Great Falls

Great Falls is named for the real thing: Great Falls Park, the National Park Service site where the Potomac crashes over jagged rock into Mather Gorge — the River Trail along the gorge rim is one of the most dramatic hikes in the region (an NPS entrance fee applies). Right next door, Riverbend Park is Fairfax County's only riverfront park, 400-plus acres with more than 10 miles of trails, and the two connect via a flat riverside stretch of the Potomac Heritage Trail. Living here means having a national park as your neighborhood park.

Great Falls does small-town Americana better than almost anywhere in NoVA. The Celebrate Great Falls Foundation puts on the 4th of July Hometown Celebration every year — a Little Patriots Parade and main parade around the Village Centre in the morning, then evening fireworks at Turner Farm with food trucks and games. The Village Centre is the community's living room year-round. It's a semi-rural community that genuinely knows its neighbors.

Turner Farm is the family gem of Great Falls — a Fairfax County park with an equestrian focus and an observatory where public stargazing happens under some of the darkest close-in skies in the county. Riverbend Park adds a visitor center and gentle riverside trails that work well for young kids, a nice contrast to the rocky scrambles at Great Falls Park itself. Horse properties are also a real part of the market here, so tell Raoul if that's the dream.