Our family recently spent a fun-filled weekend exploring Strasburg, Pennsylvania, Indian Echo Caverns, and Gettysburg. As you can tell from the title, part 1 will just focus on the 2 days we spent in Strasburg. The rest of the trip will be coming soon.
Strasburg, Pennsylvania is in southeast Pennsylvania about 3 hours north of Washington D.C. It is an area filled with Amish farms, railroading, and history. If you had the time, you could definitely spend more than 2 days in the area. For the sake of the kids, we limited our time. We didn’t want to overdo anything.
Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania
On our first day in Strasburg, we visited the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. This is an elaborate railroad museum located across the street from the Strasburg Railroad. You could very easily ride the Strasburg Railroad then visit the museum. Our schedule did not allow for us to do both, unfortunately.
Admission prices to the Railroad Museum are $10 for adults, $8 for youth ages 3-11, and free for those 2 and under. There is also an AAA discount available. Make sure you check out their website for operating hours. They have seasonal hours and are closed some days. There are also special event days.
Rolling Stock Hall
Inside the museum, you will find a massive Rolling Stock Hall filled with historic locomotives and vintage railroad cars. There are plenty of fascinating exhibits and artifacts to keep everyone interested. Our kids loved climbing aboard some of the equipment and viewing all the trains from the observation bridge. You can even go down below one locomotive.
Stewart Railway Education Center
Another kid favorite was the Stewart Junction Railway Education Center. Inside we found a large model train set-up and hands-on activities for the kids. Our Lego lover was in awe of the Lego town under construction.
Train Yard
Don’t miss the train yard on your visit. You can walk among many different locomotives and train cars waiting to be restored. You can also view the historic turntable and various other equipment.
Whether you visit just the Railroad Museum or combine it with the Strasburg Railroad, you will have a day packed with trains. The Railroad Museum by itself took us almost 3 hours.
The Amish Village
On our second day in Strasburg, we visited The Amish Village to explore the Amish way of life. The Amish Village offers an Amish Farmhouse Tour, a Backroads Bus Tour, and the Village Grounds. You can pick one or all the tours. I highly recommend you do all 3 to get the full experience. The premium package, which includes all 3, is $29 for adults, $19 for youth ages 5-12, and $16 for those 0-4. They recommend making reservations online, but I would only do that during the high tourist season. We did not have a reservation when we visited in early November and got right on the first tour. If you’re time-crunched, make a reservation just to be on the safe side. You can check their website for all the details.
Farmhouse
We began our visit with a tour through the Amish Farmhouse. Our tour guide was excellent. She made sure to include the kids whenever possible. During the tour, you walk through the main living area, the kitchen, upstairs to the bedrooms, and then finally to the summer kitchen. It was a short but fascinating tour.
Backroads Bus Tour
Next, we went right onto the bus for the Backroads Tour. The 90-minute tour is limited to 14 people and made one stop. Our tour guide was great at pointing out Amish farms and schoolhouses. She could answer just about any question you had about the Amish. We even learned that one Amish family raises camels and sells camel milk.
The one-stop the Backroads Tour made was to an Amish quilt and bakeshop. You can purchase Amish-made quilts, crafts, soaps, baked goods, jams, and much more. They even had freshly made pretzels. It was a nice, but shortstop.
Amish Farm and Village
Back at the Amish Village, we finished our visit up with a stop at the farm. The kids loved petting the horses, pigs, and goats in the barn. They also enjoyed going into the schoolhouse and pretending to be in class. Rounding out the farm was a blacksmith shop, covered bridge, and the Smokehouse Market. There were also a few covered buggies in which you could climb into.
Additional stops
Home2 Suites in Lancaster. We stayed 2 nights at this brand new property. It was a bit noisy but comfortable for our family of 5.
Isaac’s Restaurant is located down the street from the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. It is a local chain that is known for its grilled sandwiches named after birds.
Katie’s Kitchen is an Amish-owned and operated restaurant located very close to The Amish Village. They serve all meals, including Pennsylvania Dutch favorites. The prices and portions were excellent.
Further Reading
- Indian Echo Caverns
- Gettysburg
- Valley Forge NHP with Kids
- 2 Days in Philadelphia with Kids
- Steamtown & PA Anthracite Museum with Kids
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed are strictly my own. I did not receive compensation for this post.
7 Comment