The US Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic States

American Travel Hubs and Itineraries

The Northeast Region of the United States corresponds to the original 13 colonies that founded the country. Besides its illustrious history and culture, the region is a trend setter on the technological and environmental fronts along with agricultural innovations and unique, local food, wine and brew traditions.

Vermont is agriculture and industry, heritage museums and historic sites, small towns and downtowns where visitors and residents find the distinctive local businesses, historic buildings, and rich cultural and social activities that form Vermont's special sense of community. These authentic and attractive downtowns and villages are widely recognized as a key part of the state’s allure.

Rockland and Piermont on the Hudson located just 30 miles north of New York City are known for quaint villages, spectacular river views and outdoor recreation with 32,000 acres of parklands dotted with sparkling lakes and streams rushing down to the Hudson. Miles marked trails lead right to the foothills of the Ramapo Mountains.   

The Hudson Valley extends 150 miles above the tip of Manhattan; a National Heritage Area the valley is steeped in history natural beauty culture food and farmers’ markets.

Mid-Atlantic States Travel Programs

Upstate New York is home to city and country settings, high-tech industries and natural wonders. 

Corning drive through the Catskill Mountains and reach the Corning Museum, the world’s largest glass museum featuring a contemporary art and design wing; experience live hot glass demonstrations of glass objects made by artists and hands-on exhibits highlighting science and technology.

Finger Lakes and Watkins Glen State Park is the site of 19 waterfalls and a gorge. Seneca Lake is a long slender lake with wineries along both sides. From Geneva, on the north shore of the lake, you can head east towards Syracuse and visit Destiny USA, sixth largest shopping destination in the United States.

Rochester is a world renowned American city and home to George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film inside the home of Kodak’s founder.

The Erie Canal is an Active Waterway Cruise or Walk through Historic Villages and Natural Landscapes

Maryland Baltimore was the first and remains among the most successful efforts at redeveloping a downtown area. The Inner Harbor is a major travel destination and home to a unique museum made up of historic ships that have served the local community and the nation over time. Nearby, Maryland’s Capital of Annapolis is a great example of a small town with a tourism vocation as demonstrated by museums that tell us about colonial America and life on the Chesapeake Bay.

Local Food Wineries and Breweries

There are several fascinating examples throughout the Northeast of a resurgence in farming that cater to an ever increasing demand for local, quality and sustainable food, wine and ale consumption:

In the Washington, DC area, both in the US capital city and its suburban communities, a unique local economy driven by government spending has also fueled the development of downtown and neighborhood construction. This in turn has spawned a demand for nightlife and weekend amenities for both a highly educated and environmentally conscious local population and out of town visitors.

In the Maryland suburbs, the community of Silver Spring has undergone such a transformation and is excellent base from which travelers can take in the sights and monuments of the capital as well as the Potomac River Trails and the coastal communities along Chesapeake Bay.

Similar experiences that provide a uniquely local eno-gastronomical atmosphere with historical and sustainable attractions are present in Southeastern Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia Neighborhoods and Hershey Harrisburg and the Susquehanna River Valley.

Travel and the Environment

Some communities have been in the forefront of land conservation, historic preservation, arts movements that celebrates land and landscapes and water resources management initiatives: 

In the Lehigh Valley, the local culture draws from the Moravian settlements experience in which all men were equal; a broad cultural environment in which music, art, education and religious tolerance flourished, as evidenced by the communal dwellings, churches and industrial structures.

Travel the Environment and Your Community

Sustainable Tourism Environment and Community Economic Development

The Brandywine Valley, facing an industrial development that would impact a largely rural community, focused on Development & Conservancy Issues, including floodplain areas that threatened to devastate water supplies in parts of the Delaware River Valley. Local residents bought endangered land and initiated conservation easements that now protect five and one-half miles along the Brandywine River.

  

Hudson Delaware and Susquehanna River Trails

In the city of Philadelphia, the waterfront is now a 6 mile walking and biking destination. Trail features include streetscape improvements along the entire waterfront trail, a bi-directional bikeway, pedestrian walkway and rain gardens that collect the first inch of storm water, relieving the city sewer system during major weather events, as well as benches, bike racks, decorative street pavers and innovative solar trail lighting. Center City offers a thriving culture and entertainment scene as well as contemporary arts museum with training programs and study tours for students, aspiring artists and family traveling.  

Travel Destinations and Learning Experiences

Local Green Economies Connecting Globally

The Towns and Villages of Loudoun County Virginia

Loudoun County is renowned for rolling hills of farms and vineyards, pastures filled with grazing horses, and the Blue Ridge Mountains; it is also just 25 miles from Washington DC.

Leesburg is Loudoun's county seat, has seen significant history from 1758, and has a well-preserved downtown historic district with stunning 18^th and 19^th century architecture. Leesburg is also a shopping and dining venue and features historic sites such as Gen. George C. Marshall's home, Dodona Manor and Ball's Bluff Civil War battlefield. Video

Middleburg, known as the capital of Virginia's horse country, has been welcoming visitors since 1787. It is also a shopper’s delight, with home furnishing and antique stores, boutiques and more; a stroll through this historic hamlet is an experience in itself. Middleburg has hosted iconic American personalities such as Jackie Kennedy and F. Scott Fitzgerald. Read More

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Delaware & Lehigh Trail Walk Bike Cruise

165 miles of nature history preservation recreation and education

From its origins as a means to transport anthracite coal from the mines of Luzerne and Carbon County to the markets in the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia, the D&L Trail is now a multi-use trail originating from the mountains of northeast Pennsylvania through the rivers and communities of the Lehigh Valley and Bucks County.

A Trail that Connects People to Unique Environmental and Community Experiences

Visiting the National Canal Museum, cruising aboard the Josiah White II, walking and riding your bike on the canal towpaths are among the ways to explore the Lehigh Valley and the 60-mile long National Historic Landmark located within Delaware Canal State Park in Bucks and Northampton counties.

Conversations on the Canal are dinner cruises that focus on the major ethnic groups in the D&L Corridor and why they came to America. Learn about the Ulster Scots, the first immigrants from the island known in Gaelic as Éire, who became known as Scots-Irish in North America.  An estimated 200,000 Ulster Scots left for the American colonies during the 1700s thanks to Pennsylvania’s tradition of religious tolerance. Between 1815 and 1834, a second wave of nearly 400 thousand immigrants also came here.

A Vision for the Delaware Canal the idea to construct a pedestrian bridge across the Lehigh River at Jim Thorpe was first conceived in the D&L’s 1992 Management Action Plan.  After countless steps from concept to design to funding and then re-funding, the bridge is the critical connector linking 40 miles of trail located north of Jim Thorpe to the Lehigh Valley.   Just south of Jim Thorpe, two separate but integral projects will make the connection between Carbon County and Lehigh County smooth and safe.  They include plans for a retaining wall and improved towpath trail between Jim Thorpe and Weissport in Lehigh Canal Park.   

Wineries and Breweries the Lehigh Valley is home to a Wine Trail and an Ale Trail. Selected bars and pubs have upwards of 60% of their taps consistently dedicated to craft beers. The local products can also be tasted while cruising the canal.

The Coal Iron Steel and Canals of the Delaware and Lehigh Valleys

The Delaware & Lehigh five county-region of Northeastern Pennsylvania developed in the late 18^th Century as-a-result of the anthracite mines, the iron and steel industries, and the canals that were built to reach Philadelphia and other markets.

Book Your Walk Bike and Cruise D&L Itinerary Here!

Travel Duration 3 nights and 4 days. Group Size Minimum 4, Maximum 50 persons.

Cost/Person USD 735 for adults age 19 to 64 USD 585 for seniors 65+ and children under 18.

Information for Booking First and Last Name, Passport Number, Expiration date and Issuing country, Date of birth, Email address.

Included Travel between cities and states that are part of the itinerary, 3 lunches and dinners, accommodations in double occupancy with breakfast for ten nights, applicable local and state taxes, 3 one-half day sightseeing events, local transport services.

Excluded Evening entertainment and transport to tour location start and from tour ending location.

Day/time Day to day programs and specific events at each location, as well as the sequence of the tour stops, will be finalized with the participation of the clients after details on family/group composition have been determined to take-into-account client priorities and preferences.

Reductions Children under the age of 18 and seniors over the age of 65 traveling with parents and/or guardians, staying in the same hotel room receive a 20 percent discount.

Land People and History the Lenape of the Delaware Valley hunted deer, grew grains and vegetables, and caught seafood along the coast.  The Lehigh Valley was of great importance because it was one of their main east-west pathways, intersecting with major north-south aboriginal trails in the Delaware Valley. Despite its prominence as a crossroads, the Great Valley was the site of few permanent villages, although they often camped at the confluence of the Lehigh and Delaware rivers in what is now Easton.
The first Europeans in the Lehigh Valley were Scots-Irish who followed the Saucon and Indian creeks and established settlements in today’s Northampton County. Large numbers of Germans came into the Lehigh Valley in the 1730s.  Among them were the Schwenkfelders from Saxony and Mennonites, known for their skills as craftsmen and millers, and for establishing schools.  Most of the Germans became known as Pennsylvania Dutch and grew maize, squash, wheat and livestock. At least 50 different nations and ethnic groups have been identified among the immigrants of the 1800s; many arrived at Ellis Island and traveled straight to the Lehigh Valley. Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton thrived by the late 19^th Century.
The Delaware and Lehigh Valleys played a major role during the American Revolution. George Washington’s crossed the Delaware River in 1776, the second reading of Declaration of Independence was held in Easton and the Liberty Bell was hidden from the British here.

The Discovery of Anthracite in 1791, Carbon County set the stage for America’s Industrial Revolution, the founding of small towns, the birth of industrial powerhouses such as Bethlehem Steel and the development of the Lehigh and Delaware Canals. Also known as stone coal because of its rock-like hardness, it appeared atop hills and under valleys in seams or veins up to 12 feet thick. Industries involving iron, steel, Portland cement and zinc processing flourished, followed by tanneries, silk and textile mills. These raw materials led to commercial, transportation and cultural opportunities along a 165-mile route through the Wyoming, Lehigh and Delaware Valleys.

Transportation and Communications the Lehigh River carved a trail that would eventually become the backbone of future transportation routes. Footpaths along the river banks gave way to canals, then to railroads, and finally to modern-day highways. Nowhere is this more apparent than at Lehigh Gap, a dramatic landscape where the Lehigh River breaks through Blue Mountain, also known as Kittatiny Ridge, the final ridge in the Appalachian chain. The Delaware Canal was built during the early 19^th Century from Easton to Bristol on the Delaware River fostering development of textile mills such as the Grundy complex, steel mills like the Fairless Works and planned suburban community like Levittown. Completion of the Lehigh Canal further accelerated development of the Valley.

The 1862 floods destroyed all the dams, locks and canal boats and coal shipping shifted to railroads.  The Lehigh Valley Railroad, which ran through Easton and on to New York City, was the first rail line to have a significant impact. The Lehigh & Susquehanna Railroad and Reading & Pennsylvania Railroad created competition for shipping coal and other goods. The Delaware Canal was a transport link with limited industrial impact on the rural, farm region it flowed through.

Culture and The Environment in more recent times, the region has been in the forefront of land conservation, historic preservation and an arts movement that celebrates land and landscapes. The local culture draws from the Moravian settlements experience in which all men were equal, hence a unique and broad cultural environment in which music, art, education and religious tolerance flourished, as shown in the communal dwellings, churches and industrial structures in Bethlehem and Nazareth.