With the leaves changing and seemingly everyone on Instagram heading for a weekend in Upstate New York, I'd been wanting to join in on the fun. We missed the boat on the leaves but headed up for a weekend away in Newburgh, NY just last week. Located across the river from Beacon, an hour and a half drive away or two and half hours by public transportation.
To get up there, either beg your friends with a car to let you borrow it (this is what we did) or take one of these options up.
It will of course depend on what side of the river you stay - but for those in Newburgh, head to Penn Station and take the ShortLine Hudson or to get to Beacon, to Grand Central and take the Green Hudson line. There are various rates depending if you're on / off peak, so be sure to read up more on the mta site for all the details.
This weekend away is going to take a bit of preplanning because of course you'll need a place to stay! There are various hotels around the Newburgh/Beacon area, but we generally prefer an AirBnB and find their prices to be more reasonable. We also love to cook breakfast at home so having a kitchen is a major plus.
Places in Newburgh tend to be on the cheaper side, but Newburgh is also not as cute as Beacon - the choice is yours!
Start your search on AirBnB and see what gems you can find. We opted for Newburgh, since we found this cutie and we had a car.
It's super cute (check out that Frame TV!!) and only $90 a night!
Those minor details aside, its time to start our weekend.
FRIDAY
We headed up around 1:00 in an effort to avoid traffic, it wasn't a holiday weekend though and we had no issues. If you're driving a fun stop along the way is to stretch your legs at Woodbury Commons. If you're into fashion, you've no doubt heard of it - the massive outlet shopping center just slightly over a hour away.
They have everything. Shop for luxury finds at stores like Balenciaga, Gucci, Marni, Yves Saint Laurent, Burberry, Celine, Chloe and more. Or stock up on things to wear ever day at stores like J.Crew Factory, Nike, Gap, Adidas and hundred of others. Find the full list here
Drive just 30 or so minutes further, check in to your accommodations and relax til dinner time by learning more about your home for this weekend.
Situated on the west side of the Hudson River, the Newburgh area was first settled by the British and Germans in the early 1700s. During the Revolutionary War, it was even the headquarters of the Continental Army and houses several historical site commemorating George Washington's and this time period.
Hundreds of years later, Newburgh played a major role in the start of television. In 1939, RCA tested 600 TVs in Newburgh. They were sold at a deep discount and intel from this test was pivotal in RCA launching major development of TVs. The test-marketing campaign's success encouraged RCA to go forward with developing the new medium.
Meanwhile, directly east across the Newburgh-Beacon bridge, you may have guess is Beacon. Beacon was started by a merchant fur trader from NYC who bought and settled the land. Later, it became an industrial city due its location on the Hudson. Beacon experienced a revival beginning in 2003 with the arrival of Dia Beacon, one of the largest modern art museums in the United States. Its a great stop and one you should add to your itinerary while you're there!
After the pandemic, both cities have seen a growth and revitalization after thousands of New Yorkers bought houses in the area and headed north. The area is teaming with new restaurants, wine shops and area attractions for you to explore.
Now with reading and relaxation over, it's time for some fun. We opted to have dinner at the well reviewed (and close proximity) Wherehouse. Located in a storefront from 1860 at 119 Liberty St, its been named called by the New York Times as - "the place with the East Village vibe" - and its true.
We sat along the bar to pick our craft beers and browse their massive newspaper style menu.
They have tons of options of everything you might want, including a whole 2 pages of vegan/vegetarian options. We stuck with local Newburgh Brewery beers and tried the Chili Rice Bowl (amazing for a cold day) and the Dennis Lebron - a fried chicken cutlet with pepper jack cheese, sweet chili sauce and sweet potato fries (amazing for any day). The bartender was super friendly, a local gave us samples of their new lemon vodka pre mixed drink and we had an overall lovely evening!
SATURDAY
The weather gods were not in our favor and if they happen to be in yours (fingers crossed) take a scroll down to Sunday and look to invert these days!
We had rain all day - which ruined our original plan of hiking. But we slept in, made a delicious breakfast at home and then ventured out for some indoor fun, courtesy of Sloop Brewery.
Enjoy the scenic ride along the way, looking right and left at beautiful views of the Hudson as your cross the bridge.
If you're into beer, you've definitely had Sloop's Juice Bomb IPA and their brewery/taproom is located just outside of Beacon at 755 East Dr #106, East Fishkill, NY. You'll drive through an industrial warehouse with several other factories, second guess yourself a few times but don't worry you are in the right place. Park where you see the big blue and yellow building and walk up the ramp at the front all the way to the right. The door has a visitors/tap room sign so don't worry. Follow the long hallway and you're in!
Here for the long haul and love boardgames, grab some by the entrance and find the perfect table.
We started with the flight, four 5 oz tasters for just $14 before moving into full pours. Sloop has a lot of varieties to try ranging from IPAs to Sours, many of which are not available elsewhere. They also have a full selection of food. We wanted to save room for dinner and just had a leek dip and pretzel. It seems like a popular spot for the area and has a great vibe to spend a few hours.
Your Next Stop? Dinner - and we're staying on this side of the river, heading to downtown Beacon.
We've eaten in Beacon a few times and there are lots of good options but this time we wanted to try something more unusual. I'd read about Quinn's - the old timey diner offering Japanese food and wanted to give it a try. It's located on the eastern section of downtown at 330 Main Street.
The interior does not disappointed - you'll notice by the amount of photos I took to share! It has a cozy, casual vibe and we were able to walk in with out a reservation.
We started with cocktail - mine some sort of yuzu and soju combo I wish I remembered the name of.
For food, we had to try one of their speciality hot dogs and started with the Yaki Wan Wan. A combo of savory sauce, bonito flakes, seaweed and ginger. Delicious!
From there we dove into ramen - the perfect entree for a chilly night upstate. You can pick between miso or soy meat broths or opt for the vegetarian.
Fully fed but still up for some fun, we headed down the block to 296 Main Street aka Happy Valley Arcade Bar.
Reminiscent of Williamsburg's Barcade, the low key bar is surrounded by vintage video games and pin ball machines.
They also have an expansive list of local beers and spirits.
Bring some dollar bills and get those quarters flowing. They have all the classic games from your childhood you might want. Its a casual, no fuss bar and the perfect way to finish your evening.
SUNDAY
Finally a day with sun! AKA our day to hike. We were recommended the Storm King Trail by our bartender at Wherehouse, so we decided to give it a try.
Full disclosure, I failed us miserably on this hike. We went in with a wander along and see what we can find mindset that ultimately left us walking along the interstate at the end back to our car LOL.
So I would highly recommend you head over to Hike the Hudson Valley where they will do a much better job than I could ever do at telling you where to go.
The main thing to pay attention to is the colored tags along the trees.
For all other information, please see the link above so you don't get lost. Here I will just show you what you will see along the way.
And finally the money shot:
Money shot #2
The full hike should take you around 2.5 hours - pending your speed or ya know the skill of your navigator!
Final stop for this weekend? It's time to warm up and get some much deserved lunch. We headed to a local farm, just a 5 min drive away - Jones Farm.
Family run and full of sweets, local products and home baked goods, Jones Farm offers a beautiful view of the valley and farm animals you can feed.
Head inside to their restaurant, where you can shop while you wait for your Fried Chicken sandwich, soup or other lunch special. We were recommended the carrot cake and it did not disappointment. My only regret was that we didn't buy more to take home with us!
And with that (and a 1.5 hour drive back), your weekend in Upstate New York is over. Check back soon to find our what your Next Stop should be!
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