The Secret to Visiting Olana with Kids
Olana, a castle-like villa overlooking the Hudson River, seemed like it would be a dreamy place to explore with my family, but it wasn’t what anything like what I expected. Here’s what you need to know if you’re visiting Olana:
The real magic — especially for kids and kids at heart — is in the 250 acres surrounding this historic home. Even in the weird times of 2020, it’s the perfect place for a day trip.
View of Olana, a historic castle-like home, from the Rip Van Winkle Bridge over the Hudson River
As my regular readers know, I’ve been visiting the Catskills since I was a kid, and the best part of the drive has always been looking up at Olana from the Rip Van Winkle Bridge over the Hudson River. As a little girl, I always imagined the princesses who must have lived there. I dreamed of pink canopy beds, a grand ballroom overlooking the Hudson, bookshelves to rival the library in Beauty and the Beast… Clearly, I didn’t get the memo that Olana was once home to Frederic Edwin Church, one of the major players in the Hudson River School of landscape painting, and his tastes weren’t really in line with the Disney princesses of my road trip daydreams.
Taking kids to Olana, the castle of the Hudson Valley
Due to the coronavirus, you can’t go inside the villa at Olana State Historic Site at the moment. But here’s the good news: Olana is beautiful from the outside, the open-air grounds are far more kid-friendly than the villa’s interior, and outdoor tours are available on the weekends. And you if you want a peek inside, you can check out my photos below, taken late in the summer of 2019 (at present, masks are required at Olana).
Hudson River views from Olana, the home of Frederic Edwin Church near Hudson, NY
If you vibe with the Hudson River School of landscape painting, this place is a total dream home. The walls are heavy with paintings, and you could spend an afternoon playing “I Spy” with a curious child. That said, as much as my son loves a historic house tour (check out my posts on the very kid-friendly Thomas Cole Site in Catskill, the Martin Van Buren House in Kinderhook, and the FDR Museum in Hyde Park), Olana felt darker, spookier, and more roped-off than the others we’ve visited. My husband and I liked it more than the kids did.
A peek inside Olana Historic Site
If you’re traveling with kids, my advice is to book an outdoor family tour of Olana in advance (as they do fill up), or if your kids are too little for that, you can explore the vast, beautiful grounds on your own. Site access is free and open daily from 8:30 AM to sunset. And if you’re curious about what’s inside, this bedroom will give you a taste. No pink canopy beds up in this castle!
Wallpaper for days inside Olana Historic Site in the Hudson Valley
Personally, I loved the tile work on Olana’s exterior. (I was thinking about it when I recently chose this Moroccan-inspired bathroom tile.) My children were less excited about this.
Moroccan tile is one of the many beautiful details you’ll find at Olana in the Hudson Valley
Once Archer got a peek at the giant Olana visitor map, he wondered why we’d spent so much time in the house. There was so much more to see.
Olana’s 250-acre park is the perfect place for kids to explore in the Hudson Valley.
If we’d realized just how big the grounds were, we would’ve prioritized the outdoor space over the house from the beginning.
Should you take the kids to Olana? Yes! Just focus on the great outdoors.
Next time we’ll bring some colored pencils and drawing pads so Ramona can make her own art from these fairy benches.
Kid-friendly Olana: A picture-perfect outdoor day-trip for fans of the Hudson River School and the natural world that inspired these works of art.
And we will explore the trails and soak up the greenery that inspired the artists who walked these hills before us.
Olana State Historic Site visitor map
Olana is located at 5720 State Route 9G, Hudson, NY 12534. Access to Olana’s 250-acre park is free and the grounds are open every day from 8am to sunset. At the time of publication, guided tours (walking and driving) of the historic landscape are being offered on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am to 4pm. All tour participants are required to wear a mask and maintain social distance.
WHAT’S NEARBY? If you’re hungry, Grazin’ Diner and Casa Latina Pupusas Y Mas are about 10 minutes north of Olana in Hudson. If you’re thirsty, Suarez Family Brewery is just 15 minutes south and the used book oasis Little Red Book Shack is just 2 minutes from there. Sloop Brewing Co. in Elizaville is just a few more minutes down the road and has outdoor seating and a solid menu of pub fare.
