A Complete Guide to the Best New York Road Trip : Starting in NYC
Contrary to popular belief, New York is SO MUCH more than just New York City. Just two hours north of NYC, there is TONS of hiking, kayaking, skiing/snowboarding, and much more. New York is also pretty close to other fun cities, such as, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. the Hamptons, and more. In this article, you will read about the best New York road trips from NYC.
Also, in this post, you will learn about New York road trip itinerary, New York road trip stops, New York road trips upstate, New York road trip planner, the best places for road trips in New York, the Catskill Mountains, the Pocono Mountains, Finger Lakes, Niagara Falls, Hudson Valley, and much more in this article.
This article is all about a New York road trip.
New York Road Trip:
New York Road Trip : The Hamptons & Montauk
Montauk is on the tip of Long Island and is about two and a half hours away from the city (driving). You can take the train into the Hamptons and get to Montauk that way. As far as the Hamptons, the Hamptons are the entire area that make up the end of Long Island, while Montauk is a specific beach in the Hamptons. This is a great weekend trip or 3 day road trip from New York to take to in the summer from NYC. There are a ton of fun beaches and places to go out too, that you can find here.
New York Road Trip : Cape May
Okay, onto another beachy destination, Cape May. Cape May is actually located in New Jersey on the Jersey shore. However, it is the “nicer” part of the Jersey shore. It is again about a two and a half hour drive from NYC. However, it is south compared to the Hamptons, which are east. This is another great 3 day road trip from New York to take in the summer from the city, if you have a car. As there is no public transportation from the city to get to Cape May. Here are some great things to do in Cape May.
New York Road Trip : Pocono Mountains
The Pocono Mountains are only a little over an hour and a half away from New York City by driving. And only a little over 2 hours from Long Island (depending on where you are driving from). There are many different towns you can stay at in the Poconos, but I think Lake Harmony is the best. Some of the major towns in the Poconos are Blakeslee, Stroudsburg, and Split Rock, Pennsylvania. Lake Harmony is in the the southwestern part of the Poconos. There are two nice ski resorts nearby, Big Boulder and Jack Frost. Also, there’s a couple different state parks nearby, Jim Thorpe, Hickory Run, and LeHigh Gorge State Parks. Also, the Tannerville Outlets are closeby.
Some other great Poconos Resorts to ski at are Ski Big Bear is which is farther north. Bear Creek Mountain Resort, southern part of the Poconos, close to Breinigsville and Allentown, PA. Also, Elk Mountain Ski Resort, another northern resort, closer to Honesdale, PA. Lastly, Montage Mountain Resorts is near the middle of the Poconos, closer to Scranton, PA. I will say, all these ski mountains are SMALL and have under 50 trails. So, I would only go here if you and family/friends are beginner skiers/snowboarders. Otherwise, you will get bored fast.
In the summertime, during late May to late September, the best things to are hiking, mountain biking, paint balling, adventure courses, mountain coasters, jet skiing, paddle-boarding, kayaking, and golf. A lot of these same activities are offered in the fall time as well. Also, apple picking and halloween activities are fun in the Fall time. Some other fun winter activities in the area are snowmobiling, indoor water parks (Great Wolf Lodge & H2O), tubbing, ice skating, and shopping at the Tannerville Outlets, are all fun things to do.
{Related Post : Everything You Need to Know About the Pocono Mountains}
New York Road Trip : Hudson Valley, Beacon & Tarrytown
Now, we will switch to the best New York road trips in upstate New York. And there are plenty of options in upstate New York! Here are the best road trips in New York State. Also, if you want to explore the Hudson Valley region or the town of Beacon and Tarrytown, you can take a train down if you don’t have a car. So, it’s much more convenient than some of the other road trips mentioned above. Thus, these are good towns to go to for a weekend trip. Now, there are a couple different towns and areas that make up the Hudson Valley region. The major ones are Poughkeepsie/Newburgh, Beacon, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow, Nyack, Cold Spring, Kingston, Hudson, Rhinebeck, Saugerties, the Catskill Mountains, New Paltz, and Woodstock.
There are more regions that make up the Hudson Valley area, however, the towns listed above are already small towns and other towns not on this list are even smaller. The ones mentioned above have a downtown area and things to do verses the ones not mentioned. Any of the cities listed above make nice day trips or weekend trips and MOST cities are accessible via train. There’s also lots of hiking and bike trails located nearby.
Beacon is a popular town for day trips for people who live in NYC. It’s very easy, all you do is take the Metro North train into Beacon station. People like to come here for the day or weekend, and explore the shops in downtown Beacon, as well as, hike the Beacon Mountain Fire Tower. In addition, the Hudson Highlands near Beacon, have great hiking too. Also, Tarrytown is a very popular and easy day trip, again, via Metro North. Poughkeepsie/Newburgh, Beacon, Tarrytown, Sleepy Hollow, Nyack, and Cold Spring are all about an hour and a half from the city. While the other cities listed above are about 2 – 2 1/2 hours away from the city.
{Related Post : Everything You Need to Know About Minnewaska State Park & A Complete Hiking Guide to the Catskill Mountains}
New York Road Trip : The Catskill Mountains & Woodstock
Another region in upstate or the Hudson Valley area, is the Catskill Mountains. The Catskill Mountains have good hiking and skiing, and a great small town to stay at is, Woodstock. Woodstock is a great, small, artsy town to stay in. They have a lot of fun farmers markets, film festivals, hiking, skiing, and snowboarding.
Belleayre is a great little ski mountain in the Catskills to ski at. Windham is also nice. However, I do NOT recommend Hunter ski mountain. Another fun city close to Woodstock is, New Paltz. It also is a nice artsy small town to stay at. It has a really nice state park nearby, Minnewaska State Park, which has a lot of nice hiking and mountain biking available. In addition, the Mohonk Mountain House is a beautiful place to hike as well.
New York Road Trip : Adirondack Mountains & Lake Placid
Lake Placid is located in upstate New York, in the Adirondack Mountains. It is North of the capital, Albany. And if you’re coming from NYC or Long Island, you are going to get on 87 North and literally take this, the whole way, for about 5-6 hours, depending on traffic. If you are coming from Montreal, it’s also very simple, you will cross customs, then get on Interstate 87 South, and stay on here for about 30 miles, then you will have to go on some backroads. From Montreal, Placid is a little over a two hour drive.
Since this is such a long drive (if coming from NYC or Long Island) I would make this at least a 5 day road trip from New York, maybe 7 days, if you really like the outdoors. Meaning, I would take at least 5-7 days off and dedicate 2 of those days for driving/travel days.
Okay, so the first thing I recommend, is a winter time activity, skiing or snowboarding, at Whiteface Mountain, Gore Mountain, and or Titus. Also, Lake Placid has great backcountry skiing, specifically at the Adk Lodge. This article will tell you where to backcountry ski within the Adirondacks. Thus, the Adirondack Mountains would be a fun New York road trip to take in the winter.
Other Things to Do in the Adirondack Mountains & Lake Placid
I HIGHLY recommend taking one or two, or ten rides on the toboggan chute on Mirror Lake. Mirror lake is located right next to the town of Lake Placid. Or you could go on a dog sled ride, also located on Mirror lake, they’re a lot of fun. Here is a link to the dog sleigh rides.
Also, there is FANTASTIC hiking located near Placid, specifically in Keene Valley, which is about fifteen minutes away from Placid. The 46er challenge is located mostly in Keene Valley, and offers SPECTACULAR hikes! Seriously, hiking here, takes you to another world, I love it and HIGLY recommend! However, be careful, because hiking in Keene Valley and Placid (Adk Lodge) are no joke.
All of the hikes (46ers) have at least a 4,000ft summit (only a couple have a 3,800ft summit), and are all 6.5-23 miles round trip. That being said, there are also many other trails you can do with a much less uphill battle. Mount Jo, Pitchoff/Balanced Rock, Hurricane Mountain, Indian Head/Rainbow Falls (much longer and more difficult than other trails mentioned), Roostercomb/Snow Mountains, and Noonmark.
You could also drive all the way up to Whiteface’s summit and see the INCREDIBLE views for yourself. Once you park, you will have to walk .5-1 mile to the actual summit, or wait in line for the elevator to take you. Also, you could go to the Flume Fall to see some amazing falls.
{Related Post : Complete Guide to the Adirondack Mountains & How to Spend a Weekend in Lake Placid}
New York Road Trip : Niagara Falls & Letchworth State Park
Now moving on to central and western New York, some notable towns in central New York to visit are Cooperstown, Syracuse, and Ithaca. And in western New York, Buffalo (Niagara Falls), Rochester, and the finger lake region. Again, this is a New York road trip 7 days that I would spend getting to Buffalo/Niagara Falls. From NYC and Long Island this will be about 6-7 hours to get to the towns listed above. You can find directions here.
If you want to see Niagara Falls, I would stay in Buffalo. The falls are only about 30 minutes from Buffalo and you could also visit Letchworth State Park and do some hiking (about an hour southeast of Buffalo). Here are some other fun hikes and skis mountains in Buffalo, NY.
- Niagara Falls State Park : near Buffalo, NY, beginner to intermediate hikes.
Letchworth State Park : Castile, NY, beginner to intermediate hikes (Eternal Flame Falls & Grimes Glen). - Chimney Bluffs State Park : Buffalo, NY, beginner to intermediate hikes.
- Niagara Falls State Park : near Buffalo, NY, beginner to intermediate hikes.
- Watkins Glen State Park : Schulyer County (close to Ithaca), NY, beginner to intermediate hikes.
- Finger Lakes National Forest : Hector, NY, beginner to intermediate hikes.
- Akron Falls Park : Buffalo, NY, beginner hikes.
- Skiing/Snowboarding at Bristol Mountain : Bristol, NY.
New York Road Trip : Finger Lakes, Crystal Beach & Watkins Glen
The Finger Lake region is only about an hour away from Ithaca, which I suggest staying at if you are interested in hiking this area. Also, Ithaca and the Finger Lakes offer great wine tours if you want a break from hiking. There are many great places to hike and great waterfalls to see. The Finger Lake Region and Ithaca, NY are about a 4-5 hour drive from NYC and Long Island.
This would be best for New York road trip in 4 days. Here are directions. Here are some fun wine tours to take while visiting. Listed below are some more fun things to do in or near the Finger Lake Region.
- Fillmore Glen State Park : near Ithaca, NY, beginner to intermediate hikes.
- Watkins Glen : about 40 minutes from Ithaca, NY, nice beginner walking trails.
- Crystal Beach : in Canandaigua, NY, about an hour and a half from Ithaca.
- Biking : Ithaca, NY.
- Horse-back riding : Ithaca, NY.
- Cross-country skiing & snow-shoeing : Ithaca, NY.
- Skiing/Snowboarding at Greek Peak : about 30 minutes from Ithaca, NY.
{Related Post : Where to Find the Best Hiking in New York}
And that wraps up our article about New York road trips! I hope you learned about new New York road trip stops, New York road trip ideas, and more places to travel to in general. Some other fun cities that you can take a train to from NYC are Boston (about 5 hours via train), Washington D.C. (about 3 & 1/2 hours via train), and Philadelphia (about 2 hours via train). Thank you so much for reading and take care!
