Join us for a jam packed family fun weekend in Lancaster, PA !
Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Discover Lancaster. As always, opinions are my own. Post may contain affiliate links.
I have been itching to get away as a family but wasn’t quite ready to attempt flying quite yet. After some research I knew Lancaster, PA was the perfect choice and boy was I right! Now it was time to plan our weekend and thankfully Discover Lancaster already did all of the research for us. Whether you are visiting as a romantic getaway or a family weekend, they had all of the details for what to do listed right there in one spot. We left around noon on Friday and returned home Sunday evening and we jammed SO much into those 2.5 days. I love making these memories with our family, Aria is still talking about this trip, so I decided to bring you along with us!
Travel
We live in Wilmington, DE so it was only a little over an hour drive which was perfect for the girls (and me!) The drive was scenic and so relaxing. It is so easy to get to Lancaster and it’s so close to many major cities!
From Philadelphia: 1 hour and 20 min
From Baltimore: 1 hour and 20 min
From New York City: 2 hours and 40 min
So you see where I’m going with this.. its super close to drive and has SO much to do!
Where to Stay
I swear I looked through every hotel on the where to stay list, but we eventually decided on the Wyndham Lancaster Resort and Convention Center for a few reasons.
- It was within half of a mile from many things we had planned
- The amenities to entertain my kids were amazing
- The room option was a huge plus (and affordable!)
We stayed in the one bedroom, 2 queen bed suite and it was absolutely worth it. I loved that we could put the kids down for a nap, or bed, and not be stuck being silent in a room. The resort and room were clean and large and there was so much to do on site. Not to mention the kids thought it was so cool to stay in a hotel.
Amenities
- Large outdoor splash pad and playground
- Indoor and outdoor pools
- Indoor play area with soft foam climbing toys
- Indoor game room
Other hotels we considered were the Cartoon Network Hotel and Eden Resorts, but trust me there are so many options to choose from!
Our Itinerary
After sifting through the Things to Do list, we narrowed it down to this:
We knew we were packing a lot into a short period of time but it was worth it.
Cherry Crest Adventure Farm
We have a few small farms in our area but they do not hold a candle to Cherry Crest. We were there for about 4 hours and only got through a portion of the farm! We loved feeding all of the animals, watching the pigs race, playing in Sproutsville (this was def the kids favorite part, they could’ve stayed there all day) and drinking fresh squeezed lemonade.
Tip: Try to avoid super-hot and sunny days! There is not much shade, but you won’t want to skip this on your visit if you have little ones.
Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre
Aria and I had a date night for dinner and went to see The Little Mermaid at the Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre. The show was phenomenal, we both had a blast! Chicago is up next, and I want to go back and see it for sure.
Tip: If taking little ones, plan to go a little late. They start serving food at 6pm but stop at 7pm; the show starts at 7:30pm so it can be a bit of a wait for them. We went at 6:30 and it was perfect!
Dutch Wonderland
Dutch Wonderland was an obvious highlight of the weekend. I haven’t been here since I was Aria’s age, so it all was new to me too. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of rides and activities for the very little kids. There were multiple rides Gianna could enjoy. We spent the whole day there and still only saw half the park; not mention I was dying to go to the water park, Duke’s Lagoon (guess we’ll have to go back!)
Tip: For lunch we went to a strip that had something for all of us: the Potato Place, to get chicken and fries for the girls. The Panini Place for Ev and I (we also ate here because it was air conditioned) and conveniently located directly next to Penney’s Pub, where we grabbed ourself a refreshing adult beverage mid- day.
Casey Jones Restaurant
We originally planned to go to Loxley’s Treehouse Restaurant & Patio but unfortunately it rained during the evening and we decided to find something a little closer and indoors. A fellow hotel guest suggested Casey Jones Restaurant as a great experience for the kids, so we went for it! The restaurant is in a (parked) train on a farm right next to the active train tracks. It was so fun watching the trains and buggies go by and it felt like we were on a train ourselves. After diner we went out and pet the llama, pigs, and goats.
Hotel Playroom & Arcade
We finally had some time to enjoy the hotel amenities after dinner. Again, this was the main reason we chose the Wyndham Lancaster Resort. The playroom with soft foam toys was AMAZING, I wish every hotel had this. Gianna could have stayed in there forever and honestly Aria loved it just as much as she did. It was safe, contained, and clean; they had so much fun! Next door was the game room where we played basketball, rode the carousel, and played arcade games, this was such a fun evening right in our hotel.
Pool Time
The pool and splash pad at the Wyndham were perfect for the girls. The pool was a walkout that allowed them to safely play in the shallow end, but the splashpad was the real hit. It was large and typically filled with a few other children which was great. They had different levels of playground equipment and both Gianna and Aria could play freely… they were begging to stay.
Tanger & Rockvale Outlets
Now on to my favorite part, the Tanger Outlets and the Shops at Rockvale in Lancaster are awesome. Years and years ago Evan and I would drive there just to shop for the whole day, so we knew this was a definite stop on our trip. The girls were troopers as we went to over 10+ stores and scored some amazing deals. Even if you only have time to pop in a few stores, I highly recommend adding this to your visit.
Romantic/Adult Getaway Ideas
If we had planned this weekend without children, here are some ideas for what we would have done.
Nissley Vineyards – I really wanted to go to Summerfest at Nissley Vineyards but it was 21+ . Def would do this if you are childless!
Wine & Cheese train – the Strasburg railroad goes through Lancaster (we saw it at Cherry Crest and Casey Jones) and the Wine & cheese train sounds like so much fun!
Breweries – there are so many breweries in Lancaster, a brewery tour day would be fun with a significant other or friends.
We also would have tried one of these restaurants: The Greenfield Restaurant & Bar or Belvedere Inn
Visit Lancaster
All I can say is you need to see it for yourself. Lancaster has so much to offer, you will need more time to do it all! I know we will be planning another trip back soon. If you need any assistance planning your stay or activities, visit Discoverlancaster.com
