Things to do in Lancaster
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Lancaster
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Spring blossom, ploughing season and fresh trails. Among the best months to visit.
Best season overall: harvest, foliage and the strongest event calendar, at peak prices.
Peak family summer: hot and humid, with Route 30 congestion and afternoon storms.
Worst months for farm country, with closures and cold, but the cheapest city theatre weekends.
What's on
- Volunteer Fire Company Mud Sales Late February through March, Saturdays
County auctions of quilts, furniture and farm goods. Arrive early and bring cash.
- Lititz Fourth of July Celebration 4 July
One of the nations oldest Independence Day celebrations, centred on Lititz Springs Park.
- Long's Park Art Festival Labor Day weekend
More than 200 artists in Longs Park, one of the Easts respected outdoor art festivals.
- Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire Weekends August through October
At Mount Hope Estate in Manheim. Crisp October weekends are the favourite dates.
- Harvest Days at Landis Valley Usually the second weekend of October
Pennsylvania German harvest demonstrations, hearth cooking and traditional crafts.
- Whoopie Pie Festival Early October
At Hershey Farm Resort in Ronks. Hundreds of whoopie pie varieties and big crowds.
- Ephrata Fair Late September
One of Pennsylvanias largest street fairs, in downtown Ephrata.
Best things to do in Lancaster
Sight & Sound Theatres
Biblical epics on a huge wraparound stage with live animals, unlike any other regional theatre in America.
The Amish Farm and House
The established first lesson in Amish life, pairing a historic farmhouse with guided countryside tours.
Lancaster Central Market
The oldest continuously operating public market in the US, and the best grazing stop in the city.
Strasburg Rail Road
Authentic steam trains through Amish farmland on Americas oldest continuously operating railroad.
Fulton Theatre
Broadway calibre musicals and plays in a National Historic Landmark theatre in the middle of downtown.
Dutch Wonderland
A storybook amusement park built for young children, with gentle rides and a water play area.
Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum
A 100 acre living history village showing Pennsylvania German farm life from 1740 to 1940.
President James Buchanan's Wheatland
A candid guided tour of the 15th presidents mansion, the best historic house visit in the city.
Where to stay in Lancaster
Downtown Lancaster City
first trip, food and theatre, Amtrak arrivals
Walk to Central Market, the Fulton and the best restaurants, and drive out to farm country by day.
Lititz
couples, repeat visitors, small town base
A preserved Moravian main street with cafes, pretzels and chocolate, and quiet evenings by design.
Lincoln Highway East and Bird-in-Hand
families, Amish country first trips
Family inns among the farms, with Dutch Wonderland and Strasburg minutes away by car.
Eden Road
resort style family stays, drivers
Pools, free parking and quick highway access, with downtown about ten minutes away.
Think twice about
- South Lancaster and the Manor Street corridor
Little visitor infrastructure and local advice against walking there after dark. Base in the downtown rectangle or the county instead.
- Route 30 outlet strip at Route 896
Congested chain and outlet sprawl that is walkable to nothing. Acceptable for one night, poor as a whole trip base.
Best restaurants in Lancaster
John J. Jeffries
The citys defining farm to table restaurant, cooking almost entirely from county farms.
The Belvedere Inn
The citys special occasion institution, in a historic mansion with a fine summer patio.
LUCA
Farm driven Italian with wood fired cooking and handmade pasta on a garden patio.
Himalayan Curry and Grill
Nepalese and Indian cooking that tops the citys rankings, where Lancaster itself eats.
C'est La Vie
A Parisian inspired bistro by Central Market from the citys long running French family.
Lancaster Brewing Company
The citys craft brewing fixture, with house ales and pub plates in a tobacco warehouse.
Miller's Smorgasbord
The smorgasbord locals choose, serving the traditional Pennsylvania Dutch repertoire since 1929.
Shady Maple Smorgasbord
The largest buffet in the county, a 200 foot spread best experienced at breakfast.
Outdoor things to do in Lancaster
Lancaster Balloon Rides
Sunrise balloon flight over patchwork farms and buggy lanes, the countys signature splurge.
Northwest Lancaster County River Trail
Fourteen paved miles along the Susquehanna past white cliffs, canal remains and eagle habitat.
Pinnacle Overlook
The countys great river view, high above Lake Aldred, best at sunset and in fall foliage.
Kellys Run Nature Preserve
A wild rhododendron ravine trail along a tumbling stream, the countys most serious short hike.
Crossgates Golf Club
The best all round public round near the city, rolling beside the Conestoga River.
Four Seasons Golf Club
A well kept public 18 that local golfers name first, and a sensible second round.
Willow Valley Golf Course
A friendly 9 hole course with no tee times needed, ideal for a late afternoon round.
Lancaster Country Club
A William Flynn classic that hosted the US Womens Open, playable only with a member host.
Best hotels in Lancaster
Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square
The flagship downtown hotel on Penn Square, with Central Market across the square.
The Wilbur Lititz, Tapestry Collection by Hilton
A characterful hotel inside the former Wilbur Chocolate factory on Lititz Main Street.
Lancaster Arts Hotel
Loft style rooms in a tobacco warehouse, with the citys best restaurant in the building.
Cork Factory Hotel
Quiet boutique rooms in a former cork factory, handy for downtown and Dutch Country drives.
Eden Resort & Suites
A locally owned resort with pools and suites that suit families and multi generational groups.
AmishView Inn & Suites
An adult leaning inn among the farms in Bird-in-Hand, quieter than the Route 30 resorts.
Fulton Steamboat Inn
A steamboat themed family inn near Dutch Wonderland that children love.
Holiday Inn Lancaster
The value play inside the city, a few blocks from Penn Square at a clear tier below.
Is Lancaster expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | $95 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | $175 a person |
| Splurge | $350 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Sight & Sound Theatres: weeks ahead
- The Amish Farm and House: a few days ahead
- Strasburg Rail Road: weeks ahead
- Fulton Theatre: weeks ahead
- Dutch Wonderland: a few days ahead
- President James Buchanan's Wheatland: a few days ahead
- Old Windmill Farm: a few days ahead
- Lancaster Balloon Rides: weeks ahead
- Sight & Sound sells out weeks ahead on weekends and in summer.
- Strasburg themed trains and fall weekends book up well in advance.
- Book Jeffries, LUCA and Belvedere dinners ahead on weekends, and balloon flights early in your stay.
Is Lancaster safe?
- County farmland and small towns are low crime with rural road cautions.
- In the city, stay in the downtown rectangle, use garages, and keep late night walking to lit main streets.
- Emergency number is 911. Amish run businesses close on Sundays, so plan farm shopping for Friday and Saturday.
Lancaster travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Photographing Amish people or pulling onto farm lanes uninvited.
- Letting the Route 30 outlet malls consume a Dutch Country day.
- Counting Kitchen Kettle Village shopping as an Amish experience instead of taking a farm tour.
Getting around Lancaster: public transport and more
- A car is near mandatory beyond downtown. Amtrak Keystone trains serve Lancaster station for Philadelphia and New York.
- Share rural roads with buggies: pass wide and slow, never honk near horses, and expect dim lights at dusk.
- Downtown parking is garage based. Street parking near Central Market on market mornings is not a plan.
Who Lancaster suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Great |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Great |
| Bachelorette parties | OK |
Make Lancaster your trip
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