Category: Day Trips

Eleven long, skinny bodies of water comprise New York’s Finger Lakes, a wine region and resort destination for two centuries. Collectively they cover a wide swath of northern New York, with the easternmost and westernmost lakes over 90 miles apart.

Since it takes more than four hours to get here from Philly, this itinerary focuses on just one finger, Cayuga Lake, at the southern end of which sits the Ivy League town of Ithaca, home to Cornell University. The trip also detours to Seneca Lake next door for some exciting natural wines.

Expect waterfalls, eagle-spotting, ice cream, and plenty of outdoors. Start the car.

Stay: Inn at Gothic Eves

Check into the Inn at Gothic Eves (10 out of 10, no notes on the dramatic name), located 15 minutes from downtown Ithaca on the western shore of Cayuga Lake. Divided between two buildings linked by a two-acre landscaped patio, the resort’s eight suites take their names from the lakes they sit between — Cayuga and Seneca — and various grape varietals and wine regions. There’s a cozy spa with rock-walled treatment rooms and two hot tubs, nightly s’mores by the firepit, and epic breakfasts with house-made jams and locally sourced bacon.

📍 112 E. Main St., Trumansburg, N.Y. 14886

Hike: Cascadilla Gorge Trail

The barrier between downtown Ithaca and nature is barely there. The head of the Cascadilla Gorge Trail begins right off a residential neighborhood, tucked between a church and dentist’s office. This 1.3-mile trail, stewarded by Cornell since 1909, connects downtown with the university’s Botanical Gardens and travels through ancient bedrock ravines and past six waterfalls.

📍 Cascadilla Gorge Trail, Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

Snack: Mama Said Hand Pies

On Press Bay Alley, a pedestrian micro-mall built from a row of former storage units, Mama Said Hand Pies (another 10 out of 10 name) folds fillings like spiced peaches and Oaxaca cheese with mushrooms into flaky half-moon pastries. Drop in for a snack, and, if you’re lucky, some live music. As if you need another reason to like the place, a member of a recent bluegrass quintet can be seen on Mama’s Instagram performing in a Phillies shirt.

📍 118 W. Green St., Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

Sip: Osmote

About 30 minutes west of Ithaca, near the shores of Seneca Lake, a simple wooden pavilion overlooks the water. This is where Osmote hosts picturesque tastings of its low-intervention wines. Four pours cost just $20 and may include bottles like the fizzy Cayuga White pét-nat or Marquette, whose tasting notes include “crunchy blackberry” and “cherry Pop-Tart.” The wines are made with locally sourced grapes while Osmote’s own vineyards, planted in 2024, mature.

📍 3879 Marcia Ln., Burdett, N.Y. 14818

Paddle: Paddle-N-More

On summer Saturday nights, about an hour before sunset, single and tandem kayaks launch from Myers Park, on the east shore of Cayuga Lake. Join the two-hour guided eco-themed trip by Paddle-N-More, a popular outfitter with locations all around the lake. They provide the gear and the expertise, you provide the manpower (not that much) to cruise along the lakeshore, spotting bald eagles and herons.

📍 1 Lansing Park Rd., Lansing, N.Y. 14882

Dine: Moosewood Restaurant

A national pioneer of vegetarian cooking and the local-organic movement, Moosewood Restaurant opened in 1972 and, impressively, continues to this day. While the restaurant is no longer worker-owned — Danica Wilcox, daughter of one of the founding members, took over in 2022 — the ethos that earned Moosewood three James Beard Awards and inspired a shelf full of cookbooks remains intact. Order the New York cheeseboard, oyster mushroom scampi, and, for dessert, the famous fudge brownie that Wilcox’s mother once baked for the restaurant.

📍 215 N. Cayuga St., Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

Indulge: Cayuga Lake Creamery

Conveniently situated in the same building as Moosewood, Cayuga Lake Creamery is how you should end an Ithaca evening. This location opened in 2020 — the flagship, dating to 2004, is further up the lake in Interlake — and gives Cornell’s famous Dairy Bar a run for its money. Twenty to 30 house-made flavors rotate through the case, including tiramisu, Seneca Salt Caramel, and dark cherry sorbet dosed with Finger Lakes merlot.

📍 215 N. Cayuga St., Ithaca, N.Y. 14850

Most Philadelphians’ experience with Jersey City begins and ends at the mouth of the Holland Tunnel on the way into Lower Manhattan. Except for those who know food.

Jersey City is one of the state’s best towns for eating and drinking, supported by long-standing immigration and cross-river relocation from New York. Between meals, you’ll find a city that’s at turns gritty and lovely, neighborly and human-scale in a way that makes it feel, to Philadelphians, as warm and familiar as a Champion sweatsuit. (It also has a really nice waterfront from which we could learn a thing or two.)

It’s only 90 miles and about 90 minutes away, depending on traffic. And if you must, you can easily pair it with a visit to New York.

Start the car.

Stay: Hyatt House Jersey City

A hotel with a story to tell — whether it’s luxurious or eccentric or charming — is always ideal for a weekend getaway. But when corporate keys are what’s available, you can do much worse than Hyatt’s Hyatt House sub-brand. Jersey City’s Hyatt House is relatively new and reliably clean, with great beds, a rooftop deck, and a modicum of style. What more could you ask for? How about a skyline view? Upgraded rooms facing Manhattan are bookable in April for under $300.

📍 1 Exchange Pl., Jersey City, N.J. 07302

Snack: Bread and Salt

“Bakery” is a limiting descriptor for what Rick Easton does at Bread and Salt on Palisade Avenue, opposite the Hoboken border. Sugared bomboloni, esoteric Italian cookies and crostadas, suppli, thin-crusted pizzas, cups of stewy beans begging for a heel of crusty bread, curly punatarelle salad, Lent-friendly fish specials on Fridays. It’s an inspiring operation. Get more than you think you need. Then get more to bring home.

📍 435 Palisade Ave., Jersey City, N.J. 07307

Stroll: Liberty State Park

Hemmed in by the NJ Turnpike extension and the Hudson River, Liberty State Park encompasses 1,200 acres of greenspace (about half under ongoing revitalization) and miles of scenic waterfront trails perfect for spring strolling. Pause at the 9/11 Empty Sky Memorial. If you’re traveling with kids (or adult dinosaur fans), check out the immersive T. Rex Experience at Liberty Science Center, whose planetarium dome you’ve probably seen from the Turnpike driving home from New York.

📍 1 Audrey Zapp Dr., Jersey City, N.J. 07305

Visit: Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island

Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty are typically associated with New York, not New Jersey, but the sites actually fall under an unusual joint-custody arrangement. It’s also much less of a headache to visit from Jersey City; no downtown traffic to get through, way thinner crowds. The ferry departs right from the Liberty State Park and visits both islands in a single ticketed experience.

📍 1 Audrey Zapp Dr., Jersey City, N.J. 07305

Drink: San Patricios

No one: You know what we really need in Jersey City? An Irish-Mexican cocktail bar. The acclaimed Dead Rabbit crew: Bienvenidos a San Patricios. Open last year, the cantina/pub celebrates the little-known 19th-century brotherhood between Ireland and Mexico. Stop in before dinner for something thematic: a palmona spiked with Irish moonshine, frozen horchata café con leche with Lost Irish Whiskey, or the Countess, a rum-and-Guinness hibiscus mule.

📍 8 Erie St. A, Jersey City, N.J. 07302

Dine: Razza

At Razza, Dan Richer makes some of the best pizzas in the county, a mix of reliables (the fermented chile-flamed Calabrese; the yellow-and-red tomato pie dusted in 36-month-old Parm-Reg) and hyperseasonal creations like last spring’s mosaic of mozzarella, asparagus, nettles, spinach, and ramp pesto. Bread and butter might seem redundant when you’re having pizza for dinner, but you cannot miss the tawny, crusty sourdough, served with tangy house-cultured butter made from grass-fed Pennsylvania cows.

📍 275 Grove St., Jersey City, N.J. 07302

Indulge: Torico Ice Cream

Family-owned and spanning three generations, Torico Ice Cream is the charming scoop shop every neighborhood wishes it had. Towering atop house-made waffle cones, you’ll find classics like chocolate-marshmallow, mint-chip, and a notably excellent strawberry, but Torico’s secret sauce is the tropical ice creams and sorbet like passionfruit, guava, and soursop that nod to the Berrios clan’s native Puerto Rico.

📍 20 Erie St., Jersey City, N.J. 07302

Milford is an outdoorsy town — and then some.

It sits along the scenic banks of the Upper Delaware River in Pike County, surrounded by mountains, with access to major trails, canoeing, kayaking, and biking, and the tallest waterfall in Pennsylvania. It’s an adventure hub among the best in the tristate region.

But Milford isn’t just for people in hiking boots. It’s also an artsy town, with galleries, a theater, and dedicated film, music, and writers’ festivals. It’s a shopping destination too, with a slew of antique and gift shops, and a healthy-living store that rivals anything in Philadelphia or New York.

“Geographically, I believe Milford has the edge over most small towns around,” said local entrepreneur Bill Rosado, who owns some popular businesses in town. “It is centered so well. Just looking at the town is a treat to me.”

There’s plenty of history in Milford, too, which calls itself the “birthplace of the conservation movement” as it was home to Gifford Pinchot, founder and first chief of the U.S. Forest Service. It also has a historical museum that’s home to a unique and morbid artifact from the Civil War era.

And, finally, you have to eat. Milford is home to fine dining at historic hotels, both fancy and cozy bars, along with breweries, classic diners, organic coffee, and, thanks to Rosado, authentic food from Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula. (He was born there.)

Milford’s about 75 miles northwest of Manhattan and just across the river from North Jersey, so yes, you’ll see Yankees and Giants gear, but it’s just 135 miles from Philly, so get up there.

Stay: Dwarfskill Preserve

There are plenty of hotels in downtown Milford that are in the midst of everything the town has to offer, including the historic and ornate Hotel Fauchère and the Tom Quick Inn, which would be at home in Cape May. Rosado owns both of them.

I’ve been eyeing up the tiny cabin at the 575-acre Dwarfskill Preserve, up in the hills above town, for years now, as a former colleague had spent extended time there over the years and shared lovely pictures. It’s owned by former Milford mayor Sean Strub and consists of three separate properties: the one-room cabin I rented for a few nights with my girlfriend, Jen, and my dog, Wanda, and two larger cabins that can fit more people.

We stayed there over the New Year’s holiday, cooking brisket in the microwave and making coffee on the hot plate. While Milford and the Dwarfskill are undoubtedly at their best in the summer and fall, when you can take full advantage of the outdoor opportunities, including the swimming hole at the cabin, we watched both the wood fireplace and the ample snowfall outside for hours. It was hard to leave, a full hygge experience, in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

📍 Dwarfskill Falls Lane, Milford, Pa. 18337

Explore: Grey Towers National Historic Site

If you drive around Pennsylvania as much as I do, you’ll see the name Gifford Pinchot quite a bit. Pinchot was a two-term governor of the Commonwealth and has a 54,000-acre state forest named after him.

He went on to found and run the U.S. Forest Service and is generally considered a pioneer in the U.S. conservation movement. Pinchot was born in Milford and his home, Grey Towers, is a national historic landmark run by the U.S. Forest Service. Its curated gardens, French chateau-style stone architecture, and expansive library can all be seen on tours, both in-person during spring, summer, and fall, and online all year round.

If you’re interested in something a little more outdoorsy, visit Raymondskill Falls, which, at 150 feet, is the tallest in Pennsylvania. You can, technically, visit in winter, but the ice and snow could be treacherous. In summer, you might have to brave some crowds and jammed parking lots, but the views are worth it.

📍 Grey Towers: 122 Old Owego Turnpike, Milford, Pa. 18337

📍 Raymondskill Falls: Raymondskill Road, Milford, Pa. 18337

Learn: The Pike County Historical Society at the Columns

It’s not every day that a county historical society can really wow you with an artifact, but Pike County punches up with a Civil War relic you won’t find anywhere else in the world: the bloody U.S. flag used to cradle Abraham Lincoln’s head after he was shot at Ford’s Theatre in 1865.

The flag and other exhibits are housed in “the Columns,” a 1904 neoclassical-style mansion. Want to learn how they obtained the flag? Visit on Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

📍 608 Broad St., Milford, Pa. 18337

Shop: Better World Store and Cafe

It’s hard to pin down Better World Store and Cafe in one category.

It’s a place to get coffee or tea and healthy pastries. It’s a community hub, where people gather to meet or work remotely.

It’s also a place to look good, with woolens and other “natural” clothes, and smell good, or simply be good, with homesteading supplies and books.

📍 Broad Street, Milford, Pa. 18337

Eat: Felix’s Cantina at La Posada

Jen spends weeks in the Yucatan every winter, so she was surprised to see a restaurant in Northeastern Pennsylvania promising a “taste of the Yucatan Peninsula and other regional dishes from southern Mexico.”

Rosado, who also owns a historic theater in town, owns the Cantina at La Posada, yet another one of his hotels. He was born in Merida, the capital of Yucatan.

He knows the dishes well, and she approved, describing our pork and birria tacos as “fattening and delicious.”

For breakfast, the Waterwheel Café Bakery Bar, an old grist mill along Sawkill Creek, serves up a killer thick-cut challah French toast. We basically licked the plate clean.

📍 Felix’s: 210 Second St., Milford, Pa. 18337

📍 Waterwheel: 150 Water St., Milford, Pa. 18337