Tour Description

At Making Memories we call it the “breathtaking beauty of the fall colors wrapped around the grandeur of the mystical Hudson River Valley and Catskill Mountains.” You will call it “amazing!” Just imagine! Visiting awesome treasures nestled in a small area of our world, cruising on the river, enjoying delectable food, viewing the homes of Presidents and mansions. Gazing on unprecedented views. On this memorable tour, you will be able to see the mountains in all their splendor on one side and the delightful, beautiful river on the other. Red and gold rocks shimmer from every viewpoint. Fodor’s 2015 Go List shows Hudson Valley in the top 25 destinations in the world. And you will get to experience four nights right in the middle of it all with no bags out! And that is just our destination! But on the way, you will enjoy a horse-drawn canal boat ride, dinner with a President, a tour of a coal mine, not to mention lots of chocolate. This is a tour you do not want to miss!

Day 1:

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We begin this exciting tour traveling during the day across Missouri before stopping in Effingham, Illinois for our overnight.

Day 2:

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Enjoy an included breakfast before we depart our hotel and resume our travel through Illinois, Indiana and into Columbus, Ohio. We will arrive in time to visit the Franklin Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, a beautiful glass-enclosed botanical garden. Built in 1895 and designed in the style of London’s Crystal Palace, the Franklin Conservatory and Botanical Gardens also features an exquisite collection of glass sculptures. Lodging for tonight will be in Columbus, Ohio. (B)

Day 3:

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From the hotel, it‘s just a short drive to the Historic Roscoe Village where our first adventure will be a horse-drawn boat ride on the Erie Canal. The quiet, peaceful ride takes us back to a time long ago when things were much different. Speaking of different! After the ride, we will visit the Historic Roscoe Village, a restored 1800s canal era town, featuring charming shops, restaurants and buildings. You will have free time to check out the shops and have lunch here before we board our coach and turn north to Dover, Ohio to visit the Warther Museum. This museum displays items fashioned by world master carver Ernest “Mooney” Warther. Using only a knife, files and ingenuity, Warther was best known for his carved locomotives, but there he created so much more. While there, you can visit the gift shop, Warther Home and Button House. Reluctantly, we must depart this amazing attraction, but we have more exciting things to do. After a short drive to Canton, Ohio, we will check into the McKinley Grand Hotel and check out its exquisite antiques. But wait! We have also planned a very special evening for you. Dinner with the President. The President will share his story with you then take you down to dinner. After dinner, he will personally take you on a tour of the McKinley Presidential Library and Museum. What an exciting day! (B.D)

Day 4:

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This is a relaxing travel day which will take us to our ultimate destination, Poughkeepsie, New York, located in the very heart of the Hudson River Valley. We will check into our hotel for four nights, and then Making Memories Tours will treat you to an exquisite “Welcome to New York” dinner. (B.D)

Day 5:

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We have a leisurely morning to enjoy our included breakfast before we go a few short blocks to the Walkway Over the Hudson. This railroad bridge, converted to a walkway in 2009, spans the Hudson River, is 212 feet tall and 1.28 miles long. It is the longest elevated pedestrian bridge in the world. A guide will meet you near the elevator and take you up to the bridge. The views from the bridge are spectacular. Next we depart for a tour of Eleanor Roosevelt’s Val-Kill Cottage, her weekend and holiday retreat from her hectic life as wife of the President. After lunch, we visit the home of Franklin D. Roosevelt. The 1826 house remains almost exactly as it was at the time of the president’s death in 1945. The graves of President and Mrs. Roosevelt are located here. After lunch, we have the opportunity to tour the 1898 Vanderbilt Mansion, which exemplifies the Beaux-Arts architecture of the late 19thcentury Gilded Age. The French and Italian furnishings are original pieces. What a lovely day, but our hotel is calling us home. We will lodge at the same hotel again tonight. (B)

Day 6:

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We venture out a little bit farther this morning for Madava Farms, Crown Maple tour and tasting. This is the world’s largest maple sugarhouse. Crown Maple was featured at President Obama’s inaugural luncheon. Martha Stewart as well as major food and wine magazines have recommended them. You will have a few minutes to check out their gift shop before we sit down to a hot farm-to-table lunch. They have indoor and outdoor seating, so if it is a beautiful October day, you may choose to sit outside. They have gorgeous Hudson Valley views! You are going to feel like royalty when you leave Madava. We must hurry along – so much to do and not enough time to do it all. Our next stop is the Innisfree Garden. Landscaped in the early 1900s, it was selected as one of the top ten gardens in the world. You may wish to just sit and enjoy the beautiful lake. Our last tour for the day will be USMA at West Point, America’s oldest military academy. It seems almost un-American to be this close and not tour the United States Military Academy. Many of America’s military heroes were trained at this venerable academy located on the west bank of the Hudson River. We will check out the Visitor Center and bathrooms before re-boarding our coach for a guided driving tour of the Academy. After the tour, Making Memories will treat you to a special sunset dinner by the Hudson before returning to our hotel. (B.L.D)

Day 7:

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We drive the short distance to FDR Presidential Library and Museum for a self-guided tour of this first ever Presidential Library. The museum’s display of documents, gifts, family possessions and letters chronicle the lives and careers of President and Eleanor Roosevelt. After this fascinating, nostalgic tour, we will arrive at historic Rhinebeck for shopping and lunch. Chelsea Clinton was married at Rhinebeck. After lunch, we will depart for a two hour scenic sightseeing cruise on the majestic Hudson River. Your cares will disappear as the boat glides under towering bridges and past stately gilded age mansions, picturesque mountains and groomed landscapes of the nation’s most historic sites. This is our last evening in this wonderful place called Hudson River Valley, and Making Memories Tours has planned a special “Farewell to The Hudson” dinner for you. If available, it will be at the Culinary Institute of America. We return to the same hotel tonight. (B.D)

Day 8:

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After enjoying breakfast, we depart for Ashland, Pennsylvania, arriving in time for lunch on your own at the Mineshaft Café. After lunch, the Pioneer Tunnel Coal Mine offers us the opportunity to tour a real anthracite coal mine in open coal cars pulled by a battery-operated mine motor. Guides accompany visitors and explain how coal is mined as well as various features of the mine. While we are here, we will enjoy a scenic guided ride on an old-fashioned steam locomotive. We depart for Hershey, Pennsylvania for a trolley ride through the “sweetest place on earth.” Our lodging tonight will be in Mechanicsburg, PA. (B)

Day 9:

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Our road back home takes us through Pennsylvania, Ohio and into Richmond, Indiana for our nights lodging. (B)

Day 10:

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This morning we continue west to Indianapolis, Indiana and the Indianapolis Zoo where you can “look into the eyes of an Orangutan, and a sentient being looks back.” An epic adventure awaits you inside this incredible new exhibit, which offers an unparalleled experience for both you and the Orangutans. Designed to stimulate the apes’ physical, social and intellectual abilities, the Simon Skjodt Center is home to one of the largest groups of Orangutans in any American zoo. We also see a Dolphin show at the Zoo before departing for downtown Indianapolis, where you will have some free time to shop and have lunch before continuing on toward home. Our overnight will be in Fenton, Missouri. (B)

Day 11:

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This is our last day out, but what a wonderful tour it has been! Who would have believed we could have seen and enjoyed so many lovely things and made so many wonderful memories in such a short period of time? That’s why we are called “Making Memories Tours.” As you reminisce with your new traveling friends, our driver will take us closer and closer to home. (B)