RSS Email

Our Fun with #VisitLancaster

Thank you to  Girl’s Lunch Out and Lancaster Tourism for providing the weekend away and experiences.

#Visitlancaster
Finding family friendly adventures that everyone can enjoy are sometimes hard to come by. Recently we took a trip to Lancaster County, PA to Amish Country and were pleased at the things available to us. Even though the trip was just me and the girls I know Rob and Shaun would’ve love the weekend too.

In Lancaster County, PA you’ll find outlet shopping, scenic rolling hills, quality furniture makers and of course markets that sell the best products from the local Amish families. What you may be surprised about are the quaint attractions that are geared towards all members of your family.

Strasburg Railroad is home to museum quality, turn of the century steam locomotives, freight cars, dining cars and private cars. The railroad offers 45-minute rides several times a day overlooking the lush farmland of surrounding community. Choose to attend a special event like Day Out with Thomas or Traditional Dinner and Murder Mystery to enhance the excursion.
Strasburg Railroad, Lancaster, PA #VisitLancaster
We were lucky to catch Vintage Baseball during our ride. We hopped off the train to watch a mini tournament of Vintage Baseball teams playing the way they would have played in the 19th century. The teams and crowds were welcoming and many were even in character from that era.
Vintage Baseball Day #VisiLancaster

Vintage Baseball Day #VisitLancaster
The Choo Choo Barn sounds like something perfect for the smaller kids in your family. but you’d be surprised to find 1700 square feet of animations and creativity with model trains. The detail put into this amazing display can only be truly appreciated in person.

Some of the best portions of the display are
• Amish barn-raising
• Three-ring circus and parade
• Display transformation into nighttime (every 10 minutes)
• Dutch Wonderland, enhanced with new lighting this year
• A house fire and the fire crew that puts it out

This is truly a must see for all ages, not just the train enthusiast either.

Choo Choo Barn #VisitLancaster

image provided courtesy of ChooChooBarn

If you are interested in knowing more about the history and tradition of Amish Country then The Amish Village is something you should experience. With an authentic farmhouse, one-room school house, blacksmith shop and barn you’ll be able to see and learn how the Amish lived and still live to this day.
The Amish Village #VisitLancaster
We were able to see a calf, Freddy and pet his soft hair. This was Sabreena’s highlight, she has a thing for cows. Freddy the Calf #VisitLancaster
The entire grounds were open for exploration and education.

Our #VisitLancaster trip was short but packed in so much that I know we’ll be visiting again.




Our #VisitLancaster Stay at Bird-in-Hand Family Inn

Amish Country, Lancaster County is a pretty popular tourist destination here in the US. In fact it looks like 10 million people knew better than me because I had never been to Lancaster, PA before. Even sadder to learn is that it is only an hour from me.
#VisitLancaster Amish Country Cow
Luckily we were invited to visit Lancaster a couple weekends ago. I used it a chance for a girls weekend, just me, Shae and Sabreena.

#VisitLancaster, Girls Weekend

The day started early but it quickly turned very enjoyable. The ride into the different world was an experience all on its own. The scenery, farms, rolling hills, cows, cows and more cows, the buggys and the quaint homes and shops were hard to miss.

The Bird-in-Hand Family Inn was situated right on the main road but was tucked away enough to be peaceful and relaxing. We were greeted with smiles and treats for the animals in the petting zoo.

I didn’t do much research on the hotel before arriving so when I found out they had an outdoor fire pit, pond with gazebo, miniature golf, basketball courts, large playground and a complimentary 2-hour Amish Farmland tour I was shocked.
#VisitLancaster Bird-in-Hand Pond
Settling into our room was easy. It was spacious and clean and best of all had plenty of towels. We relaxed a little before heading out to the petting zoo and playground. The other parents and I chatted while the kids burned off energy before dinner. The playground nicer than most I’ve seen in communities at home and was large enough to accommodate lots of kids but it lacked a smaller structure to keep the toddlers safe from the older kids.
#VisitLancaster Bird-in-Hand Playground
Dinner at the Bird-in-Hand Family Restaurant was decent buffet food. I discovered corn nuggets, YUM. The girls didn’t agree but whatever. The service was lack-luster to say the least. Servers were hard to find, cashiers were heavy on eye rolling at patrons and quick to judge mediocre tips in front of others. For such a large restaurant I thought there would’ve been more variety, Sabreena ended up ordering off the menu. She enjoyed her burger but was hoping for more than just the burger. It was a warm day and our water glasses stayed empty for a long time. In fact Sabreena spilled her ice and instead of someone coming to help clean up she was handed a stack of napkins and cold shoulder. I wish the smorgasbord had the same level of welcome and acceptance that the hotel did. These were two very different experiences at the same establishment.
#VisitLancaster Eating Dinner
The swimming pool was amazingly gorgeous. The boast of an “indoor pool” is usually a construction of a second thought cinderblock room with a pool not big enough to hold 2 families comfortably. These indoor pools, yes POOLS, we’re definitely spa worthy. There was ample room for lounging, jumping, splashing and flipping.
#visitlancaster, Bird-in-Hand Hotel Pool

#VisitLancaster Bird-in-Hand Pool

photo courtesy of Bird-in-Hand Family Inn

I think we may have had either too much food, swimming, sun or a combination of everything because around bedtime Shae got sick. She threw up the Jell-O she was so excited to eat at after dinner. Unfortunately she didn’t make it to the bathroom in time. We called the front desk and they immediately came up to help with the clean up. And my help I mean clean it up all by themselves. The gentleman was polite, incredibly quiet since it was after 10:30pm and gracious even though his task utterly sucked.

It took a long time to get to sleep because I was then panicked Shae would be sick again but by the time I relaxed and Shae crawled in bed with me we slept like babies. I found the beds to be comfortable and we even slept with the windows open. I would never do that in another hotel anywhere. It was a serene environment that just begged for sound sleep. I was wondering why I was hearing the clip-clop of horses around 2am though. Do the Amish work through the night?

There will be another visit to Lancaster, PA. I’m sad it’s taken me 38 years to visit but I’m hoping to get Rob and Shaun there in the next few month. I’m thinking Fall would be spectacular. If you followed along our trip on Instagram and Facebook you’ll see many more pictures from the weekend. Just look for #VisitLancaster for mine and the rest of the families experiences.

Thanks to Girl’s Lunch Out, Bird-In-Hand Family Inn and Lancaster Tourism for welcoming us “city folk” to your gorgeous worlds away from home.