage (and watch a world-class Shakespeare performance) at the Blackfriars Playhouse!

• Catch a world premiere at ShenanArts. 2026 programming will feature “Some I Wrote: A Musical Story of the Songs of The Statler Brothers,” a musical based on a book by The Statler Brothers’ songwriter and lead singer, Don Reid.
• See world-class musicians in the great outdoors at the Red-Wing Roots Festival.

• We hear classical music can make you smarter! Raise your IQ at the Staunton Music Festival. 

• The Foundry at Basic City brings big-name acts to Waynesboro.

Eat and Be Merry

You eat to live, and you only live once…

• In 2025, Maude and the Bear was recognized by both Esquire and The New York Times as one of the country’s top new restaurants. It’s probably time you tried it!
• Team Sweet or Team Savory? We dare you not to “waffle” when you try to settle on the best topping at Sweet Addie’s.

• Réunion Bakery & Espresso serves pastries, cookies, breads, and if you’re lucky, quiche and focaccia. Or sample something new at the Staunton Farmers’ Market (opening for the season in April).

• Try sushi at Massaki Japanese Steakhouse & Sushi Bar. And try raw oysters (and more!) at BLU Point Seafood.

• Taste your way through the best craft beer in the Shenandoah Valley with a Shenandoah Valley Beerwerks passport. 

Indulge

You’ll live longer if you’re relaxed and feel good about yourself.

• Express yourself and forge your identity with new ink from Acme Tattoo! For a less permanent fashion choice, pick a cute new outfit at Design@Nine or the Fashion Gallery.
• Book a spa day at the spa at the Blackburn Inn. 

• Set up your home spa with soaps and body butters at Essentially Zen and candles from Marion’s Gifts.

• Spend a night or two enjoying a perfect blend of historic charm and modern amenities at Hotel 24 South, Frederick House, The Historic Berkeley Place, Barrister’s Row, or Gibson’s Warehouse.
• Relax with a good book when you let Staunton Books & Tea provide personalized guidance “to good writing, interesting ideas, and the pleasure of being surprised” with their new subscription service.

Get Wild

You don’t have to travel to Africa to channel your wild side.

• Get slobbered on when friendly animals stick their heads into your car at Virginia Safari Park when they re-open for the season in March 2026. For an even rarer (and dryer) experience, sign up for an encounter with rhinos, penguins, or sloths and their handlers. 
• Stroll and pose for selfies with an alpaca on a Walk-A-Paca tour at Point of View Alpaca Farm!
• Ever touch a pig? Stop lying about it and actually have the experience at the Frontier Culture Museum.

• Horseback ride through the mountains with North Mountain Outfitter or through the Valley with Star B. Stables.
• Waynesboro’s Bottles and Games has our area’s only mechanical bull. We bet you can’t stick on his back for eight seconds! 

Learn

All dogs (and people) can learn new tricks. You just need to find the right teacher!

• Take an improv class at Silver Line Theatre Exchange, Or learn to play an instrument or sing at Queen City Music Studios.

• Arrange flowers at Harmony Harvest Farm, make a pot or vase at Staunton Clayground, or play with fire and molten glass at Sunspots Studios.
• Have a broom or a wand? You can learn Quiddich and wizarding spells at the Queen City Mischief and Magic Festival.

• Topics for Staunton Parks and Rec’s menu of experiences ranges from gardening, dance, sign language, cooking, sports, and everything in between. The Art Hive offers all kinds of workshops for artsy people.

• Get sweaty making knives, flairs, hatchets, and more by hand when you take an artisan blacksmithing class at Waynesboro’s Virginia Institute of Blacksmithing

Adventure

Your heart pumps if you’re alive. What does it mean if your heart really pumps?

• Scale massive rock faces and rappel down waterfalls with Vivid Earth Adventures. 

• Along with downhill skiing, snowboarding, and snow tubing, Massanutten Resort serves up warm-weather adventures like zip lining and downhill mountain biking. The exhilarating slides and wave pools at the indoor water park are available all year.
• Slither, wiggle, and get muddy underground on a Grand Caverns adventure tour. Burrow under a mountain on the Claudius Crozet Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail. 

• Kayak through a whitewater gorge at Goshen Pass.
• See the Valley from above with Bridgewater’s Star Ballooning. Skydive Orange near Charlottesville and Skydive Front Royal can help you achieve your dreams of flying

Make New Friends

Tap into your community this year.

• Join a book group at the Staunton Public Library. 
• Toss frisbees and make friends at the Gypsy Hill Bark Park.

• Meet local artists at CoArt Gallery openings.

• Celebrate Pride, live music, art, and America’s birthday at Gypsy Hill Park.

• Imagine your creative potential and meet a community of makers when you attend an open house session at Staunton Makerspace (Tuesday evenings at 7 p.m.)

We hope we’ve given you some ideas for your own bucket list. Live big in 2026!