The Hermitage Foundation Museum and Gardens consists of an early 20th century historic house museum with a world-wide art collection and contemporary exhibition galleries, surrounded by twelve acres of formal gardens and natural woodlands; educational wetlands; a Visual Arts School; and a Studio Artists Program. It is located within minutes of the largest U.S. naval base, the world's busiest coal pier, and a major East Coast container port. The property is bordered on three sides by the Lafayette River, a tributary of the tidal estuary that threads through Hampton Roads.