The Enchanted Mountains Region is a great place to vacation, visit and live.  There are plenty of vacation "hot spots" to enjoy.

Historic Culture of the Chautauqua-Allegany Region

Recommended Seasons: Spring, Summer and Fall

Day One:

Begin your day at The Schein-Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art located on the campus of Alfred University. This museum houses nearly 8,000 ceramic and glass objects, ranging from small pottery shards recovered from ancient civilizations to contemporary sculpture and installation pieces to advanced ceramics reflecting the cutting edge of ceramic technology. The Museum celebrates American ceramics, but within the broader context of worldwide ceramic creativity and history, a history representing thousands of years. From this site continue your tour of Alfred with a visit to the Terra Cotta Museum. Here you will find artifacts depicting the history of terra cotta and its use in modern day ceramics.

Traveling southwest to Wellsville, you will find a village nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains with the Genesee River running through it. Here you may enjoy the early 20th Century charm of the downtown section. At lunch you will enjoy fine Italian dining in a stylish urban atmosphere at l'Italia. After lunch you can discover the hidden treasures of downtown Wellsville where you will find antiques, pottery, glassware, china, and gift shops.

Driving west you will come to Bolivar and the Pioneer Oil Museum. This museum houses numerous artifacts, oddities and signs of the time while preserving the history of Southwestern New York oil regions. Enjoy hearing stories from one of the oil field guides!

Then you will continue driving west to Sprague's Maple Farms in the town of Portville. For over 30 years Randy Sprague's vision was to create a maple syrup wonderland. His dream is now realized in a 13,000 square foot Maple Center which houses the year-round Pancake House and Restaurant, the manufacturing facility, bottling works and a worldwide distribution center for their maple products. Enjoy dinner with choices like homegrown turkey dinner or top your delicious pancakes with Sprague's 100% pure maple syrup. Tour the facilities to see the entire maple syrup process from start to finish, they even have an old-fashioned sugar shack where you can see the sap boiling.

Overnight will be at the Country Inn & Suites by Carlson in Allegany.

Day Two:

Tour the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts at Saint Bonaventure University in Allegany. This modern facility contains galleries and museums with some of the original Old Masters on display and the Garret Theatre, which provides performing arts throughout the year. From this site you can drive to Olean to visit the Cutco/Ka-Bar Visitors' Center. Discover the origins of the Ka-Bar brand name taken from a testimonial letter that was received from a grateful fur trapper who used his Ka-Bar knife to "kill-a-b'ar". Travel south to Rock City Park- sometimes called the 8th wonder of the world- where you'll find yourself in a world of bridges, crevices and towering, house size rock formations designed by nature. Standing at the top of the formations, you can see for miles. Lunch at Ho-Sta-geh Restaurant while you are still on the top of Rock City hill. Enjoy the view of the Allegheny River Valley as you dine.

Travel west to Salamanca where you can visit the Salamanca Rail Museum a facility that highlights the history of three major railroads at a time when Salamanca was the crossroads of Western New York. Here you will return to a time when railroad was the only way to travel as you step into the original depot that is beautifully restored and stocked with railroad antiques and rare old photos of the three lines. A guide is available to talk about railroad history and how the railroads helped create the city of Salamanca. From the history of the railroad, travel down the road a piece to discover the history and culture of the Seneca Nation of Indians at the Seneca-Iroquois Nation Museum. Here you will view the collection of artifacts from centuries of Indian heritage and see a reconstructed longhouse. Learn about their culture and see the actual treaties that granted the nation its sovereignty.

Dinner will be at the Thunder Mountain Buffet at the Seneca Allegany Casino. Overnight stay will be at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites, Salamanca.

Day Three:

Journey to Jamestown for a stop at the Lucille Ball/Desi Arnaz Center. You will laugh with Lucy and Desi as you remember America's number one female comedian. The museum depicts a family's and a hometown's authentic, personal story about this enterprising lady. Enjoy the videos, interactive displays, and an extensive gift shop that offers everything "Lucy". Celebrate the history of Jamestown and Chautauqua County with a guided tour of the Fenton History Center, former home of NYS Governor (1865-1869) Rueben E. Fenton. Period rooms, topical exhibits and special seasonal displays offer visitors a look at the area's pioneer history and development. And, the Fenton's gift shop provides a wide array of history-based items and books.

In the summertime, travel on to the Summer Wind for a relaxing cruise on Chautauqua Lake. Enjoy the sunshine and breezes of the upper deck or the climate-controlled comfort of the interior salon. The two-hour narrated trip along Chautauqua Lake is marvelously augmented by excellent dining, provided by Vullo's Restaurant.

After your lunch on the Summer Wind, travel northwest to the Chautauqua Institution. It is a place where music, dance, opera, theater and the visual arts find their own forms of expression in a beautiful lakeside setting. The Institution is a place removed from the day-today world, where every day brings a new concert, a new lecturer, a new experience. The quaint streets are lined with Victorian cottages, vacation homes, inns, hotels, gardens and parks.