This trip’s a home run: 7 things to do around Cooperstown (2024)

Cooperstown, N.Y. — In every season, a trip to charming Cooperstown is sure to be a home run.

The village perched on the southern shore of the stunning Otsego Lake has a big reputation, for being a place that fewer than 2,000 people call home: Sports lore claims baseball was created in Cooperstown.

Although the tale that Civil War hero and Cooperstown native Abner Doubleday created the sport has been debunked, baseball is deeply embedded in Cooperstown’s DNA. The village is home to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and hosts kids from across the country for a summer tournament at Cooperstown Dreams Park.

But Cooperstown is not just for baseball fans. The area is full of outdoor adventures, good food, luxurious stays and stunning views.

Here are seven things to do during a trip to Cooperstown, “America’s Hometown”.

Visit Glimmerglass State Park, home to the oldest covered bridge in the U.S.

Glimmerglass State Park is a treasure trove for nature lovers and history buffs. The park is nestled close to the top of Otsego Lake and bears the nickname author James Fenimore Cooper famously bestowed on the glittering expanse of water.

Along with offering trails to ponds and through forests, Glimmerglass has a clean sandy beach for sunbathers, boaters and swimmers. The beach and its nearby pavilion are a few steps away from a playground.

But the beach, while lovely, isn’t what makes Glimmerglass a standout. That honor comes from two features: Hyde Hall, a historic country estate with a stunning view of Otsego Lake, and the Hyde Hall Covered Bridge, the oldest remaining covered bridge in the United States. Both deserve a tour.

Eat dinner while enjoying the best view in Cooperstown at the Otesaga Resort Hotel

Looking for a memorable dinner with a view? The impeccable Otesaga Resort Hotel offers both.

The palatial, luxury hotel that dates back to 1909 is perched on a prime slice of the southern shore of Otsego Lake. The brick mansion is full of old-world charm; some of the guest rooms even have gas fireplaces and freestanding tubs. And with its spa; eateries and bars; and the Leatherstocking Golf Course, the Otesaga offers a well-rounded experience for travelers looking for more than just an overnight stay.

But you don’t have to book a room at the Otesaga to experience the stunning resort.

Book a table at the Hawkeye Bar & Grill on a warm night and ask for a table outside on the patio, which boasts the best view of Otsego Lake in Cooperstown. Enjoy a burger, which diners insist is the best in the village, and a pint from Brewery Ommegang, a Cooperstown institution. Then, grab a co*cktail and listen to live music while sitting around the firepit bar.

Explore and count all-things baseball in and around “America’s Hometown”

Doubleday Field. The National Baseball Hall of Fame. The Sandlot Kid statue.

Those are just some of the (very obvious) links to baseball you’ll find in tiny downtown Cooperstown. But can you spot the less famous homages to the sport sprinkled throughout the village?

Baseball is everywhere in Cooperstown — from the drink stirrers topped with miniature balls and placed in co*cktails at the Otesaga to baseball diamond-shaped signs.

Explore the village’s sidewalk-lined Main Street and count how many baseball-themed signs, foods, gifts and more you can spot. It’s an impromptu scavenger hunt with endless answers.

Take the scenic route with a Rail Explorers USA rail bike tour

Stunning bucolic scenery awaits outside Cooperstown’s charming village limits.

Otsego County is filled with rolling hills and plentiful farmland, winding rivers and road trip-worthy roads. One of the most unique ways to take and explore the scenic route is by rail bike.

Rail Explorers USA: Cooperstown is based out of the Cooperstown & Charlotte Valley Railroad station in Milford, about 15 minutes south of Cooperstown. It offers a range of rail bike tours — including special evening lantern rides and trips that come with a refreshing drink from Otsego County’s own Fly Creek Cider Mill & Orchard.

One route, the Home Run, takes a 12-mile round trip along the Susquehanna River and the baseball fields of Cooperstown Dreams Park. On your trip to Cooperstown, opt for the second route: the Southpaw Slider.

Put on sunscreen before heading out on your 8-mile trip past farm fields and the meandering Susquehanna. Revel at the feeling of the wind in your hair as your legs — aided by electric motors — propel you over the 200-foot-long Portlandville Trestle bridge. Then, enjoy a cool drink during a break at the Forest Glen Turnaround before easily biking your way back to the station.

Shop, eat and explore your way around Cooperstown’s Main Street

No trip to Cooperstown is complete without exploring what the small, yet mighty, Cooperstown has to offer.

Cooperstown has all the hallmarks of a postcard-perfect main street — from quirky gift shops filled with unique knickknacks to eateries where servers can easily rattle off the complicated orders of regulars.

On your visit to the downtown of America’s Hometown, fuel up with eggs and toast at the Cooperstown Diner, where breakfast is on the griddle all day, or with coffee and a pastry from Schneider’s Bakery, a 137-year-old bakery that makes perfect cinnamon rolls.

Head to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, a can’t-miss destination for baseball lovers that boasts a collection of over 140,000 baseball cards; three floors worth of exhibits; a Sandlot Kids’ Clubhouse; and more. But on your way there, make sure to stop at Tin Bin Alley, a gift shop with shelves lined with trinkets and colorful candy, and Where It All Began Bat Company, a shop that sells everything from play bats to engraved balls.

Stay the night on Otsego Lake

Drive through Cooperstown, and you’ll see an impressive number of grand homes with gingerbread trim and enviable gardens. Many of the stately homes — including the Landmark Inn, a boutique hotel in an Italianate mansion, and the Inn at Cooperstown, built by the architect who designed New York City’s famous Plaza Hotel — are now inns dedicated to providing guests with luxurious stays.

But in the summer, nothing beats spending a night on Otsego Lake.

The Glimmerglass has no shortage of places for hopeful lodgers to choose from, from campgrounds and rental cabins to inns and motels.

For a relaxing stay with a value that exceeds its affordable price, stay at the Bayside Inn & Marina on the western shore of Otsego Lake. Bayside is just 7 miles north of Cooperstown and offers both motel-style lodging and cozy stand-alone cabins, along with a retro gaming room and kayaks for guests to use free of charge.

Grab a unique lunch at Origins Cafe, a restaurant inside a greenhouse

Drive just outside the quiet bustle of Cooperstown, and rural solitude is quickly found. And in that stretch of beautiful countryside lies a hidden gem: Origins Cafe, a restaurant inside a plant-filled greenhouse.

The restaurant on Beaver Meadow Road shares greenhouse space with Carefree Gardens, a shop that offers everything from hanging baskets and favorite annuals to pots and lawn decorations. Guests can grab a meal made with locally sourced ingredients and stock up on petunias, all in one beautiful stop.

End your trip to the Cooperstown area with lunch at Origins, where the menu is always changing — but is sure to impress. (On the first day of June, the lunch menu included a colorful salad with beets, goat cheese, walnuts and hearty greens topped with a generous drizzle of balsamic and an edible flower.)

Sit below the shade-cloth canopy and toast to your trip with a fizzing seasonal mocktail in hand. And if you’re lucky, a sweet golden retriever — who one server called the “patriarch” of Origins — will stop by to greet you.