You’re sipping a limited edition supra-9% Troegs Independent Brewing craft creation. Now you’re touring and tasting your way through the oldest brewery in America. Then, indulging in way too much ice cream but justifying the gluttony by calling it support for a local creamery whose cows are just down the road. Oh, and you’re enjoying this ice cream on idyllic green farmland surrounded by baby goats and pecking hens. The sunlight is hitting everything just perfectly, the wind is blowing in the right direction, and all that. Can you imagine? You can find this in southeast Pennsylvania!

I never would have expected to plan a trip to the smaller cities of southeast Pennsylvania— Lancaster, Hershey, and Pottsville to be more specific. I’ve been to Philadelphia, yes. (And we LOVE Neshaminy Creek Brewing, another of our favorite Northeast breweries located just north of Philly.) But the smaller cities usually don’t make it onto many people’s bucket lists. But unjustifiably so! I was so pleasantly surprised by our time here in Pennsylvania. And (like I haven’t mentioned it enough already), there’s some great beer to be found.

People usually visit Lancaster to experience Amish culture, but I have got to say (unsurprisingly) that the highlight of the trip for us was the wondrously yummy beer along the way. Keep reading for the itinerary, where to eat, what to see, and most importantly where to drink!

Beer-Centric 3 Days in Lancaster and Hershey, Pennsylvania

The COVID pandemic really limited our geographic choices when it came to planning our upcoming vacation. We (along with what seems like every other human being residing in the New York City area) had already taken a road trip to Acadia National Park in Maine. We’d also already done the local thing and visited Jersey Shore and Atlantic City. We felt it was time to head a bit west. (Just a bit west, severely limited by pandemic-era regulations.) But it all worked out— read on to see what we did for our short 3-day trip and how to plan your own best time possible in Lancaster and Hershey, PA!

3 Day Trip To Hershey and Lancaster, Pennsylvania Itinerary

Day ONE:

Troegs Independent Brewing

200 Hersheypark Dr, Hershey, PA 17033

(717) 534-1297

Alright. Time for a bit of backstory on my relationship with Troegs beer. As you know, I’m from Dallas and (naturally) am in love with the Texas style of craft beer. The notes are complex and layered, with a focus on unique flavor combinations. Stouts in particularly have stolen my heart and I suppose I was either spoiled by the stout-heavy culture in Dallas or am just partial to that regional flavor profile. Either way, I’ve been sorely disappointed by most of the stouts offered by breweries in these upper latitudes and have had to get used to the more intense hoppy flavor of the IPA-centric Northeast palate. BUT! Enter Troegs. We happened upon a random Troegs 6-pack at our local beer shop when we lived in Hoboken, New Jersey and ~~oh my lordie. It tasted like home. Since then, we’ve tried their other brews countless times and literally no beer has disappointed. Needless to say, I was thrilled to have the chance to visit Troegs brewery in Hershey, PA.

This brewery is known for hosting a wonderful brewery tour but this was sadly (but reasonably) not being offered at the time of our visit due to COVID. No matter— just another reason for me to pay them a return visit!

Beers here are not only wonderful in taste but also delightful in price, ranging around the $6 mark for a pint of your choice. They also offer smaller pours and flights, if you’d rather not fill up on a single larger offering.

Hershey Story Museum

63 W Chocolate Ave, Hershey, PA 17033

717-534-8939

While in Hershey, you just cannot not spend some time enjoying the delicious chocolatey by-product of Milton S. Hershey’s contribution to the city of Hershey, Pennsylvania. If you’re like me and are short on time but unwilling to sacrifice on taste, head on over to the Hershey Story Museum. It offers informative and interactive experiences that honestly sounded more geared towards kids, but we went for the chocolate. Pro tip: the chocolate tasting is offered at the front of the museum and does not require purchase of an admission ticket to the actual museum. You can just come in to the cafe (to the left of the main entrance) and order up. You can get a flight of 6 different hot chocolates (thick, creamy, complex “drinking chocolates”) for $11.00, or a half flight of 3 for $6.50. These drinking chocolates are from all over the world, ranging from 75% to 33% cacao, and were all so yummy and different! It’s striking how distinctively “Hershey-like” the Hershey milk chocolate one was, you’ll know what I mean when you go and taste it for yourself!

Hershey Chocolate World

101 Chocolate World Way, Hershey, PA 17033

717-534-4900

We honestly were not that excited for Hershey Chocolate World, given the existence of a more easily accessible Hershey Chocolate World in Times Square and the fact that we weren’t interested in riding the rides (many of which were closed for COVID anyway). We ended up visiting the Hershey location anyway, and I’m glad we did! We rode the super adorable, leisurely coaster ride tour that showcased the production of Hershey chocolate. The enormous gift shop area was an attraction that held it’s own, and reminded me of the M&M’s World in Times Square NYC. I still don’t think I would drive out to Hershey Chocolate World as a singular destination, but given that Troegs Brewery is also in Hershey, I may become a frequent flyer…

Dinner at Pho Pasteur 3

2204 Columbia Ave, Lancaster, PA 17603

717-517-7360

Lancaster, PA has a surprisingly sizeable collection of Vietnamese restaurants! I get excited whenever Yelp or Google Maps shows me a Vietnamese community with a cluster of Vietnamese restaurants and maybe an Asian grocery store or 2. This happened in Lancaster, PA of all places.

I’m going to keep sounding like a Texas snob (and I unabashedly am), but Texas has some legit Vietnamese fare. The authenticity of Houston pho joints (and also that of some Dallas spots) consistently holds up against those piping bowls of pho I still dream about from our trip to Vietnam. At least within USA, Houston is my benchmark for pho and nowhere in New York City has come close so far (please let me know of any good pho joints in NYC and I will gladly try it out!).

Back to Lancaster. Pho Pasteur 3 DELIVERED. No, not like they physically brought the food to my home. Their food delivered. The broth was clean but rich, noodles were springy, meat was plentiful, veggies were fresh, price was reasonable (around $10 for the large bowl). The large bowl was also LARGE. It was perfect. Would absolutely repeat.

Lancaster Brewing Company

302 N Plum St, Lancaster, PA 17602

717-391-6258

Lancaster Brewing Company is a cute brewery with a small-neighborhood feel but big-city brewery draft list. We took a growler home to enjoy at our AirBnB.

Day TWO:

Hike Pulpit Rock

Pulpit Rock Trail is a loop along the part of the Appalachian Trail that cuts through Hamburg, Pennsylvania. It offers some spectacular views at the peak, especially during leaf-peeping season. It’s quite highly-rated on AllTrails and we enjoyed the fall foliage views. But let’s face it, you know the real reason we chose this particular hike was because it was on the way to…

Yuengling Brewery

420 Mahantongo St, Pottsville, PA 17901

570-628-4890

Ah, Yuengling. It was established in 1829, survived rebuilding after a devastating fire in 1831, almost collapsed in the age of Prohibition in the 1920’s, and now stands proudly as America’s Oldest Brewery. Luckily Yuengling was still offering brewery tours and we were fortunate enough to see some of their production facilities and historic sites like the old-school staff lunchroom, employee time clocks, and the original hand-dug caves previously used to keep beer at the proper temperature.

Meduseld Meadery

252 Harrisburg Ave, Lancaster, PA 17603

717-208-6144

More alcohol? Yes. Meduseld Meadery offers craft mead (and also beer, but while at a meadery even I opted against the beer) in a quirky viking-themed locale. Plus, they had axe-throwing. Sharp weapons mixed with alcohol? Don’t worry— the axe-throwing was heavily supervised and nobody seemed even the least bit tipsy over in the hatchet-wielding area. Mead is a little more expensive (a flight of 16oz total cost $18), but craft meaderies are also harder to come by compared to craft breweries and the ABV of mead is significantly higher than that of most beers. One more positive note from our experience at Meduseld Meadery: the head meadmaker came by our table to chat with us and tell us about his ongoing mead projects, and brought us a few samples! Our tasting experience was made so much richer after learning his process of using parts of one batch to make the next.

Day THREE:

Lancaster Central Market

23 N Market St, Lancaster, PA 17603

717-735-6890

Lancaster Central Market is one of those “things to do” in Lancaster, PA. It is only open 6am-3pm on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays so plan accordingly! This indoor market was reminiscent of the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia. It was made up of aisles of stalls offering everything from coffee to baked goods to fresh produce to handmade pasta to textile products and gifts. What did we buy, you ask? We got milk. What? Yes, two small individual-sized containers of milk. And boy, oh boy, was this milk delicious. It was like sweet cream that just tasted naturally sweet and creamy. I know I’m offering you a horribly nondescript description of how this milk tasted but maybe that means you just have to go to Maplehofe Dairy Farm and try it yourself. Then come back and let me know how to put that delectable feeling into words.

Amish Farm and House

2395 Covered Bridge Dr, Lancaster, PA 17602

717-394-6185

This was already Day #3 in Lancaster, PA and as you may have noticed there was no mention yet of the Amish people. Lancaster is by no means defined by the Amish population and vice versa, but while in the area I was curious to learn a bit more about Amish culture and lifestyle. A few Google searches brought me to Amish Farm and House, a 15-acre farm with a genuine Amish farmhouse (currently turned into an exhibition). There are a handful of companies offering educational tours on Amish lifestyle but Amish Farm and House stands out as the oldest Amish attraction (since 1955). Online reviews praised Amish Farm and House for their genuinity and while I have no firsthand experience to put that to the test, I can say that our tour guide was very informative, honest, and respectful of the Amish people of Lancaster and their philosophies.

Pro-tip: Allocate at least a couple of hours to visit Amish Farm and House. The grounds are extensive and you can fill an afternoon with their self-guided tour of the inner workings of an Amish farm, kick-scooter run, historic covered bridge, fields of animals (obviously the goats were our favorite).

Down On The Farm Creamery

509 May Post Office Rd, Strasburg, PA 17579

717-687-7829

I was already looking forward to visiting an Amish creamery but after my experience with that milk from Lancaster Central market, you could say I was nothing short of giddy. Down On The Farm Creamery in Strasburg, PA offers homemade milk, cheese, and (my main attraction) ice cream. While we were there, a group of Amish schoolgirls rode up in their horse-drawn buggy for an ice cream treat, so it seems like this place is legit enough for the locals. The creamery is situated on a farm surrounding by green pastures and you can enjoy your ice cream on the grass next to grazing goats and clucking hens. It’s a little too perfect.

Victory Brewing Company

420 Acorn Ln, Downingtown, PA 19335

610-873-0881

It was time for the daily brewery of the trip. Victory Brewing Company is another Northeast brewery we have come to know and love since moving to NY/NJ. Like Troegs, Victory also has earned the title of “No six pack tried thus far has been underwhelming.” Victory Brewing’s flagship location in Downington, PA is located between Lancaster and Philadelphia and was thus perfectly situated geographically for a stop on our way back home to Jersey.

Where I Stayed In Lancaster Area

You know I’m a sucker for tiny-house Airbnbs. I love an Airbnb that combines the aesthetic and amenities of a hotel, a uniqueness that sets it apart from said hotel, and a competitive price point to tie it all together. These are shamefully hard to find but I have found a couple so far and have a few more on my bucket list! Anyway, we found a delightful tiny-house Airbnb in Mohnton, PA— just south of Reading and actually a perfectly central location between all the breweries of this trip. As if I needed another reason to say this trip was beer-centric.

More Fun Things To Do In The Lancaster Area

Here are some things I had on my list but couldn’t fit into our 3-day itinerary:

• Eat at an Amish smorgasbord. These are AYCE buffets of Pennsylvania Dutch food (which honestly seems like American food in general based on the menus online, but I still want to try it out). Most of the Amish smorgasbord restaurants have frighteningly low reviews on Yelp, but the ones that stood out to me were Good ‘N Plenty (family style dining or a la carte only) and Dienner’s Country Restaurant (the cheapest but also most promising looking fare with lunch and dinner buffets under $13). Other ones that you’ll see come up when searching online include Shady Maple (supposedly the tourist option, with higher prices over $20 for weeknight dinner and weekend buffets) and Yoder’s Country Market (reportedly a more authentic option but reviews are very hit-or-miss and some question the establishment’s cleanliness).
• Other Vietnamese food places to try in Lancaster: Sai Gon Cafe and Cafe & Pho Hoang. These are both decidedly un-fancy restaurants focusing more on the taste than the presentation. May not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it most definitely is mine!
• Kitchen Kettle Village in Intercourse, PA (17 minute drive from Lancaster)
• Turkey Hill Experience in Columbia, PA (19 minute drive from Lancaster). This is more obviously targeted toward younger patrons but come on— it’s ice cream! You can make your own flavor, enjoy tea tastings, and gorge on unlimited ice cream tastings. Count me in!

I hope this helps you plan for (and get excited about) your own trip to the Lancaster area, beer lover or not (but I hope you are). I’m certain there are a million other spots worth visiting — please leave a comment below if you’d like to share a tip or favorite spots to see in Lancaster, PA!