We visited the Choo Choo Barn after passing it so many times and wondering how it would be for kids…read morefive and under. Right outside, there's a cute train photo op and a water mining activity, which looked fun. My kids were a little too small to fully enjoy the mining setup due to height and visibility, but the bags were reasonably priced around $10-$12. Inside, the ticketing process was smooth and included a souvenir ticket, which was a nice touch. The main attraction is behind a curtain--a large, detailed train display set up in a one-way loop. You can walk through it at your own pace and even go around multiple times. The display itself is impressive, with lots of moving parts and scenes like a circus, a trampoline performer, and even real fish incorporated into the setup. My kids enjoyed spotting the trains and little details, though the experience wasn't very interactive. They made it through once and took their time looping back, but the entire visit lasted about 15 minutes. This feels like a better fit for kids who are really into trains or who enjoy more visual experiences rather than hands-on play. My kids didn't stay as engaged as I expected. Parking is shared with nearby businesses, so availability may vary. We were able to find a close spot, but the lot in front is limited. Also worth noting the bathrooms are not located within the main train display area. Overall, it's a cute experience and I'm glad we checked it out. It may not be a repeat visit for us, but it's worth seeing at least once, especially for train-loving families.

Purchased a discount admission coupon thru Clipp, however the Choo Choo Barn refused the valid…read morecoupon. I've never had an issue with anyone refusing Clipp before, it's actually allowed us to visit merchants that we haven't visited before and ended visiting multiple times after that. We have visited years ago and purchased 2 yearly passes, but it's not good business to turn people away that purchased the certificates. We ended up leaving since we've been there before.

The wonderful lady behind the counter at the archives/library gift shop, and the librarians were so…read morekind and helped me when I stopped by to do research. There is so much good information available here, knowledgeable people, and lots of space to spread out to do some deep-focused research. Highly recommended!

Wonderful place for the history buff and the family. I have attended book signings and book sales…read more Great place for family research. The yearly events brought me new friends with similar interests. Very historically educational.

A fun and educational place to bring the kids to. Almost everything is interactive which is great…read more The place isn't huge per say, but you can easily spend 2-4 hours here. The space is separated into different stations and has a nice flow to it. We came on the weekend and although there were a lot of people, it never felt overcrowded or that that there was too long a wait for any of the exhibits. Admission is $13 per person which I think is fair. Overall my kids had a lot of fun and we would love to come back again in the future.

Visited again and whole factory has changed the exhibits and layout from 4 yrs ago. $12 now for 3…read moreand over. Sky bridge: keep your shoes on and climb. They also have something similar at Long Island children museum and NJ Liberty Science center. Tons of hands on with brief explanation at each station. Outdoor stations are also available at the courtyard. Today the maker space is reserved for summer camp only. I wonder what activities do they have for the public usually. Like before, free parking across the road. Love the high ceiling and the feel of kids are free to explore. Will definitely return.

My wife and I are "regulars" at the Maryland renaissance festival, and paid performers at the…read moreOakenmist renaissance festival. one thing I can honestly say (without reservation) is that the faire in Manheim PA is EVERYTHING the Maryland renaissance festival IS NOT. We attended this past weekend and were taken aback by the overall cleanliness, paved walkways, and (air conditioned) restrooms with running water and flushable toilets. Little to no lines for food. Food was slightly more expensive, but worth it. Portion sizes were all double what you get at the Maryland faire. turkey legs were (no exaggeration whatsoever) anywhere from 12 to 18" long and actually had (a lot of) meat on them, as opposed to Marylands which are all "tendon." Steak on a steak were not ribbons, but large CHUNKS of tender and juicy steak. Scotch eggs were big, and perfectly cooked. People (at least on the day we were there) obeyed the smoking and vaping rules and stayed in their designated areas, and we did not (repeat) not one time, did we smell marijuana throughout the entire event, which is not something that you cannot say about the Maryland Faire. Music entertainment was an absolute delight to sit listen and watch. (One with a "hurty-gurty", one with a hammered dulcimer, and an array of other comical acts). PA were much more relaxed on their "LARP" and foam weapons policy, where Maryland will only allow wooden swords that you purchased there. (Let's face it folks... I could do more damage with my wrist-watch wrapped around my fist, then I could with a foam, or polypropylene weapon that resembles a sword. Let's get real, Maryland faire...) Not once, did we lose cellular reception, throughout the entire grounds. Vendors there have Gatorade available for sale, as well as soft drinks. The soft drinks are more expensive, but twice the serving size as Maryland. It was evidently clear that Queen Elizabeth l was classically trained as an Elizabethan actress. This our (very first) visit to the PA faire will inevitably and most certainly lead to our return.

My best friend and I had so much fun! It was our first year going to this one and we had a great…read moretime walking around to all the booths and having amazing food.

I visited the 1719 Museum this past Saturday and really enjoyed the experience…read more The guided tour starts with a short film about the property that provides some great context for the rest of the tour. Then you leave the visitor center and walk over to the first structure of tour, which is a full-sized reproduction of a Native American longhouse. Longhouses (large multi-generational family homes made of logs, saplings, and tree bark) were once ubiquitous in Pennsylvania, including along the Susquehanna River. At the time the Hans Herr home was built, south-central Pennsylvania was home to several Indigenous tribes, including the Shenks Ferry, Conoy, Lenape, Mohawk, Nanticoke, Seneca, Shawnee, and Susquehannock peoples. The 1719 Museum collaborated with the Circle Legacy Center and members of the local indigenous community to build the longhouse reproduction in order to share the history of and honor Pennsylvania's native communities and educate visitors to the area. With your guide, you walk into the longhouse, where you sit down while the guide explains quite extensively about the Native communities in the area, the longhouse and its architecture, and the relationships between the indigenous people and the Mennonite people who made homes in the area. After the longhouse, the guide walks you over to the Hans Herr House. It was built in 1719 and is a 2-story, rectangular sandstone Germanic-style dwelling. It is the oldest dwelling in Lancaster County and the oldest Mennonite meetinghouse in America. The guide walks you through various rooms in the house and shares information about the Herr family as well as the larger Mennonite community in early Pennsylvania history. Our guide was Cindy, and she was incredible. I learned so much about the Native, Indigenous and Mennonite communities of 18th century Pennsylvania (and - in the case of the Native peoples - a much earlier history of their lives in Pennsylvania). She really educated us on a broad range of topics, while keeping the tour fun (I love fun education)! She made my tour extra special. If you're spending some time exploring Lancaster Counter, the 1719 Museum should definitely make your itinerary! In one place, you can learn a little bit about Pennsylvania's Native and Mennonite communities, and it's just a special place!

Why is the Hans Herr House significant and who the hell was Hans Herr?…read more The house itself is significant as it is the last remaining structure that is still standing from the original group of Mennonites who came to the Lancaster County area to escape religious persecution from their native Switzerland. The house is also significant in that it is the oldest structure in Lancaster County and likely the oldest remaining Mennonite meetinghouse in the Western Hemisphere. The original group traveled from Switzerland to Germany to escape religious persecution then after a governmental regime change they were forced from Germany to England where they met with William Penn who allowed them to colonize a portion of what is current day Lancaster County or when they arrived in 1711, the extreme most western frontier of Pennsylvania. One interesting piece of information is that the house did not belong to Hans Herr as it was built by his son Christian which is why his initials are over the doorway along with the inscribing mark of 1719. On the tour you are told why the name remained(s) Hans Herr House versus Christian Herr House but honestly I forget why. Maybe something just deferential from Christian towards his father or because of his father's status with the original group that came to the area or maybe everyone just liked the flow of the name more so it's based on tradition? The tour itself is around 40-45 minutes and it starts in the building which houses the gift shop and you are given a brief overview of the Anabaptist faith, the Mennonites who are direct descendants of the faith and a map which shows the route the initial settlers took from Switzerland to Pennsylvania. After that you are taken over to the house where you see the three rooms which make up the first floor (kitchen, bedroom and all purpose dining room-meeting room-family room) and the second floor which is where the eight children slept and finally the basement which is accessed from a side entrance outside of the house. You learn that the key to the home's design is that they didn't believe in wasting any space so every inch served a purpose such as not having hallways so as soon as you walk in the front door you're right in the kitchen. One thing worth noting, if you are someone who is hardcore hung up on only visiting historical places if they have lots of original items then this place might not be for you. There is not a whole lot original to the house that you can see with the exception of a piece of the ceiling insulation on the first floor (rye straw + manure + ??), the wooden crossbeam over the kitchen fireplace and the steps which go from the second floor to the third floor attic (obviously you can't use them). Past that I think most everything else was changed out in the 19th century when the house was still used as a residence or in the early 70's when the initial renovation occurred to make things into a tourist destination. If you want more original take a look at the bibles on display in the gift shop which are original to Hans and Christian. I wouldn't call the Hans Herr House a must see, but it's interesting enough and the tour is the right length to keep everyone interested along with being located close enough to most of Lancaster County's tourist elements. If you go: The 1719 Hans Herr House is open April 1 through November 30, Monday-Saturday, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM. Forty-five minute Herr House tours are offered at 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. This is not the tour information for their reproduction Native American Longhouse. That tour is offered at 10 a.m., 12 noon and 2 p.m and has an entirely different focus. Prices are currently Adults: $8, Children 7-12: $4 and Children 6 and under: free with a slight discount if you choose to tour both structures. There are also several special events that happen throughout the year and that information is available on their website.

Had so much fun at the tastings event. Beautiful water front areas and a short hike to see the…read morewaterfall! We went all the way to the top floor to see the view! Then worked our way down the museum. Lots of interesting info and artifacts. At the shop we purchased a mocasine keyring and a dream catcher bracelet.

We missed their river boat ride due to wind, but the docent took time to give us a very informative…read moretour of the new room in honor of the historic Susquehannock community, which was located here. She even referred us to another nearby museum where a Powwow was in full swing. Take the beautiful nature walk over rolling hills of green with lots of maidens tears abloom in early October. We will be back someday to enjoy a river cruise on the Chief Uncas.

Nice little museum about the history of Wrightsville. Of course the biggest of all is the Skirmish…read morebefore the Battle of Gettysburg, which resulted in the burning of the bridge. Several Civil War artifacts are on site. There's also a lot about the canals that once ran along the Susquehanna river.

Did you know that Ephrata used to have a horse track? Did…read moreyou know that the EPAC theater used to be a roller skating rink? Do you know what famous Ephratarian lived at 123 Park Ave? If you are into local history, then there isn't a better ticket in town then the Cocalico Historical Society. Located on West Main and Pine, it is situated on a property that consists of two very interesting homes: one, a typical 1800s arctetypal Ephrata mansion, holds the museum, while the other a Brock Swiss - ish home, holds the library. The museum is extremely well done. Histories of the town, businesses, police and fire, schools, homes, mayors, transportation are all not only documented with pictures, but with hundreds of artifacts. And, specially on loan is an exhibit on the 1953 miss america, who was born and raised on Park Ave. Her gown, banner, trophy, jewelry, and the banners that welcomed her home after her win are all on display. Very well done. I can't wait to go back. The 4 cub scouts we were with were less patient and less impressed than i, but they were 1st graders, and I know my historical appreciation was non-existant in first grade. I can't wait go go back and digest it all on my own agenda. But I have come to realize that knowing the history of where you live is important, and in a transient society where every town has morphed into strip malls of bog box stores, places like this keep a society real. Excellent job. Also, be sure to visit the library...lots of local interest, then and now picture books for sale.