Cooperstown, NY and vicinity
In Spring 2005, we took a trip with our 7 year old son to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY. It was a great trip! It was about a 4 hour drive to our hotel; however we stopped halfway for lunch.
We stayed at the Best Western Cobleskill Inn (about 45 miles east of Cooperstown), because they had an indoor pool and their own bowling alley. The Best Western was nice, clean and conveniently located. There was a Wal-Mart and a Price Chopper Grocery store nearby, as well as a Dunkin' Donuts and a Burger King. The pool was nice, the bowling was fun, and the hotel restaurant wasn't bad (however service was slow, especially at breakfast time).
There are two ways to get to Cooperstown from Cobleskill. The ride is very scenic if you do not take the main highway. Our son was impressed with the many farms, cows, and haystacks.
Cooperstown is a restored town with late-19th century buildings. There are many shops selling sports memorabilia, and most of the restaurants have a baseball theme, and cute baseball-related names. On the weekend we visited, it seemed that 90% of the visitors were fellow Red Sox fans!
The Hall of Fame has a museum section - dim lighting with many glass display cases showing the evolution of baseball through the ages. You will see information and memorabilia related to your favorite players, and will learn about the changes in the sport and in the equipment used over the years. There are also computer-aided trivia displays. Our son got his picture taken next to the Red Sox display, which included Curt Schilling's 'bloody sock'!
Also at the Hall of Fame, of course, is a large room displaying plaques representing all of the players who have been named to the Hall of Fame. This is a large, bright room, with bronze plaques lining the walls. Again, you will see your favorite players here!
The Hall of Fame also includes a theater which shows films (we did not visit the theatre), as well as an extensive gift shop.
Also in Cooperstown, you will find an art museum and a farm museum. We did not visit these, as they were closed on Mondays during April. Please check websites, or travel brochures for dates and hours of operation.
Near our hotel, we visited Howe's Cave. This is a cavern below a mountain. With paid admission, you take an elevator down about 150 feet to the cave below. A guided tour will show you the various geological formations in the cave, including stalactites and stalagmites. There is even a boat ride on the underground river! Our son loved this cave trip! Even in nice weather, you must dress appropriately, as the cave is DAMP and COOL all year round.
Near Howe's Cave, we also visited the Iroquois Indian Museum. The museum displays historical and modern Native American artwork. There is a children's room, and an extensive nature trail. We really enjoyed walking the nature trail, which is quite rustic, with streams which must be crossed by walking on bridges made of tree limbs!
As you can see, we did a lot of fun stuff on this trip, although we only stayed for two nights, and were only several hours from home!