If you haven't taken the covered bridges tour, do so. It's such a beautiful drive, even when the…read moretrees haven't fully come in yet--the scenery still feels peaceful and worth it. We made a weekend out of it and stayed overnight in Bethlehem, which made the whole experience even better. Highly recommend.

What's that old song lyric? "The best things in life are free". It may not have been quite free,…read morebut for the price of a tank of gas we were able to spend a lovely fall day with our closest friends taking the covered bridge tour in beautiful and historic Bucks County PA.. And that seemed among the "best things" to us. So we wanted to post a heads up to others via Yelp about this tour for others who might enjoy it. There are but twelve covered bridges remaining of the original three dozen originally built in Buck's' County Pennsylvania. Thanks to the hard work of some dedicated folks, the twelve that remain are maintained for all of us to enjoy. This driving (or biking) tour will take you to all of them - or some if you prefer not to do the entire tour. For our two bits, this is a great way to spend a day, including a stop at Bowman's Hill Tower to take in the views and the history of that site (it's on the tour path so you're missing out if you don't stop here) and Bowman' Wildlife Preserve. In particular on a beautiful fall day as we did last week. (Both the Tower and Preserve are in New Hope.) The Wildlife Preserve has a picnic area outside the gates so taking along a picnic lunch is a great idea. And inside the gates, there are bathrooms at the visitor center...hooray. See the website posted at the of the page for more info on each of the bridges and the driving map. Another good bridge tor website is located here. http://letsget.com/html/Directory/community/comm_states/comm_counties_pa/comm_ya_bucks/covered_bri.html#TOUR

Wow. What a unique, random gem and historic property. What is Fonthill and why is there a castle in…read moreDoylestown, Pennsylvania? Fonthill Castle was the home of archeologist and tile maker Henry Chapman Mercer. (Also in Doylestown are two more Mercer buildings you can tour - the Mercer Museum and the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works building, the business Mercer ran and where most of the tiles in the castle were produced.) Henry Mercer seems like he was an interesting guy, and you can see that in his home - 44 rooms, 18 fireplaces, 200 windows, who knows how many staircases...! And designed and decorated in a way I've never seen anywhere else. The castle is an early example of poured-in-place concrete building and is a mix of Medieval, Gothic, and Byzantine architectural styles. And there are, of course, Moravia tiles (and some historic and international tiles that he collected during his life) throughout the house - almost more than you could imagine. We visited last Saturday to experience their "Fonthill Castle Holiday Lights Meander Experience," which allows you to visit the castle through a self-guided experience (there were staff in various rooms who were happy to answer questions) and enjoy a series of Christmas trees on display throughout the home. I definitely enjoyed the experience but am definitely planning a return visit to see the castle in better light (not at night in the dark - which was perfect for the Christmas tree experience) - they offer 60-minute guided tours though the house for most of the year! The castle is pretty wild, and I look forward to visiting it again and experiencing it in a new way. If you are interested in architecture, art, crafts, the Arts and Crafts design movement, or just quirky, unusual places, definitely add Fonthill to your list and check it out!

Amazing property, it is a hidden gem. Went with my family for the tour and everyone enjoyed it!read more

A house hidden in a…read more house The Thomas Shinn House was originally built waaaay back in 1712. A very primitive English cabin built of roughly cut logs. Nothing fancy about this place. The cool part is that it was actually hidden and part of another house that was built much later. The Shinn House wasn't discovered until the new and much larger house was demolished in 1967. Of course the Shinn House was bought by the Mt Holly Historical Society and moved from it's original location on Water Street to it's present home on Park Drive, right behind the town hall. Unfortunately the old cabin isn't open to the public and you really can't see in the windows. That's too bad because it must be fascinating inside. However just walking around it and seeing the rough and tiny place is amazing enough. I wonder what it must have been like to raise a family in this tiny and crude home. And why was the newer house just built around the little cabin. I'll probably know but it is an incredible cool and historical house located in a town that is just full of surprises.

While the mansion is still undergoing renovations so we were not able to include that and so my…read morereview may change in the future. Don't expect to take even a full afternoon visiting but it is a lovely preserved estate around the city. There's some goats, and the grounds are enjoyable to take an hour or so to walk with nice historical signs for context. There is some parking but it likely gets packed in high traffic times. I can't put it in my top gardens available for Philadelphia, it's good to have treasures like these to keep the sense of history and love of horticulture the area has long held.

This is a really cute hidden local treasure - very charming and pretty. We had some wedding photos…read moretaken here, so it will always have a special place in our hearts! Lots of cool spots outside for photos, and the inside is really cute as well. I'm not sure they usually open the house, but the grounds are very nice to walk around. We stopped by again recently and had some time to reminisce before heading out because it was too cold.

It really is such a pretty bridge. And I definitely love looking at the views as much as it will…read moreallow. Very grateful we have this way to pass over! And I'm grateful to the bridge designers and all the crew that helped make this become possible. And thanks to the other nice drivers on the road today and all the maintenance people that made a safe travel day today.

I use this bridge quite often when I go to PA and come back to Jersey... I have used it's sister…read morebridge the Tacony Palmyra bridge also but not as much... This bridge is narrow but I've been across bridges that are worse... If narrow bridges bother you don't use this one... You can reach out and touch the vehicle going the other direction as you pass by... The toll used to be on both sides going out of Jersey and coming into Jersey... That was many years ago...

In 1776, the Second Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence here. Man, if walls…read morecould talk. Be sure to book your tour in advance and request the last tour as you get to explore the second floor Governor's Council chamber.

Independence Hall is one of the most consequential civic buildings in the United States. The red…read morebrick Georgian structure reads as restrained and formal rather than ornate, but its significance carries most of the weight. The surrounding Independence National Historical Park frames it as part of a larger civic landscape, where open squares, pathways, and nearby historic buildings create a setting that feels intentionally preserved rather than reconstructed for spectacle. The main experience here is centered on the building itself and the rooms that shaped foundational moments in American history. I stepped inside and found the Assembly Room standing out as the focal point, where key debates over independence and constitutional design took place. The scale surprised me. It is surprisingly intimate compared to how monumental its outcomes are often perceived, which made the space feel more grounded than grand. During my visit, access was managed through a timed entry system, but the experience consistently revolved around standing in spaces directly tied to the formation of governing documents and early national decision making. The visit is structured and guided in a way that felt controlled but informative. Rangers managed the flow carefully, especially during the busy periods I encountered. Security procedures were part of the entry process. Even with portions of the interior restricted, the surrounding exhibits and nearby historic rooms helped fill in context. The overall pace was more about controlled observation than wandering, with a clear emphasis on preservation and historical interpretation rather than open exploration.

Princeton is a beautiful college town and I could spend days exploring every nook and cranny. Among…read moreone of the hidden gems in Princeton, is venturing the very same steps that Albert Einstein walked. What an incredible experience for me. Despite countless visits back East, I didn't appreciate it as much as I do now that I've gotten older. If I return here after all the COVID restrictions, I hope to spend more time here.

This is a rather special Yelp. Its not for a restaurant or hotel or cafe or salon. Its for a ghost…read moretown. Yep. In New Jersey. In the Pine Barrens. Scared? No need to be. Its a superb day trip--a place unlike any other. You wont find tourists here; or probably any other living soul for miles around. Its just not that well-known enough. Its not an excursion accompanied by a lot of tourist-board support, advertising, or fanfare. There are no audioguides, no pamphlets, no maps. There's also no fees, gates, ticket-stands, trinkets, permits, or clerks. You can just park on the shoulder of the expressway, and mosey right in off the roadside. Its just a tract of deserted woodland. Its a part of New Jersey only a few people ever have reason to explore; its for the imaginative and intrepid. In the course of a year, the site probably only gets a couple photographers, an artist or two, or perhaps an author once in a while. Some 4WD-nuts pass by occasionally. [And this Yelp won't change that--even if I told you about great dining here, this place will always be forlorn and neglected.] Its the location of a vanished Piney town which sprang up in the 1800s around an iron-smelting furnace; and which has now almost completely disappeared from above-ground. Iron? There were iron mines in New Jersey? Not exactly. Its a strange chemical process, organically-occurring, whereby it forms in the swamps and bogs around here. You'll notice all the water is naturally 'tea'-colored. But all the left-behind equipment and abandoned buildings are now, just as if they never were. You might only notice some strange shapes --hummocks, berms--in the terrain and that's about it. This is where your imagination comes to the fore. You're strolling around on top of a village. Chalk one up for NATURE! If it doesn't grab your fancy, then..no matter--just wandering around in the Pine Barrens is in itself, ethereal and stupefying. Take care not to get lost; because the trees have an eerie manner of all looking exactly the same. A few unmindful steps can get you turned around. The Pine Barrens are just a fabulous and unique environment. People love to discredit the Garden State without ever having heard of forests like this. To try to explain: the soil is flat, level, and sandy and without underbrush--covered only with a carpet of pine needles. Thus, with the trees racing up so tall and straight--like columns in a church--and also branching so high; the effect is quite cathedral-like. Sun slants through as if coming through high windows. And its uncannily quiet. Like a big empty room. Just the coolest. Bring boots (its occasionally muddy) and a survival knife *just in case* of feral dogs. I recommend this excursion to all the Yelpers who like to make a fuss over their daring and adventurous, active lifestyles. You're not impressing me with your tour-guide led whitewater rafting adventures. Try exploring the Pine Barrens. .