Fresh flowers, crafts and local produce feature prominently at the Ithaca Farmer's Market.
In the early 1900's, Ithaca was a movie-making mecca, with gorges, waterfalls, and city streets serving as backdrops for silent film escapades.
The gorge trail at Robert H. Treman State Park meanders past 12 waterfalls.
The Cornell Plantations' collections are open free of charge every day, sunrise to sunset.
Cornell staff volunteers and children clean up the streets in downtown Ithaca.
The Finger Lakes Wine Trail features over 40 around 6 of the regions lakes.
The new 35,000 square foot Island Health & Fitness provides for community fitness, wellness, and clinical rehabilitation, as well as a day spa.
Featuring a 20 inch telescope, the Kopernik Center is the best-sited and equipped public observatory in the Northeast.
Ithaca: A Place People Feel Passionate About
Ithaca inspires love at first sight. Its many waterfalls cascade over 400-million-year-old rocks lining deep gorges. A small city effervescent with youthful energy sits beneath hills crowned by the Cornell and Ithaca College campuses. Smart, talented, and engaging people from around the world make amazing intellectual and artistic things happen here. Many people fall so deeply in love with Ithaca that they decide to call it home - forever.
Location
Cascadilla Creek and Falls wind through campus and into the heart of the city.
The city is situated at the tip of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of central New York, an area renowned for natural beauty. Four state parks are within 10 miles of Cornell's campus. Popular outdoor activities include biking, hiking, sailing, wind surfing, swimming, golfing, and skiing. Money magazine named Ithaca as one of its "Best Places to Vacation" - imagine living here!
- Travel to Ithaca is fairly easy
- Five-hour drive from New York, Philadelphia, or Toronto
- Airport in Ithaca (three more within 90 minutes)
City with a Conscience
There's good reason why the Utne Reader has called Ithaca the "most enlightened town in America:"
Tibetan Monks from Namgyal Monastery build a sand mandala at the Johnson Museum.
- "Ithaca Hours" - local currency reinforces community trading accountability to ecological and social justice concerns
- Greenstar Cooperative Market - among the nation's most successful food cooperatives
- Farmers Market attracts 150 vendors selling fresh produce and much more, from within 30 miles of Ithaca
- Cornell has its own chapter of Amnesty International and many other service groups
- Volunteers work at Loaves & Fishes and other organizations that feed the needy
- The AIDS "Ride for Life" involves hundreds in an annual fund-raising bicycle ride around Cayuga lake
- The Namgyal Monastery is the North American Seat of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama
Cultural and Artistic
Theatre and Performing Arts
The Kitchen and Hangar theatres produce award-winning musicals and dramas. The Historic State Theatre fills the house with performers, dance, theatre, and comedians.
Art
The area's art galleries present works in a wide range of media and styles. The Saltonstall Foundation supports visual and literary artists with an Arts Colony and artist grants.
Festivals
Ithaca Festival, Grassroots, Musefest, Apple Harvest Festival, Chili Cook-Off and Winterfest, and Light in Winter bring huge crowds to the area.
Family Friendly
What a great place to be a kid! Ithaca's schools are top-notch, as are the many day care options. There are sports teams for every age and athletic ability, and summer camps range from day camps in town to overnight Boy and Girl Scout camps along Cayuga Lake.
Between events at a summer camp event downtown in Washington Park.
- Children will love exploring the Sciencenter, Laboratory of Ornithology, Museum of the Earth, Cornell Plantations, Cayuga Nature Center, and Ithaca Children's Garden
- Community School of Music and Arts, Ithaca Talent Education, and Ithaca Ballet offer instruction in the fine and performing arts
- The History Center, Tompkins County Public Library, and the Johnson Museum of Art provide special events for young people
Lodging, Shopping, and Diverse Dining
Rulloff's in Collegetown is well-known for burgers and for its infamous namesake, Edward Howard Rulloff.
Ithaca has a great selection of hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts. There are also many options for shopping - in malls, at nationwide retailers, boutiques and craft stores. But more than that, Ithaca is a great place to eat out, with more restaurants per capita than New York City:
- Moosewood is legendary for its vegetarian recipes
- Ithaca Bakery / Collegetown Bagels serves NYC-style bagels at its 5 locations
- The Finger Lakes Wine Trail provides a relaxing drive around the lakes with tastes along the way
Health and Fitness
Ithaca provides top-notch traditional and alternative medical care services, as well as many fitness centers, yoga, pilates and martial arts studios:
- Cayuga Medical Center boasts a 204-bed hospital and off-site convenient care centers, partners with Roswell Park Cancer Institute, and serves over 150,000 patients a year
- Finger Lakes School of Massage offers New York state-approved training in holistic massage therapy
- Ithaca Health Alliance - pools members' resources to reduce medical costs
- Cayuga Waterfront Trail - encourages year-round physical activity and currently provides a 2 mile loop, connecting Ithaca's most popular waterfront destinations
Nearby Attractions
There are many opportunites to explore within an hour or two's drive:
- Watkins Glen International auto racing circuit
- Women's Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls
- Corning Museum of Glass
- Kopernik Space Education Center near Binghamton
- Harriet Tubman Home Museum in Auburn
- George Eastman House museum of photography and the National Museum of Play in Rochester
- National Baseball Hall of Fame and Glimmerglass Opera in Cooperstown
Cornell on: