Anytime we visit Rochester, we have to visit the Eastman Museum. It's a great museum, featuring not…read moreonly the permanent exhibit, the house, the outdoor garden but also the rotating exhibits. Everyone is also very nice and welcoming. I absolutely love photography so I love seeing the old pictures and the cameras that took them. It's so cool to see the evolution of the camera. They also have a few movie cameras too. They also had a whole wall displaying the colors used when Technicolor was first introduced. I also like seeing how much better pictures got over time too. When we visited recently, there was a wonderful exhibit that I absolutely loved. It combined my love of flowers, horticulture and photography. It was so cool that this man grew these beautiful tall flowers across a large portion of his property and photographed it all. He also created some other beautiful pieces. I especially loved three large panels. While touring the house, you see many fascinating items from Eastman's life. It's a beautiful home. You can just imagine the parties he must have hosted there. I would love to have attended a party that he had in his dining room. He had some beautiful things. the foyer where you go to the other rooms or upstairs. He had some interesting artifacts too like his pipe organ that had around 6k pipes. I bet it sounded amazing because there were also buttons that made it sound like a whole orchestra. The gardens there are absolutely beautiful when not under construction. They have so many wonderful varieties of flowers and other plants. I can't wait to go back and see it after the construction is done. There was also a beautiful picture of Macchu Picchu outside. If you love photography, you must visit. They have a nice gift shop too.

This is a house that reflects the zeitgeist and sensibilities of it's first owner, as do Elvis's…read moreGraceland and Hearst's San Simeon. If you're one of the world's richest men, how do you design your home? It turns out, George Eastman, best known for earning camera patents and running a multi-million dollar international firm, had a wild and wacky side. Who else would install not just a cathedral-style Wurlitzer near the central stairwell, but hire an organist to play it every morning at 08:00 as an alarm clock? He once took an African safari and decorated his home liberally with the mementos: An elephant's head is in place of pride in the atrium. Eastman's mother lived to an advanced age, and had her own wing in the house. For me, this was some of the most interesting and personal parts of the house. Her bedroom window had the best view of the formal gardens below. The nurse's quarters were adjacent to hers. The state of the art wheelchair was on display, and looking into the medicine cabinet (behind glass) were the medicine bottles she used. Raise your hand if you're surprised morphine was there? Except for the china pattern, the piano, and the furniture, Mrs. Eastman is almost invisible. Perhaps that was her preference. In summer the gardens are open to the public. There's a gallery/ photography museum next to the house on the first floor; the price of admission is covered in the same visit fee. Seniors, students, children have discounted ticket prices.

Seating for 13 on the van, you can join other friendly travelers or reserve the whole thing. The…read moretour is a great mingling of education and adventure in a wonderful clean, comfortable and intimate setting.

Saturday afternoon fun! Buy your ticket and hop aboard for Flights N' Bites (or whichever Portage…read moretour you're considering). Drinks, food, adventure, and new friends - everything is included. Important to understand- you don't NEED to gather a group or plan ahead to enjoy Rochester's food/drink scene. I loved how you just reserve a seat and take "flight". We were celebrating our anniversary, another couple was celebrating a birthday, others were simply exploring... We started with private tour/tasting @ a distillery, sipped yummy hard cider flights, and enjoyed craft beer tasting at a microbrewery - with snacks along the way. in addition to being very gracious hosts, Jeff & Susan (owners and guides), showed us historic places, beautiful wall art, and shared some unique Rochester history. The bus was comfy & spacious, with places to keep our purchases. With a built-in adventure and safe driver, a Portage Tour would be a perfect girls night, afternoon with out-of-town guests, or birthday celebration (and you don't need to pedal. lol.). Highly recommend for Rochesterians & out-of-town guests alike.

I attended the one weekend event called Ghost Walk hosted by the landmark society of Western NY…read more This festive event was perfect to celebrate the spirit of Halloween with macabre stories of Rochester The actors and tales were superb, really sending a chill through us walkers. We followed a lantern guide down Arlington with clear paths and a beautiful setting of historic homes decorated for the season, really setting the mood. The tales told have left an impression of the tragedies of a past long ago but not forgotten.

Our tour started at the Lutheran church on East Ave. We stopped at 4 houses and actors playing…read more"ghosts" told their stories. I wouldn't consider this a ghost walk. It was more something you could see at the Genesee Country Museum. People from back in the day telling stories about their lives, dressed in colonial clothes. When you get back to the church, they tell you there are donuts and cider waiting for you, but you are ushered into one more room with one more story. After that, you get your donut and an inch of cider. I appreciated the work of the actors and other volunteers but it was not for me.

Had a great day on the Architectural Pedal Tour today. Our driver Phil was awesome! We came away…read moreknowing much more about Rochester's historical buildings than we started with as well as just learning more about the city in general.

At first I felt a weird spirit here…read more.. Rochester pedal tours are a fun time! Woooo!! Thats what you say when your on the pedal tour. There is no age limit to the fun (there is a minmum age though because the owners do adhere to the 21 age limit for alcohol) but you know what i mean!! The weight limit is very disheartening to the garls but we were within the limit and had a fun night. Matt was our driver and he was courteous and plompt.

Constructed in 1822 of stone and decommissioned in 1881 and then returned to active service in…read more2014, the Charlotte Genesee Light is a lovely example of some of the earliest lighthouses. 40 feet tall and in an octagonal shape, it is next to but not attached to the keeper's house. The light was originally lit by whale oil lamps but those were replaced by a proper Fresnel lens in 1853. Not open for tours on this late weekday afternoon but the grounds are open and you can have a proper walk around. Even on a somewhat cloudy day, it is a beauty! There are a number of captions and other things to see on the property including the original well, the original keeper's house and more. [Review 1409 of 2024 - 413 in New York - 22432 overall]

My girlfriend and I walked with a friend from Schaller's on Edgemere to the beach, deciding to…read morecheck out the Charlotte-Genesee Lighthouse in the process. The staff are all very welcoming and knowledgeable about different aspects of lighthouse and maritime history as they pertain to Rochester. One of the docents led us on a tour through the rooms, pointing out items from the lighthouse's history and regaling us with its history, such as the 33 farmers who used a clever rouse to convince the British that an entire army was camped on the coast during the War of 1812, thereby preventing an invasion. We had the opportunity to climb with the tower. The lighthouse is only 40 feet tall, but it sits atop a 40-foot bluff, giving it 80 feet of elevation. The docent at the top explained to us of sediment deposits and years of industrialization had pushed the lake coast outward so that the lighthouse no longer sits at the point where the Genesee River empties into Lake Ontario; rather, it's slightly upstream from the current point of connection. The light room guide explained the current 4-th order Fresnel lens and how it still acts as a signal light for the lake in case boaters lost the ability to use modern directional equipment. He then gave us stickers in celebration for climbing to the top. Though there was a light rain, it was still a lovely day and a great spot to visit.

The Sam Patch Tour Boat offers various tours of the Erie Canal. One is at night, others for…read morebirders, another for kids. I took the 90 minutes tour through Lock 32, which goes through it, tours a bit, and turns around. Light refreshments including beer and wine are available. The tour guides are well informed and the staff very friendly. It's a pleasant and educational trip. Adults pay $30, with lower fees for seniors, military and kids. Very much worthwhile.

Pre-pandemic, I took my initial tour on a Sam Patch boat. It was very nice, but the leaves were not…read morein full fall color. Last October, when the Fall color was at its peak, I decided to take another canal tour. A lunch tour to lock 32. At the last minute a friend wanted to join me. I called the office, and they were able to accommodate us, but not able to get the lunch for her. We had a blast. We shared the Fairport Lunch, drank seltzer water and beer and shared the boat with a group on a surprise tour that ended on the canal tour. This trip was completely different from my previous one in the opposite direction. The experiences were different and the colors of the foliage enviable; gold, reds, oranges. The weather was perfect, partly cloudy, and then the sun broke and warmth came up and we had a sunny day Toward the end of the ride, the wind started to pick up. Along the way there were historical facts given by the crew. And we sang the famous "Low Bridge" song I was very happy, and my friend was also impressed with the trip. I highly recommend this tour.

Used Crush for a bachelor party trip awhile back. We had the bus to ourselves, so was largely able…read moreto do what we wanted which was nice. Hit wineries, a distillery and a brewery which was nice. Driver (Darryl) was a very nice guy even if he forgot my name and started calling me 'Steve' halfway through. That was pretty funny for the guys even if it was at my expense. Bus had plenty of room too, and we stayed on schedule without it being overbearing or annoying. Price point was fair given this was a 1/2 day tour with food/alcohol included. Brewery and distillery options couldn't have been better. Wagner brewing makes one of the best examples of hefeweizens I've had anywhere. Really great tap room overlooking the lake as well. Got a cheese plate there which was packed like shit in to-go containers, which belied the really good array of cheese, meat and accoutrements it included. Finger Lakes distilling was shockingly good. Their repertoire of whiskeys, including aged options, different styles (ie: pot stilled, applejack) and experiment stuff (cannoli whiskey) was superb. Had whiskey infused cigars here too which were awesome. I bought a shit ton of stuff from their. Surprisingly, I wasn't as thrilled with the wineries. Zugibe was respectable but paled to others nearby like Thirsty Owl; what threw me off was that the reds were much better than the whites there. Food there was gyros, which was odd but oddly good at least. Belhurst was probably the worst single winery I've ever been to, with the worst wine I've tried. Wine had a soapy taste and was cloyingly sweet. Bartender was snotty, rattled off some canned crap she memorized that was largely irrelevant, and didn't really know anything about wine. Place was largely a freaking gift shop, so no clue why they thought this was a good addition. Would use these guys again as Darryl was a sweetheart, and maybe just direct them a bit more in terms of what we're looking for. I am 100% fine with the emphasis being on beer/liquor, however the groom-to-be was more of a wine person in this case. Very workable either way.

Deb was awesome!! 10/10 experience and would do again!!! Breweries were nice and deb would check in…read moreon us and make sure we were doing ok!

I stopped in while in the area about 40 mins before they closed to see if I could take a quick peak…read morearound and they were super accommodating and had a tour guide give me a brief tour with high level talking points. Even with the abbreviated version of the tour I learned so much!! It was so nice to see how they restored the house to match the photos and to see and feel the tour guides passion while giving the tour. I'm glad I made the last minute decision to go, it was such a unique to Rochester experience.

Small quaint little home of Susan B Anthony. It is well maintained. This is a piece of American…read moreHistory. It's in a neighborhood that's a bit run down and feels unsafe. Private parking available as well as street parking.

Really should post a menu for the price tag. If 1 of the four places only has a seafood option, and…read moreyou have allergies. It makes the $80 a very steep price to pay.

I spent a beautiful afternoon in Pittsford on a wonderful tour! I don't want to give away all the…read moresecrets, but we had burgers, fried green tomatoes, drinks and cupcakes to name a few! It was amazing! Our tour guide Terri was so knowledgeable and fun that I am looking forward to my next tour this spring! It is a rain or shine walking tour, so be ready a lovely fun stroll through town!