If you’re looking for things to do in Central New York, you’ll be thrilled to discover an endless list of unique attractions. You might take a nature walk around aquamarine lakes at Green Lakes State Park, tour a mansion where a utopian community once thrived, or snack on Turkey Joints, a treat made exclusively in Rome, NY.
Central New York is located in the center of New York State, an area known for its scenic countryside, sprawling dairy farms, and regional food specialties. The attractions below are in or very near Oneida County, whose largest city is Utica. Whether you’re spending a day, a week, or more, you’ll find plenty of Central New York attractions to keep you entertained.
15 Unique Things to do in Central New York
1. Swim in a Crystal Clear Lake at Green Lakes State Park
Green Lakes State Park includes both Green Lake and Round Lake, two glacial lakes in idyllic old growth forest settings.
What makes Green Lakes State Park especially rare is that the lakes are known as meromictic lakes. This means that unlike most lakes, the bottom and surface waters don’t mix. The surface waters are rich in minerals, many of which make their way into the lake from rain and snow. And since the bottom and surface don’t mix, there’s no stirring up of the water from below. The lack of mixing makes the lake crystal clear. The concentration of minerals makes the water blue-green in color. The lake is rich in minerals like calcium, magnesium, and sulfur.
Spending a day at Green Lakes is one of the most unique things to do in Central New York. Because of its particularly unusual forest growth Round Lake was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1973.
Green Lakes State Park visitors will find 15 miles of walking trails, campsites, a swimming beach, and an 18-hole golf course. No outside boats of any kind are allowed on the water but the boathouse rents rowboats and kayaks during the summer.
Green Lakes State Park is open year-round from dawn to dusk, though some amenities are seasonal. Vehicle entrance fees apply. A maximum of two pets are allowed in campsites and day use areas. They are not permitted on the beach.
- Address: 7900 Green Lakes Rd., Fayetteville, NY
- Upcoming swimming season: May 7-September 4, 2023
2. Hike the Trails at Historic Root Glen
Root Glen, located in Clinton, is the Hamilton College arboretum and while a botanical garden dedicated to trees isn’t unique to Central New York, this particular one was cultivated and cared for by a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Root Glen is named for the Root family, whose most notable member is Elihu Root, an 1854 graduate of Hamilton College who went on to serve as Secretary of State under Theodore Roosevelt. He was also a United States Senator from 1909-1915 and in 1912, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work in building international relations.
Centuries of history went into the making of Root Glen. Hamilton College is a private liberal arts college founded in 1793. The first trees, shrubs, and flowers were planted at Root Glen in 1850 and then cultivated by three generations of the Root family, including Elihu, who returned to Clinton when he could to tend to the family botanical garden.
Today, visitors can take short, easy hikes along pristinely maintained trails that run through dense woods, across scenic bridges, and past lush green foliage and seasonal blooming flowers. Root Glen is perfect for a relaxing weekend stroll and some quiet contemplation of nature. It also provides the ideal backdrop for a scenic photo shoot. Dogs on leashes are permitted.
- Address: 153 College Hill Rd., Clinton, NY
- Root Glen is open to the public year-round.
3. Take a Meditative Walk on The Path at Sunset Hill
This well-designed walking path is part of Sunset Hill Cemetery and is meant to be a meditative experience that brings comfort to visitors.
Those who walk on The Path will encounter various alluring features, most notably The Labyrinth, a winding path with one way in and out. Traditionally, walking a labyrinth encourages self-reflection, balance, and creativity, and aids in reducing anxiety. The simplicity of the path leaves the mind open for reflection and contemplation.
Near The Labyrinth you’ll find The Shelter, whose floor is made of engraved bricks that can be purchased to honor a loved-one. This clearing is perfect for watching the sun set over Central New York.
Along The Path you’ll also see–depending on the season–lush foliage, colorful wildflowers, and a variety of wildlife in a pretty wooded setting.
The Path at Sunset Hill is a half mile from Clinton’s Village Green.
- Address: 3587 Grant Rd., Clinton, NY
4. Celebrate America’s Pastime at the Baseball Hall of Fame
Baseball fans flock to Cooperstown all year long to pay homage to the sport in the town where it was invented. The destination is the National Baseball Museum and Hall of Fame, where there are extensive exhibits on the history of baseball through photographs, documents, and balls, uniforms, and equipment used in ball games throughout the history of the sport. The museum also features exhibits that serve as tributes to legends like Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, and Hank Aaron.
A visit to the Hall of Fame begins at the Grandstand Theater to watch the intro film, Generations of the Game. The main attraction is the Plaque Gallery, a rotunda whose walls are lined with plaques honoring each and every Major League player who has been inducted into the Hall of Fame. The museum attracts people from around the world and is one of the most popular and unique things to do in Central New York.
- Address: 25 Main St., Cooperstown, NY
- Admission: Adults: $28. Seniors (65+): $22. Children (7-12): $17. Veterans: $19. Active/Career Military & Children (6 and under): FREE.
- Check business hours
5. Try Turkey Joints, a Locally Famous Sweet Treat
Turkey Joints are a unique locally-made candy with a chocolate and hazelnut core that’s covered in a silvery sugar coating. The result is a treat that resembles a pretzel rod in shape, if that pretzel rod had been dipped in a shimmery coating and come out with bumpy knoblike joints.
Original Turkey Joints are the most popular, though the chocolate covered ones are beloved, as well. Made locally at Nora’s Candy Shop in Rome, Turkey Joints have been a fixture in the city for decades and are typically given as Christmas gifts. They’re available at the retail store and via online ordering, though they’re only shipped from October through May to ensure freshness.
- Address: 321 N. Doxtator St., Rome, NY
- Call 315-337-4530 for current business hours or shop online.
6. Stroll Among Large-Scale Art at Griffiss International Sculpture Garden
This is a lovely place to pass a couple of hours outside whether you love art or nature, or just want a bit of open space to yourself. The sculpture garden and nature trail, located in Rome, contains more than 20 large-scale sculptures set on 425 acres of grassy fields and wooded trails.
Paved paths meander past giant sculptures, whose bright colors contrast with the landscape no matter which season you choose to go. The trails are a popular place for dog-walking. Look out for wild turkeys and groundhogs scampering about, too.
This landscape has undergone a massive transformation in the recent past. The site was formerly an air base and is now an industrial development park that is home to dozens of businesses. It was also the site of Woodstock ’99, the music festival that’s now looked back on as a disastrous three-day event.
- Address: 153 Brooks Rd., Rome, NY
7. Attend Capitolfest Theater Festival
Capitolfest, a unique theater festival takes place annually at Rome Capitol Theater, a movie palace originally built in 1928. The festival features silent and early talkie films and selects a tribute star every year. In 2023, the tribute star is Mary Astor. Films featuring Astor and her contemporaries will be shown over a weekend in August.
Festival-goers can expect to view about 17 feature-length films and 17 short-films. The movies span the era of around the turn of the 20th century through the late 1930s. Live music played on the theater’s original Möller theater organ accompanies the silent films. The festival takes place Friday through Sunday, with an extra film showing on Thursday for early arrivals. Capitolfest will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2023.
- Address: 220 W. Dominick St., Rome, NY
- Festival dates: August 11-13, 2023
8. See an Art Deco Service Station Museum
Step back, or rather drive back, in time and see a 1929 service station that’s been restored to its original Art Deco style. The red, white, and blue accents and nostalgic clock face gas pumps evokes a time when the automobile was quickly becoming the main mode of transportation in America.
H.P. Sears Oil Co. was founded by Howard P. Sears. Born in 1896, he began selling first used and then new bicycles and accessories when he was only 14 years old. Due the demands of the time, he switched to selling automobile accessories, a venture that soon extended to selling gasoline. By 1920, he was delivering gasoline with a truck he purchased. In 1928, he began building service stations, with ones in Utica, Rome, and Ilion.
The H.P. Sears Oil Co. Museum, tucked into the corner at Liberty and N. George Streets in Rome, is the only remaining service station with the original Art Deco design. Interested visitors can stop by anytime and see the old-fashioned pumps, oil change pit, and station exterior. Or go inside during designated hours and see more artifacts from the era when it was an operating gasoline service station.
- Address: 201 N. George St., Rome, NY
- Check business hours
9. Bike the Erie Canalway Trail
See the sights of Central New York on a scenic Erie Canal bike ride from Utica to Rome.
The Erie Canal spans the east-to-west length of New York State, crossing through many upstate towns and villages. But what makes it unique to Central New York is its origin story.
On July 4, 1817, ground was broken on a field in Rome and that eventually became the “Nation’s First Superhighway,” provided a connection between the Atlantic Ocean (via the Hudson River) and the Great Lakes. The canal opened wide the potential to transport goods and people with greater ease than ever before and as a result, played a major role in the economic development of New York as well as the westward expansion of the nation.
Eventually competition from trains, trucks, and the St. Lawrence Seaway made the Erie Canal irrelevant from a commercial standpoint. Today, it is mainly used for recreational purposes.
The Erie Canalway Trail spans 360 miles across the state and is perfect for boaters, cyclists, walkers, and runners. It’s also part of the greater Empire State Trail, which makes it possible to travel on a maintained trail from New York City to the Canadian border by bicycle, if one so desires.
You could hop on the bike trail in Utica and ride 16 miles west to Rome, or even continue on all the way to Buffalo. View map for the route between Rome and Utica. After you bike the Erie Canal, you can check one of the most iconic things to do in Central New York off your list!
10. Eat Half Moon Cookies in the City Where they Originated
In 1920, a baker named Harry Hemstrought created a cookie with a chocolate base that was more cake-like than cookie. He frosted it with half fudge icing and half buttercream frosting, and the Half Moon Cookie was invented.
More than 100 years later, Hemstrought’s Bakeries in Utica still bakes this iconic local sweet treat on a daily basis. You can find them there every morning. They’re also widely available at bakeries and grocery stores throughout the region.
- Address: 900 Oswego St., Utica, NY
- Check business hours
11. Snowshoe at the Utica Zoo
The Utica Zoo offers one of the most fun things to do in Central New York, especially if you’re a fan of winter outdoor sports. The zoo is home to more than 200 animals, from striped hyenas and mountain zebras to spider monkeys and a red panda. There are also barnyard animals, wolves, lynx, and bald eagles.
Wintertime visitors can make their trip unique by snowshoeing on the zoo’s designated trails. As long as there is at least six inches of snow on the ground, snowshoe rentals are available on-site. You’re also welcome to bring your own.
Follow the orange markers to stay on the snowshoe trail. It’ll take you from the Zebra Pavilion to the North Trek Hiking Trail and through the woods, ending at the African Lion habitat. Note that some animals are not on-site during the winter months.
- Address: 1 Utica Zoo Way, Utica, NY
- Snowshoe rental: $4 per hour per person, plus admission to enter the zoo.
- Zoo Admission: Adults: $8. Seniors (62+), College, Military: $7. Children 2-12: $5. Children 1 and under: FREE.
- Open daily 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
12. Visit an Interactive Museum About Electricity
Located at the Utica Zoo, the John S. Dyson New York Energy Zone is well worth a visit, especially if you have kids in tow. They’ll enjoy the interactive exhibits and activities, including the chance to build a solar and wind installation, virtually fly a drone over power lines, and watch an immersive 3-D introductory film called “Imagination!”
There are also exhibits on Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, and more. The NY Energy Zone helps visitors understand the crucial role of electricity, especially as it relates to New York State.
- Address: 35 Utica Zoo Way, Utica, NY
- Hours: Open 7 days a week from 10 a.m-5 p.m.
- Admission: FREE
13. Tour the Site of a Former Utopian Community
The Oneida Community Mansion House is a 19th century mansion where 300 people lived, sharing resources, children, and just about everything else in one of the longest lasting utopian communities in the United States.
John Humphrey Noyes, a preacher with a questionable reputation, arrived in Central New York in the mid-1800s, carrying with him his idealistic notion of Perfectionism. He established a utopian community that went completely against the norms of 19th century America.
Property ownership was communal. So was sex, marriage, and child-rearing. Every woman was married to every man and children were raised by the community, rather than by one set of parents.
Noyes’ concept was rooted in religion, and he believed this utopian lifestyle led to freedom from sin. The Oneida Community functioned successfully for more than three 30 years, making money with the production and sales of animal traps and silk thread. In later years they manufactured flatware and eventually founded Oneida, Ltd., which became the largest seller of stainless steel flatware in North America.
Noyes founded the Oneida Community in 1848. It dissolved in 1880 due to pressure from a s society skeptical of the lifestyle.
Visitors can take a guided or self-guided tour of the rooms where the members of the Oneida Community gathered, cooked, worked, and slept. There’s also a display of animal traps made by the community, a library. The 93,000 square-foot mansion is a National Historic Landmark. Overnight lodging is available at the Inn at the Mansion House.
- Address: 170 Kenwood Ave., Oneida, NY
- Admission: Adults: $10. Seniors (60+): $8. Students: $5. Children 6 and under and members: FREE.
- Check business hours
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14. Learn About the Oneida Indian Nation at Shako:wi Cultural Center
Visit a museum rich in the history of the Oneida Indian Nation, the indigenous people whose homeland is in Central New York. The first thing you’ll likely notice is the beautiful log building that houses the cultural center. The logs are white pine and the building was made by Oneida Indian Nation members without using a single nail.
The Oneida Nation museum highlights the talents, skills, and contributions of the Oneida Nation and features an extensive collection of tools, photographs, hand carved wooden sculptures, and traditional musical instruments like rattles made of a steer’s horn and the body of a snapping turtle.
There’s an informative exhibit on the history of lacrosse, which was created by the Haudenosaunee. The Oneidas are one of six nations that belong to the Haudenosaunee confederacy. There’s also an extensive collection of beaded accessories like bags and belts. After being dispossessed of their land and driven to poverty, Oneida women made and sold these items to tourists.
One of the most striking features at Shako:wi Cultural Center is the colorful stained glass window on the second floor, which depicts an array of detailed cultural symbols significant to the Oneida Indian Nation.
- Address: 5 Territory Rd., Oneida, NY
- Admission: FREE
- Check business hours
15. Follow the Central New York Cheese Trail
If you love freshly made local cheese and road tripping through Central New York’s bucolic scenery, then I highly recommend following the Central New York (CNY) Cheese Trail.
As a Trail Blazer, you’ll visit a variety of local cheesemakers throughout the region. Depending on the business you visit, you might sample a variety of CNY cheese, purchase some to sample at home, or watch the cheesemaking process in action.
Your experience at every stop along the trail will vary but you’ll always receive a stamp on your trail card. Once you’ve earned enough stamps, you’ll receive a free insulated tote as your prize.
The Central New York Cheese Trail is made up of almost a dozen local cheesemakers throughout the region. Some produce their cheese on dairy farms while others do so in in specialty shops.
There are nearly a dozen participating farms and businesses that make up the CNY Cheese Trail and the experience varies at each place. For example, at Adirondack Cheese Company, you can purchase a selection of house-made cheeses and also browse their selection of gifts and gourmet foods. At Stoltzfus Family Dairy, you can stop at the Creamery—the family’s farm store—and load up on fresh yogurt, milk and chocolate milk, and the best cheese curds you’ve ever tried.
Note that several dairy farms offer roadside farmstands where purchases are made on the honor system, so be sure to bring small bills.
Other than the cheese, the best thing about the Central New York Cheese Trail is that by following it, you’ll see a lot of the scenic rolling fields, sprawling dairy farms, and charming small towns that make this region special.
Four Central New York counties support the CNY Cheese Trail, so the businesses are spread out. Following the trail will take Trail Blazers to Barneveld, Utica, Vernon Center, Hamilton, Cooperstown, and many more!
Trail Blazer cards and your free insulated tote are available at participating business. Check websites or call ahead before you visit. Current CNY Cheese Trail members:
- Adirondack Cheese-8190 State Route 12, Barneveld, NY. Ph. 315-896-2170
- Artisanal Premium Cheese-900 Oswego St., Utica, NY. Ph. 833-243-3731
- Callee1945-134 Main St., Oneida, NY. Ph. 315-367-0007
- Collins Farm and Creamery-8744 Thomas Rd., Rome, NY. Ph. 315-723-2735
- Cooperstown Cheese Company-3941 NY-28., Milford, NY. Ph. 978-257-4635
- Jewett’s Cheese House-934 Earlville Rd., Earlville, NY. Ph. 315-691-5858
- Jones Family Farm-753 Caldwell Rd., Herkimer, NY. Ph. 315-866-4164
- Kriemhild Dairy Farms-1093 State Route 12B, Hamilton, NY. Ph. 315-333-2336
- Original Herkimer Cheese-2745 NY-51, Ilion, NY. Ph. 315-895-7428
- Stoltzfus Dairy-6300 Skinner Rd., Vernon Center, NY. Ph. 315-829-4089
How to Get to Central New York
Much of New York State is rural so the best way to get there and get around is by car. The nearest major airport is Syracuse International Airport. If traveling by train, Amtrak serves both Syracuse and Utica.
Final Thoughts on Unique Things to do in Central New York
The Central New York region is largely an undiscovered gem when it comes to tourism. As many of the destinations above show, there is so much to do in the area and many attractions are exclusive to this region. Come to Central New York and discover the region’s unparalleled natural beauty, unique regional cuisine, and friendly small towns.
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