Pennsylvania Dutch Country
We’ve compiled the best of the best in Pennsylvania Dutch Country - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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We’ve compiled the best of the best in Pennsylvania Dutch Country - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
A must-see in Lancaster City is the Romanesque Central Market, constructed in 1889. The market began as open-air stalls in 1742. Here, local...
A must-see in Lancaster City is the Romanesque Central Market, constructed in 1889. The market began as open-air stalls in 1742. Here, local people shop for fresh fruits and vegetables, meats, fresh flowers, and baked goods such as sticky buns and shoofly pie. In recent years, Central Market (which has the distinction of being the oldest continuously-operating farmers' market in the country) has added some decidedly modern vendors. In addition to Lebanon bologna and chowchow, you can also count on picking up great third-wave coffee and fresh pressed green juice made from local crops.
In 2008 the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center moved to a $103 million facility, which makes for an excellent starting...
In 2008 the Gettysburg National Military Park Museum and Visitor Center moved to a $103 million facility, which makes for an excellent starting point to understand the events leading up to the battle, its significance to the Civil War, and its impact on the town. The center includes a dozen interactive galleries, which feature a compelling mix of artifacts such as a wooden desk believed to have been used by General Robert E. Lee, paired with the latest in interactive video and audio displays. Each section takes its name from a phrase used in Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. It is also home to the 377-foot "Battle of Gettysburg" cyclorama painting from 1884, which has been completely restored including a 3-D foreground. The painting, a must-see in its colorful, life-like depiction of Pickett's Charge, along with a documentary film, "A New Birth of Freedom," are packaged together as a 45-minute ticketed experience. There is a restaurant and a bookstore on site. The Park Service also provides a free map with a 25-mile driving tour through the battlefield, walking-tour guides, and schedules of free ranger-conducted programs which range from walks and talks about the battle to the aftermath and the Civil War experience. Private, licensed guides may also be hired at the center. Value package information and online purchase specials are available on the Web site.
Friday is bustling at the Green Dragon Farmers Market and Auction, one of the state's largest farmers' markets, occupying 30 acres. The 400...
Friday is bustling at the Green Dragon Farmers Market and Auction, one of the state's largest farmers' markets, occupying 30 acres. The 400 indoor and outdoor stands run by Amish and Mennonite farmers sell meats, cheeses, fruits, vegetables, baked goods, flowers, and crafts. It's a traditional agricultural market with a country-carnival atmosphere. There's also a flea market, a household goods auction, and an evening auction of small animals.
The Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum is an open-air museum of Pennsylvania German rural life and folk culture between 1750 and 1940....
The Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum is an open-air museum of Pennsylvania German rural life and folk culture between 1750 and 1940. Started by brothers Henry and George Landis, the farm and village are now operated by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. You can visit more than 15 historical buildings, from a farmstead to a country store, with costumed guides providing interesting bits of history. There are demonstrations of skills such as spinning and weaving, pottery making, and tinsmithing. Many of the crafts are for sale in the museum shop.
Aaron & Jessica's Buggy Rides offers four tours of the Amish countryside, lasting between a half-hour and more than an hour, taking passengers...
Aaron & Jessica's Buggy Rides offers four tours of the Amish countryside, lasting between a half-hour and more than an hour, taking passengers through a covered bridge and into a variety of local sites in an authentic Amish carriage. The rides depart from Plain & Fancy Farm. You can also book a private buggy ride.
Abe's Buggy Rides offer tours ranging from 2–7-mile spins down country roads in an Amish buggy with a real Amish driver, who provides a friendly...
Abe's Buggy Rides offer tours ranging from 2–7-mile spins down country roads in an Amish buggy with a real Amish driver, who provides a friendly chat about the customs of the Pennsylvania Dutch and the sights along the way.
The Amish Country Homestead, a re-creation of a nine-room Old Order Amish house, is the fictional home of the characters in the Amish Experience...
The Amish Country Homestead, a re-creation of a nine-room Old Order Amish house, is the fictional home of the characters in the Amish Experience film Jacob's Choice. On a guided tour of nine furnished rooms and an attached one-room schoolhouse, you can learn about the culture and clothing of the Amish and how they live without electricity. The house is part of Plain & Fancy Farm. The super-special ticket ($43.95) includes a tour on a 14-passenger Touring Shuttle, an Amish cookbook, Jacob’s Choice, the Amish House and One-Room School, and a free buggy ride.
At Plain & Fancy Farm, the Amish Experience is a multimedia theatrical presentation about the history of the Amish, using multiple screens...
At Plain & Fancy Farm, the Amish Experience is a multimedia theatrical presentation about the history of the Amish, using multiple screens, three-dimensional sets, and special effects. In Jacob's Choice, the teenage main character struggles between traditional ways and the temptations of the modern world. A $43.95 package includes the show, the Amish Country Homestead, and Amish Country Tours, a bus tour of the farmlands, and a buggy ride.
The Amish Farm and House has 40-minute tours through a 10-room circa-1805 house furnished in the Old Order Amish style. A map guides you to...
The Amish Farm and House has 40-minute tours through a 10-room circa-1805 house furnished in the Old Order Amish style. A map guides you to a waterwheel, lime kiln, and even a traditional covered bridge. One of the older attractions in the area, it dates back to 1955.
The Amish Village offers guided tours through an authentically-furnished Amish house. Afterward you can wander around the village, which includes...
The Amish Village offers guided tours through an authentically-furnished Amish house. Afterward you can wander around the village, which includes a barn, a blacksmith shop, village store, and an operating smokehouse built by Amish craftsmen. During the summer, a local school teacher offers lessons and answers questions about Amish education in the one-room schoolhouse.
What started as a family hobby in 1945 with a single train chugging around the Groff family Christmas tree is now the Choo-Choo Barn, Traintown...
What started as a family hobby in 1945 with a single train chugging around the Groff family Christmas tree is now the Choo-Choo Barn, Traintown, USA. This 1,700-square-foot display of Lancaster County in miniature has 20 trains, mainly in O-gauge, with 150 animated scenes, including an authentic Amish barn raising, a huge three-ring circus with animals and acrobats, and a blazing house fire with fire engines rushing to the disaster. Periodically, the overhead lights dim and the scene turns to night, with streetlights and locomotive headlights glowing in the darkness.
Built in 1869, the Columbia Market House is one of the oldest farmers' market sites in the state. The basement was once used as a dungeon; from...
Built in 1869, the Columbia Market House is one of the oldest farmers' market sites in the state. The basement was once used as a dungeon; from the outside, you can still see the ground-level windows through which prisoners were shoved down a chute into the darkness, and guided tours are available by appointment.
The David Wills House is where Abraham Lincoln stayed and completed his Gettysburg Address on November 18, 1863. The restored building features...
The David Wills House is where Abraham Lincoln stayed and completed his Gettysburg Address on November 18, 1863. The restored building features seven galleries, including the bedroom where Lincoln slept and worked on the final versions of his speech, as well as the office of Wills, a prominent lawyer who helped direct the city's clean-up after the battle and was a leading force behind the creation of the national cemetery.
The Demuth Museum includes the restored 18th-century home, studio, and garden of Charles Demuth (1883–1935), one of America's first modernist...
The Demuth Museum includes the restored 18th-century home, studio, and garden of Charles Demuth (1883–1935), one of America's first modernist artists. A watercolorist, Demuth found inspiration in the geometric shapes of machines and modern technology, as well as the flowers in his mother's garden. Several of his works are on display. The gallery also features a changing exhibit of regional and national artists. The complex includes the former oldest operating tobacco shop in the country, which dates back to 1770.
A self-proclaimed "Kingdom for Kids," this 44-acre amusement park features rides and activities suited for families with younger children. Most...
A self-proclaimed "Kingdom for Kids," this 44-acre amusement park features rides and activities suited for families with younger children. Most rides, such as the roller coaster, merry-go-round, and giant slide, are quite tame. The adjacent water park (no separate admission), Duke's Lagoon, is open weekends, Memorial Day through Labor Day.
The Eisenhower National Historic Site was the country-estate residence of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who bought it in 1950. He and his...
The Eisenhower National Historic Site was the country-estate residence of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, who bought it in 1950. He and his wife used it as a weekend retreat and a meeting place for world leaders. From 1961 until his death in 1969 it was the Eisenhowers' full-time residence. The brick-and-stone farmhouse is preserved in 1950s style. The farm adjoins the battlefield and is administered by the Park Service, which sells daily ticketed tours only on a first-come, first-served basis at the Gettysburg National Military Park Visitor Center.
The Ephrata Cloister preserves the remains of a religious communal society founded in 1732 by German immigrant Conrad Beissel. The monastic...
The Ephrata Cloister preserves the remains of a religious communal society founded in 1732 by German immigrant Conrad Beissel. The monastic society of brothers and sisters lived an austere life of work, study, and prayer. They ate one meal a day of grains, fruits, and vegetables, and encouraged celibacy. They even slept on wooden benches with wooden "pillows." Known for its a cappella singing and publishing, the society lived and worked in a cluster of striking buildings with steep-roofed medieval-style architecture. The last sister died in 1813. Guides lead 45-minute tours of three restored buildings, after which you can browse through several others, including the stable, print shop, and crafts shop. Self-guided cell phone tours are also available.
The Gettysburg Tour Center is the departure point for two-hour narrated tours of the battlefield. Dramatized audio guides are provided for open...
The Gettysburg Tour Center is the departure point for two-hour narrated tours of the battlefield. Dramatized audio guides are provided for open-air double-decker bus tours, while guided tours on enclosed buses depart more often. At night, costumed guides offer a ghost-themed walking tour.
Formerly the American Civil War Wax Museum, the Gettysburg Heritage Center opened in 2015 after renovations and the addition of a gift shop...
Formerly the American Civil War Wax Museum, the Gettysburg Heritage Center opened in 2015 after renovations and the addition of a gift shop to present the story of the Civil War era and the Battle of Gettysburg through artifacts, a 20-minute film, 3-D programs, and interactive exhibits that include an educational scavenger hunt. Battlefield tour options include a Victorian Carriage and horseback tour (prices vary), a "history nerds" tour ($39.99), and an iPad tour (up to 5 hours, $44.99) with Augmented Reality scenes that allow you to relive moments in history while standing on the very ground that each event occurred 150 years. Complimentary Living History camps that demonstrate what life was like for the Civil War soldiers are offered most weekends from April to November.
There are few landmarks as touching as the Gettysburg National Military Park, where General Robert E. Lee and his Confederate troops encountered...
There are few landmarks as touching as the Gettysburg National Military Park, where General Robert E. Lee and his Confederate troops encountered the Union forces of General George Meade. There are more than 1,300 markers and monuments honoring the casualties of the battle in the 6,000-acre park. More than 30 miles of marked roads lead through the park, highlighting key battle sites. In the first week of July, Civil War reenactors dress in period uniforms and costumes to commemorate the three-day battle.
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