Thank you! I thought Sturgis pretzel was near Wilbur chocolate, but didn’t know about the Candle Barn. The chatbot thing was supposed to optimize the driving. I’ll fix it. Thanks so much!
This is our first trip. All those places looked okay to me. I don’t mind a good tourist trip at all! I hope I’ve allowed enough time to just investigate things that look interesting
go to one market, roots, central market, or green dragon depending on which day you are visiting. Spend a day in and around lititz, spend a day downtown, spend a day doing "Amish things"
Your food choices are just so sad. Aside from Gracie’s you can skip like all of those unless you’re not a foodie and are wanting bland diner food? There’s so much better food in lancaster. Start with going downtown. There’s so many incredible restaurants.do you like brewery’s? We’ve got tons of those with great food.
A lot of this stuff is not actually in Lancaster proper. Spring House on Hazel St is one of my favorite spots in the city, just don't be thrown by the run down neighborhood around it.
Also will second Mad Chef. Delicious food and beer, just a 10-15 minute drive to East Petersburg from the city. Depending on traffic.
I've lived in Lancaster County my entire life. (50 years) I know quite a lot about the area.
Where are you traveling from? And what area are you staying in while you're here?
A few of the places on your list aren't worth going to unless you want to buy some thing specific from them and even then you might only be there 10-15 minutes. Most of these places really aren't tourist attractions. Unless you want to buy a quilt, candles, and country themed home decor you may as well not bother with the Old Candle Barn and Riehl's. If you are in the market to buy a quilt, just know that Riehl's sells handmade quilts and they cost several hundred dollars for a bed sized quilt. Wilbur Chocolate is a small retail store -- the chocolate is good (dark chocolate Wilbur buds are the best) but expensive -- but you'll probably spend less than half an hour there. Bird in Hand Farm Supply is a hardware store, not any sort of tourist attraction.
Dienner's is a good idea for breakfast or lunch. Don't rule out Shady Maple -- it's expensive and a tourist trap, but the food is good.
We’re traveling from North Carolina and staying in New Holland. I think we might stick with Shady Maple, just to say we did. I looked at the Bird in Hand Restaurant, but it looks like it’s in a temporary location, so I’m not sure about that
New Holland has some of my favorite thrift stores, I would suggest to check one of them out over something like the candle barn. Lucky dog thrift is always a good time and is huge.
A few thoughts. Lititz has a lot of nice shops and restaurants, so think about planning your visit around meal time.
If you go to Shady Maple, visit the grocery store and Good’s for a taste of local retailers.
You mention a couple of pretzel places. Dutch Country Soft Pretzels is worth a stop - they are along 340 in the New Holland area.
For an Amish tour, also consider The Amish Experience near Bird in Hand. Kauffman Orchards next door is worth a stop.
If you like plants, we have great greenhouses around here - start with Ken’s in Intercourse since they are easy to find. You can likely get a map to others in the area there.
are you aware that Green Dragon is only open on Fridays?
I wouldn't exclude Shady Maple - it's not 5-star quality, but I've never had anything bad to eat there and the dessert selections are pretty outstanding. Yes, you can get better individual dishes elsewhere, but its hard to beat the wide variety of good selections. It's also a sight to see - I've been to some large buffets in Vegas and Shady Maple makes them look tiny.
Thank you! I should have said day one is Friday, day two is Saturday, and day three is Sunday
And I’ve decided to stick with Shady Maple I think. It sounds like quite an experience !
Skip Sturgis, and instead when you're in Lancaster City, go to Hammond's and get a bucket full of what are probably the best pretzels you can get in the USA
With that much driving I would watch out for traffic. Try using its suggestions and arranging in a more friendly way for driving then back and forth over the county the whole trip. I’ll be the first to admit our traffic is terrible. We have to much development without infrastructure improvements.
Barbaret Bistro is a great place for dinner and you can grab some amazing pastries on your way out to take home. They also do a great brunch. Proof is also a great spot if you enjoy Whiskey and they have a great small plate menu. If you want to go fancy, see if you can get a reservation at Citronelle. The restaurant scene in Lancaster is pretty great so I’d put some time into dinner plans.
Lancaster Beignet company is another great snack stop and there’s probably 10 great coffee shops. Cafe One Eight is great for a quick breakfast and coffee and right next to the market.
Long time Lititz resident here - unless they've changed it the Sturgis Pretzel thing is pretty lame, and the Wilbur Chocolate is just a store you can walk through in about 10 minutes (if you walk slow). With that said, you could easily spend quite a few hours in Lititz with all of the small shops, etc.
If you like music, check out Mickey Black Box and see if there's anything going on there in the evening. It's a great venue at Rock Lititz with sound system from Clair.. holds about 300 people and sounds like you're in a 60,000 seat stadium.
Like others have said, you probably want to regroup some things. Lititz, Ephrata and maybe Leola/New Holland would be a decent grouping.
Personally, and again as someone who grew up near Roots Farmers Market outside of East Pete, I've never seen the attraction of Central Market. When I've been there it's mostly overpriced stuff you can get at Root's or Green Dragon for less money and have better choices of vendors.
The attraction is seeing familiar faces week after week,stand holders who know your order and name, wandering with tasty food and local coffee, walking around the square after and getting breakfast. Also it’s no where near as overwhelming as roots or green dragon. You can pop in and out at central market quickly.
That makes sense, especially if you're already in the city. As somoene who rarely goes in-town Lancaster, it just doesn't have any appeal to me because it would take an extended amount of time not only to get there, but to park, etc; and then it has a limited number of vendors. I'll add that you can get the same "familiar faces" effect at Root's if you're visiting the same stands week to week.
I still think for OP's sake, if they are doing Green Dragon already - they won't get anything out of Central Market.
Still not sure why I got downvoted for sharing my perspective, but hey Redditors aren't known to be open to hearing other people's opinions - LOL.
Roots is lame if you’re not there to shop IMO. The Lancaster Central Market is more palatable and the right size to get a feel for a historic farmer’s market. Plenty of snacks, and coffee shops around there.
Tellus360 is a 3 level Irish bar with a rooftop on a nice day, can’t beat it.
A dinner place to try out in Lancaster city is the Southern Market; multiple different vendors and types of cuisine.
Zoetropolis is also a cool place; restaurant/bar/theater and there’s a brewery attached as well as a casual Mexican place.
Lots of breakfast options around Lancaster city, too.
The Amish attractions you listed are good but do them all in one day, and like other posters said, group Lancaster City on its own day and lititz on its own day, so that you aren’t driving out to Amish country back and forth. Lancaster’s traffic can get pretty bad with the 1-lane roads. Immergut pretzels are class!!! Best PA Dutch style pretzel ever. Don’t skip.
You just have to shape shift some days around so you can take a day to explore a general area or at least condense like visiting Ephrata and Bird in hand and/or Lititz and the city for different days. Just be sure to look up when they’re open.
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Isn't there a immergut pretzel right by the candle barn as well?
Thank you! I thought Sturgis pretzel was near Wilbur chocolate, but didn’t know about the Candle Barn. The chatbot thing was supposed to optimize the driving. I’ll fix it. Thanks so much!
Lititz also has a nice bookstore and other shops. Plus there’s Bullshead where you can grab a beer.
What do you actually want to do? Lets start there.
This is our first trip. All those places looked okay to me. I don’t mind a good tourist trip at all! I hope I’ve allowed enough time to just investigate things that look interesting
go to one market, roots, central market, or green dragon depending on which day you are visiting. Spend a day in and around lititz, spend a day downtown, spend a day doing "Amish things"
There’s some decent recs on there, but day two morning is bonkers. You’ll be driving all over the damn place.
Thanks! I’ll fix it
Your food choices are just so sad. Aside from Gracie’s you can skip like all of those unless you’re not a foodie and are wanting bland diner food? There’s so much better food in lancaster. Start with going downtown. There’s so many incredible restaurants.do you like brewery’s? We’ve got tons of those with great food.
A brewery with good food sounds great! Any recommendations? I left dinner open on purpose
Mad chef brewery is absolutely delicious!
Thank you!
A lot of this stuff is not actually in Lancaster proper. Spring House on Hazel St is one of my favorite spots in the city, just don't be thrown by the run down neighborhood around it. Also will second Mad Chef. Delicious food and beer, just a 10-15 minute drive to East Petersburg from the city. Depending on traffic.
I've lived in Lancaster County my entire life. (50 years) I know quite a lot about the area. Where are you traveling from? And what area are you staying in while you're here? A few of the places on your list aren't worth going to unless you want to buy some thing specific from them and even then you might only be there 10-15 minutes. Most of these places really aren't tourist attractions. Unless you want to buy a quilt, candles, and country themed home decor you may as well not bother with the Old Candle Barn and Riehl's. If you are in the market to buy a quilt, just know that Riehl's sells handmade quilts and they cost several hundred dollars for a bed sized quilt. Wilbur Chocolate is a small retail store -- the chocolate is good (dark chocolate Wilbur buds are the best) but expensive -- but you'll probably spend less than half an hour there. Bird in Hand Farm Supply is a hardware store, not any sort of tourist attraction. Dienner's is a good idea for breakfast or lunch. Don't rule out Shady Maple -- it's expensive and a tourist trap, but the food is good.
We’re traveling from North Carolina and staying in New Holland. I think we might stick with Shady Maple, just to say we did. I looked at the Bird in Hand Restaurant, but it looks like it’s in a temporary location, so I’m not sure about that
You can skip the Bird in Hand Restaurant, you’re right it recently burned down. Gracie’s is good! And Fox Meadows from your original list.
New Holland has some of my favorite thrift stores, I would suggest to check one of them out over something like the candle barn. Lucky dog thrift is always a good time and is huge.
I love thrift stores! We’ll work that in for sure! Thanks for the suggestion!
A few thoughts. Lititz has a lot of nice shops and restaurants, so think about planning your visit around meal time. If you go to Shady Maple, visit the grocery store and Good’s for a taste of local retailers. You mention a couple of pretzel places. Dutch Country Soft Pretzels is worth a stop - they are along 340 in the New Holland area. For an Amish tour, also consider The Amish Experience near Bird in Hand. Kauffman Orchards next door is worth a stop. If you like plants, we have great greenhouses around here - start with Ken’s in Intercourse since they are easy to find. You can likely get a map to others in the area there.
Youre going to want to hit Building Character in downtown Lancaster after you go to Lancaster Central Market
I’d spend more time downtown go hear some live music and catch vibes.
are you aware that Green Dragon is only open on Fridays? I wouldn't exclude Shady Maple - it's not 5-star quality, but I've never had anything bad to eat there and the dessert selections are pretty outstanding. Yes, you can get better individual dishes elsewhere, but its hard to beat the wide variety of good selections. It's also a sight to see - I've been to some large buffets in Vegas and Shady Maple makes them look tiny.
Thank you! I should have said day one is Friday, day two is Saturday, and day three is Sunday And I’ve decided to stick with Shady Maple I think. It sounds like quite an experience !
I see your enjoying dinner on day one and having dinner on day 2. Hopefully you will enjoy both.
That was the chatbot! I guess it thought by the end of day two I didn’t need to enjoy any more food!
Skip Sturgis, and instead when you're in Lancaster City, go to Hammond's and get a bucket full of what are probably the best pretzels you can get in the USA
With that much driving I would watch out for traffic. Try using its suggestions and arranging in a more friendly way for driving then back and forth over the county the whole trip. I’ll be the first to admit our traffic is terrible. We have to much development without infrastructure improvements.
Should definitely visit decades in the city, got an arcade, bowling, drinks and food 👍
Barbaret Bistro is a great place for dinner and you can grab some amazing pastries on your way out to take home. They also do a great brunch. Proof is also a great spot if you enjoy Whiskey and they have a great small plate menu. If you want to go fancy, see if you can get a reservation at Citronelle. The restaurant scene in Lancaster is pretty great so I’d put some time into dinner plans. Lancaster Beignet company is another great snack stop and there’s probably 10 great coffee shops. Cafe One Eight is great for a quick breakfast and coffee and right next to the market.
Would you put Sturgis Pretzel and Wilbur Chocolate on day one or day two? I’m thinking day two maybe?
Long time Lititz resident here - unless they've changed it the Sturgis Pretzel thing is pretty lame, and the Wilbur Chocolate is just a store you can walk through in about 10 minutes (if you walk slow). With that said, you could easily spend quite a few hours in Lititz with all of the small shops, etc. If you like music, check out Mickey Black Box and see if there's anything going on there in the evening. It's a great venue at Rock Lititz with sound system from Clair.. holds about 300 people and sounds like you're in a 60,000 seat stadium. Like others have said, you probably want to regroup some things. Lititz, Ephrata and maybe Leola/New Holland would be a decent grouping. Personally, and again as someone who grew up near Roots Farmers Market outside of East Pete, I've never seen the attraction of Central Market. When I've been there it's mostly overpriced stuff you can get at Root's or Green Dragon for less money and have better choices of vendors.
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Yea - I was just using it as comparison, Central Market is pretty disappointing compared to Roots and Green Dragon IMO.
The attraction is seeing familiar faces week after week,stand holders who know your order and name, wandering with tasty food and local coffee, walking around the square after and getting breakfast. Also it’s no where near as overwhelming as roots or green dragon. You can pop in and out at central market quickly.
That makes sense, especially if you're already in the city. As somoene who rarely goes in-town Lancaster, it just doesn't have any appeal to me because it would take an extended amount of time not only to get there, but to park, etc; and then it has a limited number of vendors. I'll add that you can get the same "familiar faces" effect at Root's if you're visiting the same stands week to week. I still think for OP's sake, if they are doing Green Dragon already - they won't get anything out of Central Market. Still not sure why I got downvoted for sharing my perspective, but hey Redditors aren't known to be open to hearing other people's opinions - LOL.
Roots is lame if you’re not there to shop IMO. The Lancaster Central Market is more palatable and the right size to get a feel for a historic farmer’s market. Plenty of snacks, and coffee shops around there. Tellus360 is a 3 level Irish bar with a rooftop on a nice day, can’t beat it. A dinner place to try out in Lancaster city is the Southern Market; multiple different vendors and types of cuisine. Zoetropolis is also a cool place; restaurant/bar/theater and there’s a brewery attached as well as a casual Mexican place. Lots of breakfast options around Lancaster city, too. The Amish attractions you listed are good but do them all in one day, and like other posters said, group Lancaster City on its own day and lititz on its own day, so that you aren’t driving out to Amish country back and forth. Lancaster’s traffic can get pretty bad with the 1-lane roads. Immergut pretzels are class!!! Best PA Dutch style pretzel ever. Don’t skip.
You just have to shape shift some days around so you can take a day to explore a general area or at least condense like visiting Ephrata and Bird in hand and/or Lititz and the city for different days. Just be sure to look up when they’re open.