Central New York State - itinerary review, please

Since you mentioned New Paltz I guess I have to chime in:)

Looks like you are into historical sights, NP has the oldest street in America with it's original houses. They are very pretty stones houses which date back to the 1600s when the town was founded by French Huguenots by way of Holland; tours are available multiple times a day. The town next door (Highland) has the most popular attraction in the area called the Walkway Over the Hudson. It's a converted railroad bridge converted into a linear park which spans the Hudson River to Poughkeepsie. It's the longest pedestrian bridge in the world, the views are stunning, and people are traveling from all corners of the globe to visit it. Next to Poughkeepsie is the town of Hyde Park home of the official FDR House/Library/Museum operated by the park service. The museum was recently redone, and the new exhibits are first rate. Very near the FDR house is the Vanderbilt Estate also operated by the National Park Service, tours of the mansion are available throughout the day.

You have a long drive on 8/13, and you'll be driving through some of the most scenic and historic places in the northeast. Are you open to considering breaking that drive into 2 days? Or better yet, instead of spending 3 nights in Valley Forge and 2 nights in Wilmington (which are less than an hour apart), maybe consider seeing the things you want to see in that area from one base?

Some of the places I think are especially worthwhile to see along that route for both historic and scenic reasons:

• Bear Mountain
• West Point
• Various locations along the Hudson River in Westchester County (Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow, Cortlandt Manor) with historic homes and beautiful parks
• Princeton
• New Hope (which you could also visit as a day trip from Valley Forge - it's about an hour's drive)

The drive along the Hudson River (on either side) is especially beautiful. If you're not on a budget, consider spending a couple of nights at Mohonk Mountain House. If you are on a budget, you can probably find some lower-cost options around West Point or the surrounding area.

Sounds like a wonderful trip! Enjoy!

Michael and Lane, thanks for your comments and suggestions! I grew up in lower Westchester County [and my mother grew up in Princeton NJ] so we are familiar with the attractions there... in fact, till I moved away, I thought every county in the US had half a dozen restored historic houses.

You've convinced me to break our long driving day with a stop in the New Paltz region and see some of the sights - so any dining or hotel recommendations would be gratefully received. We're only staying one night in Wilmington - and I think we'll keep that, rather than backtracking after seeing Winterthur and then retracing our steps to return Mom to her place in Annapolis. I'll modify the itinerary accordingly.

For a small town New Paltz has huge dining scene, most every cuisine you can imagine is crammed into the village:) Head over to Yelp for all your options. My personal favorite is the Bridge Creek Cafe at the Water Street Market, a short walk from the Stone House district. Another favorite is just outside of New Paltz in the middle of the apple orchards in Clintondale. It's a Bavarian restaurant with commanding views of the mountains called the Gunk Haus. It's been written up in the New York Times and is very popular. Hyde Park is also home to the Culinary Institute of America; the top culinary school in the US. They have a bunch of on-site restaurants, and the food is excellent.
Apart from the luxury Mohonk Mountain House, the hotel/motels within New Paltz are lousy. Best to stay in one of the motels in Hyde Park which are clustered around the FDR house. The often sellout summer weekends, so it's best to book in advance.

Kathleen,

I have to put in a plug for visiting Cooperstown, NY on your first day. You can drive from Interlaken toward Cortland, then on to Cooperstown, before heading up to Old Forge on Rt. 28. Actually, there is enough to do you should stay the night. For such a small village, (1800 people; it's my hometown, actually), there is plenty to do!

1: National Baseball Hall of Fame: repository of the game's greatest memorabilia

2: The Fenimore Museum: the home of the NY State Historical Association. This actually is a great little museum with tons of Indian artifacts and fine art. It's housed in author James Fenimore Cooper's old home. His father founded the town.

3: The Farmer's Museum: : a living history museum focused on farming, etc. in the 1700-1800's with a such displays as a smithy, mercantile, tavern, farming equipment, church, etc.

4: The Glimmerglass Opera: a summer opera company that is WORLD-renowned! Many famous opera singers from The Met, etc. in NYC come up every summer. The company is actually housed in the only building in the entire world built solely as an opera house ( at least when it opened; it may have changed by now).

5: Ommegang Brewery: if you are interested in beer at all, take a brewery tour ( I actually haven't ever done this since I'm not a big drinker and it opened after I moved away).

6: Spend time on Otsego Lake: known as " Glimmerglass" in James Fenimore Cooper's books. There is a state park at the other end of the lake or you can stop by the Otesaga Hotel for lunch ( or some other spots downtown) for a nice view of the lake.

I hope you'll consider adding Cooperstown to your list!!! Let me know if you have any questions!

:) Enjoy!

Cooperstown is indeed worthy of a visit, you can hate baseball and still find lots to do:)
The Fenimore Museum is the best art museum in upstate New York. The wing with the native American art is in a newer section, the rest of the building has lots of first rate Amercana art works.

The Brandywine Valley is lovely. Have you been to Longwood Gardens. Hagley (original DuPont estate/gunpowder operation), Brandywine art museum or Nemours? Worth a look-up to see if any are of interest. Went to Winterthur last year for the Downton Abbey costume exhibit--interesting place. Also, unless you have hotel reservations in Wilmington already, Winterthur is right by the PA state line/US 1 so may be easier to stay out that way rather than closer to Wilmington. Have fun!

Double check days for Winterthur, it used to be closed on Mondays.

Thanks again for all the helpful comments! Yes, Winterthur is closed on Mondays so that will reshape things slightly - maybe we'll see some of the other Brandywine Valley sights Monday morning before heading homeward. We'll see how early we get going on our first day; that will probably determine how much time we can spend in Cooperstown. Now for the details of hotel reservations...

I live in the southeastern Pennsylvania region and would most definitely skip the Wentz farmstead. While the Audubon Center is truly lovely, unless you're a birder, that too could be skipped. While their little museum is very interesting, the walking trails I think would be arduous for an elderly senior. In lieu of these, I would definitely spend the day or half of a day at Longwood Gardens. We love the Gardens and return to it every couple of years. I would say that most of it is wheelchair accessible, if that is a concern for you. The conservatory alone is worth the visit. Visit their website, www.longwoodgardens.org