Historical reenactments succeed where time machines fail: transporting guests back in time without turning them into disfigured human-tadpole hybrids. Peek into the past sans mutation with today's Groupon: for $25, you get a 400th commemoration all-access pass to Henricus Historical Park (a $50 value) in Chester.

Commemorating the 400th anniversary of the founding of Henricus, the second successful English settlement in North America, Henricus Historical Park whisks timesplorers through history with historical period-dressed interpreters and special commemorative events. Amid the smell of black powder, the sound of tamping cornmeal, and the tremor-causing footfalls of giant badgers, guests witness life as it would have been for the original 300 settlers. History buffs can visit any of a dozen recreated colonial structures and join the militia, sow seeds, help with blacksmithing, or just sit back and watch period-dressed historical interpreters reenact battles and traditional fantasy baseball drafts. In the recreated Virginian Indian Arrohateck village adventurers can help make a canoe by scraping charred wood from a fallen trunk or climb inside a Virginian Indian long house filled with artifacts.

In addition to free admittance to Henricus Historical Park for two adults throughout the year, guests with the all-access pass can attend special commemorative events. Also, with 20% off in the recently remodeled gift shop, history wanderers can peruse hundreds of items, such as early American colonial children's games, as well as an extensive selection of hard-to-find books on local history and wooden denture decorating.