● Lancaster County

Plan a Weekend Trip to Lancaster County

3 days · 16 curated stops

Lancaster County is small enough that you can base out of one hotel and reach every major attraction by car in under thirty minutes. This three-day plan starts in Lancaster City for a Friday-night dinner and a show, spends Saturday in Amish Country with a steam-train ride and a Sight & Sound matinee, and uses Sunday morning for the Central Market plus one of the county’s big farm museums before you point the car home. Swap in a covered bridge drive or Dutch Wonderland if you’re traveling with kids; a B&Bif you’d rather stay in farm country than downtown.

Day 1 — Friday in Lancaster City

Drop your bags downtown — Cork Factory Hotel or the Marriott on Penn Square are within a five-minute walk of dinner and a show. Eat early at Horse Inn or LUCA, then catch a play at the Fulton or a band at Tellus360. The whole evening fits inside the eight-square-block central business district.

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Day 2 — Saturday in Amish Country

Head east on Route 30 to Ronks and Bird-in-Hand. A Sight & Sound matinee fills the morning if a show is on the schedule; otherwise Strasburg Railroad runs steam excursions through the same farmland the show depicts. Lunch and shopping at Kitchen Kettle Village in Intercourse, then an afternoon at The Amish Village or Cherry Crest Adventure Farm. Stay over at Historic Smithton Inn in Ephrata to wake up north of the city for Day 3.

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Sight & Sound Theatres

Ronks, PA(800) 377-1277

4.9 (28,433)

Performing ArtsAttractions

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Closed

Kitchen Kettle Village

Intercourse, PA(717) 768-8261

4.6 (7,361)

For over 55 years we have been preserving the bounty of Lancaster County in our Jam & Relish Kitchen... and celebrating the area’s wonderful heritage with food festivals and special events that make Kitchen Kettle Village a little different -- and a lot of fun.

AttractionsGift Shops

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Strasburg Railroad

Ronks, PA(717) 687-7522

4.7 (6,245)$

Trains & RailroadsFamily FunAttractions

Hours not listed

Closed

The Amish Village

Ronks, PA(717) 687-8511

4.4 (5,054)

Ronks living-history site on 12 acres with an 1840 farmhouse, one-room schoolhouse, and Backroads bus tour.

Amish AttractionsAttractions

9:00 AM – 5:00 PM

Cherry Crest Adventure Farm

Ronks, PA(717) 687-6843

4.8 (3,326)

Located in the heart of PA Dutch Country, Cherry Crest Adventure Farm is a unique place where fun, family, and farming come together. A leader on the growing edge of "*agri-tainment*", they work hard to give your family an opportunity to laugh and learn while engaging in a variety of wholesome activities on our working farm! They're a great choice when looking for *fun things to do in Lancaster, PA*.

Amusement ParksOutdoor ActivitiesAttractions

Hours not listed

Open Now

Historic Smithton Inn

Ephrata, PA(717) 733-6094

4.9 (291)

Ephrata B&B with a private Tailor's Cottage, on-site wine bar with wood-fired pizza, and pet-friendly rooms.

Bed & BreakfastsHotels

Open · 6:00 AM – 9:00 PM

Day 3 — Sunday markets, museums, and home

Lancaster Central Market is open Saturday only most of the year (Tuesday and Friday during peak season) — if your Sunday morning is a market-less one, Turkey Hill Experience and Landis Valley Village & Farm Museum both make solid two-hour stops before the drive home. The Demuth Museum is fifteen minutes downtown if you want one last gallery before you go.

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