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Purewow.com released a new report highlighting the top 16 small towns in New York that are all within a few hours from Manhattan and far less densely populated than the city as the country continues to contend with the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the new report, the Hudson Valley took up the majority of the list, with 10 locales making it to the top 16, including Tivoli in Dutchess County at number three.
The complete list of the 16 “most charming” small towns in New York:
- Skaneateles (Onondaga County);
- Hudson (Columbia County);
- Tivoli (Dutchess County);
- New Paltz (Ulster County);
- Aurora (Cayuga County);
- Saugerties (Ulster County);
- Narrowsburg (Sullivan County);
- Cold Spring (Putnam County);
- Rhinebeck (Dutchess County);
- Beacon (Dutchess County);
- Greenport (Suffolk County);
- Croton-on-Hudson (Westchester County);
- Canandaigua (Ontario County);
- Woodstock (Ulster County);
- Sag Harbor (Suffolk County);
- Kingston (Ulster County).
The report dubbed Tivoli (third) as one of New York's up-and-coming neighborhoods, complete with unique shops and restaurants.
"What Tivoli lacks in size, it makes up for in quality," they wrote. "The town has seen a renaissance in recent years, with hip new businesses making this approximately 1.5-square mile village popular with New Yorkers who stumble upon it."
New Paltz (fourth), just a 90-minute drive from Manhattan was highlighted for the Mohonk Mountain House, the "all-inclusive Victorian-era hotel that sits on 40,000 acres on the Shawangunk Ridge and looks like a castle. The sumptuous accommodation offers dozens of fun outdoor activities."
Saugerties (sixth) was dubbed a "quintessential Hudson Valley town."
"The village, on the west bank of the river at the mouth of the Esopus Creek, is a historic landmark with a main street full of buildings—antique stores, restaurants, mom-and-pop shops—preserved as their 19th-century selves," the report states.
Narrowsburg (seventh) a town known for its canoeing and outdoor activities on the Delaware River also had its Main Street highlighted, as well as some of its popular area eateries.
"You'll feel completely transported in time" in Cold Spring (eighth), according to the report, "thanks to its 200-some preserved 19th-century buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.
The report further highlights Rhinebeck's (ninth) presidential ties, as former first daughter Chelsea Clinton got married there.
"Its popularity is deserved as the home to arguably many of the Hudson Valley’s finest restaurants, home décor, and antique shops, and even a charming bookstore to discover your next great read
The art scene in Beacon (10th) was highlighted in the report, which states that the town "is home to contemporary and modern art, (which) opened its doors and put this small Hudson Valley town on the map.
Westchester's only town on the list, Croton-on-Hudson (12th) "will transport you to a completely different world."
Woodstock (14th), which is within miles of Saugerties (sixth) is more than just a footnote in the history of music, the report states.
"The town may be best known for lending its name to the iconic music fest—which, fun fact, actually took place 60 miles away in Bethel—but it’s also home to a thriving art scene and has great hiking options nearby, like picturesque Kaaterskill Falls."
According to the report, Kingston (16th), is one of the Hudson Valley's "most popular and evolving towns," and was once the original state capital of New York.
The complete list from purewow.com can be found here.
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