The Best Senior Living Communities in Virginia Beach, VA

"My mom will move into Commonwealth Senior Living at Leigh Hall. I loved the way it's set up. It used to be in the 1950s, a luxury hotel that they've turned into an assisted living facility, and so when you walk into the main entrance, it opens up into this giant atrium, and that's the common room, and the floors are open. There are skylights, so it's like the natural light coming in, but you can see the blue sky and the clouds above through these big skylights. It was very open, bright, and welcoming, and I love its atmosphere and feel. I like the square footage and the layout of the rooms. They have a kitchenette. The staff was great. I like the ratio of staff to residents. I like the little dining hall, how it was laid out, and it was very open, bright, and cozy. Everything was clean. There were no weird odors or anything like that. A lot of the staff have been there for a long time, and they don't have a very high turnover rate."

"My mother received excellent care at this facility. Staff is very professional and communicated regularly with the family. Atmosphere is very homey. I also appreciated the care she received during hospice. The care my mother received at "All in the Famiy" was better than the hospital . EXCELLENT!"

"Mother passed while at Arden Court within a week after she had a terminal diagnosis. The staff couldn't have been more loving and caring with her from her arrival to Arden Court and through the week that she passed. They were loving, kind, and nurturing to her always. I cannot thank you enough for making it a happy home for her. I tell everyone about how wonderful and dedicated you all are to your house guests!"

"First Colonial Inn was more modernized than the other places we toured. It's not like it's renovated. It's clean. They've got friendly staff. They have more security. When you go in, even though you're visiting, you have to go over to a kiosk and type in your information, like you have COVID, why are you here, you have to put in your name. You sign in and you have to go to the kiosk. The staff was warm, friendly, and helpful. Even our tour guide was great, Travis. We were able to see the dining hall, and it's nice. It's like you go to a cafeteria and get your food. They cook all day long there for you. The building was nice and well-kept, and it doesn't look rundown. The price is a little higher than the other place."

"I toured Discovery Commons Virginia Beach. It was clean. I liked both the studio and the one-bedroom. I liked the kitchen area. The elevators were close to both units. I liked the fact that you can launder your clothes. On each floor, they had laundry facilities where the tenants could launder their clothes. There wasn't anything really that I didn't like. I was just surprised at the rate they told me they charge."

"The service at Indian River Residential Care Community is wonderful because this is a facility that all the people there are all in auxiliary grant, which mean that they are not a rich facility and I don't know if they have patients with private pay. There are a lot of things that they do not have. But for people like my son who cannot go even for one month on a private pay and can no longer live on his own, I thank God there is a facility like this. There is no choice menu, but that's alright. These people are happy that somebody is cooking for them. If they don't like what the dinner is, they can always have a sandwich. They don't have a lot of activities and that's very disappointing because I think old people need activities. But for activities, you need money. These are not well read people, so I think a library will be wasted. However, if a van can take them to a dollar store or Walmart once every other week, that will be wonderful. They will have something to look forward to, but they don't have that. There are some downfalls and yet for people who have nowhere else to go, thank God the place is there. I will rate the manager of that facility absolutely the highest mark plus double it. She is a wonder on this earth and all the people in that facilityand these are her words are her children. She is a wonderful human being. She is very good. She does what she has to do. She has taken a person out of there because he is a danger to others. She gives him a number of chances but it comes to a point that she can't keep him there any longer. Nothing is perfect and I am not saying that this place is perfect. Not all people are as nice or understanding or as kind as she. But ultimately she is in charge and she listen when you talk to her. She asks how we are doing and is everything is okay. She speaks with us and gives us a beautiful greeting when we come in. She runs the place beautifully. It is the love of her life and it shows. The people who are there are on auxiliary grant and these are the people who are not well-off at all. They haven't any abundance of anything in life and some of them like my son are mentally ill and other problems. So, they can't go out and earn hundreds of thousands of dollars a year so they can go to a private pay. This is a special place for special people. If somebody doesn't have enough money and can get an auxiliary, there is not that many places around to choose from. "

"We toured Bickford of Virginia Beach, and I think we are going to choose this place for my father. It had everything that we needed. The staff appeared to be caring, thoughtful, and engaging. The room had a built-in sit down shower. They had a microwave and a little refrigerator. The atmosphere of the facility was friendly. There was an exercise room for therapy and a barbershop."

"My sister will be moving into Chesapeake Place Senior Living. She has a unit. It's extremely clean. I had my sister with me on one of the visits, and that was the first thing she noticed. It smelled good, and there was no offensive odor. She said it's nice. It appeared to be safe. Everyone with whom we came in contact was very pleasant and engaging. We're impressed with the activity program that they have for the residents. That's something especially my sister needs. I had overall a very, very good impression of the facility. The staff was very knowledgeable about their job and the facility."

"We're moving my mother-in-law into Harmony at Oakbrooke. It was very nice, very welcoming, and very clean. The concierge was very polite. This was very affordable with all her retirements. This was the only one that I went to and we were so pleased. We had to wait until after the holidays. They weren't pushy at all. I called them and I assured them that they were the one and I dealt with Vivian there. She didn't do any follow-ups, which I liked and when I called her, she was good. I know she's in the sales division. Some places they call you and call you and call you. I said, "I'll call you after the holidays" and she said OK. I am very impressed with that. I saw the dining area for assisted living and where you can take your family and for memory care and that's all very nice. It's a good place. They have movie nights, games, and bingo, and they do field trips. I was impressed. The staff that I met was very nice. The nurse came to our house to visit my mother-in-law and do an assessment and she was very nice and pleasant."

"It was excellent. They had everything that one would need. The staff engaged with the elderly people there. You could tell that they understand and care about their patients. The staff was excellent and I have no problem. The rooms were excellent. I looked at a companion room, and it was roomy and very comfortable. They would share a bathroom, but everything was clean. I have no issue with them. They have a nice cafeteria. The outside area was excellent. The amenities were excellent."

"My mom moved into Bickford of Chesapeake in November. The facility is beautiful and brand new. It just opened in May, but it feels like home when you're inside. It doesn't feel institutional at all. They have big fireplaces and sofas in the seating areas. The staff is amazing and very knowledgeable. My mom has a large studio room that's nice and bright. It doesn't have a kitchenette. It's just a full bathroom with a walk-in shower. She has a dresser, a nightstand, a sofa with a small coffee table, and a bed, and there's still plenty of room. Three meals a day are included, and they have regular doctor visits. They have a hair salon inside. They do different fun activities all the time, like movies, popcorn, and games. What I was impressed with is that they have different stations set up throughout the facility to trigger memories. So, one is set up to look like an office, another is set up to look like a laundry area with an ironing board. They're very nicely done. I've been there to visit her when she's having her meals and everything looks good. It's farm-to-table as much as possible. They use fresh ingredients, they don't use processed foods."

"Karolwood Gardens Norfolk was really nice. We liked it very much. We chose the other place over it because we could afford it a little better. We were looking for respite care. The sizes of their rooms were nice, and the upkeep was nice. We didn't deal with the staff very much. The person who showed us around was very nice."

"I toured Commonwealth Senior Living at The Ballentine. Everything was much newer-looking. I would put it in the same category as being able to go to a nice hotel. The folks that met with us were very informative, no pressure, very open, and very good."

"We did go to Willow Creek Gracious Retirement Living. It wouldn't fit our budget. We liked the location. It's a nice area, near the interstate. It looked well-kept. We liked the decor. It was very comfortable looking and I thought it was beautiful inside, from the chandeliers and the stairway. It was nice and cozy. The staff was outstanding and very personable. He knew the place well. As far as any questions that we asked, he had the answers right off. He even gave us some literature to take with us for future reference as we left the place, and even recommended another place that might be more in our price range. They have a library and an exercise room."