Beacon – Perfect one-day getaway from NYC
Beacon – The perfect one-day getaway from NYC!
Tired of the noise of the ambulances, the reckless drivers and the hassle of NYC? Looking for some clean air away from the city? Maybe a nice hike? A nice restaurant? Or maybe a cool museum in the middle of nature?
Want to know the best? You can get there on the train and you don’t even need to rent a car.
Well… if you haven’t heard of Beacon, it is about time you plan a visit. Here is what we did.
Beacon one-day getaway in a Nutshell
Grab the Metro North in Grand Central and head to Beacon. Do a nice hike in Mount Beacon (the South Beacon Mountain via Casino Trail) to get an outstanding view of the Hudson Valley and some bonus items. Grab a beer in a terrace next to a waterfall. Visit the Dia Beacon museum for one of the largest modern and contemporary art exhibitions in the country. Eat like a king after a long day and head back to NYC to feel like you have been away for a whole week after just a few hours.
The details
We took the train in the morning at about 9.45 am. Once we got there, we stopped by a groceries and made sure we bought some stuff for the hike. You know… some bananas, a protein bar, some snacks and 1-2 liters of water per person.
The Hike
Bear in mind that from the train station to the trailhead it takes about 40 minutes by foot or you can always take a cheap Uber to save some time. The hike takes about 2 hours and a half, it is an out & back trail of 4 miles with about 1400 feet of elevation gain. Therefore, even if the distance is not too long, it is quite a workout as the trail is quite steep, especially in the beginning.
The trail offers amazing views of Beacon and the Hudson Valley, a recently rebuilt fire tower, the remains of what used to be a casino and definitely a good workout!
Link to the trail: South Beacon Mountain via Casino Trail
If you are looking for something a bit longer and more intense, I would recommend you check out the Mount Beacon trail, which is an 8.2 miles loop that will take you 4-5 hours.
Link to the trail: Mount Beacon trail
The pit stop
If you have time after the hike, I suggest you stop and grab a beer at the Roundhouse restaurant. If weather allows, a cold beer next to the waterfall on the terrace will feel like heaven after the hike.
Once done, we headed to the Dia Beacon museum to spend some quality cultural time!
Time for the museum!
Dia:Beacon is the museum of the Dia Art Foundation’s collection of art from the 1960s to the present. The museum was opened in 2003 and is one of the largest exhibition spaces in the country for modern and contemporary art.
Link to the museum: Dia:Beacon Museum webpage
Consider timing when planning your visit as the museum closes at 6 pm. Usually, a couple of hours is enough but if you are really into modern and contemporary art, you may want to spend much longer than that.
Time for a large meal
After a long and intense day full of adventures and new experiences, it was about time for a good bite. We were starving so we decided to have a nice dinner at Max’s on Main. Great food and good value for money. We chose this restaurant based on reviews and table availability since we hadn’t made a reservation in advance. There are plenty of good options in town so I suggest you check out TripAdvisor or Yelp and make your pick.
Finally, we headed back to the Beacon train station to catch the train back to NYC after an awesome day that made us feel like if we had been a whole week out of the city.
How to go from NYC to Beacon?
Head to Grand Central and take the Metro-North Hudson line to the Beacon train station. Total time about 90 minutes. There are trains every hour for the whole day.
You can check train schedules at MTA Metro North Schedules
If you are planning to go by car, about 90 minutes too.
For another similar option in the Hudson Valley visit our post: Cold Spring – Hiking, Oktoberfest, steak and red wine… What else do you need?
