12 Small Towns in New York to Visit for a Weekend Getaway
With landscape scenery for every taste, New York is not all Big Apple glitz and glam. The former state capital, Kingston, gives Albany a run for its money with small businesses, convivial restaurants, and celebrations that unite the community. Few places in the Hudson Valley delight visitors with Hudson River views, and Piermont is the best town to get delighted. Mount Tremper, where Oscar Wilde stayed in the 1800s, attracts literary fans for inspiration and hikers alike, with trails through oak and pine forests up to a fire tower at the peak.
From lakeside gems to jewels in the foothills, these roaring weekend getaways offer easy access from NYC, Upstate, and even Pennsylvania for the best weekend in New York! So, choose a town on a Friday night and be here by breakfast or lunch for nature ventures, historical discoveries, beach time, sculpture parks, and some fantastic art scenes between destination eateries.
Aurora
Home to buildings and small-town businesses as if straight out of a favorite Disney film, Aurora strikes the balance of relaxation and adventures in a peaceful lakeside setting, akin to vacation from the golden years for any season! The famed Inns of Aurora, a destination in itself, features elevated grounds, architecture, and beautiful vantage points. Looking to save? Rowland House is a reputable lakefront property! Start on a leisurely stroll here after a rejuvenating spa experience before taking more serious hikes through Long Point State Park.
Home to Cayuga Lake, Wells College, and around 800 locals, Aurora invites travelers to a summertime weekend of water fun without all the crowds. From adventurous bike rides to regional pottery and painting classes, Aurora is in no short supply of activities. Additionally, there is a bustling market and a myriad of unique shops. Hop on the Cayuga Lake Wine Trail for wine tastings and veer off into a public park, Knox Farm State Park, and the must-see Owens Falls Sanctuary! Whether you are in for boating, fishing, or sunbathing and dips after a sunny day excursion, the most popular 1833 Kitchen & Bar or Fargo Bar & Grill welcomes visitors after watching an incredible sunset over the lake!
Chatham
Chatham, the king of day trips, is a quintessentially rural, classic upstate small town smack dab between the Hudson River and the Berkshires. Home to dozens of independent retail and unique shops, casual cafés, and fine dining for all. For outdoorsy pursuits, between Smith Pond to the west and Borden's Pond Conservation Area to the east lies the all-season Columbia County Fair Grounds and the Mac-Haydn Theatre. From top-notch food to a vibrant art scene, visitors can explore the rolling farmland and nature preserves on a long weekend getaway to include heritage sites and craft breweries or cideries.
Arriving in Chatham feels like a homecoming, an indescribable yet palpable feeling for the newcomers, who discover the atmosphere that best suits their Hudson Valley travels. Home to a tiny population, Chatham lures visitors with its grand personality, Hudson Valley history, contemporary culture, and possibilities to explore around, like the nearby town of Hudson! Learn how this charming town was once called Groat’s Corners, or attend one of its annual celebrations with seasonality and local makers in the spotlight. Nearby in Ghent, the Art Omi sculpture park sprawling through a field and forest is a good afternoon's worth of strolls with sights akin to the Storm King Art Center. Just 11 minutes from the heart, the top-rated Inn at Silver Maple Farm is more than just a stay; it is a whole property in the foothills with acres to explore, a ski package, and complimentary breakfast.
Corning
Corning, America’s Crystal City, is one of the state's most fun small towns and a real upstate gem. More commonly perceived as the "blow your own glass for a cool souvenir" town, it sure packs a punch for a weekend's epic escape! Experience Corning to the core at the unique GlassFest in late May with local music, entertainment, a guided arts crawl through public artworks, and the best from small-town businesses on promotion! Its venue, Corning’s historic Gaffer District, is a linger-worthy affair to mingle any time of the year! After an eye feast, it is as easy to satiate hunger at Market Street Social alone, with diverse outdoor seasonal dining around fire pits.
Corning’s Rockwell Museum, one of the state's best, features quality art and captivating exhibits in a space easily coverable in an afternoon, curated to represent BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) American artists. The Corning Museum of Glass, the world’s largest on glass, tells a fascinating story on the significance, history, art, and technology of glass in life through galleries, workshops, and exhibitions that one would want to dedicate at least half a day to. Order the garlic-buffalo-parmesan flavor at Nickels Pitt to get through the slew of gorgeous boutique shops and galleries. The beautiful town square is a great place to linger around before saying goodbye at the best value for money, Staybridge Suites Corning, just a stone's throw away from the museum!
Ellicottville
Ellicottville, Western New York's playground, is a fun outdoor escape for adventurers, including two ski slopes within walking distance from its main drag, Washington Street. With a few dozen shops and as many bars and restaurants, entertainment and good food are just a hand-reach away to dive back into skiing, snowboarding, golf, mountain biking, and water pursuits without missing a beat. An express summer weekend combines fishing, paddle boarding, and kayaking with waterfront trails along the through-running Great Valley Creek that extend into deeper hikes!
From eclectic shops for unique gifts to a good dozen festivals and events for local flavor, with an abundance of great hotels, cozy condos, and B&Bs, travelers here can hit the nightlife and wake up feeling refreshed for a repeat! Ellicottville has become a majestic holiday destination and features a winter wonderland of the rolling hills with anticipation and magic of the season. Other seasonal adventures include zip-lining, Ellicottville Village Park, and the adjacent Nannen Arboretum! Edelweiss Lodge is a reputable option to stay on a budget in the heart of town with a countryside vibe.
High Falls
With a population of around 700, High Falls makes a big statement for its approximately 1.69-square-mile area in Ulster County. As a part-time home to the actors Aidan Quinn and Mandy Patinkin and various big-name visitors over the decades, this set for the scenes from the 1961 movie “Splendor in the Grass” with Natalie Wood and Warren Beatty can be your best weekend escape! Find the famous site from the film by the Rondout Creek waterfall after a hike for a refreshing picnic by the falls that gave the town its illustrious name. Just a two-hour drive north of Manhattan to the revered Hudson Valley, High Falls abounds in tiny-town charm, with the gentle grace of stardom and peaceful scenery, where "weekend" is every day.
Visitors report getting caught up in the local pace, relishing its natural beauty, like along Mohonk Preserve trails, where families can stop by pick-your-own orchards while the active get caught up in the Bonticou Crag and Table Rocks loop. Spoiled in nature, the sublime atmosphere attracted Marc Chagall, the painter who lived in High Falls from 1946 to 1948 after fleeing Europe. Do not miss his picturesque home in the blue wood-frame house next to his studio! The nearby Woodstock Farm Sanctuary is home to beloved creatures named Curly, the pig, and Simon and Garfunkel sheep, happily living along with 380 other sweet rescued animals, including cows, chickens, and rabbits. Lacking chain hotels, find a pretty rental like CS Coach House.
Hudson
Just a two-and-a-half-hour drive north of the Big Apple, Hudson is the heart of the incredible Hudson Valley for a weekend escape that dreams are made of. Abounding in fine dining, the town of 6,000 residents is a shopper's paradise, with over 100 unique independent shops by local artists and entrepreneurs. Among high-quality lodgings, The Wick, Hudson, a Tribute Portfolio Hotel, or Nautical Nest Hudson are popular, unique, and for every budget! Embodying the wave of urban revitalization with 90 art galleries, antiques, and a wide foodie scene in nature's wrap, it can feel overwhelming but fear not. One of such artisan-run boutique shops, Lili & Loo, offers handcrafted home goods galore right on the city’s main drag, Warren Street.
Among the cafes, pubs, restaurants, and bakeries, it is imperative to visit Fish & Game, the James Beard Award-winning eatery, for an innovative, seasonal tasting menu with local ingredients from Hudson Valley farms. Astounding families and historians alike, the Museum of Firefighting is one of the nation's most significant dedications to the life-riskers in the fire service industry, showcasing its history and growth. Beyond the charming downtown, discover the most scenic spots hugging the Hudson River. From bucolic hillside views on a bike or a hike to the nearby Thomas Cole National Historic Site, it was named after one of the US's first and most influential landscape painters.
Kingston
This historic town, founded in 1777 as the first state capital, is one of New York's oldest cities. A great getaway idea in the Upstate for historians and foodies, Kingston is loaded with personality, just 95 km south of the current state capital of Albany. Cultivating all the charms on the west bank of the Hudson River, discover its deep ties to the American Revolutionary War, with a legacy not through several historic districts. From Victorian architecture throughout to the Stockade District, visitors can stroll back in time among 18th and 19th-century churches and graveyards and get reacquainted with American history from the birth of the nation, with many on the National Register of Historic Places.
The beautiful Hotel Kinsley fits the downtown theme, while the mega-popular Best Western Plus, with a conference center, is surprisingly affordable. Mixing heritage with new-age, the multi-faceted town boasts tasty eats through its trendy uptown and along the waterfront, with upscale restaurants and happening bars. Diego’s is a destination restaurant in the Hudson Valley for finger-licking good Mexican dishes and margaritas. At the same time, the vegetarian-friendly Boitson’s is famous for its Buffalo Cauliflower plate and an outdoor patio. Saturday Farmer’s Market from May to November is your ultimate opportunity to taste homemade soups and stock up on regional flavors from locals, such as freshly-fermented kimchi, ginger tonics, and gorgeous blooms before a drive home.
Lake George
Lake George is a spectacular idea in snow or shine in the Empire State for a weekend getaway. Being a good three-and-a-half-hour plow straight up from New York City, one can get there in time for lunch in a waterfront cafe in anticipation of lakeside pleasures or a day of snow play. Excelling in both departments, Lake George is renowned for skiing along the revered slopes down Prospect Mountain. At the same time, its lake is open for summertime tubbing, boating, kayaking, wakeboarding, and parasailing in between ziplines and dining! Travelers can cycle or stroll around the town until another hankering for nature gets you outdoors over hiking, mountain biking, camping, and sightseeing with lake vantage points and wildlife.
Behold Lake George, the Queen of American Lakes, with its aptly named shores of Million Dollar Beach and wineries around. It is no wonder that this sweet town is one of the most popular local vacations in upstate New York, welcoming visitors from near and far with an abundance of accommodations, tempting eats, and fantastic venues for shopping, arts, and entertainment. Whether you are in for relaxation along its sandy beaches and Fort William Henry with a history museum, Lake George encourages nature ventures with scenic treks like Shelving Rock Falls or rope walking the Adirondack Extreme. From Lake Haven Lodge & Suites to Sundowner on Lake George, stay along the shore and do not miss the breathtaking views via Prospect Mountain Highway.
Mount Tremper
Mount Tremper, the town in the Catskills foothills, welcomes a colorful weekend experience along the Byway, with a 56-foot-tall and 38-foot-wide red silo sign at the entrance. Once deep into farming, quarrying, and lumbering with its sister hamlets, Mount Tremper has moved ahead as a revered tourist destination for every taste at the Beaverkill and the Esopus Creek crossroads. Come for waterside fun and a stroll along the half-mile nature trail and sculpture park, and linger by the world's largest kaleidoscope at the Emerson resort complex—dazzling. With plenty of inns and hotels in the area since the railroad ran through in 1870, the farmhouses were also converted into summer boarding houses for tourists.
Do not miss Tremper Hill Farms and Zen Mountain Monastery, while quality lodging such as Foxfire Mountain House and Emerson Resort & Spa offer the best rest for adventures ahead. Esopus Creek rewards wildlife lovers and birdwatchers with sightings of bald eagles, great blue herons, deer, and black bears in their habitat between the two giants, Mount Tremper to the north and Mount Pleasant and Romer Mountain to the south. This rural haven with traditional Catskills hospitality offers shops, dining, and local farm stands within the storied mountain views. From the Maurice Hinchey Catskill Interpretive Center, orient within the 700,000-acre Catskill Park and Forest Preserve, a real national treasure, and dine after at the hyped-up Phoenicia Diner near the trailhead!
New Paltz
New Paltz, an Instagrammable town from every side, is an outdoor-centered weekend getaway for nature lovers, photographers, and relaxation aficionados. A mere hour and a half from Manhattan, the small town, home to a perfect 14,000, boasts a free-roaming range of outdoor parks and some of the officially best hiking trails in the state. With the Wallkill River through the heart, New Paltz nature is quiet for self-reflection and screaming with a beauty that keeps you hounding for the next best sight! The two four-hour trails can be your short, fun stroll or adventurous terrain, requiring a packed lunch for an exhilarating hike.
The unique rock formation, Lemon Squeezer, is a scramble to some stunning valley views. At the same time, the Hudson Valley Rail Trail terminates here, with hikes for every level of intensity, including kids. Stop by for a Santa Cruz sandwich from the Main Street Bistro after to mingle with locals, or take it as your meal to go on a leisurely picnic overlooking Lake Mohonk. After a stroll through Mohonk Preserve, cap off your day at Robibero Family Vineyards with $12 flights for Hudson Valley wine tastings, a family-friendly atmosphere, and a big fire pit to gather as the evening descends, enjoy more drinks, or roast some marshmallows after sundown! The Hampton Inn, the best value for money, is the most popular stay in town.
Penn Yan
Penn Yan, one of the "100 Best Small Towns in America," offers easy access for a fun weekend for both Pennsylvania and Yankee locals on the north end of Keuka Lake. With its outstanding location, this spirited town remains a desired getaway after settlers from the same regions called it home, now boasting a spot on "The Nationwide Guide to the Best Small Town Living." Penn Yan fully embraces the lakeside country lifestyle, where its anchoring Main Street looks straight from a storybook cover! From spectacular public parks with swimming beaches, pavilions, playgrounds, courts, and a public boat dock, jostle with locals on Main Street and the Lake Street Plaza. Offering several quality stays at a great budget such as the Best Western Plus Vineyard Inn & Suites.
The famous town has adapted with countless shops, cafes, pubs, and restaurants to dive into the local scene, get caffeinated before the outdoors, and recharge after. Keuka Lake Outlet is the most popular 6-mile linear park trail for hiking and biking in the scenic beauty between Keuka and Seneca lakes, with waterfalls that once powered the mills in the 1800s. Keuka College, ideally on the waterfront, speaks volumes to locals, prospective students, and families on the move who enjoy water sports. Open Saturdays from May through the winter holidays, The Windmill Farm & Craft Market features 250 vendors for seasonal farm-fresh foods like creamer potatoes and honey and home decor and gift ideas like Mennonite goods, quilts, crafts, and antiques.
Piermont
Often omitted for the more famous names in the valley, this gem in Rockland County is a time-honored settlement and destination along the riverside. Steeped in history, Piermont was a biggie in the nation's paper industry as well as a railroading treasure with its stocked-up train museum. Housing some of the Valley’s top art galleries and hidden destination eateries makes it a long weekend to cherish every sunset stroll down its blatant Piermont Pier. Meandering a full mile along the Hudson River, it is a hotspot for bikers, joggers, and fishers in the warmer months. Just 30 minutes from Manhattan, one can meet other bikers before a ride or spend some time people-watching at a cafe with some java.
Plan a visit after this northeasterly severe winter during a lovely spring through fall time slot for hikes through Tallman Mountain State Park, kayaking, and fishing on the river. From the sublime scenery along the Orangetown Trails to a handful of quaint downtown shops, galleries, and restaurants, don't miss the Museum of the American Revolution. Bring your four-legged friends to escape the gray city for a hike through the pet-friendly, year-round Piermont Marsh on the west side of the pier, with bird-watching. The designated Piermont Dog Park offers to work off the built-up energy over some friendly roughhousing and free-roaming in a natural haven for pups just off Ferry Road at the base of the Piermont Pier. For lodging, Riverview Organic Bed & Breakfast is a cozy stay in the wilderness, with Sawmill Picnic Area in the backyard and The OUTSIDE IN Gallery & Espresso Bar as its neighbor.
Ah, New York, New York, with its city so nice they had to name it twice. The Empire State is a whole real empire worth exploring, with unbeatable accessibility to the small towns for a weekend escape considering its size! From the Upstate to the Hudson Valley with river views, there is a picturesque village, hamlet, or sweet city closest to your taste and location in the state. The sublime nature and undulating landscape, with historic towns in between, make visitors lose all sense of time in pleasure. Come for the beaches, vineyards, and skiing, and stay for local hospitality, regardless of how chic, luxe, and award-winning the establishments are—something hard to come by in the city!
