Dia Beacon

The best towns to visit when you want to escape NYC for the day—because we’ve all been there. In 2022, I decided to move to the Hudson Valley for a year! I rented a house around Cold Spring and I’ve gotten to explore so many little towns. The great part is there’s so many things to do just 1-1.5 hours from Grand Central Terminal. Before this, I lived in Brooklyn for 5 years and loved to take day trips and weekend trips to the Hudson Valley and Catskills. Sometimes you just need to get out of the city! In this guide, you’ll see 3 towns you can take a day trip to, how to get to them, and fun things to do in each of them. They’re all right off MetroNorth stations and have Main Streets that are walkable, so there’s no need to have a car!

Enjoy the beauty and charm of Upstate New York! In this guide I share my favorite spots in Hudson Valley for the perfect city weekend escape. Plan the perfect trip with this guide as I share the best places to stay, where to eat and what to do!

Your complete guide to a perfect upstate weekend: never-ending beer, charming towns, beautiful hikes, and food galore. The Hudson Valley is home to some of the most fertile soil in the world — the Black Dirt Region. The mineral-rich soil left behind by an ancient glacial lake makes for high-quality crops and clean water. People have been taking advantage of such resources for years. Enter: beer, and an abundance of top-notch breweries. This is a local’s look (me!) at not only where to drink — but where to eat, sleep, shop, and breathe in the Hudson Valley. Consider this your personal access to my Google Maps.