The document provides information about Lancaster County, Pennsylvania as a tourism destination. It highlights the Amish community and farms, covered bridges, and attractions that provide glimpses into Amish lifestyle such as The Amish Village and Kitchen Kettle Village. It also discusses the towns of Bird-in-Hand and Lititz, known for pretzels and chocolate, as well as nearby day trip destinations like Hersheypark, Philadelphia with its art museum and food tours, and Baltimore with Fort McHenry and Camden Yards baseball stadium.

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If the word bucolic appeals to your vacation senses,
then look no further than the beautiful countryside
of Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County. Synonyms for
the word, such as pastoral, idyllic, rustic, and rural,
can all be used to define this lovely little escape in
southern Pennsylvania.
Lancaster County, as a tourism destination, is most
widely associated with the Pennsylvania Amish
settlers who came to the area to farm the lands in
the early 1700s and established the largest Amish
community in the country at the time. To date, it is
the second largest Amish settlement in the US. The
rolling countryside of Lancaster County is dotted
with farms and the roads are populated with the
Amish and their horse and buggy, which co-exist
with standard modes of transportation as they
whizz past the slow-paced buggies.
Visitors can view the simple ways of the Amish
lifestyle and there are several attractions that allow
a glimpse into the life, but still allow the Amish to
maintain their highly-regarded privacy.
Pennsylvania’s
Lancaster County
By Joan Rykal
G E T T I N G T O K N O W

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THE AMISH VILLAGE
A great place to get to know all about
the Amish way of life is a visit to The
Amish Village in Ronks. With 12
acres to explore, visitors can tour an
authentic 1840s Amish farmhouse,
as well as a blacksmith shop and
the one-room schoolhouse. Visitors
can also choose to take a 90-minute
“backroads” bus tour through the
Amish countryside and learn about
the history and culture of the
Amish during the tour.
For details about the Village
as well astour information,
please visit:
www.amishvillage.com
COVERED BRIDGES
Lancaster County is home to more
than 25 covered bridges, sometimes
called “kissing bridges” because the
privacy gave strolling couples the
opportunity to exchange a quick kiss.
In fact, one of the first covered bridges
in the country was built in Lancaster
County. A map for five separate
driving tours of the covered bridges
can be found at:
www.discoverlancaster.com
WHEATLAND
James Buchanan, 15th President of the
United States, holds the distinction
of being the only president born
in Pennsylvania. Visitors can tour
his home, an 1828 mansion, where
costumed guides will provide history
and insight to Buchanan life and
politics.
A M I S H L I F E S T Y L E
BIRD-IN-HAND
In the town of Bird-in-Hand,
visitors will find the Amish Country
Homestead which includes the Fisher
family home as well as the one-room
schoolhouse, which is attached to
the home and features authentic
furnishings from the schoolhouse.
Don’t miss the Homestead’s theater
production of Jacob’s Choice, which
depicts the story of a young man
struggling to choose between his
Amish heritage and the modern
world. Bird-in-Hand is also home
to the Plain and Fancy Farm Dining
Room, which offers traditional
Amish dining options.
KITCHEN KETTLE VILLAGE
A visit to Kitchen Kettle Village, in
the village of Intercourse, will provide
you the opportunity to watch Amish
women making jams and jellies. Kitchen
Kettle Village also has plenty of shops,
including a bake shop, pottery shop, a
fudge and sweets shop and a yarn shop.
For more information on what
to see at Kitchen Kettle Village,
visit www.kitchenkettle.com
Pretzels &
Chocolate
THE JULIUS STURGIS
PRETZEL BAKERY
The quaint little town of Lititz
holds lots of goodies – chocolate
and pretzels to name a few. The
Julius Sturgis Pretzel Bakery
was the first commercial pretzel
bakery in the US and today,
visitors can tour the bakery and
take a lesson on pretzel-making.
For information visit
www.juliussturgis.com.
WILBUR CHOCOLATE
COMPANY
If you’re looking for some good
chocolate, look no further than
the Wilbur Chocolate Company,
which has been making delicious
chocolates since 1884 (they
previously made hard candies)
and are known for the Wilbur
Buds, which are specially molded
to resemble a flower bud. Free
samples of Wilbur Buds are
available when you visit the
Broad Street store in Lititz. If
you’re still hungry, consider
taking one of the Lancaster
County Food Tours (www.
lancofoodtours.com), which
includes one called
“Come Eat Lititz.”
Photo courtesy of The Amish Village

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DAY T R I P S
T H E P E N N S Y LVA N I A
S TAT E C A P I T O L
The Pennsylvania State Capitol Complex
encompasses several buildings but the gem
within the complex is the Capitol building itself,
which was modeled after St. Peter’s Basilica in
Rome, prompting President Theodore Roosevelt
to call it “the most handsomest building” he’d
ever seen. This Beaux-Arts design building,
complete with a domed rotunda, interior
sweeping marble staircase, hand-made tiles, and
stained-glass windows, is worth a visit. Guided
tours are offered Monday through Friday and
tour times and admission cost can be found at
www.pacapitol.com. Also, at the Complex, The
Senate Library offers exhibitions and collections
that detail the history of Pennsylvania’s Senate
while the Interactive Welcome Center has
interesting exhibits and information about the
Keystone State.
T H E N AT I O N A L
C I V I L WA R M U S E U M
The National Civil War Museum provides a history lesson
about the Civil War and uniquely tells it from both the
Union and Confederate viewpoints. This history lesson here
is all-encompassing with exhibits ranging from Weapons &
Equipment to Civil War Music. Artifacts on display include
several items belonging to General Robert E. Lee as well as a
bullet-ridden piece of the fence from the Battle of Gettysburg.
www.nationalcivilwarmusuem.org
F O R T H U N T E R PA R K
Fort Hunter Park sits on a bluff overlooking the
Susquehanna River and provides plenty of space for leisurely
nature walks and bird watching. Self-guided walking tours
take you to such sites as Stone Arch Bridge, built in the
19th century, Everhart Covered Bridge, built in 1881 and
Tavern House, which accommodated overnight travelers in
the 1800s. A highlight here is the Fort Hunter Mansion, a
Federal-style home built in 1814.
www.forthunter.org
H A R R I S B U R G
A trip to Pennsylvania’s capital city, Harrisburg, will take you about 45
minutes and here you can see the Capitol Building, the National Civil War
Museum and the Whitaker Center for Science and Arts.
Hershey’s Chocolate World will delight
candy lovers of all ages where highlights
include a 30-minute tour that shows how the
cocoa beans transform into a candy bar and
the opportunity to create your own candy
bar. There are also chocolate tastings and a
shop chock full of all the Hershey goodies.
New this summer at the theme park is
Reese’s Cupfusion, an interactive gaming
ride where the rider’s mission is to save the
delicious peanut butter/chocolate cup from
villains! The 1,904-seat Hershey Theater
offers Broadway shows and other live
entertainment including music and comedy
shows. For lineup information,
visit www.hersheypa.com.
H E R S H E Y PA R K
Hersheypark is a one-stop shop for fun of all kinds. The Park includes a
waterpark, 70 attractions, including 14 roller coasters, and a wildlife park
featuring more than 200 animals native to North America.
Created by Milton Hershey as a leisure park for the employees of the
Hershey Chocolate Factory, Hersheypark has grown from the simple
picnic and boating spot it was in 1907 to the hotspot it is today.
The Park is estimated to have more than 3.3 million visitors annually.
Lancaster County is conveniently located to several big cities and
small towns that provide the perfect opportunity for a day trip.

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P H I L A D E L P H I AAs Pennsylvania’s largest city, Philadelphia offers a variety of things to do. From history lessons to food tours, & one of the oldest, & most
innovative, zoos in the world, Philadelphia has something for everyone. Philadelphia is about an hour’s drive from Lancaster County.
the constitutional
walking tour
Let’s start with the history lessons that
can be found in this city that was once
the capital of the United States. The
Constitutional Walking Tour is a great
place to get your footing and tour the
historical highlights of the city. The
90-minute tour includes stops at The
Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and
the home of famed flag maker, Betsy
Ross. A longer tour, at about 2 hours, is
the Founding Fathers Tour. Designed
as a more intimate tour, it takes you
past many of the historic sites as your
tour guide provides a history of the
city. Other ways to tour the city include
horse-drawn carriage rides and the
Hop-On Hop-Off Trolley tour.
VALLEY FORGE
NATIONAL HISTORIC PARK
is 3,500 acres of history and the
site where the Continental Army
made camp in the winter of 1777-78
during the Revolutionary War. The
Encampment Tour, which can be
done by car, takes you past historic
monuments as well as scenic stops in
the Park. The Park theater also runs an
18-minute video, entitled Valley Forge:
A Winter Encampment which details
the events of the winter encampment
as well as a brief history of the
Revolutionary War.
philadelphia art museum
If you’re a lover of selfies, or photography in
general, Philadelphia is home to two of the most
iconic sites for picture-taking. If you’re visiting
the Philadelphia Art Museum, don’t miss the
statue of Rocky Balboa, the loveable, underdog
boxer made popular in the Oscar-winning film,
Rocky, located at the bottom of the entrance
steps to the museum. If you’re feeling up for
a training session, run up the 72 steps just like
Rocky did while training for his bout with
Apollo Creed.
philadelphia zoo
Did you know the Philadelphia Zoo was the
first chartered zoo in the US, but due to the
Civil War, it was another 15 years before it
officially opened in 1874 with more than 800
animals on exhibit? Today, the zoo remains
as innovative as when it first opened with its
Zoo360 Animal Exploration Trails and the
Urban Green, an open-air food marketplace.
Zoo360 is the only trail system of its type
in the world and was designed to allow the
animals to roam around and above the zoo’s
grounds while also linking animal habitats of
animals that share similar habitats, allowing
them to “share” each other’s space.
love park
Fittingly, the City of Brotherly
Love is home to sculptor Robert
Indiana’s LOVE, which is in
the John F. Kennedy Plaza, also
known as LOVE Park.
philly food
Philly is known for its cheesesteaks, but they also make a pretty good pretzel, and something called tomato pie, their
version of pizza. Sample these tasty goods on one of several food tours offered in the city. Check out www.phillyfoodtours.
com and see what’s on the menu. They run the gamut from Hot and Spicy Philadelphia to Ethnic Eats.

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Fort McHenry
Played an integral role in the War of 1812, is a great place for a history lesson.
It was the fort’s valiant efforts to defend the harbor during the war’s Battle of
Baltimore that inspired Francis Scott Key to write The Star-Spangled Banner. The
fort and surrounding area also served as a prison during the Civil War, a hospital
base during World War I and a Coast Guard base during World War II. It was
made a National Monument and Historic Shrine in 1939 and in 1966 was named
to the National Register of Historic Places. Visitors can help the ranger raise and
lower a replica of the “Star-Spangled Banner” flag daily.
For more information visit www.nps/fomc.com.
This seaport city is located approximately 84 miles from Lancaster County
and is another great spot to soak up history, culture and of course, good food.
camden yards
Take in a baseball game at Camden Yards, which is home to the major league
baseball’s Baltimore Orioles and the site where Cal Ripken Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s
record for most consecutive games played – Gehrig held the record, playing in
2,130 games until Ripken bested that on September 6, 1995. Ripken, along with
other Oriole greats including pitcher Jim Palmer and outfielder Frank Robinson, is
honored with statues throughout the park.
The park itself, which was completed in 1992, is important because it was one of
the “newer” ballparks that were dedicated to the purpose of baseball only, taking a
step away for the multi-use stadiums that sprang up in prior decades. The structure
managed to incorporate state-of-the-art facilities while maintaining the “old
ballpark ambiance.” Ticketed fans can enjoy all the fun of Eutaw Street, which is
adjacent to the park, and has all kinds of activities and food vendors on game day.
inner harbor
Visit the city’s Inner Harbor
is home to the several
historic ships, including the
USS Constellation, a Civil
War sailing ship, and the
USS Torsk, a World War II
submarine. You will also
find the Maryland Science
Center and the National
Aquarium.
Good Morning Baltimore!
The National Aquarium has
an exhibit dedicated to the
Maryland Blue Crab, which
was important to the region
both as a food source and
to the economy. The Inner
Harbor is also a great place
to catch a sightseeing tour,
via boat, as well as enjoy
some of the seafood the area
is known for.
the national
aquarium
maryland blue crab
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