This park is brimming with sights and activities!…read more It looks out on Lake Cayuga. There are lots of benches and swing seats that offer stunning and shaded views of the water. The grass is well-maintained and perfect for laying out a blanket. There are coal fired grills available. There's also a basketball hoop (not a full court) and a jogging/biking path. You can rent kayaks and cross a pedestrian bridge over the creek that runs through it. They also have a bird watching trail. There are public restrooms, which were clean but out of toilet paper and soap when I visited. Great place to enjoy the outdoors solo or with friends and family.

We were vacationing in the Ithaca area recently, and Stewart Park was hands down our toddler's…read morefavorite place during the entire trip. The play area for children is large, and accommodates children of varying ages and abilities. The adults in our group also had some fun on the playground, since there weren't too many other groups when we visited. Along the lake, there are a good number of benches for sitting, including bench swings. The main path of the park is paved, so it makes for easy walking, stroller pushing, little kid biking/scooting, etc. We liked this park so much that we came here twice on our short vacation. I would definitely recommend it for families with young children who need to burn off some energy.

[Tuh-Gan-Ick] Falls state park is one the of most beautiful state park in NY. It has spectacular…read morenatural attractions of waterfalls, and a lake front on the other side of the road The Gorge Trail to the waterfall is very easy to access. I visited in the winter to see the falls frozen over, and the park rangers had done an excellent job keeping the trail well maintained. It takes about 20 minutes to walk from the parking lot to the waterfall, and there's very little elevation change along the way. North Rim trail entrance was close during winter due to ice and snow. But you can skip the dangerous part of the trail by parking at the Taughannock Falls overlook point and start hiking from there. Then you will reach the upper falls. Parking is only $10. lot is small so warmer weather probably will fill up pretty quickly.

I visited here in the winter to see the falls frozen over, and it was such a cool experience! I…read morehadn't seen a frozen waterfall before, so it was really special to experience. I thought it was a fairly easy 1 mile hike out to the falls (though my coworker vehemently disagrees that 1 mile and easy belong in the same sentence - sorry Miss Sheila!), and there were some falcons swooping around. There is a fee to park, but were still spots remaining when we arrived. We should have received discounted parking with a Military ID, but the booth was unmanned that day, so we paid anyway. There is a restroom facility at the parking lot, and it wasn't bad. I actually think it was heated, so that was nice. I'd be interested in seeing the falls and hiking the upper trail when the weather is better!

Beautiful park right off the road with easy access. Parking is $10 and worth it whether you want a…read morerelaxed stroll or a longer hike. Buttermilk Falls is right at the entrance and super easy to get to, with trails branching off from there. There's also swimming available in season when lifeguards are on duty. Overall, a very relaxing spot I loved visiting.

Located just on the southern edge of Ithaca, Buttermilk Falls named as early as 1866, as it was…read morelikened to "a mass of thick, frothy foam" is a wildly popular spot for tourists and local residents, especially during the height of summer where some of us visited this park. Formed by Buttermilk Creek as it flows down the steep valley side toward Cayuga Lake ranging in height from 5 to 35 feet and descending more than 500 feet in a series of cascades and rapids, a natural pool at the base of fall provides swimming with the feel of an old swimming hole that was closed today due to lack of life guards. Like many NY state parks, there are two entrances. We walked from the parking lot at the lower park and hiked up the picturesaque dog friendly Gorge Trail until the cross-over bridge. Then we returned back down the other side of the gorge on the less travelled Rim Trail. Bathrooms were clean with 4 showers. If one carries in food or drinks into the park, one must carry out as there are no trash cans. Parking was $10 and our picnic lunch made for an inexpensive, fabulous day, which we can recommend.

As a first time kayaker, I had an amazing, core memory built. I want to continue kayaking as a…read morehobby now. The owners were very kind and instructed me on technique and proper form when rowing a kayak. My partner and I came on a calm morning with perfect weather conditions to kayak (no wind, flat water.) We got the faster kayaks and were able to kayak 2 miles going to see Hector Falls and 2 miles coming back. I truly cannot feel like I understand and know a body of water now without kayaking it first. The price for 2 hours was $52, but given it is the famous, Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes region, I feel it's warranted and definitely worth it. During our stay in the Finger Lakes, for both of us, this was one of our absolute favorite things to do on the trip. When we come back, we will definitely visit this business again. Keep up the amazing work and customer service!

Absolutely love the people at Seneca Lake Kayak, helpful and kind in every way. If you are in the…read morearea or if you are looking for something fun and adventurous to do, this is the place! Your experience from beginning to end will be a reason to keep coming back!

Incredibly beautiful waterfall any time of year. Has parking and is a very short easy walk from…read moreparking to the falls.

Very easy to access this waterfalls most time of the year. very beautiful in the middle of town…read more Winter might be a little slippery with ice buildup, but you can still get up close to the waterfall by following the trail on the side. Parking is free on Fall street. There is no marking, just a small lot.

This waterfall is more of a walk-by spot, as there's no access to the bottom. However, there's a…read morebeach area and spots to launch a canoe or kayak. The trails appear to circle the lake, offering great fishing opportunities, which were quite popular during our visit. Parking can be a challenge, as most spaces are reserved for the nearby college.

There is a short trail around the Beebe lake which will make a circle around the lake and end at…read morethe fall. Interesting place to take a walk

One of the coolest places I've ever been! The outdoor trails are incredible, with beautiful…read morehabitats that attract a wide variety of birds. We saw during our short walk two Osprey and Ruby-crowned Kinglets while exploring. The inside is just as impressive, with one of the best interactive museums I've experienced, full of fascinating specimens and thoughtful learning opportunities in a gorgeous building. The gift shop is well stocked and collaborates with Wild Birds Unlimited. A must see if you're in the area and into conservation or wildlife!

Nice viewing area inside the building, with provided spotting scopes. The girl behind the welcome…read morecenter desk was nice and friendly. We did NOT see much in the way of wildlife or birds, like we had hoped we would. That could be from the time of year I suppose. I'm sure the place is teaming with wildlife in the fall months. The biggest complaint/suggestion I would give to the people that run it is to have a BETTER system for marking the trails. There are maps at trail intersections, but they are VERY confusing. EVERY time we thought we knew where we were going, we NEVER ended up in the right spot (and I'm a seasoned veteran of woodsmanship for over 50 years!). PLEASE COLOR CODE the trails to help people ensure they are on the CORRECT trail. Some areas we saw twice, other areas we missed. Not sure about when we might return.

Out of the hikes I've done around Ithaca, Robert H. Treman State Park has been my favorite. The…read moregorge trail and rim trail loop offers beautiful views of the Enfield Glen gorge and waterfalls, especially with the fall foliage. It's moderate difficulty. There is a swim area by the bottom parking area. Both times I've visited this park it was closed due to being off season in October. $10 per car. You can use the receipt to enter any NY state park on the same day.

It's probably been always one of my favorite hikes in Ithaca. It gives like these Lord of the rings…read morevibes with the deep canyons and the Stone Bridges and the cliffs. It's just kind of epic with the moss. It has like a micro climate to it where it gets a little bit temperate rainforest with ferns and moss and it's just beautiful. I think there's four routes total. It's basically the upper and lower gorge or the upper and lower rim trails. We have the dog we're feeling kind of tired so we did the upper trail which is like under a mile and it takes you straight to the Falls and some epic sites. I honestly haven't done the lower trail but it's on my bucket list. It's 3 miles. I've can't come here as a tourist previously and just wanted to go for the I guess the money shot as its called definitely recommend.

Set sail for True Love, a truly enjoyable time!…read more Bottom Line Up Front: We had a wonderful, relaxing, and fun time for a good price. The Good: The history of the John Alden designed schooner is worth reading before you go. We had some more "salty" members of our group that recognized the name of the schooner from the 1956 movie "High Society" starring Bing Crosby, Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra and after that we were on board for a wonderful time. We even were seated in the seats once occupied by Gene and Bing. We purchased our tickets after being approached by Terry who negotiated a decent price with us because he wanted a full boat for the next trip. Captain Bill was an experienced Captain and is well known in the area. He got us underway and was a delightful host regaling us with stories about the "True Love", Seneca Lake and surroundings, as well as, some stories about racing the "True Love" and his crew, Spencer and Marena. Captain Bill even assisted another sailing boat that was in distress and precariously close to the lake edge. The trip was two hours long and on time. The crew served non-alcoholic and adult beverages (some free, some for a price) while underway and also sold some souvenirs (Whisky and glasses). The Bad: There was nothing bad, from start to finish, this was a very enjoyable trip and the crew definitely enjoyed sharing their love of the "Trie Love" with the joyful passengers. The Ugly: Absolutely nothing other than we could not be out for longer. If you find yourself in Watkins Glen, this is definitely an enjoyable to kick back, relax, and let the wind fill your sails. They say a picture is worth 1000 words, so I am going to end my post with a few that we snapped along the way. May you have fair winds, and following lake waters!

Excellent sailing experience The crew was great and was…read morevery eager to make sure we had a great time The boat was in excellent condition

Polite staff. Helpful and well informed. The view out on the water was beautiful Plenty of kayak…read morerentals to choose from in the area but I'm glad we chose PaddleDockers

Dear Puddledockers,…read more IF We call you to ask if you rent kayak paddles separately from kayaks... AND If we ask how much the rentals are... AND You tell us that they're $20 per day and have to be returned by the end of the day... AND We tell you that we'll be over in about twenty minutes... THEN You should have told us on the phone that you'll refuse to rent us kayak paddles separately from your kayaks because all of your kayaks (and the paddles associated with them) have all been otherwise reserved and you have no spare paddles for us to rent. Your apathetic and unapologetic staff at least had the courtesy of suggesting Eastern Mountain Sports might have paddles for us to rent, instead. And they -did- look up the phone number of the nearest outlet for us. That was appreciated. On behalf of all your future patrons, please have a care. And please get your shit in order. Sincerely, -Kevin