Autumn is all about spending your time outdoors and enjoying the crisp air, and as much as we love NYC it’s always nice to escape the city for a bit to enjoy all the fresh, outdoorsy goodness upstate NY has to offer.
Just about an hour drive from NYC is the Historic Hudson Valley area that, especially come autumn, is a must-visit. More than 250,000 people visit this historical site and attend special events annually, and within the area visitors will find Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow, some of New York’s go-to fall destinations.
This fall, there are a ton of different events for visitors to attend to get a head-start on kicking off the fall season.
Historical events being offered include a church tour (through November 6), a tour of the 1750 plantation Philipsburg Manor (through November 13), and a tour of Kykuit, also known as the John D. Rockefeller Estate, a 40-room historic house museum (through November 13).
Once we really get into the fall season, more events geared towards the Halloween season open up to visitors. From September 16 through November 13 “Home of the ‘Legend’” takes visitors on a tour of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” author Washington Irving’s estate.
Performances will even be available for guests to experience, and may even include an appearance by the Headless Horseman himself!
The main attraction, perhaps, is New York’s greatest fall spectacle the spectacular Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze.
The event takes place in Hudson Valley every year, and features over 7,000 illuminated pumpkins each hand-carved with various designs to create glowing sculptures. The illuminated pumpkins are turned into things such as dinosaurs, trains, carousels, snakes, skeletons, and just about anything you can imagine!
Tickets for this event can be purchased here.
For those just looking to get in some gorgeous foliage peeping, the views of the Hudson and the Palisades are absolutely gorgeous from Kykuit, and while you can go out on your own and view the scenery for yourself, special leaf peeping tours are available and run through November 10.
Find out more about everything the Historic Hudson Valley has to offer and grab tickets to any of the area’s events here.
This summer has absolutely been too hot to handle, and if you’re anything like us you’re already getting a head start on all the best fall plans!