2020-01-07 05:04:57
The charm of this region is how seamlessly you can move from a morning in the scenic outdoors to an afternoon stop-and-sip at craft breweries, and finally to a fun-for-all night at a sporting event, live performance, or festival. Experience the area’s rich heritage as remnants of the Industrial Revolution have been reimagined as impressive new cultural centers, movie houses, and music halls. Along the way, you’ll discover an impressive lineup of museums, historic sites, and immersive living history experiences that offer a glimpse into bygone eras. HIGHLIGHTS DUTCH SPRINGS, BETHLEHEM Swim, scuba dive, bounce off huge inflatables, and soar through the sky on an aerial course at this 50-acre springfed lake. LOST RIVER CAVERNS, HELLERTOWN Descend into a five-chamber limestone cavern to explore a majestic underground world of rock formations and fluorescent minerals, and then stop by The Gilman Museum to see rare fossils, gemstones, and curiosities. DA VINCI SCIENCE CENTER, ALLENTOWN Exhibits at this kid-centric museum are as fun as they are educational, including flight simulators, robotic dinosaurs, a hurricane simulator, an interactive dance floor that creates electric energy from your dance moves, and a pitch-black tunnel maze. ALLENTOWN ART MUSEUM, ALLENTOWN More than 19,000 works of art fill this longtime Lehigh Valley cultural institution, including American and Renaissance paintings, textiles, and sculptures. DORNEY PARK & WILDWATER KINGDOM, ALLENTOWN With more than 100 rides on land and water, Dorney Park & Wildwater Kingdom offers tons of fun for the whole family. Don’t miss the new Seaside Splashworks, a beach-themed play structure with 75 play elements, opening this year. STEELSTACKS, BETHLEHEM The former Bethlehem Steel plant has been reborn into a 10-acre campus for museums, cultural events, and more than 1,000 concerts every year, including Musikfest, the largest free music festival in the country. CRAYOLA EXPERIENCE, EASTON Color and creativity come to life at this hands-on attraction that lets kids experience the magic of artwork through interactive activities, shows, and exhibits. PEEK INTO THE PAST From early American settlers to titans of the Industrial Revolution, the Lehigh Valley is filled with fascinating history around every cobblestone street, canal, and factory trestle. Quaint downtown Bethlehem was named a Top 10 Main Street by USA Today, and the Historic Hotel Bethlehem is a great home base for exploring the many treasures of this National Historic Landmark District — that is, if you can pull yourself away from the plush guest rooms, onsite restaurant, and ice cream parlor. Explore Bethlehem’s Colonial roots at Burnside Plantation, a 6.5-acre farm and living history museum that was a centerpiece of the city’s Moravian community in the 18th and 19th centuries. Highlights include a 1748 farmhouse, picturesque apple orchards, and a rare High Horse-Powered wheel — an early manufacturing device. Looking to learn more about the region’s rich industrial heritage? The National Museum of Industrial History is housed in the bustling SteelStacks complex at the former Bethlehem Steel factory, which once reigned as the second-largest steel producer in the nation. Exhibits interweave personal stories and artifacts to detail America’s rise as an industrial powerhouse. Stick around to walk the elevated Hoover-Mason Trestle, one of Pennsylvania’s most unique urban strolls. Two more Lehigh Valley museums honor the region’s workhorse past. The Mack Trucks Historical Museum in Allentown (which served as the transportation giant’s headquarters from 1905 to 2010), displays vintage trucks and a large collection of memorabilia, engineering drawings and historical photos. In Easton, the National Canal Museum commemorates America’s golden age of canals. Ride a canal boat pulled by mules, tour one of the only remaining locktender houses, and explore multi-use trails that meander along historic towpaths all the way to Wilkes-Barre. Easton also lays claim to the oldest continuously running open-air farmers market in America (established 1752), and Easton Public Market continues to build on that foodie tradition. This combination food hall, grocer, and community kitchen is the perfect place to grab a meal, picnic provisions, or gourmet food souvenirs. PICK UP AN AUDIO DEVICE AT THE HISTORIC BETHLEHEM VISITOR CENTER FOR A SELF-GUIDED TOUR.
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