Mopnmom

Hubby and I are going to be in the Lake George area this summer and wondered what actvities everyone would recommend; the surrounding area too. Is the paddleboat tour worth it? Do we need reservations for the boat tours? Thanks for any hints!

nytraveler

You don;t say when you're going to be there but be aware that from late July through the end of August there is horse racing at Saratoga. Since the crowds for this are way beyond what Saratoga can handle much of the overflow goes to Lake George - which means that prices are sky high and availability very limited. (Many people reserve in January to get decent rooms.)

On the other hand - if you're there before the racing begins do go to Saratoga - which has a great racing museum as well as a ton of good restaurants in a very pretty quaint town.

BostonGal

I'll be in Lake George as well this summer. We're headed up there mid-July. We rented the house last April. I believe we're going to be there one week before Saratoga starts.

I requested the Adirondack guide but have not received it yet.

In the meantime, can anyone recommend restaurants or outdoor activities? There will be 10 adults + 3 kids age 5 and under.

Thanks in advance!

dawnnoelm

we are headed to Lake George NEXT August (08) and already have our house reserved due to the popularity. I am also interested in knowing what on earth there is to do there?

We are traveling from California and will be with dh's family from the east coast.

nytraveler

Lake George Village is quite tacky - similar to family resosrts of the 50's/60s. Besides the lake itself and the boat trips, there is a sort of water park, mini-golf, amusement areas with games of all sorts, trashy souvenir shops selling cotton candy and tschotckes nobody wants.

If you're interested in horses and not there during racing season go to Sratoga for the horse racing museum (you'll never get near it if there's racing).

There's Fort William Henry (from the French and Indian wars) and the whole of the adirondacks if you drive a little further north (for fishing, boating, hiking etc).

Itlhermits

It's quite amazing how busy those shops are, too!

Theses websites have some great ideas.
www.lakegeorge.com
http://visitlakegeorge.com

Enjoy the beautiful Adirondacks!

dawnnoelm

Thanks nytraveler and "mits" - I would like to try to go to Maine after spending the time in Lake George but am not sure with time/$$ if that is going to work out. I have always wanted to see Maine.

The real basis of the trip is to spend time with dh's large family as we are the only ones on the west coast. We have done the jersery shore in the past and just stayed by their homes. I think this will be nice - are there places to rent boats/jet skis for the week?

Itlhermits

I'm not finding anything for jet skis for the week, but
www.bouldersresortlakegeorge.com/mikes.html
will do it for a few hours.

This place was listed in www.lakegeorge.com for boats for the week. (Dockside Landing) www.lakegeorge.com/ShowLink.cfm?BusinessID=333 You still have plenty of time to search for what you're looking for.

Just remember, there's more to Lake George than just the village.

dawnnoelm

Thank you so much - yes, it was not really even on my "radar" - other then that we have the dates Aug 2-9 2008 because we could not get them this year - so we pushed it out a year (the place we wanted is a duplex -one side for our family and one for his sister and family).

I think that they are bringing up a boat - but we might want another. Thank you so much for the information.

Dawn

alpinemccain

I just got back from a weekend at Lake George. We arrived Friday and return Sunday afternoon. We stayed in a camping (KOA) which was nice but far from the main attractions. If I go again I would stay closer. Friday, we did not much except for campfire. Saturday we went to the Great Escape (Six Flags) which was actually pretty good even if there are a ton of bad reviews on it. We actually went to all the Disney parks this year and still found that Great Escape was ok. We went to supper at Olive Garden (which we love and always go since none in Canada...) Afterwards we went to play mini-putt at the Pirates one which was VERY crowded however lots of fun/great mini putt course! Sunday, we went to the outlet shopping which was not as nice as the ones in Orlando, however was still ok....we drove around the lake area which was very crowded (hard to find parking). The lake was very nice and the boat tours seemed fun. We ate lunch at Quiznos (I know boring, but we wanted something quick and light...) and then walked up to Ben and Jerrys for some Ice Cream...that's about it....we live in Ottawa and wanted a quick gettaway...we didn;t really do a lot of research before and decide last minute....we were happy with our decision, it was a nice weekend destination. There was also a Drive-in Theatre, which is always fun!

dawnnoelm

Alpine - how far is the sixflags? Thanks for the information!

travelbug44

6 flags is right down the road, my grandkids are there right now.

lisettemac

We spent a week in Lake George last year in a condo between Lake George Village and Bolton Landing.

Here are some of the things we did:

beach (private beach at condo)
pool (private pool at condo)
Minnie-ha-ha boat ride
Ft. Ticonderoga (lots of reenactments/activities here in addition to the exhibits)
Six Flags
Ft. William Henry

There is also golf in the area and if I were going during racing season I would *definitely* spend a day at Saratoga. It's a beautiful track.

There are lots of ticky-tacky restaurants and motels in Lake George Village. Some of our favorite meals (besides grilling out) were at a brew pub in Lake George Village and a German restaurant (whose name now escapes me) near Bolton Landing.