HUDSON VALLEY

ITINERARY

DAY 1 (SUNDAY) - WEST POINT TO BOSCOBEL MANSION

From Burlington, head south through rolling countryside that is home to small farms, wineries and villages. Today features an inside view of the US Military Academy at West Point on a guided tour that tells the story of its historic role in the Revolution, the contemporary experience of its cadets, and of those who have left their mark here – including George Washington, Robert E. Lee, Douglas MacArthur and Dwight Eisenhower. Next up, an upscale 19th-century view of Hudson Valley life on a visit to critically acclaimed Boscobel Mansion. Completed in 1808, this elegant home was built by a gentleman farmer (and British loyalist) who furnished his home from the most fashionable shops in London.

A century later, the house lingered in a state of neglect until local architects and citizens rallied efforts for its rescue in the late 1950s. A tour of the house brings with it a trove of Federal antiques, spectacular Hudson views and the story of its rescue. Your accommodations tonight are in the historic town of Tarrytown, where Washington Irving’s Ichabod Crane first encountered the Headless Horseman; the author of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Knickerbocker Tales did much to enlarge the myths, legends and Dutch history you'll find in this region. Enjoy a group dinner.

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DAY 2 (MONDAY) - JEWISH HOMESTEAD TO HUDSON RIVER CRUISE

Breakfast is at your leisure before heading out to the Gomez Mill House. In 1714, Early American Jewish leader, Luis Moses Gomez, purchased 1,000 acres in Newburgh New York and subsequently, with his two sons Jacob and Daniel, accumulated a total of 4,000 acres. There he built a fieldstone blockhouse to conduct trade and maintain provisions in the Mid-Hudson region as an extension of his successful enterprises in Colonial New York.

From these roots and through 300 years of American history, Gomez Mill House evolved as home to American Revolutionary patriot and Orange County civic leader, Wolfert Ecker; 19th century gentleman farmer and conservationist, William Henry Armstrong; Arts and Crafts artisan and paper historian Dard Hunter; and 20th century social activist, Martha Gruening. Later this afternoon, enjoy a Hudson River lunch cruise. 

DAY 3 (TUESDAY) - HUDSON VALLEY, OLANA & LAKE MOHONK

Enjoy lunch at the Wagon House, located at the Olana State Historic Site in Greenport, the former riverside home of noted 19th-century Hudson River School landscape painter Frederic Edwin Church and his wife Isabel. Much of the estate, a National Historic Landmark, was designed by Church himself – including the eclectic Orientalist central villa, featuring a mix of Persian, Moorish and Victorian styles; and the sprawling, parklike grounds offering remarkable views of the Catskills, the Taconics and the Hudson Valley, as well as a working farm.

Preserved much as it was during Church's lifetime, the estate displays many exotic objects collected by the Churches on their world travels, as well as some 40 paintings by the artist and his contemporaries. Your final destination is Mohonk Mountain House, a Victorian “castle” set on forested cliffs above Lake Mohonk – a resort once frequented by presidents, celebrities and turn-of-the-century industrialists. Enjoy our group dinner at Mohonk Mountain House before checking into our local hotel for the next two nights.

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DAY 4 (WEDNESDAY) - FDR'S HYDE PARK AND OLD RHINEBECK

Fantastically wealthy retreats of statesmen and robber barons preside on the cliffs along the river like castles on the Rhine, and your Hudson River tour includes visits to several of the most famous of them. Explore the Roosevelt National Historic Site today at Hyde Park, the lifelong home of Franklin D. Roosevelt and his summer White House. A guided visit to Springwood, the family mansion, offers a window into an American way of life modeled on an English country estate – where the lives of the domestic staff and the home’s relationship to the local community were an integral part of the story. Afterward, a stop in historic Rhinebeck along the Hudson leaves time for lunch on your own and a chance to wander through a town designated as a National Landmark District and an au courant reputation for arts and culture. After lunch, we will enjoy a tour of the famed Vanderbilt Mansion.

Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site is a 54-room, preserved gilded-age country palace, and represents cultural changes present after the Civil War. In terms of architecture, interiors, mechanical systems, road systems and landscape, the Vanderbilt Estate is a remarkably complete example of a gilded-age country palace, illustrating the political, economic, social, cultural, and demographic changes that occurred as America industrialized in the years after the Civil War. The fully-furnished, 54-room mansion in Hyde Park, New York is placed in a wondrous landscape with breathtaking views of the Hudson River and distant Catskill Mountains. It offers a glimpse into a past world known by only an elite few. Enjoy a group dinner before returning to our hotel.

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DAY 5 (THURSDAY) - HUDSON VALLEY TO VERMONT

Today we will enjoy a casual morning before starting our journey home.

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