Poughkeepsie / Hudson River Valley
 

Traveling to Poughkeepsie area - my mom, my sister, her two kids (6 and 3), me and my two kids (11 and 6). Recommendations on things not to miss? Places to eat?

A couple of questions and I can help you zero in on some specific/local recommendations.

What part of Poughkeepsie will you be located?
it's not a big region, but I can zero in on very local places to eat that may be closer/farther away from where you're staying. If it's a hotel, then my guess is that you're in one of the chain hotels along Rt. 9. If you're staying at a private residence, just give me the street name and I'll go from there.

What kind of food are you interested in?
Diner, Mexican, Thai noodles, basic Italian, fancy Italian, burgers, funky cafe, nice bistro, sushi/hibachi.

What kind of activities are you interested in?
historic sights, nature/hiking trails, berry picking, dairy farm/cheese maker, local/kiddie water park, movies, county or state park with playground or swimming lake, Shakespeare, river cruise, local carnival/rides, etc.

How far do you want to venture?
stay very local (15-20min drive)
a little further (30-45min drive)
or longer distance (1hr+)

One more question: How long will you be there?

You aren't too far from Rhinebeck where there was an air show with vintage airplanes on the weekends.

A visit to the Roosevelt home just up the river a bit.

A visit to West Point not too far either.

We spent some time in this area in April with a group of 8, ages 12-75. Although my post was about hotels in the area I did post again with what we did, where we ate etc. Here is the thread:
http://www.fodors.com/community/unit...mmodations.cfm

topping for mebekb - let us know you're still around and we can fill in more info for you.

We are staying at a hotel on Route 9 (from the map, looks like near IBM campus). With the kids (especially 3 and 6 year olds), not looking to do anything "boring." Any farms, berry picking, parks, etc. information would be helpful. We'll probably do some hikes, but nothing too hard because of the kids (although more because of grandma). We don't mind driving a bit, but probably don't want to be in the car for an hour. We'll be there for 3 nights, 2 full days.

Thanks!

That's a convenient location. I think it's a Residence Inn.

I only have a few min now so let me start with a short list.

Food.
If you're looking for a place to eat right near the hotel here are some ok options.

On the same side of Rt 9 as the hotel is a Red Robin burgers and a 5-guys burgers. I think there's also a new diner type restaurant in the small plaza right near the hotel - I forget the name.

Across the street in the shopping ctr w/ B&N, Stop & Shop, and Marshalls. 1. A small pizza shop (Giacomo's http://giacomospizza.com/#home - one of the better local chains for takeout or very, very casual dine-in), and 2. Sugar and Spice cafe http://www.sugarspicecafe.com/ - better for a mom & grandma lunch, not little kids.

About 10min north on Rt 9 in Hyde Park is the Eveready diner.http://www.theevereadydiner.com/ Again, nothing fancy, but pretty good diner fare at reasonable prices.

There's a good, spacious (also non-fancy) Japanese restaurant 3mi south on Rt 9 called Neko - across from Kohl's. http://www.thenekosushi.com/ They have both sushi restaurant and hibachi grill, if the kids (or ladies) like that kind of stuff.

And a Mexican restaurant called Cafe Maya on Rt 9D /Main St. in Wappingers Falls, also about 3mi from your hotel. http://www.mayacafecantina.com/#!contact

All of these are good for the kid crowd - none are fancy.

Farms:

Two very close to each other, about 15min drive ~ due east from your hotel.

1. Sprout Creek farm. Cow and goat dairy farm / creamery. Kids can roam around the farm and see the goats and cows, and of course the many barnyard cats. If you go in the morning you can watch them make cheese. You can sample their cheeses in the market any time of day.

2. Secor berry farms. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Secor-...844334?sk=info. They will have blueberry picking from now through most of July. It's not 5min from Sprout Creek farm.


http://www.sproutcreekfarm.org/

Thanks so much... that's very helpful! I appreciate it!

Across the river is Storm King, a huge outdoor sculpture park with wide swaths of green expanses. It is interesting for adults and kids can run and actually hang from a few pieces of sculpture.

http://www.stormking.org/

And also across the river is West Point.

Here are some local parks / walking trails.

1. Walkway over the Hudson
http://www.walkway.org/ It's a 1+ mile long pedestrian bridge 212' above the Hudson river. Might be too long for Grandma, but you can at least walk about 1/3 of the way, out to the edge of the river. Great views.

Parking cost $5, so look for on-street parking near Parker Ave & Washington St.

2. Walking trails at FDR mansion, Hyde Park. You can take a nice hike down the hill from the FDR mansion. Since it's a steep hill it might be better for grandma to remain at the top in the FDR museum.

3. Walking trails at Mills/Norrie state park, Staatsburg, about 15-20min north on Rt 9. Nice trails. Mills Mansion is another one of the old estates along the Hudson river. Not worth a tour inside, but the grounds are nice for walking. I think you can park down the hill at Norrie park. (southern end). http://www.nysparks.com/parks/171/details.aspx

Also, be sure to visit the Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde Park, about 10min from your hotel. Older kids who like to cook may be interested to see where top chefs learn their trade. In the main building you can look into many of the kitchen/classrooms.

http://www.ciachef.edu/

The Apple Pie Bakery cafe makes a nice pit stop for a gourmet lunch. It's a cramped little place, so might not be suitable for a sit down for a group of 8 with kids. You can at least get some cookies or whatnot to go. Parking in the garage is free, nice views of the Hudson valley, so you can stay as short or as long as you like.

A few updates:

For the walkway over the Hudson I found out there is a free lot (at least on week days). It's right next to the lot where you are supposed to pay $5 per car. Here's the approximate GPS address: 37 Parker Avenue, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. The problem with the Poughkeesie side of the bridge is that it's 3/4 mile just to the water's edge, then another 1/2 mile across the river.

If you drive to the west side of the river you can also park there, GPS 85 Haviland Rd Highland, NY 12528. It's a little shorter walk to the water's edge, and there are a few concessions (i.e. ice cream) on that side.

A nice walking trail very close (5min) to your hotel I forgot to mention is the grounds of Locust Grove, the Samuel Morse (as in Morse code) estate. http://www.lgny.org/ There are several loop trails through the woods, down towards the Hudson river. You can't go directly to the river due to the RR tracks, but it's a nice hike past some creeks and ponds. There are picnic tables up near the visitor center.

J62... thank you so much for all of your suggestions! We had a great time!

Thursday, we went to the Walkway over the Hudson, which was very cool. Then we drove up to the Vanderbilt house and walked around the gardens. Drove down to the river - the kids loved that.

Friday, we went to the Sprout Creek Farm that you recommended. We all loved walking around and seeing the animals. They had lots of camps going on - if we lived up there, I'd definitely send my kids. And we all bought some of their cheese. From there, we went to the CIA and had treats from the Apple Pie Bakery. We drove up to Rhinebeck and walked around the town. Then down to the river again in Rhinebeck.

For dinner Friday night, we got takeout from Babycakes (recommended by the hotel), which was delicious. Definitely try it if you haven't.

It is a beautiful area and we really enjoyed our visit. The Residence Inn was great too.

We also ate at Giacomo's for lunch one day, which was quite good.

Glad to hear you had a good time!

The road down to the river at Vanderbilt isn't always open which means a long trek back up the hill if you have to walk. The access to the Hudson there is the best around - I bet the kids liked clamoring on the rocks that jut out into the river.

Yes, Babycakes right near Vassar College is a nice little cafe. I haven't been but I know people who go there often. Vegetarians seem to like the fare at Babycakes.

For others visiting the Vassar area here are a couple of other nearby places to eat. Right next door to Babycakes is is the Beech Tree Grill. Right around the corner is a good Thai noodle shop called Thai Spice.

The best Mexican place in the area is a tiny little hole in the wall called Mole Mole. Only 4 tables in the place so it's more popular for takeout. It's about another block away from Vassar.