Eastern Pennsylvania trip

campingne · 02-14-2010, 02:50 PM

Hello
We are hoping to take a trip to Pennsylvania this May. We might go for 5-7 days. We would like to see some Amish country (Lancaster) and maybe Hershey. I would like to get some ideas for attractions to see. Routes to travel and places to camp. We are traveling from Rhode Island. My main concern for the trip is traveling on 95 thru NY.
Any input would be greately appreciated.

Travel Safe
Chris

Al in PA · 02-14-2010, 06:07 PM

If you want to concentrate on Lancaster county campgrounds, you might check some previous posts by Tweety and others. If you want a central location for various day trips in central PA, I would suggest High Meadows in Hershey:

http://www.hersheycamping.com/

High Meadows is within an hour of Lancaster (Amish country). It is also an easy day trip to Gettysburg (Civil War battlegrounds) or Baltimore's Inner Harbor (National Aquarium, Ft. McHenry, great food and shopping). Don't forget your campsite will only be 1 mile from Hershey Park and Chocolate World.

To avoid I95 through NY, we took I84 West to I81 South. It was much less stressful than our earlier experience with I95 in NY.

nasa42a · 02-14-2010, 06:18 PM

Chris....

There are almost endless Lancaster attractions (just Google "Lancaster County, PA Tourism"). In addition to the Amish-related ones in the county, I highly recommend the Strasburg Railroad (see www.strasburgrailroad.com) and the Railroad Museum of PA ( www.rrmuseumpa.org ), which is right across the road.

If you've come that far, it would be a shame to not visit Gettysburg, PA, and take time to tour the battlefield (see www.nps.gov/gett). It is steeped in history (and some tourist traps, as well).

For places to camp, I recommend www.campgroundreviews.com .

Frank

henryj · 02-16-2010, 07:04 PM

The last time we were in Lancaster Co. we stayed at Beacon Hill, an adults only campground. Thanks for that tip, Tweety.

That's my truck in front of the 2499. We were in site 6 in the upper section which is much nicer than the lower. The sites are nice enough, but not easy to get into. We had to back in from the loop road and pretty much had to get it in the right spot without jockeying back and forth as there was no room across the loop to straighten the rig out. But it was a very nice spot and we would definitely return. Sat out for about an hour and watched the Amish across the road bale hay with 5 mules pulling the baler and hay wagon and couple more mules take the wagon back to the barn which was just down the road and easily visible.

We did the train stuff Frank mentioned plus stopped at the Model Train Museum and the Red Caboose Motel just down the road from the PA train museum to take some photos. They also have a silo to climb up--with a staircase inside for tourists

--with a nice panoramic view of the countryside.

We also like the productions at the Sight and Sound Theatre.

A good place to eat at least once is Dieners. It's very good, very cheap and very busy. Forget the menu and just get the buffet.

A good intro and background to the Amish and Mennonites living in the area is the Amish Tourist Information Center also in Intercourse. It's not run by the Amish, of course, but if I recall correctly is an official program of the local Mennonite Church and so is not commercialized and seems more genuine than some of the other tourist info places.

We also drove around a lot to the other towns, markets etc. and just general sight seeing. A GPS is a real asset.

Henry

**Tweety** · 02-17-2010, 06:06 AM

http://www.800padutch.com/index.html

I recommend the above website. When you come into the area be sure to pick up a copy of the Lancaster COunty Visitor's Guide. It has a wonderful map in the center that is very accurate as far as driving around the back roads. We like Beacon Hill as a place to tour from and because it's quiet. It's not a campers campground that you really want to spend a day hanging around because the sites are small and there are no activities, but for seeing the area it's perfect. Love Diener's. If you're into desserts I think think theirs are better than Shady Maple...and it's alot cheaper. As for what to do, it totally depends on if you have kids along. (same with where to stay)

MACK C-85 · 02-17-2010, 10:24 AM

IF you have young kids....Old Mill Stream Campground is beside Dutch Wonderland, a nice amusement park for the under 12 set. Right on RT. 30 in Lancaster. They also have deals with Hershey Park (same corporation).

Check out the schedule for the American Music Theater, great place to see a show.

Miller's, Shady Maple, and Good-n-Plenty, are all good places to eat.

Also, check out the Bird-n-Hand Amish Market.

campingne · 02-18-2010, 05:31 PM

Hello
I want to thank everyone for their responses. There are some great ideas for the trip.

Thanks again

Chris

Mike · 02-18-2010, 06:13 PM

Hi Chris,

I like to avoid towing through NYC whenever possible.

If you have the time, I would recommend taking I-84(W), then 209(S) down through the Delaware National Water Gap Recreational Area to I-80, the Rt 33(S) to I-78(W). Its a lot less stress for a couple more hours driving time and some nice scenery along the way. Just plan on taking a break / rest stop somewhere along the way.

If not, take I-95(S) to I-287(S) over the Tappan Zee to I-78(W). I refuse take the GW bridge at all costs.

**Tweety** · 02-19-2010, 05:53 AM

We took the route suggested above and I don't think it took any longer than the TapanZ bridge route. My only suggestion is to avoid 209 on the weekend. We sat in traffic at the southern end for an hour. It's a very touristy area. It's a good road, and pretty, but not on the weekend.