~20–30 min
Hershey
About 15 miles east: Hersheypark, Chocolate World, ZooAmerica, and Hershey Gardens.
Best Day Trips from Harrisburg, PA
Harrisburg sits where I-81, I-83, and the Pennsylvania Turnpike meet, so Hershey, Gettysburg, Lancaster, and even Philadelphia by train are easy days out.
Photo: U.S. Department of the Interior · Public domain
~1 hr southwest
Gettysburg
The 1863 battlefield, the museum and visitor center, the Cyclorama, and driving tours. Pair it with the Civil War Museum in Harrisburg for a two-day history trip.
~50 min southeast
Lancaster & Central Market
Lancaster's Central Market bills itself as America's oldest continuously operated public farmers market. Pair it with the city's galleries and restaurants.
~1 hr southeast
Lancaster County Amish Country
Farm stands, quilt shops, and back roads shared with horse-drawn buggies. Please don't photograph Amish people up close; many consider it disrespectful.
Train
Philadelphia by train
Amtrak's Keystone Service runs from the Harrisburg Transportation Center to Philadelphia and New York, so you can skip driving and parking in the city entirely.
Scenic drive
The Susquehanna River drive
Drive north on Front Street past the Rockville Bridge and Fort Hunter to the Dauphin Narrows, where the river squeezes between the mountain ridges north of the city. It's especially good in October foliage.
Two-day plan
History weekend
Day 1: A Capitol tour in the morning, lunch at the Broad Street Market, then the National Civil War Museum in the afternoon. Watch the sunset from the Walnut Street Bridge.
Day 2: Drive an hour to Gettysburg. Start at the NPS Museum & Visitor Center, then take a licensed battlefield guide or the auto tour. Head back to Harrisburg for dinner on Second Street.