Looking to explore upstate New York and have some fun & adventure? This is the list for you! We break upstate New York into its various regions and list many fun things to do in each region. Links are provided to most suggestions!
| The Adirondacks | Leatherstocking |
| Finger Lakes | Catskills |
| Western NY | Hudson Valley |
| Saint Lawrence |
(Map courtesy of NYSDOH)
The Adirondacks of New York
The Adirondack Park was established in 1892 and consists of 6.1 million acres of land, 102 towns & villages, over 10,000 lakes, over 30,000 miles of rivers & streams and an estimated 200,000 acres of old-growth forests! It is a fabulous area to explore and find many outdoor adventures! Here are just a few ideas of what you can do in the Adirondacks!
- Adirondack Experience Museum, Blue Mountain Lake
- The Wild Center, Tupper Lake
- Rail Bikes – Ride multi-person recumbent style bikes on closed portions of old railroads! Enjoy the Adirondack forest close up – as well as the bridges & rapids – depending on which option you choose.
- Adirondack Scenic Railbike – Thendara, NY We did this August 2022. This was a little more work than we thought! The route we took was a little more than 3 miles out & 3 miles back. The bikes rode a little rougher than I expected – but it was a very enjoyable adventure!
- Revolution Rail Co. – North Creek, NY
- Experience Outdoors High Ropes/Zip Line Course, Lake Placid & Lake George. We did the ropes course in August of 2021 & the zipline course August 2022. We had a great time both times and I would highly recommend this company!
- Whitewater rafting
- Square Eddy Expeditions (North Creek)
- Adirondack River Outfitters (Old Forge & North River)
- Wild Waters Outdoor Center (Warrensburg)
- Adirondac Rafting Company (Indian Lake)
- Adventure Sports Rafting Company (Indian Lake)
- Lake Cruise
- Old Forge Lake Cruises (Old Forge) – Historic steamboat cruises the the Fulton Chain Lakes.
- Seaplane tour – Enjoy the beautiful Adirondacks from the air!
- Paynes Air Service – Inlet, NY (on Seventh Lake)
- Olympic village (Lake Placid), Olympic Jumping Complex, Lake Placid Olympic Museum
- Shelving Rock Falls, (Fort Ann) Nice easy, but very enjoyable hike you can do with the whole family. You can read a little about our visit to Shelving Rock Falls here: Family Adirondack Mountains Adventure #3
- Camp on an island (Alger Island on Fourth Lake is a good one to consider)
- Adirondack Sky Center & Observatory (Tupper Lake)
- Moose River Farm (Old Forge) An interactive experience with animals in a scenic landscape.
- Old Forge Hardware Store in Inlet New York. Visit an old-time store for nostalgia & to take you back to simpler times! We visited the store in August of 2022. It is very big with a lot of different sections. Think of this more as a DEPARTMENT store as opposed to just a hardware store. You could easily spend an hour in here, if you are so inclined. I actually preferred the ACE Hardware store in Inlet (about 8-10 miles north of Old Forge). It is smaller – but had both items that you would expect to find in a hardware store – as well as a souvenir shop. It is right next to the Kalil’s Grocery Store – which is also a throwback to simpler times / the old days….
- High Falls Gorge, Wilmington. Excellent overall experience! Really enjoyed this – and we were able to do it with the entire family (Sophie – 4 years old) read more about our experience HERE.
- Hiking! (High Falls Gorge lake placid, Avalanche Lake, Shelving Rock, Lake George) Check out the best hiking trails @ Adirondack.net & Alltrails!
- Outlet shopping
- The Outlets @ Lake George (Lake George),
- Adirondack Outlet Mall (Lake George)
- Water park – Enchanted Forest Water Safari (Old Forge)
- Cave exploring
- Moose Expedition – It may not be very likely that you actually spot a moose – but the DEC says that the Old Forge area and the northern area of the Adirondacks have the greatest concentration of moose in the Adirondacks. We think we spotted on in the Old Forge area – and you can read about that HERE.
For More about Moose in the Adirondacks click the + ==>
The moose is the iconic animal associated with the Adirondacks. Ironically – there are estimated to be only 400 – 800 moose roaming the wild in the Adirondacks. In the 1800s the moose population in the Adirondacks was decimated – due to deforestation and un-regulated hunting. Since the 1980s, Moose are making progress in repopulating the Adirondacks – but progress has been very slow & spotty. These massive animals can reach 6 feet tall at the shoulders and have an antler rack nearly as wide!
For an interesting article on the efforts to learn more about the moose population in the Adirondacks check out this article HERE.
- Bike trails: Check out the best biking trails @ Alltrails & Adirondack.net!
- Fort Ticonderoga, (Ticonderoga, NY) Built by the French in the 18th century – it now serves as a museum & National Historic Landmark. Fascinating museum & gorgeous landscape!
- Souvenir shopping (Inlet, or really just about anywhere!)
- Firetower Challenge We hiked to the Saint Regis firetower in August 2022 outside of Saranac Lake. It was about 3.3 miles in and another 3.3 miles out (same trial). this is rated as a “Moderate” hike on All Trails. We found it to be a little more challenging than we expected. We were ready to see some of the awesome views from the peak – but the weather did not cooperate that day. Still a n enjoyable & challenging hike! We will do another firetower hike in the future.
The Finger Lakes Region of New York
The Finger Lakes Region of upstate New York is characterized by the 11 slender “finger-like” lakes that run roughly north/south in length. This is a beautiful region that is littered with vineyards & wineries and a lot of fascinating things to do and see! As life-long residents of the finger lakes region, here are some of our best ideas on where to go & what to see!
- A Dickens Christmas, Skanneatles. One of the best times to visit Skaneateles might just be right before Christmas. Every year – the village hosts a Dickens Christmas – an old fashion Christmas tradition inspired the novella “A Christmas Carol” by the English writer Charles Dickens. The tradition kicks off right after Thanksgiving and runs until the 23rd of December. “Charles Dickens” & a cast of over 40 characters roam the village streets and interact with shoppers & visitors. Oh, and yes – those are chestnuts roasting on an open-fire there on the corner and watch out for the horse drawn carriage going down main street!
- Classic Car Museum, Norwich
- Corning Museum of Glass (Glassworks). This is a great museum in small community. We most recently visited it in May of 2022. It has a great mix of ART & SCIENCE. The museum has exhibits that feature modern art, the history of glass use and how it has been made throughout human history, how optical fiber is made and there are even live demonstrations on glass blowing. There are also opportunities to make your own glass piece, as well (for a fee, & you will have to make reservations). My favorite displays & exhibits are on the third floor. There you can learn about bullet proof glass, try out a periscope and use a couple of telescopes. The souvenir shop is quite large, and has a great variety of items for everyone. The atmosphere of the museum feels very clean and upscale – and the cafe has a good variety of high quality food items. Consider becoming a member – and receive free admission, and 15% off at the cafe & souvenir shop. During the months of May & December – you receive 25% off at the souvenir shop!
- Baseball Hall of Fame, Cooperstown
- Old Erie Canal Heritage Park
- She-Qua-Ga Falls, Montour Falls I am out here routinely – for business. I love going here – especially when it has rained recently. Great small-town USA experience. Look down Main Street – and the falls are, literally, right there. Love the bridge over the falls too!
- Destiny USA mall, Syracuse
- Strong Museum of Play, (Rochester) We went here in August of 2022. The kids were excited to be here. They are currently undergoing a MASSIVE expansion. We found it to be a fun experience – but expensive. For our family of 6 – the total cost was $108! Budget 4- 5 hours to see everything and not be rushed.
- Renaissance Festival, Sterling (Sat. July 2 – Sun. August 14, 2022) (TripAdvisor Rating)
- New York State Fair, Syracuse
- Rosamond Gifford Zoo @ Burnet Park, Syracuse
- The Carrier Dome, Syracuse University Campus. Take in a Syracuse basketball game at the dome and experience America’s most famous & largest structure of its kind on a college campus! GO ORANGE!
- Beak & Skiff Apple Orchard (Lafayette, NY). This apple orchard was a collaborative effort between 2 neighboring farmers over 111 years ago! Consistently ranked as one of America’s best apple orchards (USA Today poll) – this is a great place to spend a Autumn day! But the place is so much more than just a mere apple orchard! In addition to apples, they also offer cider, donuts, pies and various beverage lines (hard cider, etc). There is a tasting room available, a tavern, a general store & even a bakery. Oh, & if you go during the summer – ther also host various concerts! There is truly something for everyone here!
- Taughannock Falls: A magnificent waterfall that plunges 215 feet over rocky cliffs that tower 400 feet over the gorge. You can hike and see the falls from both above and below the breakline!
- Robert H. Tremont State Park: Great hiking over winding trails that follow the gorge past 12 waterfalls – the highest of which is 115 feet!
- Triphammer Falls: (on the Cornell University campus) Named after the forge that operated at this site until the 1820s. 55 foot multiple cascading falls that are part of a man-made structure formed by the dam at Beebe Lake.
- Buttermilk Falls: The name for the falls was inspired by the foam which forms from the water cascading down the steep side of the valley towards Cayuga Lake.
- Tioga Downs casino
- Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack Casino (& racetrack), Farmington
- Explore the Finger Lakes Wine Trails
- Canandaigua Lake Wine Trail: Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery, Finger Lakes Wine Center, Hazlitt’s Red Cat Cellars (one of our favorites!), Heron Hill Tasting Room on Canandaigua Lake, Inspire Moore Winery & Song Hill Winery.
- Cayuga Lake Wine Trail: Americana, Buttonwood Grove, Cayuga Ridge Estate, Goose Watch, Hosmer, Knapp, Long Point, Lucas Vinyards, Montezuma, Six Mile Creek, Swedish Hill, Thirsty Owl, SixEighty Cellars
- Keuka Lake Wine Trail: Heron Hill Winery, Hunt Country Vineyards, Vineyard View Winery, Keuka Spring Vineyards & Weis Vineyards.
- Seneca Lake Wine Trail: Anthony Road Wine Company, Atwater Estate Vineyards, Bagley’s Poplar Ridge Vineyards, Belhurst Estate Winery, Boundary Breaks, Castel Grisch Winery, Caywood Vineyards, Chateau LaFayette Reneau, CK Torrey Ridge Winery & Meadery, Fox Run Vineyards, Fruit Yard Winery, Fulkerson Winery, Glenora Wine Cellars, J.R. Dill Winery, Lakewood Vineyards, Lamoreaux Landing Wine Cellars, Leidenfrost Vineyards, Miles Wine Cellars, Penguin Bay Winery, Prejean Winery, Seneca Shore Wine Cellars, Tabora Farm and Winery, Three Brothers Wineries and Estates, Toast Winery, Ventosa Vineyards, Wagner Vineyards Estate Winery & White Springs Farm Winery
- Skydive Finger Lakes, Ovid
- Watkins Glen State Park, Watkins Glen
- Mark Twain Study, Elmira
- Fall Foliage!
- National Warplane Museum, Geneseo Airport
- Annual Airshow
- Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester
- National Toy Hall of Fame, Rochester
- It’s a Wonderful Life Museum & Festival, Seneca Falls.
- Women’s Rights National Historical Park, Seneca Falls.
- National Women’s Hall of Fame, Seneca Falls.
- Belhurst Castle, (Geneva) Built between 1885 – 1889 as a private residence on the shores of Seneca Lake, this place has since been converted to a resort. It includes two restaurants, 3 hotels, a spa/salon & winery. This place offers it all – and is located right in the heart of the Finger Lakes region!
Greater Binghamton Area
At the cross-roads of Interstate routes 81, 86 & 88 many visitors to several of the upstate regions will pass right through the Greater Binghamton area to get to their destinations. As such, we thought it would be helpful to list some fun & interesting things to do in the Greater Binghamton area!
- Try a Spiedie Sandwich! It’s a tasty treat of marinated meat, char-broiled & fed on Italian bread…
- The Spiediefest/Balloon Rally! Usually the first weekend in August. It is a big Spiedie cooking contest attended by over 100,000 people annually, with spiedie vendors (get the Salamida Spiedies), craft vendors, entertainment and balloon launches. Held at Otsiningo Park in Binghamton. If you are not familiar with what a spiedie is – check out my post: What is a Spiedie?
- The Greek Festival My favorite festival in the area! Good food, no gambling and the music is not too loud (and it is Greek music). Authentic Greek food & desserts. They have a huge tent and plenty of seating. Overall, very well run! Usually Thursday through Sunday – the first week of June. We love the Greek salad, the chicken kabobs & the honey puffs!
- The Cider Mill in Endicott – Watch how they make cider & donuts!
- Broome County Carousel Circuit, Johnson City, Endicott, Binghamton, and Endwell. Ride some carousels – Binghamton is the carousel capital of the world – due to the benevolence of George F Johnson. 5 carousels.
- Stoughton Farms – (Autumn) corn maze, pumpkin farm…
- Animal Adventure Park – Harpursville New York. A interactive and educational animal park with animals ranging from penguins to giraffes. What’s wonderful about this park is both the setting and the close interaction with the more docile animals.
- Roberson Museum
Western New York
- Niagara Falls, We’ve been to both the Canadian & American sides. I was surprised at how much we enjoyed the American side in August of 2022. Really enjoyed hiking around Goat Island and being so close to the Bridal Falls.
- Old Fort Niagara, Porter / Youngstown. Webcam (Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t)
- Maid of the Mist, Niagara Falls (Boats are all electric now – so no noise or fumes!) We really enjoyed the boat ride & would highly recommend this close up experience of the waterfalls. We’ve done both the Hornblower tour (Canadian side) and the Maid of the Mist in the last few years as a family – and the electric boats at the Maid of the Mist are MUCH more enjoyable than the Hornblower boats on the Canadian side!
- Erie Canal / Locks, Connects the Hudson river to Lake Erie (and Lake Ontario too via the Owego Canal) See list of the location of the locks HERE. Rome is a good place – boat ride and museum…
- Letchworth State Park, Castile. We did this August 2022. The hike was much easier than we expected. Go to the Porterageville entrance on southside of the park. If you have an Empire Pass – bring it – as you can get in the park without paying the $10 entrance fee. Park at the first parking lot on the right and walk DOWN behind the big map/information board to get to the upper falls. We felt the signage at the park was poor. PHENOMENAL views! Hour or hour and a half to do this – walking to both the upper & middle falls. There are some steps and a climb – but other than that – there are wide paths – as opposed to trials. So more of a walk than hike.
- Eternal Flame Falls, Orchard Park
- National Comedy Center, Jamestown
- Seneca Iroquois National Museum, Salamanca
- Lucy Desi Museum, Jamestown
Saint Lawrence Valley Region, New York
- Boldt Castle, Alexandria Bay / Thousand Islands. We did this in August 2022. Fascinating & tragic love story. This man (George Boldt) built this castle for his beloved wife – and they never even got to live there. It wasn’t even finished – because she did about half-way through the construction – and he couldn’t bear to finish it once his wife passed away. This is a self-guided tour (app on your phone) We enjoyed this. They are completing more rooms all the time. Most of the first floor is now completed. If we did this again – I would skip the yacht house.
- Two Nation Tour (USA Boat Tours or Clayton Island Tours) We did this with USA Boat Tours in August 2022. Interesting and fun – but after having just been on the electric boats @ Niagara Falls (Maid of the Mist) – the boats here were not as enjoyable or clean.
- Helicopter Tour of Boldt Castle & Thousand Islands
- Antique Boat Museum, Clayton.
- Shipwreck Diving (The Islander) in Alexandria Bay
- Cornwall Brothers Store & Museum
Leatherstocking Central Region, New York
- National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, Cooperstown
- Farmers’ Museum, Cooperstown. We last visited the Farmers’ Museum in October of 2022. I think it would more aptly be described as a historic village that recreates rural life from the 19th century through exhibits & interactive workshops. Most of the museum is OUTSIDE – and NOT HEATED. Some of the smaller buildings are heated by wood stoves/wood burners. We very much enjoyed our visit! The Cardiff Giant – is not really a big deal. It is close to the from entrance. It is hard to believe people were actually fooled by this this hoax at one time. The museum does give you a good idea of what life was like in the 1800s. We found most of the people staffing the various buildings (blacksmith, pharmacy, etc) to be both knowledgeable and helpful. The kids really enjoyed the animals – especially Doc the very friendly horse!
- Empire State Carousel This is a merry-go-round at the site of the Farmers’ Museum. It is located right before you enter the historic village. Despite paying for admission to the Farmers’ Museum – the cost to ride the merry-go-round is another $1 per person.
- Fly Creek Cider Mill & Orchard, Fly Creek, NY (right outside Cooperstown). We went here last in October of 2022. We really enjoyed our visit. There are two floors to the mill and a large store to purchase everything from home-made fudge to wines. There are some Fly Creek brands of wine and hard cider – and even a tasting room on the second floor. The kids really enjoyed feeding the ducks & the geese on the pond in the back of the mill. The mill is actually powered by a Lestner Water Turbine in the basement of the mill from water in the pond that is located right behind it. If we were int he Cooperstown area again – we would definitely make a point of returning to Fly Creek Cider Mill & Orchard!
- Howe Caverns
- Herkimer Diamond Mine, Herkimer
- Yellow Brick Road (YBR) casino, Chittenango
- Turning Stone casino, Verona
- Rail bike
- Glenn H. Curtiss Museum, Hammondsport
Catskills Mountain Region, New York
The Catskills are part of the Appalachian Mountains located in the southeastern part of New York State.
- Overlook Mountain Hike, Woodstock
- Rail bike ride, Phoenicia
- Mohonk Preserve, New Paltz
- Hanford Mills Museum, Athens
- Historic Huguenot Street, New Paltz
- Hudson River Maritime Museum, Kingston
- Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, Bethel
Hudson Valley Region & Hudson River, New York
- Erie Canal / Locks, Connects the Hudson River to Lake Erie (and Lake Ontario too via the Owego Canal) See list of the location of the locks HERE. Erie Canal Village in Rome is a good place – boat ride and museum…
- Saratoga Spa State Park, Saratoga Springs
- Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs
- Walkway Over the Hudson, Poughkeepsie
- Resorts World Catskills casino.
- New York State Museum, Albany
Sincerely,
