Rae4664

Where to eat and stay to experience real PA Dutch living.
Lancaster, New Holland, Intercourse, York.
The only thing we have to do is to take our son to see Thomas the Train.

mooselywild

Hey- so I only googled lancaster, b/c I'm an obsessive researcher and I would just keep goin' all night.

Found this terrific site-

http://www.800padutch.com

Dining, activities, galore! Have fun...

PS- Please don't tell me you're only going to this area for Thomas the Train??

bon_voyage

Many years ago we ate at Groff's Farm (still have my autographed copy of one of Betty's cookbooks). Both the food and the experience were very good at that time.

elysian45

Shady Maple smorgasbord is famous in that area, although it's huge. Avoid Miller's on Rt. 30 -- dirty and full of tour buses.
Make sure you don't go on Sundays since many places are closed. The outlets will be open -- and full of back to school shopping in August.
The 800padutch.com website is a very good resource.

Suki

Hi Rae, If your son is crazy about trains you could stay in a motel that is made up of old train cars: Red Caboose in Strasbourg. They also have a dining car if you just want to give that a try. If you are interested in the Amish way of life, vist The People's Place in Intercourse. They have a movie and other exhibits. There is also a beautiful quilt shop across the street. There are also Mennonite or Amish families that host dinners for guests. I imagine you might be able to find those through a Lancaster tourist info site. Have fun. The area is really beautiful.

Annabel

We like to stay in The Netherlands Inn and Resort. It is in Strasburgh, not far from the railroad - about a mile or so. It is on a huge peice of property. There is a pool, playground, bicycles. The rooms are nice too..
We have ben going to this area for 25 years, and have stayed in most of the places there. The Netherlands (formerly the Strasburgh Inn) is our favorite.

As far as food goes, there are plenty of options. We do not like that kind of food, but there are many choices in the very close area. Also there is the PA Dutch travel book is everywhere! It lists every restaurant and has a map in the middle.

Stephanie

Rae:

I'd second visiting the Red Caboose Motel, it has a cafe, motels are cabooses and a really neat huge souvenir shop there. just across the street there is a miniature train museum. I visited the place but never stayed there. If you are going in summer there is a hoedown in the barn I think on weekends, no kidding.

AmishLou

I live in Lancaster County and I think your family might really enjoy staying at a B&B that's a real working farm where the guests get to help. I don't know the names of any offhand but if you call the Lanc. Visitor's Bureau they could probably give you some ideas. If you wanted more of a hotel type of place then I would highly recommend Willow Valley, which has a great indoor pool area that's almost like a waterpark. Your son would love it. Willow Valley also has great restaurants with super PA Dutch food. For fun things to do, Dutch Wonderland is here which is a really fun amusement park specifically geared to younger kids...over 10 years old would probably think it is "babyish" though. If you are here on a Tuesday, Friday or Saturday you would enjoy shopping around Central Market in downtown Lancaster. It's a great place to get a good lunch.

Please ask if you have any more questions I can help you with. I hope you enjoy your visit to Lancaster!

Suki

We took our girls when they were little to two different working farms in Lancaster County. I found both through www.pafarmstay.com

They loved these weekends where they would find kittens to play with in the barn, or chickens to feed. We've also stayed at Willow Valley which was nice enough, but not nearly as much fun as the farm stays.

Rae4664

A huge thank you to all. We saw the trains and the red caboose motel - what a hoot! My young son (5 ) thought he was in heaven. We visited the Dutch Wonderland and my 8 year old enjoyed it too. Then it was off to Hershey and the park...talk about over whelmed, but we had a good day and perfect weather. We ended our visit with a trip to the Renaissance Fair at Mount Hope. We did eat breakfast at the Shady Maple - holy buffet table.... you have to see it to believe it.... they say 200 feet. Very reasonable at $3.75 for each boy. And very tasty! We took in the musical review at the American Music Theater and we all had a very good time. Who has time to shop?? We will be back gt;
Again, thank you all for the replies and good info.