Originally, my sister and her family were coming to Colorado to see me. But airfare and gas prices shot up this summer, and suddenly it made a lot more sense for me to fly to them instead.
Whenever I go “home,” it’s usually a whole lot of family time — eating, sitting around talking, playing games. And don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love that. But I told my sister: if I’m coming out, we need to actually go do things. So she and my niece planned a 3½-day itinerary of history & fun in the Capital Region of NY (and a little Dutchess County), and made sure each of us had at least one thing on it that we personally wanted to do.
One quick note before we dive in: temperatures were sitting at 98–105°F the whole trip, which forced us to swap a couple of outdoor plans at the last minute. More on that below.
Day 1: Albany History, a Small-Town Detour, and Sleeping in a Castle
We left Poughkeepsie and drove north on I-87 to Albany, about 90 minutes.
Stop 1: Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site
Our first stop was the Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site. I’d found this one originally, but I knew my niece would love it — she’s into the Revolutionary War and, like half of America, fell for the musical Hamilton.
Our tour was small, just seven of us, joined by another family with two school-aged girls who’d also seen the show. It’s clear that musical has turned this house into a must-stop for a whole generation of kids. While we waited for the tour, we read through the exhibits, including a large video wall playing what felt like interview clips — people sharing pieces of the house’s history. Really well done.
Once the tour started, we walked over to the house itself. The entry room was large, with European landscape wallpaper. The room to the left — the family parlor — is where Alexander Hamilton married Elizabeth “Eliza” Schuyler, Philip Schuyler’s second daughter, in December 1780.
We made our way through the rest of the rooms and even got to touch a sample of the fuzzy flocked wallpaper. On the staircase, my niece noticed a groove in the banister and asked about it — she’d heard a story from her teacher about the lady of the house throwing a cleaver at an intruder. Our guide gently shot that one down, saying no one really knows for sure what happened there (there was a real attempted kidnapping/raid on the house in 1781, so the story isn’t pulled from nowhere — it’s just not confirmed).
Upstairs, the hallway was wide, used for parties and dancing. Four bedrooms lined the side, and the most elaborately decorated belonged to British General John Burgoyne, who stayed there — under guard — as a “guest” after his surrender at the Battle of Saratoga. My niece thought it was funny that there was practically a small army posted outside to keep him safe.
One more interesting detail from the bedrooms: the beds were noticeably short, because people often slept semi-upright, partly due to fireplace smoke in the room. Off to the side, two laminated info sheets covered another layer of the house’s history — that it later served as an orphanage. (See photo for details.)
All three of us walked away genuinely fascinated by this stop.
Stop 2: Lunch Detour in Cohoes
From there, we drove about 20 minutes to Cohoes. My sister had planned this down to the minute and knew exactly where we were eating — except when we arrived, the restaurant was closed for vacation, just a handwritten note taped to the door.
We pulled out our phones. Cohoes is small, and I wasn’t sure how much wiggle room we had in the schedule, but we found Babe’s Diner nearby that turned out to be perfect. We were greeted right away by a friendly, outgoing person who turned out to be one of the owners. The menu wasn’t huge, but there was something for everyone, including me — a grilled cheese. My niece got a cheeseburger, my sister got chicken fingers.
A few other tables were also headed to our next stop, which is how I found out what it was — they didn’t want to spoil the surprise, but did let us know we’d have time to swing by the falls – that plan got scrapped, too — closed for the heat.
Stop 3: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Cohoes Music Hall
Stop three was a matinee performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at the Cohoes Music Hall, 58 Remsen Street. An afternoon play — how fun, and a perfect way to dodge the heat for a couple of hours.
The theater sits on the top floor of the building, so we climbed a good number of stairs just to reach the ticket booth and concessions, then more to get up to the balcony. I grabbed two boxes of popcorn for $5 each. Seats were bench-style; we had front-row balcony seats with a great view, and the house wasn’t full.
For a community or touring production, I thought it was really well done. The two adults in our group liked it slightly more than the 12-year-old did — though I have a feeling she secretly enjoyed it more than she let on.
Stop 4: Immersive Titanic Experience
If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to step right into a piece of history, the Titanic Immersive Experience delivers just that—and then some. The highlight of the exhibit was easily the massive 360-degree projection room detailing the ship’s final hours. Standing in the center of that room as the scene played out around you was surreal. Watching them desperately signal for help as the colossal ship slowly slipped beneath the surface was truly heartwrenching. Even though we all know how the story ends, seeing it unfold at that scale gave me a whole new appreciation for the gravity of that night.
We opted for the virtual reality, for an additional cost/ticket upgrade. Going into it, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, especially since this was actually my very first time trying virtual reality. And we aren’t talking about the kind where you just sit in a chair and look around; this was full-motion VR where you actually walk through the space. I’ll admit, it took a little mental adjusting at first to get my sea legs in a digital world! But once I acclimated, I was completely hooked. You start out walking through part of the ship, and end up in a room where you see the Titanic on the ocean floor.
They wrapped up the experience in a final room dedicated to the post-disaster stats, which was handled brilliantly. The visual graphics broke down who was on the lifeboats—comparing survival and casualty rates across passenger classes—in a way that was striking and easy to digest. My only minor critique of the whole visit was that the rooms were quite dark throughout, though I’m fairly certain that was an intentional design choice to match the somber, heavy atmosphere of the story. Overall, it was a deeply moving blend of tech and history that I won’t be forgetting anytime soon
Stop 5: Amsterdam Castle
Our overnight stop was about 45 minutes away. As we came off the exit, I said, “oh look, there’s a little castle — we should drive up and see it,” and my travel companions just laughed. That was where we were staying. “No way, really? In a castle?” — big grin. My sister had remembered that sleeping in a castle was on my bucket list, so she’d built it into the trip.
We drove up the steep driveway, brought in our bags, and checked in to the Amsterdam Castle. Our room was on the first floor — [note: fill in total room count if you want to mention it]. The rooms themselves were large, with a big bathroom, a sitting area, and a bedroom with a queen bed and a king bed. The room itself didn’t feel especially “castle-like” — it was modern, with the walls covered in artwork.
We headed out to dinner quickly since it was getting late and places were closing, but took our time the next morning walking around the restaurant area (recently closed until further notice), which was decorated with suits of armor and gargoyles. Upstairs, there was a collection of older furniture in the Kennedy room. Like the bedroom, most of the walls throughout the building were covered in artwork, so honestly, it felt more like a small museum than a castle.
The building itself is a former National Guard armory built in 1895, later converted into a private residence and inn — so “castle” is doing a little bit of marketing work here. I’m still deciding whether I get to cross “sleep in a castle” off my bucket list. Technically, yes. Just maybe not quite what I originally pictured.
Overall, it was more affordable than I expected, the bed was comfortable, and it was a genuinely unique experience. amsterdamcastle.com
So how did this day rank overall?
On our drive to the castle, we talked about what our favorite thing of the day was. Nothing was a big loser – even the 3rd ranked spot was still something we enjoyed.
| Most Favorite of Day | Runner Up | Honorable Mention | |
| Niece | Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site | Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Cohoes Music Hall | Titanic Immersive Experience |
| Sister | Titanic Immersive Experience (because of the VR) | Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Cohoes Music Hall | Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site |
| Me | Schuyler Mansion State Historic Site | Titanic Immersive Experience (because of the VR) | Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at Cohoes Music Hall |
Day 2: Animals, Caves, and No Air Conditioning
We adjusted Day 2 because of the heat.
Stop 1: Adirondack Animal Land
We swung by Dunkin’ for donuts to eat on the 20-minute drive to Adirondack Animal Land. My sister had visited years ago and remembered it being cute, so we decided to go — our original plan was Opus 40, but that’s an entirely outdoor sculpture park with a fair amount of walking, and the heat made that a hard pass.
Animal Land was cash-only (there’s an ATM onsite) and genuinely charming. We walked the back area feeding the animals; there was good shade, so even in the heat we lasted out there a while. Nice variety of animals.
We ducked into the gift shop, like everyone does, mostly for the air conditioning — and stayed in there a solid half hour.
Then came the safari portion. We had some leftover feed, plus bought a bit more. We drove through the gate, excited, and the next thing we knew an emu had its entire head inside the car, eating like it hadn’t seen food in weeks. There was some screaming. There was a lot of “what do we do”, we can’t move, there’s a zebra in front of us, and the emu’s head is in the car. We slowly inched forward. Once we finally got the window up, we understood exactly why there were so many plastic cups scattered along the road — that’s your emergency diversion tactic.
Crisis behind us, we kept driving, rolled the windows down to feed a bunch of deer, and worked our way back toward the exit. Energetic ride. A real safari is on my bucket list — I’m now second-guessing that a little.
We were there about 2½ hours, and all three of us really enjoyed this stop.
Stop 2: Secret Caverns
Next, about an hour’s drive to Secret Caverns, near Howe Caverns. Not long after Animal Land, our car’s A/C gave out completely — it just couldn’t keep up with the heat. The drive felt endless in that heat, and between being tired, thirsty, hungry, and heat-sensitive, some crankiness started to creep in.
We arrived excited — I love caves — but had about a 25-minute wait for the next tour. The waiting area is more of a large open barn with no A/C, so we kept sweating it out. Our group ended up around 15–20 people, including someone who arrived a little late wearing flipflops and had a dog.
While we were waiting we went outside to see where the natural entrance once was, but that was close and didn’t take long.
It’s a one-way-in, one-way-out cave, and it was the wettest cave I’ve ever toured — drips overhead, wet railings, wet stairs. My niece was not a fan of that part at all. That said, there were some genuinely great formations, and the tour ends at a 100-foot underground waterfall, which is pretty spectacular.
Verdict: I loved it, my sister really enjoyed it, and my niece is on record calling it the worst experience of her life.
Stop 3: Forget Me Not Soda Shoppe
Still without A/C, we drove 20 minutes to the Forget Me Not Soda Shoppe in Middleburgh, NY. We’d gone for ice cream but figured we’d eat something first — the food wasn’t great, but the ice cream was excellent. The decor was adorable, and they had pinball machines, a few classic arcade games like Pac-Man, and a back room full of games you could borrow and play. While we waited on our order, we taught my niece how to play pinball. She was a natural.
Verdict: go for the ice cream, skip the food.
From there, it was about 1 hour 45 minutes back to Poughkeepsie.
Day 3: Llamas and a Well-Earned Escape Room
Morning Llama Walk at Clover Brooke Farm
We started the day with a llama walk at Clover Brooke Farm — such a unique experience. Our group was about 12 people, mostly adults. The guide gave us some history on the farm, then took us to a fenced side area to meet — and pet — some of the animals.
Then came the main event: walking the llamas and alpacas. Still brutally hot, but the guide brought the animals out one by one, and people paired off with whichever came up to them. We ended up with the last three. Once we had them on lead and learned how to hold and direct them, we headed through a pasture and up into a shaded area. My animal loved rolling around in the thicket, which was pretty funny to watch.
We took a ton of photos and genuinely had a great time. The one thing that surprised me, aside from the animals, was how pushy some of the other adults on the tour were — crowding for photos, not making room for others, kind of hogging certain animals. Small thing, but it stuck with me: on a group tour like this, giving everyone a turn goes a long way.
The Rest of Day 3
Back home, we played a few board games before meeting up with more family for an evening escape room — which we won with 11 minutes to spare.
This trip was such a different kind of family time — and even better, someone else did all the planning. I just got to show up and have fun.
Read more about this trip:
- Our Alpaca Hike at Clover Brooke Farm: A Walk That Might Talk You Into Buying Land
- Amsterdam Castle: Crossing “Sleep in a Castle” Off My Bucket List (Sort Of)
- Schuyler Mansion: A Founding Father’s House That Won Over a 12-Year-Old
- Secret Caverns: The Cave with a Waterfall
- 90 Minutes at the Titanic Immersive Experience
- Adirondack Animal Land: Feeding an Emu Through a Car Window
