Although the Amish avoid technology their Strasburg neighbors give steam trains their due at the
splendid State-run Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania where they display over 100 coal and
wood-burning antique locomotives and rail cars. On Sunday morning we stood in the shadow of a
seething steam locomotive as it fired up for its 11 AM run on the Strasburg Railroad. “She’s a two
by ten by zero, a Baldwin built in Philly in 1924,” the man standing next to us said as he hefted his
digital point and shoot to catch the backhoe filling the coal car. “I have chased these old engines all
over the country. The old steam trains have a life of their own don’t they, I can’t get enough of them.”
Billowing steam enveloped the engine as the engineer hitched to six antique coaches for the run to
Paradise. The conductor ushered us into the dinning car where we would have lunch as the antique
coal-burning Baldwin chugged across the Amish farm land. A few minutes later the train eased
through the pin-neat Amish fields and we passed a road crossing where a black surrey with a young
couple held back their trotter as he pranced sideways eager to race the train. We raised our coffee
cups in a toast to the Amish with a bit of admiration for their simple life.
splendid State-run Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania where they display over 100 coal and
wood-burning antique locomotives and rail cars. On Sunday morning we stood in the shadow of a
seething steam locomotive as it fired up for its 11 AM run on the Strasburg Railroad. “She’s a two
by ten by zero, a Baldwin built in Philly in 1924,” the man standing next to us said as he hefted his
digital point and shoot to catch the backhoe filling the coal car. “I have chased these old engines all
over the country. The old steam trains have a life of their own don’t they, I can’t get enough of them.”
Billowing steam enveloped the engine as the engineer hitched to six antique coaches for the run to
Paradise. The conductor ushered us into the dinning car where we would have lunch as the antique
coal-burning Baldwin chugged across the Amish farm land. A few minutes later the train eased
through the pin-neat Amish fields and we passed a road crossing where a black surrey with a young
couple held back their trotter as he pranced sideways eager to race the train. We raised our coffee
cups in a toast to the Amish with a bit of admiration for their simple life.
Surreys, Stream Trains, and Strudel
| Amish Pennsylvania Dutch Country RV Vacation |
Amish Penn Dutch Country, RV Vacation
Other Area Attractions
www.hersheyspa.com Chocolate Spa 1-877-772-9988
www.aaabuggyrides.com Buggy Rides in Paradise
www.ppquiltmuseum.com People's Place Quilt Museum
www.amishfarmandhouse.com Working Farm and Museum
Amish Penn Dutch Engineers Historical Museum Rough and Tumble Engineer's Historical
Association
Area Full-Service Campgrounds
Country Acres Campground www.countryacrescampground.com 1-866-675-4745
Oak Creek Campground www.oakcreekcamp.com 1-800-446-8365
Beacon Hill Camping www.beaconhillcamping.com 1-717-768-8775
Country Haven Campground www.countryhaven.com 1-717-354-7926
Spring Gulch Resort Campground www.springgulch.com 1-866-864-8524
Mill Bridge Village www.millbridgevillage.com 1-800-645-2744
Roamer's Retreat Campground www.roamerscampground.com 1-800-525-5605
Hershey Conewgo Campground www.hersheyconewego.com 1-717-367-1179
www.hersheyspa.com Chocolate Spa 1-877-772-9988
www.aaabuggyrides.com Buggy Rides in Paradise
www.ppquiltmuseum.com People's Place Quilt Museum
www.amishfarmandhouse.com Working Farm and Museum
Amish Penn Dutch Engineers Historical Museum Rough and Tumble Engineer's Historical
Association
Area Full-Service Campgrounds
Country Acres Campground www.countryacrescampground.com 1-866-675-4745
Oak Creek Campground www.oakcreekcamp.com 1-800-446-8365
Beacon Hill Camping www.beaconhillcamping.com 1-717-768-8775
Country Haven Campground www.countryhaven.com 1-717-354-7926
Spring Gulch Resort Campground www.springgulch.com 1-866-864-8524
Mill Bridge Village www.millbridgevillage.com 1-800-645-2744
Roamer's Retreat Campground www.roamerscampground.com 1-800-525-5605
Hershey Conewgo Campground www.hersheyconewego.com 1-717-367-1179
The rapid clip clop of hooves on pavement announced another sleek racer springing into view. The trotter
pranced sideways against the bit, flashing his glossy mane as the driver pulled him to a stop at the traffic
light. The young Amish man sat rigid in his seat, his wide-brimmed hat masking his features. The young
woman beside him in white bonnet and grey cape avoided our eyes as the driver eased off the reins,
turned on the directional lights and guided the black surrey west through the intersection. We sat in the
sidewalk coffee shop in awe; had we just seen a horse-drawn buggy complete with directional lights,
brake lights, and a pair of Westcoast rear view mirrors stop at a red light?
“They live in another country, these Amish farmers do,” a man at the next table said to us, realizing that we
were fascinated. “The kids learn German as a first language; they only study English after age five. They
call us ‘The English,’ They don’t even drive cars and they don’t work on Sunday.”
pranced sideways against the bit, flashing his glossy mane as the driver pulled him to a stop at the traffic
light. The young Amish man sat rigid in his seat, his wide-brimmed hat masking his features. The young
woman beside him in white bonnet and grey cape avoided our eyes as the driver eased off the reins,
turned on the directional lights and guided the black surrey west through the intersection. We sat in the
sidewalk coffee shop in awe; had we just seen a horse-drawn buggy complete with directional lights,
brake lights, and a pair of Westcoast rear view mirrors stop at a red light?
“They live in another country, these Amish farmers do,” a man at the next table said to us, realizing that we
were fascinated. “The kids learn German as a first language; they only study English after age five. They
call us ‘The English,’ They don’t even drive cars and they don’t work on Sunday.”
Villages named Bird-in-Hand, Intercourse, and Paradise had us in love with Pennsylvania's
Dutch Country but we needed to check our notions of reality at the door; the locals were riding in
horse-drawn buggies with rear-view-mirrors and directional lights while the tourists were coming
to Strasburg to sleep in retired railroad cabooses.
On Sunday the young men of Lancaster County borrow Dad's top-down buggy for a horse-
drawn cruise around town. That afternoon we saw many standard-breads high-stepping down
Route 30 while truckers eased their big rigs around them trying not to spook the ponies. We
learned later that the Amish are expert horse trainers and that each large farm might have seven
Belgians or Percherons to pull the plows, two draft mules to pull winnowers, and a trotter to pull
the surrey used for the Sunday drive. The young men will use the open coach in the Sunday
courting ritual and prize their thoroughbred and Morgan crosses initially bred for harness racing
because of the trotter’s grace, and spirit. The horses are such high steppers that if it weren't for
the clip clop of hooves on pavement you would think that these ponies could fly.
Part of the Amish tradition is to be self-sufficient; they teach the children the skills and crafts of
farming, woodworking, baking, and needlework. When their crafts and confections including an
array of strudels come directly from the farms to the shops of Lancaster County, they make
roadside shopping Amish country an event
Dutch Country but we needed to check our notions of reality at the door; the locals were riding in
horse-drawn buggies with rear-view-mirrors and directional lights while the tourists were coming
to Strasburg to sleep in retired railroad cabooses.
On Sunday the young men of Lancaster County borrow Dad's top-down buggy for a horse-
drawn cruise around town. That afternoon we saw many standard-breads high-stepping down
Route 30 while truckers eased their big rigs around them trying not to spook the ponies. We
learned later that the Amish are expert horse trainers and that each large farm might have seven
Belgians or Percherons to pull the plows, two draft mules to pull winnowers, and a trotter to pull
the surrey used for the Sunday drive. The young men will use the open coach in the Sunday
courting ritual and prize their thoroughbred and Morgan crosses initially bred for harness racing
because of the trotter’s grace, and spirit. The horses are such high steppers that if it weren't for
the clip clop of hooves on pavement you would think that these ponies could fly.
Part of the Amish tradition is to be self-sufficient; they teach the children the skills and crafts of
farming, woodworking, baking, and needlework. When their crafts and confections including an
array of strudels come directly from the farms to the shops of Lancaster County, they make
roadside shopping Amish country an event
Pennsylvania Dutch country gets its name, we would read, from the many groups of farmers of
Swiss, Dutch, and German descent who immigrated during the 1740s. The Anabaptists of
northern Germany had broken from Martin Luther's teachings and later founded a church led
by Menno Simons based on strict interpretation of the bible and a doctrine of baptism after the
age of 18.
Persecuted in Europe, the Mennonites came to America at the invitation of William Penn, a
Quaker who had been granted a huge territory by King Charles II of England. Penn dedicated
the land in his 1681,"Holy Experiment" to religious freedom. The Amish, an Anabaptist
splinter group founded by Jacob Amman in 1693 came to America and eventually split further
into eight levels of strictness in the interpretation of the Bible.
For the most part, these farm folk choose to live without modern technology but they have
outfitted their horse-drawn buggies with running lights for safety and they also use bottled gas
for light and power to run their milking machines.
Focused on humility, thrift, simplicity, and submission to a higher authority, these
wholesome farm folk are no strangers to technology, they just prefer to live without electricity
and the automobile.
Visitors can experience the life on an early 1700s Pennsylvania Dutch farm two miles north of
Lancaster where two brothers of German descent created the Landis Valley Museum.
Costumed guides demonstrate open-hearth cooking, weaving, and horse-drawn plowing in a
preserved traditional farm where visitors can also purchase heirloom seeds and handcrafts.
For another look at the religious history of the area, the nearby town of Ephrata preserves its
Cloister, a group of buildings built by a German charismatic leader who in 1732 gathered
followers for the practice of a celibate and mystical religion. The vegetarian sect, renown for
their musical compositions in five part vocal harmony and for their Germanic calligraphy and
printing press, grew to 300 in the 1740s but then withered after 1768, remaining as a 28-acre
museum with many of the original antique buildings preserved.
Swiss, Dutch, and German descent who immigrated during the 1740s. The Anabaptists of
northern Germany had broken from Martin Luther's teachings and later founded a church led
by Menno Simons based on strict interpretation of the bible and a doctrine of baptism after the
age of 18.
Persecuted in Europe, the Mennonites came to America at the invitation of William Penn, a
Quaker who had been granted a huge territory by King Charles II of England. Penn dedicated
the land in his 1681,"Holy Experiment" to religious freedom. The Amish, an Anabaptist
splinter group founded by Jacob Amman in 1693 came to America and eventually split further
into eight levels of strictness in the interpretation of the Bible.
For the most part, these farm folk choose to live without modern technology but they have
outfitted their horse-drawn buggies with running lights for safety and they also use bottled gas
for light and power to run their milking machines.
Focused on humility, thrift, simplicity, and submission to a higher authority, these
wholesome farm folk are no strangers to technology, they just prefer to live without electricity
and the automobile.
Visitors can experience the life on an early 1700s Pennsylvania Dutch farm two miles north of
Lancaster where two brothers of German descent created the Landis Valley Museum.
Costumed guides demonstrate open-hearth cooking, weaving, and horse-drawn plowing in a
preserved traditional farm where visitors can also purchase heirloom seeds and handcrafts.
For another look at the religious history of the area, the nearby town of Ephrata preserves its
Cloister, a group of buildings built by a German charismatic leader who in 1732 gathered
followers for the practice of a celibate and mystical religion. The vegetarian sect, renown for
their musical compositions in five part vocal harmony and for their Germanic calligraphy and
printing press, grew to 300 in the 1740s but then withered after 1768, remaining as a 28-acre
museum with many of the original antique buildings preserved.
To see what happens when you cross 17th Century values with 20th Century technology we headed
northwest out of Lancaster on Route 283 for Hershey, the town and huge factory built by Milton
Hershey our favorite chocolateer.
Although raised by Mennonite parents, Hershey embraced the machine age, building a modern
factory in 1905 near a source of abundant fresh milk. He built an antique automobile collection, a
huge amusement park, a zoo, and a 23-acre rose garden for his wife. Visitors can also take trolley
rides through the town on streets named Chocolate Ave and Hershey Drive, each lined by street
lamps in the shape of the Hershey Kiss and also take a tour in a simulated factory complete with
animated cows sporting boas crooning a hip-hop opus to milk.
While it is unlikely that Mr. Hershey would have chosen the musical accompaniment for the factory
tour, he was an innovator; the factory now processes one million pounds of milk chocolate daily and
ships 80 million Hershey Kisses each day throughout the world.
In fact everything in town says chocolate including a spa treatment at the Hotel Hershey: immersion in
warm therapeutic chocolate anyone?
We found so much contrast in Pennsylvania Dutch country and so much more to see -Village Pottery
in Intercourse, the Wine Gallery in Mount Hope, the Cornwall Furnace Museum near Hershey,
the Harley Factory in York-that at times we felt envy for the locals and their simple way of life; they
take Sunday off, the day of rest. Do you remember the day of rest?
northwest out of Lancaster on Route 283 for Hershey, the town and huge factory built by Milton
Hershey our favorite chocolateer.
Although raised by Mennonite parents, Hershey embraced the machine age, building a modern
factory in 1905 near a source of abundant fresh milk. He built an antique automobile collection, a
huge amusement park, a zoo, and a 23-acre rose garden for his wife. Visitors can also take trolley
rides through the town on streets named Chocolate Ave and Hershey Drive, each lined by street
lamps in the shape of the Hershey Kiss and also take a tour in a simulated factory complete with
animated cows sporting boas crooning a hip-hop opus to milk.
While it is unlikely that Mr. Hershey would have chosen the musical accompaniment for the factory
tour, he was an innovator; the factory now processes one million pounds of milk chocolate daily and
ships 80 million Hershey Kisses each day throughout the world.
In fact everything in town says chocolate including a spa treatment at the Hotel Hershey: immersion in
warm therapeutic chocolate anyone?
We found so much contrast in Pennsylvania Dutch country and so much more to see -Village Pottery
in Intercourse, the Wine Gallery in Mount Hope, the Cornwall Furnace Museum near Hershey,
the Harley Factory in York-that at times we felt envy for the locals and their simple way of life; they
take Sunday off, the day of rest. Do you remember the day of rest?
Amish Penn Dutch country is a vacation place centered in Lancaster, PA, an area of pleasant
weather for outdoor activities from May to October. Penn Dutch weather Vacation rentals are
available at many resorts in the village of Lancaster and in the inns and B&Bs of Bird In Hand,
Ronks, Intercourse, Paradise, Strasburg, or nearby Hershey. Weekly rentals, or weekend rentals
make this a summer family vacation place with lots of attractions, ( Winery brewery). Rental
houses, cottages, B&Bs , historic inns, and lodging packages put the attractions close at hand.
Family Lodging Package with Golf, Tennis Golf Packages are popular in the area where many
fine courses offer inclusive resorts that also offer family attractions nearby. Spas and health
resorts are also in the area and at Hershey , a chocolate spa is available. Amish Penn dutch
country also offers Pretzel factory tour , Golf Courses, Farmers Market
weather for outdoor activities from May to October. Penn Dutch weather Vacation rentals are
available at many resorts in the village of Lancaster and in the inns and B&Bs of Bird In Hand,
Ronks, Intercourse, Paradise, Strasburg, or nearby Hershey. Weekly rentals, or weekend rentals
make this a summer family vacation place with lots of attractions, ( Winery brewery). Rental
houses, cottages, B&Bs , historic inns, and lodging packages put the attractions close at hand.
Family Lodging Package with Golf, Tennis Golf Packages are popular in the area where many
fine courses offer inclusive resorts that also offer family attractions nearby. Spas and health
resorts are also in the area and at Hershey , a chocolate spa is available. Amish Penn dutch
country also offers Pretzel factory tour , Golf Courses, Farmers Market
An Amish Penn
Dutch RV
Vacation can be
quite the
summer event.
There is lots to
see and do in
Amish country
and the Penn
Dutch Amish
make some
great handcrafts
and pastries.
Dutch RV
Vacation can be
quite the
summer event.
There is lots to
see and do in
Amish country
and the Penn
Dutch Amish
make some
great handcrafts
and pastries.
Amish Penn Dutch RV Vacation
Custom Search
Auto Europe offers asy air and hotel booking system on the web. You can shop for
Air ticket selection, price, Auto Rental, and Hotel rooms in the USA with ease on
their web pages. . Shop online well ahead of your trip and design your air travel to
avoid anxiety while building in convenience and savings.
Air ticket selection, price, Auto Rental, and Hotel rooms in the USA with ease on
their web pages. . Shop online well ahead of your trip and design your air travel to
avoid anxiety while building in convenience and savings.
How to Reach Amish Penn Dutch Country:
By Auto: From the south take Route 95 to Baltimore, Route 83 to York (Harley Factory). Route 30 to
Lancaster,
From the north,: Route 95 to Philadelphia and then Routes 76, 202 and 30 to Lancaster. From the
west, Harrisburg
By air: Philadelphia Airport and rental car
By Auto: From the south take Route 95 to Baltimore, Route 83 to York (Harley Factory). Route 30 to
Lancaster,
From the north,: Route 95 to Philadelphia and then Routes 76, 202 and 30 to Lancaster. From the
west, Harrisburg
By air: Philadelphia Airport and rental car
When to Go To Amish Penn Dutch Country: April is a good month to visit because
you might combine your visit to Amish country with a visit to Longwood Gardens
where on the second or third week in April the tulip gardens are in full bloom.
Otherwise May until October are good months to visit and enjoy outdoor activities..
you might combine your visit to Amish country with a visit to Longwood Gardens
where on the second or third week in April the tulip gardens are in full bloom.
Otherwise May until October are good months to visit and enjoy outdoor activities..
Photo, Bucks County Tourism
In the area: Washington Crossing State Park
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