Best College Towns in Upstate New York
The Empire State's growing enterprise and endless entertainment options make it an ideal destination to attend college in the country. Replete with trendy cafes, nature parks, and the famous Adirondacks right at your feet, Uptown New York is idyllic. Here, you get some of the country's best colleges and universities, including the CIA in Hyde Park and an Ivy League school in Ithaca. New York's business and finance industries, along with television and film, allow students to pursue lifelong career goals and work opportunities between studies and internships. These eleven towns and cities in Upstate New York are easy to get around with strollable streets, bike lanes, and transportation systems initiated by the university for student convenience.
From its bucolic tidbits to rigorous academia, you get a balanced college lifestyle with big cities like the Big Apple for day trips, while the Great Lakes region is your ultimate summer vacation destination without crowds! The proximity to the great cities of Montreal and Boston opens a world of possibilities for weekend escapes into culture and entertainment while enjoying the quintessential Adirondacks experience for winter skiing, which is easy for students in Upstate New York! Whether you choose a small town or a big city, you can find your idyllic college experience in the list below. Visit now to discover a classic college town and hotspots to pursue your hobbies and study amid the lively student culture that drives the economy.
Alfred
This small town of 3,768 on the western edge of the Southern Tier is home to SUNY Alfred State College and Alfred University. Of the many worthy college towns in New York, Alfred stands out as the perfect place for those looking for a bucolic setting with a bit of an isolated feel. In fact, it is so focused on students that if the college here closed down, Alfred would be nearly empty, with 85 percent of its population made up of students.
The town, built around the heartbeat of a college, is home to many education-oriented buildings as well as various shops and a performance venue. With just one stoplight in town and the two educational institutions of higher learning in opposing directions, you will find great restaurants and cozy cafes along the main street to feed hungry, studious minds. These are great places to study, along with cute parks and greenspaces throughout. You can fulfill your after-school pursuits and hobbies just steps away at a gym or a library, followed by an American fare dinner at the highly-rated Collegiate Cafe.
Binghamton
This charming town in the Southern Tier region of New York is the "Carousel Capital of the World"—a pretty cool place to call home during your years of study in college. Its top-tier research institution, Binghamton University, attracts those who thrive in a rigorous academic environment when there's also a way to blow off steam afterward. The significantly revitalized downtown area offers everything to relax and have fun post-class.
From the trendy cafes and great restaurants to the bar-hopping scene and shopping, there's always something new in town to offer the growing student population a choice of attractions for each day. The young and old love the strollable Ross Park Zoo with over 100 animal species, happy to greet students in between classes and on the weekends with friends and family. Join in the annual fun at the Spiedie Fest and Balloon Rally, a foodies' favorite event celebrating the local culinary specialty, the Spiedie sandwich, and beautiful hot air balloon launches.
Cortland
The "Crown City" is a unique town of 16,904 overlooking it all from an elevation of 1,130 feet above sea level. Cortland is home to the State University of New York, SUNY Cortland, with popular majors in education and health, which attract over 6,600 new students each year, over a third of the small town's entire population! Cortland revolves largely around student life, with a great blend of entertainment and family-geared attractions for a homegrown feel to stick around after college.
With bike lanes throughout and greatly strollable streets, as well as rural sights a hand's reach away, you won't waste any time getting from school time to downtime. Play at the great beach or visit the Cortland Repertory Theatre for a cultured evening at one of Florida's oldest. You can pick blueberries with your loved ones during the summer at the nearby Cherry Knoll Farm and take advantage of Greek Peak Mountain Resort's student discounts for snowboarding and skiing in the winter.
Hyde Park
Hyde Park, the birthplace of Franklin D. Roosevelt just north of Poughkeepsie, is a small town of under 21,000 perched on the banks of the Hudson River. Its most renowned culinary scene, with one of the top four-year culinary schools in the country, the Culinary Institute of America, or CIA, annually attracts over 3,000 new students. You can be one of the aspiring chefs and culinary artists who will soon be delighting foodies at the country's top establishments. This little town, with restaurants staffed by CIA student talent, offers some of the nation's best and most diverse culinary creations for all tastes.
Hyde Park is the best place to attend college for future restaurateurs if you seek a small, friendly atmosphere, a creative crowd, and inspiring places you can dine at every day yourself. When you attend CIA, you get a great choice of after-school activities, like the nearby Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library for the best studying and quiet time in history around the beautiful and famous Vanderbilt Mansion. The Hyde Trail park system makes it easy to keep up with exercise, while NYC, just two hours away, is one of the world's food capitals for a day trip or weekend getaway.
Ithaca
Ithaca offers the best of both worlds when seeking a quiet, small-town atmosphere and cool attractions right in the heart of the Finger Lakes region. No wonder Ithaca is a famous place to attend college, with the Ivy League School of Cornell University or Ithaca College, a renowned liberal arts school. You will also find over 150 waterfalls within a ten-mile radius of downtown, as well as state parks and ski resorts, guaranteeing fun in the outdoors for any group. The picturesque town is a set-ready summer vacation destination on the shores of the pristine lakes.
Ithaca attracts active, studious minds with some of the state's best hiking, biking, kayaking, and fishing, as well as study breaks along the banks in between classes. The city of some 31,000, driven by the students' liberal pursuit of rigorous education and awe-inspiring nature, also has unique shops and restaurants packed downtown, which is called The Commons. When you choose Ithaca for the next five years, you will not be disappointed in the fun atmosphere with a hopping bar scene and entertainment-laden streets of world-acclaimed theaters and museums to lead a cultured lifestyle.
Plattsburgh
This sweet town, with around 19,000 souls, is home to a thriving student body of 4,000 at SUNY Plattsburgh, a popular place in the state to attain business, management, or marketing degrees. Plattsburgh offers an ideal small college-town experience if you are looking for a low cost of living and great proximity to a big city. It is not without nature either, at the doorstep of the million-acre Adirondack Park for the ultimate outdoor experience year-round. From fresh-air strolls to unwind over a picnic to weekend hikes and camping, its numerous trails and mountain peaks turn into snowshoeing and skiing galore in the wintertime.
Find more hiking and biking trails to stay active between classes right on campus, alongside the beautiful Saranac River! You can take study breaks on the banks and seek downtown experiences along the walkable streets with cute coffee shops, cafes, and small shops for everything you need. Just an hour away, Montreal and Lake Placid are replete with shopping, dining, and concerts; add to that the rich French culture in the Canadian city and the ultimate summer destination by the lake!
Poughkeepsie
Attending college in Poughkeepsie, a small town of 32,500, means top-tier academia and some of the state's best nature—the perfect recipe for proactive college years that will get you where you want to be in life. The famous Vassar College, founded as a woman's only educational institution for higher learning, is home to a small all-gender student body of 2,500. Marist College, an eco-oriented institution that sponsors the Hudson River Valley Institute's work, is home to about 6,400 students. You will have the opportunity to lead a fulfilling life by enriching the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area with your own rigorous studies, which educate and conduct research for tourists, educators, and scholars.
Poughkeepsie's entertainment for after-school hours is quintessential and diverse, like the local craft beverage brewing scene, including the famous Angry Orchard. "The Walkway Over the Hudson" is the longest elevated pedestrian footbridge in the world—a cool place for strolls and mingling. With the great outdoors at your fingertips and the restaurant scene just a hand's reach away, you can go hiking and skiing year-round, followed by fun nights on the town.
Rochester
Who would have thought that a bustling city of 210,000 was an ideal place to attend college? "The Flower City," ah, there's the dead giveaway, welcomes you to the Lake Ontario waterfront, along the scented streets with the great institutions of the University of Rochester and Rochester Institute of Technology. The city has a lively student crowd of 12,000 at the University of Rochester and nearly 20,000 at the Rochester Institute of Technology, and it is also popular among photography fans.
Aside from a wide range of high-quality programs, you get a thriving economy, rich history, and nature on your doorstep after class, including the popular Highland Park. This 150-acre arboretum is wonderful for serene strolls amid 1,200 lilac shrubs while the Rochester Lilac Festival takes over the streets in spring. Home to Kodak cameras and George Eastman, the famed photographer, you can explore the history at the George Eastman Museum in cooperation with Rochester University. Don't miss out on the one-of-a-kind Strong National Museum of Play and regular minor league live-action hockey and baseball games.
Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs is a small, all-around perfect town to attend college, with a population of 28,500 and Skidmore College renowned as a "Hidden Ivy." With its motto, "Creative thought matters," Skidmore College attracts 2,500 new students each year, including artists and designers who go on to decorate the lives of others after graduation. When you go to college here, you are in for some relaxing and healing times, courtesy of Saratoga Springs, "The Queen of the Spas."
The town thrives on tourism, with wellness seekers from around the country visiting the only naturally carbonated mineral springs east of the Rocky Mountains in this small town surrounded by wilderness. Catch a show at the oldest organized sporting venue in the country, Saratoga Race Course, and stop by the popular Caffè Lena for a live performance with former performers like Bob Dylan and Arlo Guthrie. From horseback riding and hiking to zip lines and haunted ghost tours, you can also escape to the great cities of Boston, Montreal, and NYC in just three hours for a cultural and entertainment-filled weekend.
Stony Brook
This charming college town on the North Shore of Long Island is a cool place to attend the prestigious Stony Brook University. The public research institution's rigorous academia, bending over books and computer screens, is effectively balanced by the serene coastal lifestyle with easy-on-the-eye views. Stretch your back on a relaxing seaside stroll and dive into the outdoor activities that will rid you of stress.
The historic shopping center of Stony Brook Village is just a hop away from destressing in a whole other way amid beautiful colonial-style buildings for shopping and dining in a quaint atmosphere. Nearby, Avalon Park and Preserve offers 1,100 explorable acres with walking trails, meadows, and woodlands, while the thriving arts scene at the Staller Center for the Arts on campus calls back for an evening show. The small town atmosphere, together with diverse nature and rich culture like the nearby Long Island Museum for quaint strolls through local art and history, will feel like home in no time!
Syracuse
With a bustling population of over 144,000, Syracuse is your go-to city for college if you seek a lively atmosphere with a welcoming vibe in one of the state's busiest downtown areas. Here, you have the choice of the esteemed Moyne College or Syracuse University, some of the 13 universities and colleges in Syracuse. Among the regular food and cultural festivities and music festivals, you can enjoy music in the outdoor areas as well as the state-famous Great New York State Fair that calls Syracuse, of all places, home.
The city's excellent public transportation system, courtesy of Syracuse University, makes getting to class in the morning, your favorite after-school pursuits, and main street hotspots a breeze via the Connective Corridor between the Syracuse campus and the downtown area. Best of all, the free public bus system runs along well-lit pedestrian and bicycle-friendly paths to get in some safe exercise and spend the rest of the free time studying, enjoying hobbies, or exploring the 170 nature areas and parks in and around city limits.
Upstate New York, home to beautiful mountains like the Adirondacks, rivers, and North America's largest waterfall, is a real standout place to attend college. It ranks highly for nature lovers and NYC fans, with Big Apple glam never far away when you are upstate. There are budget-conscious small towns and cities as well as nature-surrounded places like Stony Brook amid the waters or a town with natural mineral springs for the ultimate wellness experience.
Whether you choose a bustling city, a sleepy beach town gem, or the view from above in Cortland, you will get a perfect balance of highly rated academia and after-school pursuits. These 11 towns in Upstate New York offer college experiences for all tastes, like the Flower City, where you can live in a sweet-scented heaven that is easy on the eyes when away from the books. The Empire State's natural beauty is worth a visit at any time, like now, for the loveliest of foliage to get to know your future home through the lively atmosphere, on-the-roll, and experiences for all tastes.
