On the road to Peddler’s Village

Since 1962, Peddler’s Village has been a favorite destination for road trips, attracting visitors who enjoy 21st-century shopping, dining, lodging and family fun with 18th-century ambiance.

Just minutes from New Hope and Doylestown in scenic Bucks County, Peddler’s Village is an easy jaunt for day-trippers. It’s super accessible by car: a one-hour drive from Philadelphia and the Philly International Airport; 90 minutes from New York City and Pennsylvania Dutch country; three hours from Washington, DC; and less than an hour from the Pocono Mountains.

Parking is free and there’s never an admission charge, another reason Peddler’s Village is a popular choice for road trips. (GPS alert: Peddler’s Village is located in the Village of Lahaska in scenic Bucks County, but your GPS doesn’t know that. Use this address: 2400 Street Road New Hope, PA 18938.)

Among the attractions: 60+ independently owned specialty shops, five restaurants, 71 rooms at the Golden Plough Inn for overnight stays and Giggleberry Fair family entertainment center. Seasonal festivals are an enticement for return trips, celebrating art and music, the rich bounty of local farms and Buck’s County’s agricultural heritage, the local food and wine scene, and the winter holidays. The 35th Annual Scarecrow Competition and Display runs Monday, September 8, through Sunday, October 26, rain or shine, and features more than 100 life-size, creative crows on outdoor display throughout Peddler’s Village, which is dressed up for fall with colorful mums, hay bales and corn stalks. The Scarecrow Festival is a weekend of fall family fun on Saturday, September 20, and Sunday, September 21, including scarecrow-making workshops, pumpkin pie eating contests, pumpkin painting, live musical entertainment and children’s activities.

The 42-acre complex also is easy to navigate for folks who have difficulty getting around, with wheelchair accessible guests rooms, ramps and numerous designated parking spaces for people with handicaps. Visitors enjoy the ambiance of lush gardens, graceful colonial-style architecture, meandering brick walkways and charming storefronts.

Road warriors can map out their strategies at the Hospitality Center, located in the lobby of the Cock ’n Bull Restaurant. The staff is ready to help with maps, directions, reservations, gift certificates and friendly advice.

Prefer to leave the driving to somebody else? The Village staff will help to make arrangements for group trips via motor coach that combine a visit to Peddler’s Village with other area attractions, such as the Pearl S. Buck House in Perkasie and the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works history museum in Doylestown.

For more information on how to plan your road trip to Peddler’s Village, find yourself to their Hospitality Center, Route 202 and State Road, Lahaska, PA. (215) 794-4051.