It's been a while since I've been, but I think the tickets are worthwhile -- assuming you have a whole day.
- Yes to going into the tavern.
- The church -- can't remember its name -- allows people in without tickets (maybe they had a donation box?), and I thought it was the single most interesting building. For a Disney tie-in, Pocahontas was christened Rebecca in that church; I find it interesting to stand in the building where that happened. The tour guide was wonderful, explaining why they had boxes instead of pews, talking about people being buried inside the church /under the stones. It was my favorite part of the day.
- Just a note: if you get the tickets and do the whole thing, definitely start on the end they recommend -- I think it might've been the Gov's palace? We started on the other end, thinking it wouldn't matter which house we saw first, but it DID matter: they kinda had a narrative set up, and that first stop was definitely "the introduction".
- Another note: because I have girls, I bought two copies of the American Girls' Colonial Williamsburg scavenger hunt (which was just a paper with things for them to find) before we went. The American Girls dolls were super popular at that point, and it kept their attention /gave them something very age-appropriate to do.
If you're interested in this concept, another good trip is the old fashioned Christmas program in Winston-Salem, NC. You have to call EARLY to get tickets to the event /they do sell out, and it's in the evening. Our costumed guide took us through a typical house, the Single Brothers' House, a store, a tavern/inn ... we tasted their old-fashioned cookies and hot chocolate in one place, were given old-fashioned candles in another spot ... then our family chose to finish the evening with a meal in the tavern. And of course we bought some of their delicious Moravian cookies. I was fascinated to learn that the original settlers in that area relied upon crafts, trades, etc. /were much better educated than I'd expected ... rather than farming (which was much more typical of the area). Young people were taught trades, and the small city was kinda the first industrial area in NC.
Here's a link to the museum, but I don't see any mention of the Christmas programs. though it's been several years, I am SURE I bought our tickets around September:
https://www.oldsalem.org/