I'm an individual that loves, unique roadside landmarks. This was a must even though, I didn't physically reserve a stay there it intrigued me learning on its history. Well visiting and in York, PA, I stopped this past Thursday July 3, 2025, to physically say I checked out the shoe house. The shoe house was build by Mr. Haines back in 1948, to promote the launch of selling his shoes. From other fellow Yelpers, they stop tours 3 years ago. Now the property is an Airbnb, who wouldn't love to say hey let's rent the shoe house. My advice, if your checking out an area, you never been do some research, as too notable sites in the surrounding areas of your location. Fun photo opportunity, though my picture taken by kids by a little blurry in the sunset, still perfect view of the house from the street. read more

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Living in Central PA my whole life, I'd passed the infamous Haines Shoe House on Rt. 30 more times than I can count--but I never stopped to check it out...until today. On a warm September Sunday morning, it made the perfect low-impact first adventure of the day. A little research ahead of time is key: the Shoe House is no longer open for tours. It's now an Airbnb rental (going for $300-$800+ per night), but the property owner does allow visitors to stop and admire it from outside the gated fence. You can't get super close, but close enough that your phone's zoom works just fine for photos. Parking is inside the gate for renters only, but we lucked out as the only visitors and were able to pull off to the side of the road by the driveway for a quick peek. So--was it the most thrilling thing I've ever seen? No. But it is a house shaped like a shoe--48 feet long, 25 feet high, 17 feet wide--and that alone makes it worth the bragging rights of, "Hey, I saw a giant shoe house today!" Plan for no more than 10 minutes here, since you can't go inside, but it's a fun roadside oddity and a nice addition to a sunny fall adventure. Just be respectful of the owner's request to stay outside the fence--no need to ruin this for anyone else. The Haines Shoe House even has a Historical Marker from the Pennsylvania Museum Commission, recognizing both its quirky place in local history and its unique "Programmatic Architecture." Cool, weird, quick, and very Central PA. Definitely worth a pit stop. read more

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Living in Pennsylvania you always are aware of building that look like everyday items. There's the kettle in Bedford and then there is this shoe in York. I wish I would have visited this when it was open for people to tour. However, now, if you don't reserve it for a stay, you basically can't view this unless you pull off the side of the road and view it from the fence line. There is some history with this shoe. It was built by a shoe salesman as an eye catching advertisement. And eye catching it is. From the perimeter you can admire the shoe and take in the little details that it offers. The fence line itself is tied to the house. The fence line has an outline of a shoe made into the fence. There is a historic plaque out front to give you a short history on the house. One day, I will make it inside and give a full review. As for now, unless you rent it on Airbnb you cannot view the inside. I wish I would have visited this place while it was a rental property and been able to view it as a museum. read more

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Five stars for the best shoe house I've ever seen! Built in the 1940s, this stucco shoe structure has three bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms and currently you can rent it to spend the night there. There is a fence and the gate was closed so we viewed it from the road and I was surprised to hear how many rooms are in the shoe, since it felt smaller than that from a distance. Mahlon Haines went out on a marketing limb and built it to promote sales for his shoe store business, and I have to think it's a shoe-in for a unique place to stay. read more

Remember the old woman who lived in a shoe? Well, you can find the shoe off of Shoe House Road in York, a roadside attraction that you can almost miss if you're not paying attention while you're driving by in the area! You can take a tour with a small nominal fee, but I felt as if the main draw was the cute little ice cream/sweets shop that you can find on the first floor! They serve up Beck's ice cream, and the hubs and I had the following: a scoop of mint chocolate chip; a scoop of fresh peach (only available in the summer, as it's a seasonal flavor); and, a raspberry ice cream sandwich (soft raspberry ice cream that's piped into two round chocolate cookie shells). The ice cream was thick and creamy, where the mint chocolate chip had a good strong minty taste with plenty of chocolate chips throughout; the peach was more subtle in flavor. I really loved the raspberry ice cream sandwich - the raspberry soft serve was so tasty, and the chocolate shells were not soggy at all, but fresh and had a perfect consistency that paired perfectly with the ice cream! YUM! Staff were very friendly and welcoming. There are a few tables inside to dine-in, and there are some souvenir items by the entry area. Don't forget to take some selfies, photos, and to check out the dog house, too, by the parking area! +raspberry ice cream sandwich +tasty Beck's ice cream +friendly staff +roadside attraction +handful of spots for parking read more

I visited the Shoe House on a day when it was closed. I really came for the house not the tour or ice cream, but both would have been nice! You can still get a old view from outside the fence, which also features shoes. A very easy stop off of the highway and cute piece of roadside Americana! read more

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So let's start this one by saying that everything you either knew in the past about the Shoe House or had heard about the Shoe House is now obsolete. You know what I'm talking about, the crazy no picture taking of the interior policy or the website that looked like crap and had little to no information about such minutia such as hours of operation or prices. But now there are new sheriffs in town as of 2015 and such nonsense has been replaced with a far more approachable & friendly attitude that makes coming here the ultimate roadside curiosity/junket/ side trip. The condensed version of the house's history goes something like this: The house was the idea of eccentric businessman Mahlon Haines. Part Milton Hershey (he believed heavily in religion and the Boy Scouts) and part Richard Branson (not afraid in the least to do about anything including self exploitation if it meant advertising to sell more shoes) Haines had the house built by showing a work boot to an architect with the directive of "Build Me a House Like This". The end result is what still stands today with a three bedroom house that has a kitchen, dining room and two bathrooms which were completed in 1948. The house itself is 48 feet long (48 feet long and built in 1948 - coincidence???), 25 feet tall on five levels with several stained glass windows including the infamous one of Haines himself holding two shoes above his own nickname Haines the "Shoe Wizard". Haines only briefly lived in the house. Instead he saw a greater use for it as a marketing tool. Haines used the house for years to give all expense paid week long stays to newlywed & elderly couples in the area. This included maid service and a chauffeur who would take the couples wherever and naturally at the end of the stay everybody left with free Haines shoes. Haines could afford to do such things because at the height of his company's fortune he had over forty stores in PA and Maryland along with a seven figure net worth. His wealth was divided at the time of his death to several charitable organizations along with his church and sadly not long after his death the Haines Shoe Company ceased to exist. When Haines died in 1962 at age 87, he left the house to his employees, who sold it to a dentist two years later. It operated for about 20 years as an ice cream parlor, and building tours were available. Haines' granddaughter, Annie, bought it in 1987 and renovated it, but the bank repossessed it because she was unable to keep maintaining it. With that out of the way let's talk about what's actually there currently: Hours are from 11-7 Wednesday-Saturday and Sunday 11-5 from the first day of Spring until November. The price is $5 per person (cash or credit/debit although they charge an extra fifty cents for credit/debit transactions) and on the first floor (the former carport) there is a small bakery which smells divine when the cookies & cupcakes are being rendered by one of the owners. They also carry ice cream from Beck's in York, PA. An updated website is on the way and for right now all needed info is on the shoe's FB page. www.facebook.com/HainesShoeHouse The tour itself is not very long but it's truly interesting as where the hell else can you tour a house shaped like a shoe plus there are a lot of interesting vintage pieces in the house (most not original but of the period) plus Haines's story is very unique in and of itself? This is by no means a destination onto itself but if you're rolling by on Route 30 and you've got an extra hour to kill the Shoe House is a very bizarre/cool/odd/interesting attraction that is worth the visit. read more

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This fun stop was the Haines Shoe House. It was built by a shoe salesman named Mahlon Haines in 1948 as a promotional gimmick to sell shoes. It worked! Touring the house was interesting. It was like an early "tiny house" with 3 bedrooms, kitchen, living room and bathrooms. The history is fascinating. The tour cost $5 and was worth it. You got to see the advertising memorabilia of the original owner. The gift shop is small and there is an ice cream shop within the space. Great photo op. read more

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Great historical place for those in York County OR those just driving along the old Lincoln Highway! Great place to take kids/grandkids. Also, very good locally mad ice cream as an end of the tour treat. Support this historical landmark by your patronage! It was our first time and we lived in the area for 43 years. Glad we finally came. Will come back fir ice cream! read more

The Shoe House has always been on my list of odd places to visit, and thanks to Gingersnaps review, I finally decided to go one afternoon. There was some parking in the back of the house, which is just off the Hallam exit of Rt 30. The tour itself was 4.50 per person, kids are free, and there is no inside photography (I guess they want some security or privacy.) Its run by a husband and wife who live in York County. The house was originally built in 1948 by millionaire Mahlon Haines a local shoe salesman, who had nearly 40 stores throughout Pennsylvania and Maryland. Word is he'd let newlywed couples stay there for free. (not sure why, because he was insanely rich?) It was owned and run by different people over time and has offered tours & ice cream going back decades. The tour starts in the sole of the shoe, then goes up and shows you the bedrooms and bathrooms, storage areas. All of the rooms had pretty unique storage, and the 2nd bathroom had a sink in the hallway, it was very cozy. Tons of stuff in the house was shoe related. Some rooms had miniature shoes, shoe bedspreads, pictures of shoes, shoe toothbrush holders, etc. There was even a birdhouse and dog house in the shape of a shoe! Finally the tour goes down to the heel, where there is a kitchen and a small gift shop. The shop itself had little trinkets, magnets, snacks and ice cream. It was alright, the owners gave us a small picture for our daughter to color. There were lots of stairs to climb and it wasnt wheelchair accessible. Not sure, but might be cash only. read more

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We've been trying to get here for a while, but the store hours never seem to work. Once we finally got here it was a fun stop. We simply had some ice cream from the little shop. There's not much room inside the store, but there's plenty to do outside if the weather is nice. read more

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Stopped by after visiting the Turkey Hill Experience. It's a quirky roadside stand with a neat history. My 6 year old loved exploring the different rooms inside a shoe house. It's a self guided tour and only cost $5 per person. Located right off of Route 30 and Route 462. It has picnic tables set up around the building to enjoy a snack or lunch. How many people can say they've been in a shoe house?! read more

Such a fun roadside attraction! The shoe/house tour was cute.. my nephew enjoyed seeing the shoe molds and tools but was oddly amazed to see he was a lil taller than the old fridge in the kitchenette LOL. Peach, vanilla and chocolate creams were all very delicious! read more

Ever since viewing the Pennsylvania Road Show many moons ago, the Haines Shoe House has been on my list of things to see in PA. I'm glad I waited because the new owners (as of early 2015) have worked to return the shoe house back to its old glory. Located along the Lincoln Highway on Shoe House Road, the Haines Shoe House was originally built by shoe salesman Mahlon Haines as a way to advertise his business. Newlyweds and elderly couples would be invited to stay in the work boot shaped house. There's even a smaller shoe shaped doghouse outside along with a spacious area for family picnics. I stopped by with a friend one weekday afternoon to find Melanie Schmuck (one of the new owners) inside the small ice cream shop found underneath the shoe house. She told us how she grew up nearby and had fond memories of visiting the site. She was heartbroken when the place fell in disrepair had a dream of returning the Haines Shoe House to it's original splendor. Melanie and her husband Jeff (along with their devoted family) have worked tirelessly on the restoration. For $5/person, Melanie's sister gave us a personal tour inside the Haines Shoe House. It's remarkable how big it seems once you're inside. There is a living room and a kitchen area as well as the bedrooms. The attention to detail is outstanding. The Schmucks have used items like old advertising fans, shoeboxes and old shoe sizers to decorate the house. They've taken great care to acquire these items and even have letters from couples who stayed there back in the day. The ice cream shop offers local ice cream and some homemade baked goods. I had a refreshing float (Sprite with mint chocolate chip at Melanie's suggestion) for under $5. I always like a good "local kid makes good" story like this. The Haines Shoe House is a roadside attraction worthy of your attention thanks in no small part to the dedication and research done by the owners. read more

Haines Shoe House - Shoe House Road - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - York, Pennsylvania

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I remember my dad taking my sister and I here all of the time when we were little. A nice little place to go with your family.

I think it's a great piece of kitsch!! And area history! It's nestled in a tuft of farmland, just a small stretch away from the main roads and 'civilization'. You can go there for an inside tour... it's actually a fully functional house, and you can walk through the bedrooms, kitchen, see the bathrooms... it's a little 'home spun'... very cutely decorated. but unfortunately no interior pictures are allowed, nor did I see any for sale by way of postcard of the like. *sigh* When I went, the tour cost $4.50 pp, kids were maybe $3?? and under 3 were free. We had 6 people on our tour and it got a little bit cramped, which was to be expected. There is a dinette sort of place where the garage used to be, that sells a single design tshirts, postcards, and serves ice cream. The house is owned by a couple that seems to maintain and run the joint. The husband (??) was so nice, offered to take a picture outside, and was just setting up their new mailbox that he made to replicate the shoehouse. I really appreciate that they are preserving a piece of area history and sharing it with the public! Definitely something to check out if you're in the area! read more

Haines Shoe House - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - York, Pennsylvania

Neat little ice cream shoppe in a shoe, The shoe house is very cool,we did the tour and she explained how Mr Haines came about making the shoehouse. Melanie is kind and very welcoming she added her touches of older shoe memorabilia to the house too. I had chocolate marshmallow ice cream was delicious!!! She had little peg games shaped like a shoe on the table cute touch!! Its $5 per person over 5yrs not bad at all. Ice cream was very reasonable in price 2.75 for one scoop. She said she welcomes people to picnic outside there are tables. I would recommend its a nice place and something different to see. read more

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Brought the family here and had a great time! The house tour is fun and the ice cream is incredible read more

Great experience. Both times I have been here it was nice to learn about the history of an unsung local contributor that helped stimulate the economy and provide a place to work for a few decades of people. The ice cream was great and the staff were so polite and kind. read more

My family and I are visiting from Kentucky and I came across The Haines Shoe House while searching for something to do with the kids. I highly suggest visiting the shoe house! The owner is very friendly and personable, she was so nice and so was the tour guide. Let's face it, when will you have another opportunity to go inside of a house that looks like a shoe?! And a huge bonus is the locally made ice cream and a raspberry ice cream sandwich that I could eat every day! She also has homemade cookies and brownies or ice cream floats! read more

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Interesting house built in 1948 with ice cream shop on the back. There is even a shoe house built for a Great Dane that lived at the property long ago. Interesting true story about a very generous self-made millionaire. You will have to visit to learn more. 2 hours flew by in a quaint PA rural town. read more

Haines Shoe House - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - York, Pennsylvania

They let you have a tour I've the shoe and you can get ice cream after you can see what they wore you can see some of the original shoes the guy made you can see how he sold them read more

Unique to say the least, the tour is well worth you time and is conducted by one of the owners. I was surprised at how spacious the interior was consisting of 3-bedrooms, and two full baths along with a kitchen and living room. After our tour we enjoyed some ice cream and purchased a shoe house souvenir. read more

Haines Shoe House - Haines Shoe House - Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt Near Me - York, Pennsylvania

Enjoyable unique house with good tour, cute treats in the snack shop. Went with friends and we all enjoyed the house tour, looked around the small kitchen and cafe on ground level while waiting and got to talk with the friendly new owners. You can take plenty of pictures in the shoe, looked well decorated and in good condition after some restoration work. Wanted to help support them and tried one of the shoe shaped brownies, was okay, didn't need the extra calories but it was fun. Check out the dog house in yard too! Recommend a trip! read more

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This is a review based on a drive by. Unfortunately the day we were there the shoe house was closed. The shoe house is interesting, that's for sure! We read all about the history on Wiki and enjoyed our brief drive by experience. It's clearly visible from the freeway but the exit it down a ways. If I'm ever back in the area I will definitely be stopping by for a tour. The grounds are clean and well kept, it is a sight and worth stopping by! read more

Great attraction! Interesting and fun to visit. If you are staying in York or just passing through, it's $5 well spent. Learn a lot about the man who built the shoe, his contributions to his community, and about a man whose marketing strategies were way before the times! read more

This is a most do! This cute little shoe house has an amazing story to it. Its enjoyable for kids and adults. And the homemade ice cream is amazing. You have to check it out. read more

Look, this is not going to be Disney World or Williamsburg. It is just a delightful place for the family to go for an hour or two. Children will love being inside the shoe; senior citizens will enjoy the antiques and history (my 90 year-old parents thought it was wonderfully informative); people in construction will enjoy seeing how a house can be built in the shape of a shoe. The tour guide was affable older gentleman, and the proprietress of the snack/ice cream shop was very friendly. Cost for the tour is $5 per person (I believe discounts for young children but can't be sure), and the costs of the shop are reasonable. My only negative is that the selection of ice cream flavors is small (about 1/2 dozen)--no chocolate the day I was there. But I got vanilla with fudge topping which was good. The brand is Becks. Contrary to rules of the previous owners, you ARE allowed to take pictures in the shoe. read more

This place was on my bucket list for years but for some reason I wasn't quite sure where it was and consequently didn't get there. Once I found that it was right along the stretch of Rt. 30 that I had to drive to another event, I absolutely had to stop. Note that Rt. 30 currently doesn't have great signage showing where this place is and that the road it's on runs over, not into, Rt. 30 so it will be necessary to exit Route 30 at Hallam and drive a short distance to "Shoe House Road." Having heard bits and pieces of the Shoe's ups and downs over the past 10 years, I wasn't sure if I'd find the Shoe in good shape or bad shape or if people would be allowed to go inside. I was pleasantly surprised to find the house currently in tip-top physical shape and taken over by new young owners who have guided tours going on continuously (it costs about 5 bucks a head to get the tour of the inside - hanging around outside on the grounds is free) and serve super awesome homemade ice cream (the way I like it - not too sweet, not too creamy, not like custard, served quite hard and doesn't get melty) out of a little shop in the sole of the shoe, which also sells a few shoe-venirs. The outside features great views of the Shoe and its matching shoe doghouse, shoe mailbox, and shoe-themed fence, as well as a few non-shoe-related kiddie games and a picnic area to eat ice cream. The inside, which contains a living room, bath, bedroom and kitchen on the first floor and more bedrooms and a second bath in the upstairs, has been lovingly restored as a 1940s/ early 1950s vintage home. Some of the paint colors seemed a bit modern for the selected era, but other than that care has been taken with the furnishings and appliances to make it look authentic. It reminded me of visiting my grandma's house in the 1960s. There's also a lot of memorabilia of Mr. Haines, the shoe magnate who built the house. The guide, who appeared to be in her 20s, did a good job of explaining everything although she seemed a little shaky on some of the vintage era stuff. You ARE allowed to take pictures and the guide will even take pictures of you in the house and posing in front of it. Note that you are not allowed to stay overnight in the house - the owners don't even live in it and it's maintained as more of a museum - and also there isn't a proper bathroom that you can use on the premises. There's a porta-potty outside but nothing indoors (the house bathrooms are for display only). So I strongly suggest you stop at a gas station on the main drag before proceeding down Shoe House Road. Other than that, nice place to visit; everybody will enjoy the outside, while the inside is more for fans of retro interiors (as I am) and not so much for kids, who won't be able to remember or appreciate that old refrigerator like us aging people. It is also clever to see how so many rooms were wedged into the unusually shaped and curved inside of a shoe. read more

Stopped here while driving through and was not disappointed! Delicious ice cream and a great dog-friendly outdoor space to enjoy it with picnic tables and lawn games. Can't comment on the tour but thought it was a worthwhile visit regardless. read more

2.5 years ago I had the TV on while I was folding laundry and a show came on about the most unique houses in the U.S. My 5-year-old son came in the room just as the Shoe House was featured. He was fascinated. He had so many questions about it and even drew pictures. He talked about it for weeks! Since we visit MD frequently I thought I'd surprise him with a trip to the Shoe House that summer. He was super excited. It's a 1.5 hr drive for me from where I stay in MD. We get to the Shoe House during business hours and they were closed. We were very disappointed but wandered around outside and took pictures rather than turn around and drive home with nothing to show for the long trip. Several other cars stopped while we were there also expecting it to be open. Fast forward 2 years (today) and I finally decide to make the long trek again. My son and I really wanted to see the inside of the house. I checked out the website and made a point to be there several hours before they closed. But I read on the website that the Shoe House had new owners. I was optimistic that the new proprietors would be more professional than the last ones and be open when we got there. Today we returned and I'm really glad that things turned out the way they did. If they were open two years ago I wouldn't have bothered coming back today. Today I was beyond impressed with the new management and their approach to the house. Gone was the tacky, cluttered wall-to-wall shoe tchotchkes the former owners decorated with (as featured on the show). The house has been restored to its mid-century decor and it looks great. It is a real museum dedicated to the style and history from when it was built. It's clean, tasteful and wonderful. I think anyone who stayed there years ago must have really enjoyed their stay. The tour guides and owner are the typical friendly country people you find in rural, small town PA. You will get a fascinating history lesson about Mr. Haines on the tour. My son liked feeling like Antman...being able to shrink down small enough to live inside a shoe. I can finally check this off my list of places I want to visit. I've got wonderful pictures, memories and history lesson. I highly recommend adding this as a must visit stop if you are planning to be in the area. read more

The Shoe house was awesome. The owner was very informative & knowledgeable about the history behind the shoe.

It had been years since I'd been to see the Haines Shoe house even though I live in York, so when a friend asked if I could take her and her daughter, I jumped at the chance. I wasn't disappointed. Soon after arriving, as we admired the dog house shaped like a shoe, we were greeted by the owner herself letting us know a tour would soon be starting. We took the tour, very reasonably priced at only $5. per person. It was like taking a step back in time. Tons of memorabilia and vintage furnishings and decor. The tour guide was very knowledgeable, interesting and good with children. Afterwards we stopped in the ice cream shop for a scoop of ice cream. They serve the Beck's ice cream which was very refreshing, the prices were average compared to other local ice cream shops. They did serve a small assortment of other snacks including brownies shaped like a shoe. What I liked best was the small town feel and the fact that the owner was personally involved and very approachable and friendly. A must see roadside attraction. I hope they continue to keep this iconic roadside attraction open. read more

"Very disappointed that photographs inside the shoe house weren't allowed. If we had known this we probably wouldn't have driven a half hour to see it while we were on vacation in Lancaster. I think the owners need to rethink the no photographs rule. read more

What a great stop! The tour was really interesting and well worth the $5. The ice cream was delicious! And the owner/employees were super-friendly. A great stop for kids and adults alike! read more

Loved the staff, atmosphere and ice cream! What a cool place!! What's keeping me from giving this unique historical shoehouse a 5 star rating, is the .50 charge added to my debit card since I didn't have cash. read more

The shoe house is great, but not as awesome as the treats available in their bakery/ice cream shop! Its a fun little tour capped off with great baked goods and delicious Beck's ice cream (the ice cream sandwich is the way to go). And if your lucky, one of the owners will have a sweet vintage VW parked out front! Definitely with the trip! read more

Super-cute little ice cream store shaped (surprise!) like a shoe. Excellent ice cream and lovely people combine for a fun family stop. Lots of history for such a little space, with guided tours available if that's your thing. Definitely recommended. read more

Our grandsons love the Shoe House. They didn't really understand the concept of the interior, but thought the matching doghouse was very cool. We had a little picnic at the picnic table under the trees, then played hide and seek. When they were tired, we all fit nicely on the big glider and just enjoyed the view of the countryside and the shade. Only drawback, no access to bathrooms. Means your visit has to be time-limited. read more