Follow the leafy, graveled path that hugs the Delaware Canal through New Hope, Pennsylvania, and you’ll pass two touchstones of local talent. One sits north of town. In this humble, 18th-century gristmill-turned-studio, Pennsylvania Impressionism was born over a century ago. In town, the burgundy-and-white, barn-like theater that opened 85 years ago on another mill site was launched by some of Broadway’s and Hollywood’s brightest stars.

The Phillips’ Mill arts center and Bucks County Playhouse—both still thriving—make touristy New Hope the cradle of visual and performing arts in Bucks County. But the village is not the only cultural outpost in this pastoral Philadelphia exurb.

One of Pennsylvania’s three original Quaker-settled counties, Bucks lies 25 miles north of Philadelphia, 75 miles southwest of New York City, and 130 miles (two and a half hours) northeast of Baltimore.

Blessed with natural resources and resourceful residents, the county has been famously productive since William Penn claimed the place in 1682. Grain, milk, and cheese. Cigars and applejack brandy. Wool, textiles, and lumber. Cannonballs for George Washington’s troops. An iconic line of Bucks-grown seeds for gardeners (Burpee!). Not to mention a slew of Academy Awards, Tony Awards, Grammys, Pulitzer Prizes, and a Nobel Prize from the people who have called it home.

Scenery, serenity, and urban accessibility beckoned the creatively inclined at the turn of the 20th century. First came plein-air painters—landscape artists like Edward Redfield, who rendered the wooded hillsides, weathered stone houses, and winding waterways in all seasons, lights, and climatic conditions.

Soon after, seclusion-seeking writers arrived—playwrights, lyricists, and novelists who penned works bound for Broadway, Hollywood, and best-seller lists. (Think Moss Hart, Oscar Hammerstein II, and Pearl S. Buck.) They made permanent or second homes in what one of them, author James Michener, dubbed “the genius belt.”

Although growth has crept into the county since, Bucks retains its rural charm and creative lineage for visitors’ enjoyment. New Hope may be the nexus of Bucks culture, but Doylestown, the county seat, also packs cultural cred. And it’s arguably the best place to begin your Bucks visit.

Dabble in Doylestown

The James A. Michener Art Museum (yes, that Michener, behind the iconic Bay-themed novel Chesapeake) boasts a permanent collection of more than 2,700 objects with galleries devoted to American art and studio craftsmanship, as well as two sculpture gardens. Special permanent exhibits honor two legendary locals: Michener, the prolific author, Doylestown native, and later-in-life philanthropist and California emigre George Nakashima, the master woodworker whose studio still operates in the county.

The museum has transformed Bucks’ abandoned 19th-century county prison into an elegant residence for the arts. An entire gallery devoted to American Impressionism houses one of the finest collections of Pennsylvania Impressionistic paintings, including works by William Lathrop, Edward Redfield, Daniel Garber, Charles Rosen, Rae Sloan Bredin, Robert Spencer, Fern Coppedge, and John Fulton Folinsbee.

Beginning with Lathrop and Redfield, these artists fashioned abandoned mills, aging farmhouses, and crumbling mansions into affordable homes and studios beside the Delaware River in and around New Hope.

“It was a very beautiful place to be, along the river with beautiful, rolling hills,” says Michener chief curator Laura Turner Igoe of the area’s artistic appeal.

Many members of the New Hope art colony trained at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia when Impressionism was in vogue, she says. At the turn of the century, an old saying goes, there were two kinds of academy students, “one kind went to Paris, and the other went up the Delaware.”

Art lovers can view works by the Pennsylvania Impressionists, the New Hope modernist painters who succeeded them, and contemporary painters, sculptors, and craftspeople at the Michener. Don’t miss “A Wooded Watershed,” a stunning, fan-shaped mural painted by Daniel Garber for the Sesquicentennial Exposition of 1926 in Philadelphia, or the boldly portrayed landscapes of Redfield, who defied the elements to spend an entire day—often past dark—to make one painting. Snow scenes were favorite subjects for Bucks Impressionists, no matter the obstacles to creating them.

“They’d strap their canvases to the trees so they could paint in the snowstorm,” says Igoe.

Other highlights at the Michener include the meditative Nakashima Reading Room, a traditional Japanese-style space designed by George Nakashima’s daughter, who runs her late father’s New Hope studio. The museum’s striking Powell Door is an intricately carved, arched portal inspired by craftsman Phillip Lloyd Powell’s travels in Morocco.

Leave ample time to browse the extensive exhibit devoted to the museum’s namesake. Admire Michener’s library, browse his collections of music and artworks, and see the home office where he wrote Tales of the South Pacific. This room is faithfully replicated, down to the typewriter and souvenirs on his desk (including autographed Baltimore Orioles memorabilia).

Opposite the Michener Museum on Pine Street, you’ll find the Mercer Mile, a trio of historic buildings designed in the early 20th century by Henry Chapman Mercer, a leading figure of the Arts and Crafts Movement. An archaeologist by training, a ceramicist by trade, and an antiquarian pack rat by nature, Mercer built his house, his tile-making shop, and a showplace for his voluminous collections in his hometown between 1908 and 1916.

There’s a whiff of the fairy tale about Fonthill, Mercer’s 44-room concrete mansion with its staggered roofs, multiple chimneys, and more than 200 windows.

“An eclectic mix of Gothic, Medieval, and Byzantine architectural styles,” explains the Bucks County Historical Society website, which operates Fonthill and its companion castle, the Mercer Museum.

The latter, an equally fanciful concrete structure, housed Mercer’s treasures when his inventory outgrew Fonthill. Today, it displays tens of thousands of mostly pre-industrial artifacts. Visitors can explore what amounts to a seven-floor attic full of Americana: from bathtubs, boats, and stoves to sleighs and tools used by blacksmiths, cheesemakers, cobblers, potters, weavers, and numerous other crafts- and tradespeople.

The museum is open six days a week for self-guided, timed-entry tours. Fonthill, which is also the showcase for tiles made by Mercer’s own renowned Moravian pottery, offers one-hour guided tours six days a week, as well as 45-minute evening tours periodically throughout the year. Online reservations are recommended for both.

The Moravian Pottery and Tile Works factory is the third concrete monument to Mercer’s ingenuity. At this working history museum, open daily, tiles are still made the Mercer way: using Bucks County lake clay, authentic glazes, and traditional designs that have adorned everything from the state capitol in Harrisburg to the Monte Carlo Casino in Monaco. Modern-day apprentices learn the tile-making trade here, and visitors can, too. On Tuesdays, tours include a hands-on lesson in making your own Moravian tile. Those and other decorative ceramics are also available at the gift shop.

Bonus Bucks: Reserve tickets to Cocktails at the Castle, the Mercer Museum’s annual fundraising soiree of food, spirits, and music, held in October on the museum grounds.

Enter the Epicenter, New Hope

New Hope was a center of commerce before it became a center of creativity. Goods traveled the Delaware River and adjacent canal. Grist and lumber mills sprang up where streams tumbled into the river. But when waterpower eventually lost its utility in the late 19th century, artists utilized the aging infrastructure.

Considered the dean of the New Hope art colony, William Lathrop made the disused Phillips’ Mill his home and studio in 1899. Fellow artists soon flocked to the area. In 1929, they formed an association to preserve the 1754 mill complex for art exhibitions and social events like popular Sunday teas hosted by the Lathrops.

“It was really the hub of the artistic world in Bucks County,” says the James A. Michener Museum’s Igoe.

And it remains so. The Phillips’ Mill Community Association will host its 95th annual Juried Art Show at the mill this September—the highlight of a calendar that includes a juried photography exhibition each spring, competitions for young artists and emerging playwrights, and cabaret-style musical performances throughout the year.

The arts venue on River Road is part of the Phillips’ Mill Historic District. Just across the way, you’ll spy more evidence of New Hope’s creative legacy. Behind ivy-draped stone walls and ornate iron gates sits the Gothic-style English Village—a group of eight historic buildings that were the working domain of Morgan Colt, an architect, painter, and craftsman who settled there in 1905. A nonprofit is currently working to preserve and restore the sylvan compound, hoping to lure working artists once more.

Explore New Hope and its opposite-shore neighbor, Lambertville, New Jersey, and you’ll discover a thriving arts community filled with dozens of galleries and studios. Two miles south of town, George Nakashima Woodworkers carries on the tradition of George Nakashima, who found work in Bucks County after securing his release from a Japanese-American internment camp in 1943. The family-run studio hosts tours on Friday afternoons and Saturdays from April through October. Advance registration is required through the Nakashima Foundation for Peace.

New Hope also became a social center for VIPs of both the stage and the printed page when the Bucks County Playhouse opened in 1939. Celebrated playwright and local resident Moss Hart helped rally the community—including some famous friends—to convert an abandoned mill into a summer theater.

“With the blessing of Broadway celebrities and $40,000 of their funds, work was started today on the Bucks County playhouse,” reported The York Dispatch in March 1939.

Artist Charles Child (later known as the brother-in-law of Julia Child) painted the original—and still used—stage curtain, featuring a birds-eye view of New Hope. On July 1, 1939, the playhouse opened with Springtime for Henry, starring character actor Edward Everett Horton.

In the decades since, acting royalty have trod Playhouse boards: Helen Hayes, Lillian Gish, Hart’s writing collaborator (and neighbor) George S. Kaufman, Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy, Leslie Nielsen, Bea Arthur, Walter Matthau, Bob Fosse, Robert Redford, Bernadette Peters, Mike Nichols, and Liza Minnelli, among others. Grace Kelly and Dick Van Dyke made their stage debuts here in 1949 and 1959, respectively. Also here in 1952, Angela Lansbury walked onto an American stage for the first time. And Harpo Marx spoke (!) during a guest appearance here in the Hart-Kaufman hit, The Man Who Came to Dinner.

The playwrights were as famous as the players. Thornton Wilder appeared in his own work, Our Town, here in 1948, and Neil Simon’s first play had its world premiere at the Playhouse in 1960.

Today, the Bucks County Playhouse stages its own productions and hosts performances by visiting musicians, magicians, comedians, and other acts during a season that runs from April through December. This season’s house productions include the musicals Grease and The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

When the Playhouse opened, sponsors vowed to find and nurture unrecognized talent. “We hope to root out talent wherever it is,” said actor Richard Bennett (father of Hollywood’s Constance, Barbara, and Joan) at the 1939 groundbreaking. That effort continues. The Student Theater Festival, in its 56th year, is a multi-week event in which student actors perform on the venue’s historic stage, attend workshops, and learn from theater professionals.

Bonus Bucks: Sip a gin tipple and dine on snacks, sandwiches, or entrees at the theater’s modern Playhouse Deck restaurant, perched above the lovely Delaware River. Proceeds support the nonprofit Playhouse and its theatrical mission.

Barnstorm Bucks

Craving the country life, celebrated New Yorkers snapped up Bucks County farms in the 1930s and ’40s. Literary wit Dorothy Parker had a farm near Pipersville. Her Algonquin Round Table mate George S. Kaufman bought one just minutes away in Holicong. Humorist S. J. Perelman raised turkeys at Eight Ball Farm in Erwinna. Actor Claude Rains had pigs and cattle at his place in Lambertville. Moss Hart married actress Kitty Carlisle in New Hope in 1946, and they lived the rural life nearby in Aquetong.

A handful of farms of the famous are open to the public. Kaufman’s 100-acre Barley Sheaf Farm is a luxurious bed-and-breakfast near the popular attraction Peddler’s Village. Suites in the 1740 fieldstone manor house, a stone-bank barn, and several 1930s-era guest cottages are named for the playwright’s works. Pulitzer Prize- and Nobel Prize-winning novelist Pearl S. Buck lived at Green Hills Farm in Perkasie until her death in 1973, decorating its 19th-century farmhouse with artifacts from her beloved Asia.

Designated a National Historic Landmark and run by the humanitarian foundation that bears her name, the Pearl S. Buck House is open for guided house tours (see the typewriter on which she wrote The Good Earth). Visitors can also stroll beautiful gardens on the 67-acre estate, Buck’s burial place.

About 10 miles away in Doylestown, Highland Farm was the home of Oscar Hammerstein II and birthplace of the lyricist’s famous collaborations with composer Richard Rodgers. Scores for The King and I, Oklahoma, Carousel, South Pacific, and The Sound of Music were written in the 1840 farmhouse, which overlooked fields where “corn is as high as an elephant’s eye” (in the famous words of “Oh, What a Beautiful Morning”). Here, too, Hammerstein mentored a young Stephen Sondheim.

Once a B&B itself, Highland Farm is now owned by the nonprofit Oscar Hammerstein Museum, which hopes to restore it as a museum and theater education center in the future. It’s reported that more than 75 Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Tony Awards, and Pulitzer Prizes can be directly traced to Highland Farm.

Bonus Bucks: Reserve the Inn at Barley Sheaf Farm’s Art Deco “You Can’t Take It with You” suite and channel the creative vibes in George S. Kaufman’s former writing room.

Trudging out to your car in the Monday morning freeze, slush in your boots, the sun peeking wanly over the horizon, it’s easy to forget that winter provides incredible opportunities for adrenaline-pumping recreation. While Mid-Atlantic skiing is admittedly a different experience than, say, hitting the slopes in Aspen or Sun Valley, the freedom to schuss down a mountain (regardless of its size) just a few hours later is yet another feather (or pom-pom) in Baltimore’s (ski) hat.

What follows is a list of our favorite ski resorts within a day’s drive of Charm City, encompassing spots in West Virginia, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. So the next time you’re scraping the ice off your windshield and feel a Jerry Lundegaard-in-Fargo-style meltdown coming on, take a deep breath, focus on the weekend, and throw your skis in the car. It’s go time.

Blue Knob All Seasons Resort

1424 Overland Pass, Claysburg, Pa., 814-239-5111
Drive time: 2 hours, 50 minutes

The highest skiable mountain in Pennsylvania’s scenic Allegheny range, Blue Knob offers 34 trails and plenty of long rides for skiers and snowboarders of all abilities, with a vertical drop of 1,072 feet. The resort also gets high marks for its advanced glade trails—aka off-trail and defined woods trails. In addition, the resort boasts a ski school for beginners and advanced skiers and snowboarders alike, as well as a snow tubing park.

Canaan Valley Resort

230 Main Lodge Rd., Davis, WV, 800-622-4121.
Drive time: 3 hours, 45 minutes

A skiing destination for some 70 years and the site of West Virginia’s first commercial ski development, Canaan Valley Resort receives roughly 180 inches of annual snowfall. Skiers and snowboarders have nearly 50 trails to choose from, but there’s a lot more to do too, including outdoor ice-skating, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing. There’s also a 1,200-foot snow tubing park worth tackling, especially with the kids.

Liberty Mountain Resort

78 Country Club Trail, Carroll Valley, Pa., 717-642-8282.
Drive time: 1 hour, 15 minutes

Given its proximity to Baltimore, just over the Frederick County line, Liberty Mountain is a place where generations of local new skiers have made their first downhill run. With an elevation of nearly 1,200 feet and a vertical drop of 600 feet, the nearby resort offers 16 trails and two terrain parks serviced by eight lifts—all lit for night skiing and snowboarding, with full snow-making coverage. Check the Ski and Ride School, too.

Massanutten Resort

1822 Resort Dr., Massanutten, Va., 540-289-9441.
Drive time: 3 hours, 15 minutes

Built in the Shenandoah Valley more than 50 years ago, Massanutten offers 23 runs and seven lifts spread over 90 skiable acres, with a  peak elevation of nearly 3,000 feet. Freestyle snowboarders and skiers will appreciate one of the best parks around—boasting a dozen rails and jumps—while beginner freestylers can get started in the resort’s “Easy Street” terrain park. The snowmaking infrastructure recently got a boost, too.

The Omni Homestead

7696 Sam Snead Hwy., Hot Springs, VA, 800-838-1766.
Drive time: 4 hours, 30 minutes

This historic luxury hotel is more renowned for its famous guest list, which includes several presidents, and its legendary golf course—note the address here—than its skiing. That said, the iconic Homestead is an ideal destination for families and novice skiers and snowboarders, with its laid-back, well-sculpted, and gentle terrain. Along with its nine trails over 45 acres, there’s also a snow-tubing park next to the slopes and mini snowmobile track for kids.

Roundtop Mountain Resort

925 Roundtop Road, Lewisberry, Pa., 717-432-9631.
Drive time: 1 hour, 20 min

As it’s a direct shot up I-83, newbie and intermediate skiers and snowboarders can quickly reach Roundtop’s slopes for a weekend, weekday, or even weeknight getaway. The whole mountain, which includes 21 trails, nine lifts, and snowtubing, is covered by snowmaking equipment. Roundtop is also a part of the Vail Resorts network, meaning a season pass can be purchased that includes skiing at Whitetail, Liberty, and dozens of other resorts.

Seven Springs Mountain Resort

777 Waterwheel Dr., Seven Springs, Pa., 800-452-2223.
Drive time: 3 hours, 20 minutes

With a diverse collection of 33 trails descending from a 2,994- foot mountain, plus another seven terrain parks, Seven Springs remains one of the most popular resorts in the area. Also, if you don’t ski but want to chill with friends who do on a weekend trip, this is the place. Seven Springs offers live music on weekends, bowling, roller-skating, indoor mini-golf, snowshoe and snowmobile tours, tubing, an indoor pool, fitness center, hot tubs, and loads of dining options.

Snowshoe Mountain Resort

10 Snowshoe Drive, Snowshoe, WV, 877-441-4386
Drive time: 5 hours

With 60-plus trails and glades plus four terrain parks divvied up among three distinct ski areas over more than 240 skiable acres, Snowshoe may be a trek, but it’s worth the drive. With an elevation of 4,848 feet and a vertical drop of 1,500 feet, Snowshoe is one of the area’s largest resorts and it presents some of the best skiing south of Vermont. A genuine destination resort with all the amenities, Snowshoe also offers more than a dozen restaurants and a nightclub.

Timberline Mountain

254 Four Seasons Dr., Davis, WV, 304-403-2074
Drive time: 3 hours, 40 minutes

There’s a lot to love about tiny Davis, West Virginia, which is re nowned for its mountainbiking, and that includes Timberline, which has seen significant capital investment in recent years. The ski area’s claim to fame is its high elevation—and thus its big amount of annual snow. It also has a 3.12-mile run—plus two double black diamond runs, rare in this region. Overall, it offers 37 trails
across 100 skiable acres.

Whitetail Resort

13805 Blairs Valley Road, Mercersburg, PA, 717-328-9400
Drive time: 1 hour, 35 minutes.

Along with Roundtop and Liberty, Whitetail completes the trio of family-friendly, low-hassle resorts, just over the Pennsylvania line and 90 minutes from the Baltimore Beltway. The top elevation here is 1,800 feet, with a descent which supports 23 trails and two terrain parks—all serviced by 100-percent snowmaking coverage. Recent upgrades include a snow-tubing park, an expanded lodge, and as of 2019, a liquor license.

Wintergreen Resort

Route 664, Wintergreen, VA, 434-325-2200
Drive time: 3 hours, 40 minutes.

Nestled deep into Virginia’s wine country down the Blue Ridge Parkway, the mountain here has an elevation of 3,515 feet with a vertical drop of 1,003 feet. Wintergreen is a year-round resort with luxury accommodations that offers skiing and snowboarding across 129 skiable acres with five chairlifts—including two high-speed lifts—24 trails and a terrain park continually reshaped for new challenges.

Wisp Resort

296 Marsh Hill Road, McHenry, MD, 301-859-3159
Drive time: 3 hours.

Located in the Deep Creek Lake area of Garrett County, Wisp is Maryland’s only ski resort, but with a 3,115- foot elevation and 172 skiable acres, it more than holds its own in the region. Twelve  chairlifts and seven surface lifts take skiers and snowboarders to a mix of 33 beginner, intermediate, and advanced trails and three freestyle parks. Plus, there’s tubing, iceskating, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing—something for everyone, in other words—at this year-round resort.

It may not be visible from space, but hand it to Hampden’s Miracle on 34th Street for setting the high-wattage mark of holiday lights. Where else can you find a single block so devoted to such an unabashedly over-the-top and proudly tacky tribute to the most wonderful time of year?

But believe it or not, Baltimore, 34th Street has rivals throughout the Mid-Atlantic. There are neighborhoods, and one especially luminous family farm, that can brighten the night sky.

Brilliantly festooned botanical gardens and parks. High-tech light shows, as well as simple, ceremonial tree lightings. Boats that float and some that don’t, lit from bow to stern. There are displays through which you can drive, walk, or even ice-skate. Many include family-friendly extras: Santa and his elves, candy canes and model trains, cozy bonfires and hot cocoa. For the actively inclined, there’s also ice-tubing, ice-skating, and…axe-throwing?

If you love lights of the festive and decorative kind, consider these doable day trips or wintry weekend getaways. And let there be lights—lots of ’em.

DECORATED DAY TRIPS

Nightly through Jan. 1: National Christmas Tree

President’s Park, Washington, D.C.
3 hours roundtrip. Free. 

A century ago, on Christmas Eve, 1923, President Calvin Coolidge walked from the White House to the Ellipse to inaugurate a cherished tradition. He switched on a 48-foot fir tree wrapped in 2,500 red, white, and green bulbs, turning “the national Christmas tree into a flashing vari-colored pyramid of radiance,” marveled the Washington Evening Star. Visitors can admire this year’s radiant conifer and its 60,000 lights following the National Christmas Tree Lighting on or about Nov. 30. The Pathway of Peace features smaller lit trees representing U.S. states, territories, and the District.

Through Dec. 31: Enchant Christmas

Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
2 hours roundtrip. $24-89.60.

Two enterprising Canadian teenagers turned a neighborhood light-decorating business into a high-tech holiday extravaganza held at seven locations, including the Nation’s Capital. D.C.’s baseball stadium hosts their 2023 themed “Reindeer Games” show, whose signature attraction is an immersive light maze. Visitors are tasked with finding Rudolph and co.’s magic bells amid a blinking, pulsing, cascading landscape of more than one million lights. (Think Oz meets Times Square.) There’s also an illuminated ice-skating trail, a 100-foot-tall Christmas tree, and a village of artisan vendors.

Through Jan. 1: Mormon Temple Festival of Lights

Washington D.C. Temple, Kensington, MD
2 hours roundtrip. Free.

From its hilltop perch above the Capital Beltway, the white marble, six-spired Mormon Temple is an imposing sight in any season. Come December, though, the starkly spotlighted temple goes technicolor during its beautiful Festival of Lights. Nearly one half million lights in shades of red, green, blue, gold, purple, and white festoon trees on the temple’s 57-acre grounds. In the Visitors’ Center, model crèches depict nativity scenes from around the world and the 540-seat auditorium hosts live holiday concerts.

Through February: Sailing Through the Winter Solstice

Carroll Creek Linear Park, Frederick, MD
2 hours roundtrip. Free, donations encouraged. 

Frederick’s downtown “linear park” follows gentle Carroll Creek, where a small fleet of unusual vessels steal the spotlight during the cold winter months. Beginning in November, an eclectic armada of downsized boats—gaff-rigged ketches, three-masted schooners, pirate ships, and even a boat designed to look like an aircraft carrier, all outlined in lights—battle Old Man Winter in the name of charity and cabin-fever relief. For a dollar a vote, pick your favorite among the floating fleet and a handful of on-land watercraft.

Through Dec. 30: Winter City Lights

Olney Boys & Girls Club Park, Olney, MD
2 hours roundtrip. Advance tickets only. Prices vary.

Everything about this attraction is gigantic: one million-plus lights, a lit canopy the size of a large Ferris wheel, a 52-foot-tall Christmas tree programmed into an ultra-sophisticated light show, 33 bonfires, eight lanes of snow-tubing, and a signature dessert (The Blizzard) made of multiple funnel cakes, deep-fried Twinkies, deep-fried Oreos, and tons of whipped topping. A 1.5-mile mulched trail leads through woods lit with supersized decorations and it “snows” (artificially) at regular intervals. Did we mention there’s axe-throwing,
too?

Through Dec. 30: Christmas Magic—A Festival of Lights

Rocky Ridge Park, York, PA
2 hours roundtrip. Reservation-only. Prices vary.

This annual spectacle owes its origins to the 1970s energy crisis, when York County stepped in to light the way for residents dissuaded from decorating. A half-mile, hilltop trail meanders through forest lit with 600,000 sparkling LED lights and animated scenes as holiday music plays. And warm snacks include a beloved local treat: Bricker’s Famous French Fries.

Dec. 7-15: National Menorah

The Ellipse, Washington, D.C.
2 hours roundtrip. Free

The ceremonial lighting of the world’s largest menorah—an over-30-foot-tall, electrified candelabra—begins the Hanukkah celebration in Washington and across the country. Jewish leaders and a VIP speaker preside at the event, attended by thousands and broadcast internationally. The lighting occurs Dec. 7 and the menorah remains on display throughout the holiday.

Dec. 9: Eastport Yacht Club Lights Parade

Annapolis Harbor, Annapolis
2 hours roundtrip. Free. 

A beloved Chesapeake Bay tradition, this enchanting procession of brightly lit boats through the Annapolis Harbor and along Spa Creek has been going strong for 40 years. Grab a viewing spot (very) early on Spa Creek Bridge, at City Dock, along Eastport’s and Spa Creek’s waterfronts, or book a cruise with a local tour company for the Dec. 9 parade.

MORE MERRYMAKING

Through Jan. 7: A Longwood Christmas

Longwood Gardens, Kennett Square, PA
3 hours roundtrip. Reservations required. Free-$30.

The most coveted holiday ticket around, Longwood Gardens will celebrate “A Very Retro Christmas” this year, decorating its conservatory and nearly 200 acres of gardens with midcentury flair, including “a fab, festive holiday party scene.” As always, over half-a-million lights and the gardens’ famous dancing fountains synced to Christmas music will highlight the display, with hot cocoa available for both day and nighttime visitors.

Through December: Miracle on South 13th Street

1600 Block, South 13th St., Philadelphia, PA
4 hours roundtrip. Free.

Philadelphia’s answer to Charm City’s 34th Street ornamentation is this block of rowhouses in South Philly, where residents are just as festively gung ho. The entire stretch glows with white and colored lights strung over the street, around windows and doorways, under eaves and encircling trees, filling front yards, and spilling onto sidewalks. With a mixture of gaudy and imaginative yard art,  inflatables, and costumed figures, the spectacle traditionally draws thousands of holiday lovers who drive or walk by each year.

Through Jan. 1: Tinseltown Holiday Spectacular

FDR Park, Philadelphia, PA
4 hours roundtrip. $15.99-40.99.

Another South Philly attraction, Tinseltown is a soup-to-nuts celebration of the season featuring an immersive stroll through a crystalline wonderland of over two million lights—twinkle-lit trees, tunnels, snow globes, snowflakes, even a version of the Liberty Bell. There’s also an ice-skating trail, an ice slide, and guest appearances by Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus, and Gritty Claus, the Philadelphia Flyers’ orange, google-eyed mascot dressed in holiday threads—with photo ops to boot. Warm up with hot beverages at Union Forge Lodge and in the gift shop at Mistletoe Marketplace.

Weekends through January: Shady Brook Farm’s Holiday Light Show

Shady Brook Farm, Yardley, PA
4 hours roundtrip. $30-150.

More than three million lights illuminate this century-old farm market and “agri-tainment” venue in Bucks County each December. Ho-ho-hoing all the way, drive a two-mile trail of festively lit displays or hitch a ride on a tractor-drawn wagon. While there, pick out your Christmas tree and pose with Santa to complete a jolly evening.

Through Jan. 1: Koziar’s Christmas Village

Bernville, PA
4 hours roundtrip. Free-$12.

If you’re traveling darkened country roads near Bernville this time of year, that glow in the distance is an ex-dairy farm turned fantasyland. William Koziar first decorated his farmhouse in 1948. Since then, the display has mushroomed, becoming one of Pennsylvania’s most popular seasonal attractions. Over one million lights adorn the farmhouse, barn, roofs, walkways, train tracks, holiday scenes, and a village of small buildings, casting their colorful reflections on a large pond. Don’t miss indoor and outdoor model trains.

Through Jan. 7: Winter Walk of Lights

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Vienna, VA
3 hours roundtrip. $18.

Visitors to this Northern Virginia oasis wander a half-mile paved path through an enchanting forest of illuminated “flora” and “fauna,” including larger-than-life tulips, sunflowers, toadstools, butterflies, grasshoppers, herons, whittling woodpeckers, belching bullfrogs, and koi that appear to leap from a lake. The 95-acre garden’s living trees are also wrapped, twigs to trunk, in tiny, colored lights, as is the lake’s gazebo. Buy hot beverages and desserts in the glittering conservatory and enjoy s’mores over a fire pit.

FARTHER FESTIVITIES

Through Dec. 31: Richmond Tacky Lights Tours

Richmond, VA
5.5 hours roundtrip. Free

Take 34th Street’s miraculous lights, scatter them over a 20-mile radius, and you’ve got Richmond’s “tacky lights” tours. Every year, the Richmond Times-Dispatch offers driving maps of neighborhoods where over-the-top holiday decoration is the rule of thumb. We mean tens of thousands—even 100,000—lights per property. Yards obscured in inflatables, cutout figures, and animated displays. Windows where Santa dances and “leg lamps” shine. Suggested driving tours range from 30 minutes to an hour, but plan on more; you need to see many of these on foot.

Through Jan. 7: GardenFest of Lights

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, Henrico County, VA
5.5 hours roundtrip. Advanced purchase only. $8-27.

A perennial favorite and one of the nation’s most impressive botanical exhibits, GardenFest of Lights bathes the 50-acre Virginia garden in over one million lights, including on more than 100 trees. The most spectacular, Darlington Oak, is draped in a mile of miniature bulbs. This year’s decorating theme is “Rhythms of Nature,” reflected throughout the grounds and the 11,000-square-foot Conservatory, with its towering Christmas tree. Sip hot chocolate and toast s’mores in the Children’s Garden and don’t miss the Kelly Education Center’s model trains.

Through Dec. 31: Kings Dominion WinterFest

Kings Dominion, Doswell, VA
5 hours roundtrip. Free-$49.99.

Thirty minutes north of Richmond, this theme park becomes a dazzling holiday experience. Aglow with millions of lights, WinterFest features strolling performers, horse-drawn carriage rides, sessions with Santa, holiday treats, iceskating, a petting zoo, and, of course, roller coasters and other rides. The park’s iconic 300-foot-tall Eiffel Tower becomes a spectacular Christmas tree.

Pierre Samuel du Pont, the shrewd scion of prominent Delaware industrialists, was well on his way to growing the family business in 1906 when he wondered whether his impulsive purchase of some country real estate was a boneheaded investment.

“I have recently experienced what I would formerly have diagnosed as an attack of insanity; that is, I have purchased a small farm,” he wrote to a friend after acquiring a modest Quaker farmhouse on a lovely, wooded tract near Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.

Its aged trees were destined for the sawmill, hence du Pont’s intervention. The plan for this visionary nature-lover’s real estate lark? Spare the forest and renovate the property, making it a place where he could entertain his friends.

Du Pont realized his ambitions—and then some. This time of year, nearly half a million guests visit his now-1,100-acre legacy, Longwood Gardens, to behold the Brandywine Valley’s crown jewel of holiday displays.

Longwood is one of several du Pont estates gracing the pastoral countryside northwest of Wilmington, Delaware, the city where the first du Ponts arrived from France in 1800. As they amassed considerable fortunes, various family members erected country mansions, filled them with fine art and furnishings, and surrounded them with magnificent gardens they often designed themselves. In the 20th century, Brandywine Valley’s first family of industry and philanthropy began bequeathing many of these post-Gilded Age oases for public enjoyment as museums, gardens, and nature preserves.

A land of rolling hills, misty meadows, split-rail fences, and old stone buildings, this corner of southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Delaware draws visitors galore for its seasonal floral and foliage displays, but the landscape and its historic estates also make a compelling winter destination, as so captured by the region’s famous native son, painter Andrew Wyeth.

What better antidote to last year’s muted festivities than a dose of spare-no-expense celebration in vallée du Pont? Throughout December, get a glimpse into the region’s one percent, who decorate their homes for a season of aristocratic entertaining.

The valley cradles Brandywine Creek (aka the Brandywine River), which rambles from its southeastern PA headwaters to a rendezvous with the Christina River in Wilmington. A 12-mile national scenic by- way weaves through the area, linking historic du Pont properties and picturesque small towns offering tony shopping and diverse dining in the city’s suburbs and exurbs. One such town is Greenville, which happens to be the home of another prominent Delaware family—the First Family of the United States, Joe and Jill Biden.

Born in Pennsylvania coal country, “Middle-Class Joe” did well for himself politically and financially in the state that he represented in the U.S. Senate for over three decades. His first Greenville residence was once owned by a du Pont, albeit a five-bed- room “fixer-upper” slated for demolition. Biden has since upgraded his residences—in the Nation’s Capital and in Greenville—but not his average-Joe persona. The President and FLOTUS like to frequent beloved sandwich and burger joints around the First State when they’re in town.

A two-hour drive from Baltimore via I-95 and U.S. 1, Longwood Gardens provides a striking jump-off point into the valley’s historic and natural attractions. Other du Pont properties are clustered nearby across the state line in Delaware.

Like the delectable fungus for which Kennett Square is known, Pierre du Pont’s “small farm” mushroomed into a grand horticultural showcase. Today, it’s a wonderland of formal and informal gardens, meadows, woodlands, and a pair of du Pont-designed flourishes—a four-acre, 20-room conservatory, and a five-acre, Italianate fountain garden.

Once the conservatory was completed in 1921, du Pont and his wife, Alice, began hosting Christmas parties there for estate employees and their families. Longwood began celebrating the holiday publicly in 1957, expanding and enhancing “A Longwood Christmas” to the extent that decorating now begins in late summer.

Carpeted in cyclamens, poinsettias, and fragrant paperwhites, the conservatory beckons guests through room after room of twinkling Christmas trees, floral sculptures, and arbors dripping with lighted evergreens. (A drone video offered virtual visitors a tour last year, but it can’t compare to the full sensory experience.) Outside, illuminated trees, glowing orbs, sparkling “snowflakes,” and a tunnel of lights brighten brisk winter evenings as guests warm themselves with hot cocoa around fire pits, now through January 9.

Don’t Miss: The always-imaginatively decorated Music Room and its 18-foot fir tree, the popular Garden Railway featuring Thomas the Tank Engine, and dazzling performances in the Fountain Garden. Locally: Four miles southwest of Longwood sits Kennett Square, whose surrounding farms provide half the nation’s mushrooms. Sample this singular crop at Portabellos, a local favorite. Buy fresh and dried mushrooms, plus mushroom souvenirs, growing kits, and cookbooks at The Mushroom Cap.

Henry Francis du Pont was born at Winterthur and inherited the family’s Delaware estate he so enjoyed exploring as a child. In du Pont’s adulthood, the house and its sprawling grounds became the playground for his twin passions: collecting and gardening. By the time the estate opened publicly in 1951, its owner had expanded Winterthur into a 175-room mansion, filled it with the nation’s finest collection of decorative arts, and personally designed the 1,000 acres of gardens, meadows, and woodlands that delight visitors today. Du Pont and his wife, Ruth, owned three other homes, but Winterthur is where they celebrated the holidays with their daughters and friends. “Yuletide at Winterthur” affords visitors a peek at their glittering lifestyle: polished silver and sparkling crystal; floral arrangements and fine antiques; swagged greenery on the Hollywoodesque staircase; and a towering conservatory Christmas tree.

Visit the estate on Wednesday evenings through January 2 to tour the decorated mansion, listen to live jazz, and toast marshmallows and Champagne. Take a guided tram ride through the winter garden, stopping at the Enchanted Woods, a grove of stately oaks guarding the thatch-roofed Faerie Cottage.

Don’t Miss: The conservatory’s stunning 15-foot tree composed of dried flowers, live performances of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens’ great-great-grandson (Dec. 8-9), and an 18-room dollhouse filled with Lilliputian antiques and holiday decor. Locally: Centreville, Delaware, a way-stop on historic Kennett Pike, lies less than two miles from Winterthur. Grab breakfast all day at the Centreville Café before visiting the du Pont mansion-turned-museum. Decorate your own castle with contemporary and antique finds from shops like Adorn Goods, The Beehive, and Found.

Alfred I. du Pont, Samuel’s great-great grandson, loved showering his beloved second wife, Alicia, with gifts. The grandest was Nemours Estate, the opulent Wilmington mansion into which the newlyweds moved in 1910. Named for the du Pont ancestral home in France, the then-3,000-acre estate was everything Alicia adored: a Delaware chateau designed in the style of Louis XVI with formal gardens and a reflecting pool modeled after Versailles. The couple furnished Nemours with dazzling chandeliers, rare oriental rugs, and an impressive collection of original paintings. The du Ponts decorated for the holidays with equal opulence, inviting family, friends, and estate employees to celebrate with them.

Today, “Holidays at Nemours” welcomes the public to a Francophiles’ fantasy Christmas: marble mantels draped in garlands of flowers, greenery, and many of the du Ponts’ original Christmas decorations, including a rare, late 19th-century German crèche. On December Saturdays prior to Christmas, the estate extends its hours into the evening.

Don’t Miss: Ornaments hand-decorated by patients at the Nemours Children’s Hospital, which occupies part of the estate’s grounds, hand-blown glass on the mansion’s trees, and twin elk statues guarding the grounds.

For the last stop on your tour, visit the oldest of the family’s American estates, located just west of Nemours. Built in 1802 for Eleuthère Irénée du Pont, a gunpowder manufacturer, Eleutherian Mills perches on a hill overlooking the company’s first gunpowder yard on the banks of Brandywine Creek. The estate housed not only five generations of the du Pont family, but the first DuPont Company headquarters.

Today, they’re part of the larger Hagley Museum and Library, a Smithsonian affiliate, dedicated to the study of American business, technology, and innovation. The 235-acre museum complex includes restored mills, a workers’ village, and du Pont’s preserved Georgian-style home and gardens, where E.I. practiced botany. In early September, severe flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida extensively damaged the mill yard and lower half of the property, but the house, gardens, and library reopened shortly afterward. That means guests will be able to enjoy “Home for the Holidays,” with a celebratory family theme. Six of the residence’s 12 rooms will be dressed festively, much as its owners would have done in the 1920s when E.I.’s preservation-minded great-granddaughter, Louise, and her yachtsman husband, Frank Crowninshield, lived there.

Don’t Miss: Home-sweet-homes crafted by local families for Hagley’s annual gingerbread house competition through January 2, plus December twilight tours, a rare opportunity to see the festively decorated, softly lit Eleutherian Mills at its finest. Locally: The Hagley Museum and Nemours both sit on the eastern outskirts of Greenville, a popular shopping and dining destination for locals, including the First Family. The Bidens frequent Janssen’s gourmet grocery, where they breakfast with the grandkids, and PureBread Deli, whose savory house sandwiches are named for dog breeds. Pizza by Elizabeth’s, another local favorite, plays delicious name games, too, titling pies for celebrity Elizabeths (Taylor, Queen) and Bettys (Davis, Boop). Shoppers can satisfy holiday needs with artisan-made jewelry and clothing at Bloom, and fanciful gift wrap and cards from Whimsy.

On the banks of Brandywine Creek near Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, sits the Brandywine River Museum of Art, the pet project of a latter-day member of this illustrious family. Best known for its collection of art by the revered Wyeth family, the museum is noted also for popular holiday displays, including the O-gauge Brandywine model railroad and an atrium-tall evergreen festooned with “critter” ornaments handmade from natural materials. Closed due to Hurricane Ida flooding, the museum and its holiday plans remained in limbo at press time.

We never thought we’d say these words, but Lancaster, Pennsylvania, is having a moment right now. Known for so long as “the place with the Amish buggies,” this city, located in the hilly commonwealth countryside (and only a quick hour-and-a-half drive from Baltimore), has recently emerged with its own personality. And it’s a surprisingly hip one.

Surprising because, well, it’s just so dang old. Lancaster—one of the oldest inland cities in the United States—was settled in 1709 by German immigrants known as the Pennsylvania Dutch. It officially became Lancaster 20 years later, when a British citizen named it after his hometown in England. (Locally, Lancaster is pronounced “lank-iss-tr” not “lan-kast-r.”) It even served as the nation’s capital for exactly one day during the Revolutionary War—September 27, 1777.

Today, the Lancaster Central Market—open Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays—is the heart of the city and its revival. Around since 1730, it’s the oldest continuously run public farmers’ market in the country. On one fall afternoon, post-yoga women peruse French breakfast radishes at Groff’s vegetable stand. Kids chow down on whoopie pies, a cakey cream-filled chocolate treat that originated in Lancaster County, and retirees shop the long aisles, illuminated by skylights overhead. There’s something for everyone—African cuisine, Cuban sandwiches, aged goat cheese, and more herbs and grains than you could use in a lifetime—a fusion of old and new.

That seems to be what Lancaster has done so well—hold on to tradition (Mennonite men in their straw hats and beards selling butchered meats) while embracing innovation and the future (countless boutiques and a restaurant scene The New York Times called “a global feast in an unlikely spot.”) And while you might head home and start Googling condos in The Lancaster Press Building (it’s a four-minute walk to the market), an even better idea might be a day trip or an overnighter in a place that’s easily walkable and pleasant in all seasons (albeit a bit nippy in winter—pack accordingly).

→ EAT

Lancaster’s food scene has grown into more than just the chicken pot pies and apple dumplings of the Pennsylvania Dutch.

To start the day, Commonwealth on Queen is a go-to for brunch, with a menu overflowing with toasts, though the real star is a smoked salmon and arugula eggs Benedict. Similarly, the Bistro Barberet & Bakery, owned by former Le Bec-Fin executive pastry chef Cedric Barberet, features a lovely bistro menu, but its standout is the bakery, brimming with all the favorites: crème brulée, tiramisu, tarts, macarons, croissants, and eclairs indulgently filled with vanilla, pistachio, and dark chocolate cream.

We’re partial to Max’s Eatery, too, a foodie’s diner that’s perfect for kids. Breakfast is served all day, and even as an adult, it’s amazing how magical a cereal bar with unlimited refills of Fruit Loops and Lucky Charms sounds.

That being said, if you want to spend less time eating and more time taking in the sights, swing by Silantra Asian Street Kitchen for fast-casual Chinese that’s also family-friendly. Think Chipotle but with scallion burritos and sides like shrimp chips with sweet chili sauce and sweet potato fries with wasabi mayo.

After a blustery afternoon, head indoors to Luca for a rustic Italian dinner featuring the likes of bruschetta with handmade burrata and local figs, pappardelle with pork ragu and smoked buttermilk, and their famous wood-fired pizza with spicy tomato sauce, shaved garlic, soppressata, mozzarella, and hot honey. (They’ve also adopted the “Living Wage” initiative to bring equality to kitchen staffs, with a small service charge applied to all food purchases for the back-of-house employees.)

Lancaster holds on to tradition while embracing innovation and the future.

→ DRINK

These days, when it comes to measuring a town’s hipness, there may be no better way to judge than by its coffee shops. And Passenger Coffee & Tea’s King Street cafe—located less than a mile from their roastery—gets a perfect score. The coffee, made by baristas who have mastered the craft, is as smooth as the simplistic décor: wooden benches with soft leather backings, white walls, penny-round floors. And while we could sit and people-watch all day from the shared courtyard with the market—there’s wandering to do.

Ask an Irishman his favorite bar and you know it’s always going to be good. Tellus360 did not disappoint, with its notable selection of whiskeys, beers, and local craft brews, not to mention a super impressive 10,000-square-foot green roof with actual lush gardens as part of an ongoing attempt to reduce storm water runoff in Lancaster. (You’ll have to go back in the spring for that, of course, though currently it’s an après-ski bar, complete with fireplaces to keep guests warm and cozy.)

Just a short walk from downtown, Thistle Finch Distillery is located in the former Walter Schnader Tobacco Warehouse. Tours run on Saturdays and Sundays, giving patrons a chance to taste the small-batch whiskey, gin, and vodka made with locally sourced grains in their custom copper pot still. They mix a mean cocktail, too.

If you like your drinks with a side of amusement, you have to hit Decades, a six-lane bowling alley and arcade with a full bar. Inside the historic Stahr Armory, the 80-year-old, 15,000-square-foot gymnasium—which looks like a beer hall and a roller-skating rink had a baby—is SkeeBall, Donkey Kong, Ms. Pacman, Frogger, and Centipede (among a ton of other retro games), as well as lanes of ten-pin that are first-come first-served. Both the beer and cocktail offerings are strong; this time of year, try the “Double Agent,” made with aperol and vermouth, topped with hefeweizen beer and garnished with orange and clove.

→ SHOP

One of the reasons Lancaster has been compared to Brooklyn is its independent shops that speckle the streets, from the stellar Mr. Suit Records vinyl shop to Sweetish Candy, a store that sells—you guessed it—only Swedish candy, to the super popular Foxduck boutique with its locally designed and ethically made apparel that highlights the city. Meanwhile, Ellicott & Co. is a little like the handsome guy you still think about from college—smells good, looks good, and knows how to use a cast-iron skillet; tucked into a side street, this men’s store is packed full of American-made apparel, accessories, and home goods. Mark your calendar, as many of the 200-plus boutiques stay open late on December 12 for extra holiday shopping.

But is it really a trip to Lancaster if you don’t stop by Building Character, a marketplace with 70-plus independent shops selling vintage, recycled, and handmade items like locally made jewelry, furniture, artwork, and lots of postcards and photographs that walk the line between old-fashioned and creepy? And a block away, its sister store, Madcap & Co., has an impressive selection of locally made items, too, from mugs and coasters to candles and cards to plants and penny candy. It’s easy to spend a good hour inside, convincing yourself you do need a tote bag that says, “Lancaster is fricking awesome,” cheekily attributed to James Buchanan, the 15th U.S. president.

→ DO & SEE

Speaking of Buchanan, who is historically considered one of the worst presidents ever, you can visit Wheatland, his 1828 Federal-style house, right outside the city. Just take your time getting there—Buchanan Avenue, President Avenue, and Marietta Avenue are full of gorgeous houses that are fun to gawk at. Tours are led by knowledgeable guides in period costumes. Yuletide at Wheatland is a particularly stunning time to visit, with rooms overflowing with Christmas décor, plus festive music and games.

If your kids grew up going to Dutch Wonderland, introduce them to the Lancaster Science Factory. It’s a small museum (which just underwent an expansion) where kids can explore science, engineering, and technology with hands-on displays. The Clair Brothers, a local live touring production company—they’ve done sound for artists including the likes of Elton John and Metallica—sponsored a stage at the museum complete with sound and lighting elements for the kids to experiment with. On top of that, if you have a Maryland Science Center membership, admission is free.

It’s a town that seems to have a kinship with Baltimore: lots of history and quirkiness.

If you can, plan your trip around a show at the Fulton—it’s the oldest working theater in America and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964. The building itself stands on the foundation of Lancaster’s pre-Revolutionary jail, and the exterior wall of the prison courtyard is now the theater’s back wall. Erected in 1852, it was designed by the renowned Philadelphia architect Samuel Sloan to serve as a community center for meetings, lectures, concerts, and theatrical performances.

→ STAY

Although Lancaster is a pretty straight shot up 83 (with a gorgeous drive over the mighty Susquehanna River), staying over is always a great option, especially with top-notch lodgings including the Lancaster Arts Hotel, an industrial, art-heavy lodge located in a former warehouse, and the Cork Factory Hotel with its stylish rooms in a building that once housed the historic Armstrong Cork & Kerr Glass companies. If you spend the night, you can pop over to the Kitchen Kettle Village—a 20-minute drive from downtown—for loads of Pennsylvania Dutch treats and goods (jams, relishes, quilts) that happen to make great gifts. And they do it right for the holidays, too—Christmas lights, caroling, and s’mores.

But no matter the season, it’s easy to fall in love with Lancaster—and not just because of the whoopie pies. It’s a town that seems to have a kinship with Baltimore: lots of history, quirkiness, independent shops, great restaurants, love of markets. It’s the kind of place you leave and then immediately start planning your next trip to. In fact, we’ve already been back twice.

While we aim to spread peace and goodwill during the holiday season, a home full of visiting family and bored kids on winter vacation can quickly bring out the worst in even the best hosts. When you’ve run out of things to do at home (we get it—you can only watch so many Hallmark Channel movies), break the cabin fever and get the whole crew out of the house. Crisp, sunny days call for a walk through nature, and area gardens and conservancies like the Eastern Shore’s Adkins Arboretum or Harpers Ferry National Historic Park in West Virginia more than deliver.

While many are more popular in the spring and summer months when foliage is in full bloom, winter offers a different—and sometimes better—perspective, like at the Wolf Sanctuary of PA in Lititz, where animals are most active in colder temperatures. Don’t let bad weather hold you back, either. The anticipation of sampling a hot, crisp potato chip straight off the factory line will get even the most skeptical kids into the car on a gloomy day for a tour of Southern Pennsylvania’s Utz Factory. Or explore the Main Streets of historic Middleburg, Virginia, which amp up their signature small-town charm with holiday décor. The best part? All 10 of these family-approved winter adventures are within a 2-hour drive from Baltimore.

Catch a Glimpse

A guided tour of the Wolf Sanctuary of PA (465 Speedwell Forge Rd., Lititz, PA, 717-626-4617) gives visitors an inside look into the daily lives and unique personalities of the more than 40 wolves (and wolf-dogs) who have found a home at this 80-plus-acre wooded property in Pennsylvania Dutch country. What started as a private rescue more than 30 years ago has evolved into a nonprofit educational center that provides food, shelter, and veterinary care to wolves who couldn’t survive in nature. (The creatures are exceedingly rare, as wild wolves haven’t lived in the Keystone State for more than 100 years.)

Strap on your hiking boots, and in less than 2 hours, you’ll be in awe of the raw power and grace of animals such as Sir Bear, a fluffy grey-and-white wolf with golden eyes who was rescued from a private zoo. For the chance to see all the packs, book a private tour in advance.

If birds of prey are more your style, pack binoculars and head to the Conowingo Dam (4948 Conowingo Rd., Conowingo, 410-457-5011), which attracts more than 100 bald eagles throughout the fall and winter. The spot on the Susquehanna River is well known among bird watchers as one of the best places east of the Mississippi to spot large groups of the eagles, which come here to fish. Serious spectators gather before sunrise to stake out a prime location along the overlook railing, as the national birds feast just 30 yards away along the opposite river bank. Those interested in learning more about local wildlife should stop by the visitor center or escape the throngs of photographers by walking part of the Lower Susquehanna Heritage Greenway Trail. An improved section of the wide, flat path follows the river’s west bank for 2.2 miles, beginning at the dam parking lot and ending at the trout-filled Deer Creek.

Feed the Munchies

Got a craving for a mid-week getaway? Get those couch potatoes off the sofa and on the road for a tour of Southern Pennsylvania’s snack factories. Just an hour north across the state line, start with Snyder’s of Hanover (1350 York St., Hanover, PA, 800-233-7125), where a 30-minute guided tour walks visitors through the pretzel baking process, from the raw ingredient warehouse to the heavenly smell of the oven room. Less than a half-hour northeast in Thomasville, rival treat-toter Martin’s (5847 W. Lincoln Hwy., Thomasville, PA, 717-792-3265) offers one of the most immersive excursions in the area (if you can convince your family to don hairnets). The 45-minute tour follows the potato from truck to fryer, with salty chip samples along the way.

Balance out the savory snacks by continuing north to Hershey’s Chocolate World (101 Chocolate World Way, Hershey, PA, 717-534-4900), where you can indulge your inner Willy Wonka by creating your own chocolate bar or let the experts guide you through an equally delicious tasting. Finally, on your way home, stop at the Utz Factory (900 High St. Hanover, PA, 800-367-7629), where a small museum displays old objects such as retro tin packaging and Sallie Utz’ original potato slicer, which dates back to the 1920s. Take the stairs up to the glass observation deck to look down on the busy production floor before hitting up the nearby factory outlet on Carlisle Street to shop the brand’s full selection of flavors.

Day Trip With a View

Set on the banks of Brandywine Creek in Pennsylvania, bucolic Chadds Ford is best known for inspiring the work of a generation of early 20th-century painters and illustrators, much of which is now on display at the Brandywine River Museum of Art (1 Hoffmans Mill Rd., Chadds Ford, PA, 610-388-2700). Perched along the water’s edge, the museum houses a permanent collection that includes 19th- and 20th-century landscapes that reflect the beauty of the surrounding countryside. Most notable is the work of 20th-century realist painter Andrew Wyeth, alongside that of his father, illustrator N.C. Wyeth (revered for his early illustrations of Treasure Island and Last of the Mohicans), and his son, contemporary painter Jamie Wyeth. (Nearby, guided tours of Wyeth studios provide a more personal glimpse into the local artists’ lives.) Through January 7, nearly 2,000 feet of model train track will also take over the atrium for the beloved seasonal exhibition, A Brandywine Christmas.

For more natural wonders in the Brandywine Valley, drive 10 minutes west to Longwood Gardens (1001 Longwood Rd., Kennett Square, 610-388-1000). With nearly 400 acres accessible to the public, plan to spend three to four hours exploring the historic grounds and their outdoor gardens that range from formal to whimsical. If you get chilly, move inside the conservatory to see the Indoor Children’s Garden, designed to engage little ones with fanciful sculptures and fountains, or the iconic Orangery greenhouse, decked with poinsettias and Christmas trees during the holiday season. Through January 7, A Longwood Christmas also transforms the gardens into a festive display inspired by the splendor of France’s Versailles. Think glittering mirrors, ornate topiaries, and more than 50 decorated trees, with choreographed fountain shows, strolling carolers, and thousands of twinkling lights.

Looking for an Eastern Shore adventure? Get outside with a visit to the Adkins Arboretum (12610 Eveland Rd., Ridgely, 410-634-2847), set on 400 acres adjacent to Tuckahoe State Park. Start at the visitors center, where staff will point you to what’s in bloom or where to catch a glimpse of wildlife while helping you map out your visit. Borrow an audio guide for a 35-stop tour along the 5 miles of paths or to discover the little-known connection between the local scenery and the Underground Railroad. Kids can get their hands in the dirt at the Children’s Funshine Garden, designed with sensory education in mind, or let out some energy at the First Light Village Playspace. Made almost entirely of natural materials, this scout-built play area includes wigwams, tree stumps, and a balance beam that’s sure to tire out your young explorers before it’s time to head home.

Get Back on the Saddle

Located two hours away, the small town of Middleburg, Virginia, (population: 828) transforms into an idyllic holiday destination beginning with its all-out Christmas parade on the first Saturday of December. Walk the brick sidewalks of Washington Street, where antique shops and boutiques have made homes out of historic stone and brick buildings. On the corner of Madison Street, the Red Fox Inn & Tavern (2 E. Washington St., Middleburg, VA, 540-687-6301)—a dormered fieldstone structure trimmed with wreaths and garland—has been serving travelers since 1728. Inside at the Night Fox Pub, you can warm up with a glass of wine from one of the area’s many vineyards. Known as the nation’s horse and hunt capital, Middleburg became a destination for foxhunting and steeplechasing at the turn of the 20th century. Learn more at the National Sporting Library & Museum (102 The Plains Rd., Middleburg, VA, 540-687-6542), a research center for horse and field sports with a special exhibition (through January 14) that showcases the equine in ancient Greek art, including pottery and coins dating back centuries.

Escape to the Ice

Nothing says holiday fun quite like lacing up a pair of ice skates. Luckily, outdoor rinks pop up throughout the state starting early in the winter season. Beginning in November, families can flock to the expansive, tree-lined ice rink at Quiet Waters Park (600 Quiet Waters Park Rd., Annapolis, 410-222-1777) in Anne Arundel County, equipped with a sturdy framework for less-experienced skaters in need of training wheels. (Just be sure to bring cash or checks, as admission and skate rentals don’t accept credit cards.) At Frank J. Hutchins Memorial Park (121 St. John St., Havre de Grace, 410-638-3570) in Harford County, skaters swirl around a synthetic ice rink that’s run by a different nonprofit group each week during the holiday season in exchange for a portion of profits.

Only have a few hours to spare? You can still get the blood flowing at the Pandora Ice Rink (201 E. Pratt St., 443-743-3308) at Baltimore’s Inner Harbor through January 15, part of the annual “It’s a Waterfront Life” holiday events hosted by the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore. The 6,000-square-foot rink is located at the top of the Harbor Amphitheater at the corner of Light and Pratt streets, beneath the shimmer of the city skyline and in view of the USS Constellation. Really looking to stretch your legs? At 7,200 square feet, the outdoor rink in the Rockville Town Square (131 Gibbs St., Rockville, 301-545-1999) plaza is the largest outdoor rink in Montgomery County, with themed nights where you can throw it back to the ’90s or spin to Michael Jackson’s greatest hits. While you’re headed toward Western Maryland, swing by Silver Spring’s outdoor rink at Veterans Plaza (8523 Fenton St., Silver Spring, 301-588-1221) with its colorfully lighted pavilion roof. (Bonus points: both rinks remain open through March.)

Step Back in Time

Historic Harpers Ferry—known for its role in the Civil War and as the midpoint of the Appalachian Trail—is on the easternmost edge of West Virginia, where it borders both Virginia and Maryland at the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers. This tiny town—spread over little more than a half square mile—features a quaint Lower Town neighborhood that turns green from late November to early January with evergreen garlands and festive wreaths throughout its winding streets. Dive into history at the John Brown Wax Museum (168 High St., Harpers Ferry, WV, 304-535-6342), which follows the tale of an area abolitionist who led a raid on the town’s arsenal in the 1850s, and discover many other landmarks from the Civil War era sprinkled throughout the town.

Harpers Ferry National Historic Park (767 Shenandoah St., Harpers Ferry, WV, 304-535-6029) is home to 20 miles of hiking trails, ranging from easy, riverside strolls to hardcore hikes across Civil War battlefields and up steep mountaintops to scenic vistas. At the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s AT midpoint, kids can earn a “Junior Ranger” patch by completing an activity booklet, while the C&O Canal trail passes through the heart of town. If weather permits, follow the footbridge across the Potomac River to tackle the Maryland Heights Trail for panoramic views of the valley. If you’re looking to extend your trip, Shepherdstown, West Virginia, is another charming area with antique stores, craft galleries, and a historic opera house. (It is also rumored to be the most haunted town in America, inhabited by the spirits of the wounded soldiers from the Battle of Antietam.) Across the river in Sharpsburg, Maryland, that very Antietam National Battlefield (302 E. Main St., Sharpsburg, 301-432-5124) is also worth a visit.

Get Out of This World

Need an escape that transcends the DMV? Transport the family to another planet with an easy trip to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (600 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, D.C., 202-633-2214) on the National Mall. Kids will love How Things Fly, a hands-on exhibit where they can push, pull, and twist their way to understanding the concept of flight. Gadget-lovers shouldn’t miss a collection of Military Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (basically super-drones).

If the thought of braving D.C. tourist spots during the holidays sends your blood pressure sky-high, opt for the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center (14390 Air and Space Museum Pkwy., Chantilly, VA, 703-572-4118)—the museum’s companion facility in Northern Virginia. Its two huge hangars are home to the Space Shuttle Discovery and a super-sonic Concorde operated by Air France. You’ll also find memorabilia from the U.S. space program, such as the backpack propulsion device used to make the first untethered space walk and a collection of artifacts belonging to Charles Lindbergh, the first solo pilot to fly across the Atlantic Ocean.

For many, Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands region is drive-by territory, a heavily forested blur seen through the car window as they barrel down the Pennsylvania Turnpike past the region’s exit signs (New Stanton, Donegal, Somerset) toward other destinations. But the area’s 3,000 square miles of glorious mountaintops, deep green valleys, winding rivers, stunning vistas, and bucolic towns deserve your time and attention.

Only three and a half hours from Baltimore, this slice of southwestern Pennsylvania offers a veritable wonderland of outdoor activities, including white-water rafting on the Youghiogheny River (probably the most popular white-water run east of the Mississippi), endless hiking through rugged mountains (the state’s highest) on the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail, and biking on the Great Allegheny Passage, a more than 150-mile trail that winds past spectacular and varied scenery. But the region is more than just a sportsman’s paradise. It is home to one of the most famous architectural landmarks in the world—Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater—plus several other lesser-known architectural gems either designed by or related to the maverick genius.

Add in luxurious resorts, pampering spas, quality dining options, numerous breweries, an amusement park, and even a casino, and there’s no reason not to stop.

Seeking Shelter

Even if you’re not an architecture aficionado, no trip to the Laurel Highlands would be complete without a visit to what many consider Frank Lloyd Wright’s most important work: Fallingwater (1491 Mill Run Road, Mill Run, 724-329-8501).

“The house with a waterfall running through it” is how it’s often described, which makes for an irresistible (if slightly inaccurate) lure to anyone with half an imagination.

Commissioned by Pittsburgh department store mogul Edgar J. Kaufmann for his family’s summer “cottage,” the project grew under Wright’s direction into an iconoclastic structure that epitomized his aim to achieve a dynamic union between dwelling and nature. The house—5,000-plus square feet of concrete and steel straddling the rushing falls of Bear Run—was built between 1936 and 1938, became a museum in 1963, and was named a National Historic Landmark in 1966. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects dubbed the house “the best all-time work of American architecture.”

And yet, even with its outsized legend, Fallingwater still stuns because, as its website notes, nothing “can compare to the experience of visiting in person.”

Feel the temperature drop as you follow a gurgling creek toward the house. Watch the cantilevered concrete roofs appear through the trees, hovering like a great ship over the void. Enter the glass-lined living area and hear fellow tour-takers gasp at the sense of spaciousness and light. Feel the churning water below as it vibrates through the sandstone floor. Inhale the distinct scent of moisture, like the watery fragrance of leaves, and decide that even if the house leaks—which it famously does—who cares? Every inch of it, from the built-in furnishings to the bathrooms, is a wonder. Tours run daily from early March to late November, and reservations are strongly encouraged.

“The house with a waterfall running through it” is how it’s often described.

If you can’t get in to see Fallingwater, don’t be discouraged. It turns out the Laurel Highlands contain a trove of Wright works. The more modest Kentuck Knob (723 Kentuck Road, Dunbar, 724-329-1901) is a 15-minute drive from Fallingwater. And 20 miles north lies Polymath Park (187 Evergreen Lane, Acme, 877-833-7829), the 125-acre setting for a Wright-designed home, plus three others by Wright acolytes, each rentable for an overnight stay.

An in-depth tour of Kentuck Knob reveals the home’s subtle appeal. Finished in 1956, it’s a shining example of a Wright Usonian home (i.e., small and affordable), delightful not only for its beauty but also for its utter livability. Design details such as the hexagonal kitchen with 15-foot ceilings, filtered skylight, stainless countertops, and flip-down burners (to save counter space) make you realize how profoundly Wright influenced our ideas about how to live. And unlike Fallingwater, which feels fragile and otherworldly, this home is a rugged aerie, as solid as the carefully placed boulders surrounding the property. No leaks or design flaws here, just a seamless meshing of structure and site, like the gorgeous dining terrace overlooking the wooded hills.

“The common wisdom about Kentuck Knob is that Fallingwater is great to visit, but this is the house you’d want to live in,” says Mary Ann Perkins, the home’s manager of visitor services.

This year is an especially good time to visit Kentuck Knob as it celebrates its 60th anniversary and 20th year of holding public tours, with special events on the last Friday of every month and themed farm-to-table dinners.

Into the Woods

One can’t live on architecture alone, so refuel at Bittersweet Café (205 Farmington-Ohiopyle Road, Farmington, 724-329-4411), which you can find on the road to Fallingwater. It’s precisely the kind of breakfast and lunch spot you’d want on a rural idyll—cozy, family-owned, and stocked with all kinds of bakery treats, coffees, and sandwiches made with things like homemade red pepper jelly and free-range eggs.

Or make a stop in Ohiopyle, a tiny settlement surrounded by the 20,500-acre wilderness of Ohiopyle State Park. There you can find pizza parlors, pubs, cafes, and a general store. In summertime, this place is party central for paddlers, bikers, and hikers because it’s close to the terminus of the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail. Grab something to go and eat along the banks of the Youghiogheny River (aka the “Yough”), where rafters and white-water kayakers of all levels can ply rapids that range from classes I to V. If you’re feeling adventurous and want to join in the fun, there are plenty of outdoors outfitters in town happy to rent gear and lead excursions.

For a slightly less wild version of nature, head to family-friendly Idlewild and SoakZone (2574 Route 30 East, Ligonier, 724-238-3666), named “Best Kids’ Park in the World” by Amusement Today. Set amid rolling woodlands on the Loyalhanna Creek, the park is a pastoral respite from the “thrill-ride” vibe of most amusement parks, and features the enchanting Storybook Forest along with, of course, plenty of water-oriented rides and activities.

Pampering in PA

After communing with nature, you’ll probably want to commune with a shower and bed, so head back to your lodging. There are all kinds of places to stay in the Laurel Highlands, from the aforementioned Polymath Park and, for glampers, Campbell Farm (1723 Fort Hill Road, Fort Hill, 814-395-5335), to cozy B&Bs and world-class resorts.

Of the resorts, none loom larger than the AAA five-diamond-rated Nemacolin Woodlands Resort (1001 Lafayette Drive, Farmington, 866-344-6957), a resort so large and comprehensive it constitutes a destination all its own. You can do practically anything you want without leaving the grounds—ski in the winter, swim in the summer, play golf on a Pete Dye-designed course, fly-fish, get a spa treatment, shop, or dine in a different restaurant almost every night. Opt for the farm-to-table Autumn and enjoy housemade ricotta gnudi with ramp pistou and pan-seared lamb loin. Or try the upscale Lautrec with its tasting menu studded with indulgent treats like truffles, lobster, and foie gras.

Nemacolin also contains an improbably quirky mix of pleasures to explore, the product of founder and 84 Lumber tycoon Joe Hardy’s irrepressible passions. For example, there’s an interactive wildlife academy, where you can go on safari or on a dogsledding expedition. Walk the grounds or the halls of the various buildings and you’ll encounter priceless objects from the multimillion-dollar Hardy family art collection, which contains everything from Calder mobiles to paintings by the likes of Toulouse-Lautrec and Frank Stella—and that’s not even mentioning the antique car collection or the on-site casino.

Last year saw the completion of a $75 million renovation at Nemacolin, so you can expect updated accommodations in any of the complex’s three hotels, including the truly monumental Chateau Lafayette, which is inspired by the Ritz Paris. (Private townhomes and fully detached residences also are available for rent. Plus there is a pet care center called, adorably, Nemacolin Wooflands.)

In summertime, Ohiopyle is party central for paddlers, bikers, and hikers.

But if there is one thing you must do at Nemacolin, it’s order a pampering treatment in either the full-service spa or the new Holistic Healing Center. Sign up for stress relief therapy with the center’s director of operations, Stephanie Wendell, and she’ll thoughtfully lead you through an interactive session combining massage and energy healing to help you identify your inner happy place.

Or pursue your happiness (which, by the way, is Pennsylvania’s official state slogan) by traveling a few miles down the legendary Lincoln Highway (U.S. Route 30), the nation’s first coast-to-coast thoroughfare. Built in 1913, the two-lane road meanders through the kind of scenery that will make you forget it’s 2016: sublime vistas of rolling farmland and charming little towns boasting antique stores and farmers’ markets. Stop at historic landmarks both old and new, from the pre-Revolutionary Fort Ligonier (200 S. Market St., Ligonier, 724-238-9701) to the recently opened visitor center at the Flight 93 National Memorial (6424 Lincoln Highway, Stoystown, 814-893-6322). The Lincoln Highway Experience in Latrobe (3435 Route 30, 724-879-4241) provides an excellent overview of the road’s history and its many points of interest.

While in Latrobe, “research” the area’s newest brewery, Four Seasons Brewing Company & Pub (745 Lloyd Ave. Extension, Latrobe, 724-520-4111), where microbrew enthusiasts can sample about a dozen handcrafted ales and stouts while enjoying live local music on weekends.

And speaking of live music, the annual Flood City Music Festival roars into Johnstown from Aug. 4-7 (Peoples Natural Gas Park, 90 Johns St.). A celebration of American roots music, this year’s festival kicks off with the blues-inflected music of rock artist Grace Potter and continues on with a 25-act roster that includes soul singer Charles Bradley and New Orleans roots-rockers The Revivalists. Just one more good excuse to sample the multiple charms of Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands.