Your Weekend Family Getaway at The Hotel Ithaca in Ithaca, New York

Ithaca is the perfect location for a quick trip to the Finger Lakes to take some gorgeous waterfall hikes, stop at local wineries and breweries, or shop at Ithaca’s well-known Farmer’s Market.  Only a 2.5 hour drive from Buffalo, Ithaca was the perfect weekend getaway for our family.  We stayed at The Hotel Ithaca, located right in the heart of downtown Ithaca. 

I am formatting this post into three sections: sleep, eat, and play to give you all the information you need when you plan your weekend trip to Ithaca, New York.

Sleep

From the moment we stepped foot on The Hotel Ithaca property, we could tell the hotel was similar to other Hart Hotels we’ve stayed at in the past.  The trendy lobby furniture, coffee & tea refreshments provided upon arrival and hallways, the restrooms and modern common spaces all meticulously cleaned throughout the day. The Hart Hotel experience is always so great.

Our large king patio room consisted of a king sized bed, pull out couch, large luxurious bathroom with a walk in shower, microwave and refrigerator, Keurig coffee machine, and plush bathrobes to make your stay comfortable, and a spacious outdoor patio overlooking the city.  I have to say, choosing a room with a patio is so wonderful!  We just love being able to access the outdoors right from our hotel room, getting fresh air first thing in the morning and sitting out to watch the sunset was so peaceful.  The kids were excited to watch a hot air balloon float by in the sky above as well as a fire truck zoom by below.  It definitely was the family highlight of the hotel.

 

Eat

The Social Pub and Grill- Located directly inside The Hotel Ithaca and open for breakfast daily 6:30-11:00am, The Social Pub and Grill was the perfect spot to grab breakfast before we started our day of adventure.  A delicious kids menu satisfied our kids with their favorite foods such as pancake and bacon; but we also loved blueberry pancakes and french toast off the main menu.  There were a bunch of omelets to choose from, as well as eggs benedict, breakfast quesadillas, breakfast burrito, steak and eggs, etc.  Prices range from $8.99- $13.99.  

Coltivare- Coltivare is located directly across the street from The Hotel Ithaca and you can enjoy a delicious dinner with a great ambiance.  We loved the subway tiles and brick walls; the whole restaurant décor gave me interior decorating inspiration.  Smaller plates ranged between $9-$11 and larger plates ranged between $19-36.  They had a kids’ menu and the pasta and meatballs portion was so large we had leftovers for days!

The Ithaca Farmer’s Market- The Farmer’s Market is a MUST in Ithaca.  Only Saturdays (9am-3pm) and Sundays (10am-3pm) and sooo many vendors to choose from.  Our best advice- bring lots of cash and come hungry!  There were sooo many things we wanted to buy/eat at the farmers market, we could have stayed all day.  It is definitely worth visiting!

Ithaca Brewing Company- I personally don’t like beer, but wow, the views at Ithaca Brewing Company, just gorgeous!  Ithaca Brewing Company has a large selection of craft beers as well as a couple ciders to choose from as well as some great eats including pizzas, burgers and even some salads.  Kids will love running around the open field or playing a fun lawn game.

 

Fun

Lucifer Falls Hike- This hike is a must in Ithaca.  Lucifer Falls is so gorgeous and although there were a lot of stairs, our kids did great and the falls was impressive!  We highly recommend hiking around the Lucifer Falls hiking trails for an hour or two!  

Ithaca Falls- This is an easy falls to visit as you can just park on the side of the road to access it.  We would highly recommend stopping to visit.  And you can walk along the rocks below the falls and throw stones into the creek with a gorgeous waterfall backdrop.

The Commons- Our kids’ favorite part of this pedestrian only shopping street is the playground right smack in the middle of it all.  It was definitely a hit for all kids and we were also able to go into a couple of little shops along the way.  Right past The Commons shopping area are some really cute restaurants that we didn’t get a chance to try, but looked really good and I would think it would be worth checking out.  Our only word of advice is visit The Commons during the day with kids.  We did walk around with ours in the evenings and didn’t feel as safe as we did during the day.

Sciencecenter- We did not have a chance to visit this amazing museum, but I had to include it in this blog because I have heard multiple people rave about their experience there! The museum is open Tuesday – Sunday and costs $8 for admission (2 years and under are free). 

 

If you are looking for something to do this fall, a trip to Ithaca is well worth the visit!