James City County, VA Short-Term Rentals: Short-Term Rental Permits (2026)

James City County's zoning ordinance defines "tourist home" under section 24-2 as a dwelling where lodging, or lodging and meals, is provided for compensation in up to five rooms open to transients, the county's functional definition of a short-term rental. Whether that use needs a permit depends entirely on the zoning district. In the A-1 General Agricultural District, the use list at section 24-212 lists "Tourist homes" only in the Specially Permitted Uses column, meaning an operator must obtain a special use permit (SUP) from the Board of Supervisors, following the community impact statement, master plan submittal and public hearing steps set out in section 24-23, before renting rooms to transients on agriculturally zoned land.

That is a meaningfully different rule from the county's business and residential planned community districts: the same style of use list shows tourist homes as a permitted (P) use, no SUP required, in the R-4 Residential Planned Community District and in the B-1 General Business District. A related but distinct use, renting a maximum of three rooms in a single-family dwelling, is separately listed as a permitted use in A-1 without requiring the SUP that a full tourist home triggers. Anyone considering a short-term rental on A-1 land should confirm which use category and permitted-use column applies to their parcel with James City County Community Development's Planning Division before advertising rooms to guests.