Spend 36 Hours With Me in Lancaster County, PA
My dear cousin Emily sent me a video of a man having the time of his life riding a scooter through the rolling hills of Amish country. Was I surprised that she thought of me? Nope, not at all haha.. I immediately started thinking about where I could fit this in during the summer and asked her if she was on board for a meetup. Lancaster, Pennsylvania is about a 5.5 hour drive from Buffalo, NY so definitely a trip to plan for at least two nights. I did not have two nights (haha) so I did a whirlwind trip over 36 hours. Here is what we did!
Also, this would make such a fun fall getaway and I promise you will not run out of things to do!
Let me start with where we stayed. We chose to stay in the small town of Strasburg, Pennsylvania. It is about a 20 minute drive from the heart of Lancaster city. We agreed we wanted a more quiet, rural setting and something that was close to our scooter tour. This cabin we found on Airbnb was perfect for the two of us! We paid $359 for the night. Here is the link to this adorable Cozy Cabin! The hosts were so thoughtful with their amazing coffee bar, fresh milk from a local farm, cold water in the fridge and an unexpected but lovely greeting from the chickens. I would definitely recommend staying here if you come to town. There are also several hotels close by if you would prefer that option..
Now to get into the things we did while we were there! I will say we only scratched the surface and the main reason for being there was to take the Scooter tour, but this area of Pennsylvania has tons to do for everyone. If I were to do it again, I think I would spend more time exploring the small towns of Strasburg, Bird in Hand, Intercourse and Paradise to name a few. We mostly split our time between Lancaster and Strasburg. Instead of listing out our itinerary in chronological order I will just share what we did in each location!
Lancaster:
Cocina Mexicana for a quick lunch! Everything was good, our server was so nice and the food was so affordable!
Butter and Bean coffee located in the Southern Market. Perfect for an afternoon pick me up.
Of course the Central Market! You can find baked goods, prepared foods, produce, flowers, etc. A must visit when in Lancaster.
Central Market Flowers! Such a beautiful shop with so much more than just flowers.
Lancaster Cupcake! These cupcakes were worth the trip for sure! They were the perfect size and perfect texture. We went there twice so we could bring some home with us.
We made Cabalar Meat Company our last stop before we went home because we really wanted to try their burgers and fries. They just moved to a new location the day before our visit so the timing was perfect. The burger was a 12/10.. yum.
We couldn’t believe what a big city Lancaster was. There were many other places we wanted to try but just didn’t have the time. On my list for next time would be Luca Restaurant, Conway Social Club, The Exchange, Lancaster Beignet, Rachel’s Creperie, Passenger Coffee and Prince Street Cafe.
Strasburg:
Strasburg Scooters was the main reason for our visit! We chose the Date Night Tour because it worked out for when we were there but there are several tours to choose from. We had so much fun and we took turns driving so we both could enjoy the scenery. The tour is around two hours and was $100 per person. You do need a valid drivers license to drive. This would be such a perfect activity to add to a fall weekend itinerary.
We grabbed dinner after the tour at Spring House Tavern and it was great. We especially liked the fried pickles. We did receive a $25 gift card from a partnership they have with Strasburg Scooters so that was a nice surprise!
The Speckled Hen coffee shop and cafe was also high on our list of places to visit. Such a cute place! The coffee was delicious, the food was fresh and came out fast and the employees were so pleasant. I ordered the seasonal honey blueberry latte and a sweet potato breakfast bowl.
All of these places were located less than 10 minutes from our Airbnb.
Our last few hours were spent checking out Kitchen Kettle Village in Intercourse, PA (yes that’s the real name of the town haha) and taking an Amish buggy ride at Aaron & Jessica’s in Bird in Hand, PA.
Kitchen Kettle Village has over 40 stores and features many items handmade in Lancaster County such as quilts, soaps, chocolates, etc. It’s a great place to spend a few hours while visiting. There is also a pygmy goat farm on the property that is free to visit! If you know me, you will know that I love animals, especially mini ones! We each picked up some items to bring home and I have already eaten one of those jars of pickles!
The buggy ride was interesting. I am not going to lie, it wasn’t as much fun as I thought it would be. It was a warm day and it seemed like our horse Chester was tired. I believe our ride was the third of the day for him. We chose a 30 minute ride that cost $18. We did learn so much about the area and the families that lived there and our driver was lovely and answered all of our questions. One thing I think most people don’t know is that Amish people do not have their picture taken. If you ever take one of these buggy rides, please be respectful. After the ride I stopped at a road side stand for the best hot pretzel I have ever had. And it was only $2.25!
That pretty much wraps up my 36 hours in Lancaster County, PA. I wish I would have had at least one more day but it gives me more of a reason to go back. Let me know in the comments if you’ve been and what I missed if so! Also, if you decide to make the trip and do the scooters, please share with me!!!!!
As always, happy traveling,
x, Julie