Adirondacks Summer & Fall Vacations in New York State
With more than 6 million acres of protected landscapes to enjoy, the Adirondack Mountains in New York State offer ample opportunity for awesome Adirondacks Summer and Fall Vacations. With 46 high peaks and abundant lakes, the landscapes range from the dramatic to the serene. The below itinerary offers an Adirondacks summer or fall vacation, a nature escape complete with Olympic history and adventures around charming Lake Placid.
This Adirondacks vacation is great for families, groups or couples, LGBTQ travel friendly and can be customized to meet your needs and vacation goals.
Let our preferred Virtuoso travel agent help you with this Darley Vacations booking or have her customize it to meet the needs of you and your group or family.
7 days / 6 nights starting at $3,000 USD* per person based on double occupancy
* Daily inclusions listed below. Itinerary pricing based on double occupancy. We are happy to customize this itinerary to fit your needs.
Adirondacks Summer & Fall Vacation Itinerary
Day 1: Head to Lake Placid
Arrive to Lake Placid, home of the 1932 and 1980 Olympics, and check in at your historic Inn steps away from Main Street. Owned by a family of Olympians, this quaint and cozy inn by Mirror Lake is stunning, complete with an onsite restaurant, spa, indoor and outdoor pool and stellar views.
Notes on Getting to Lake Placid:
There are several ways to reach Lake Placid, New York. Our preferred travel agent can help you organize this!
Options: Drive from New York City to Lake Placid. (estimated driving time: 4 hrs 50min — 290 miles))
Take the train to Westport, N.Y. (40 miles from Lake Placid) or another nearby stop along Lake Champlain include Ticonderoga, Port Henry, and Port Kent. You can also take the train to Albany (2 hours drive to Lake Placid).
Fly into Plattsburgh (it’s only a 50 mile / one hour drive to the Mirror Lake Inn)
Rest of Your Day at your Leisure: Ideas for things do to or have us arrange for you…
Get Outdoors on Your Own! You can set out from the inn to hike around the lake or nearby trails. With hundreds of miles of woodsy trails that are perfect for family walks in the woods and picnics, and lakes and ponds ideal for kayaking, paddling, fishing and boating, pick one for the rest of your day on this first day in Lake Placid.
Enjoy a guided adventure! Let the inn’s local guides take you out fishing, hiking, canoeing, backcountry skiing, snowshoeing or to learn wilderness survival techniques.
Stretch your legs on Lake Placid’s Main Street! If you prefer to stay in town, Lake Placid offers cute shopping, beer and wine tasting locations, delightful dining, restaurants and bars. Main Street is steps away from the inn, so walk on over and enjoy.
Enjoy afternoon tea and cookies back at the inn for a break and then get ready for your dinner at the inn (included). With an award-winning selection of wines, cocktails and tasty cuisine ranging from burgers to steak to scallops, you’ll enjoy dining with views of the lake at one of the inn’s two restaurants.
Relax after dinner with a drink and enjoy the cozy ambience of the inn, rated one of the Most Beautiful Lakeside Hotels in the Country, and awarded the AAA Four Diamond Award of Excellence for over three decades.
Adirondacks resort outdoor pool 
Fall foilage Adirondacks Mountain 
Adirondacks Mountains lakeside inn 
Adirondacks Mountains lakeside inn
Day 2: Saranac Lake
Let us plan your adventure day at Saranac Lake. After breakfast, drive to Saranac Lake (30 min).
Morning RiverWalking with a private guide
Ever thought about wading through a river to get exercise and explore nature? Welcome to RiverWalking… Explore the common and contrasting sensations between land and water on your guided riverwalking adventure. This is a new way to comprehend nature and destress, so a great way to start out your vacation. This is an activity that the whole family, including children 10 years old and older, can enjoy.
*Mornings are recommended to see birds and wildlife. This activity includes waders and wading boots. Runs June to September.
Lunch & Afternoon in Saranac Lake
Continue to charming downtown Saranac Lake. In the 1800s people traveled to Saranac Lake to get treatment for tuberculosis at the Trudeau Sanatorium, hotels and so called cure cottages. Later prosperous families, including the Rockefeller’s and Guggenheim’s built renowned Adirondack camps to enjoy time in nature. Word spread about the beauty of the region and famous guests followed, including Albert Einstein. Saranac Lake still has architecture from the Adirondacks Great Camp Era, along with local shops, galleries, a great local coffee shop and lots of ways to enjoy the outdoors.
Enjoy lunch at Campfire Adirondack Grill & Bar located within the historic Saranac Hotel. Crafted beer, cocktails and delicious dining await, including tableside s’mores.
If you are a coffee aficionado, stop at Origin Coffee and Co and spend the rest of the day exploring the town and area.
Saranac Lake green tea latte 
Saranac Lake 
S’mores Campfire Restaurant Adirondacks
Forest Bathing immerses you in the sights, sounds, scents and textures of the forest. Your guide is there to open the door to a new way of being in nature. Forest Bathing is a learned practice, sort of like meditation, so you can take it home with you to enjoy in your own garden, a favorite tree or a nearby park. The Adirondack Park is named a top 5 forest bathing destination worldwide by National Geographic. (runs May to March. Suitable for children 6 to 17 years old)
Day 3: Lake Placid Adventures
Bobsledding!
After breakfast, wake up your adventurous thrill-seeking soul! Embark on a bobsled ride with a professional driver! At a speed of up to 55 miles per hour, watch sharp turns on the over a half mile long bobsled track. This original experience is a can’t-miss one in Lake Placid!
Available for Adults and Children ages 7 and up.
Lunch Recommendation! Back in Lake Placid, breakfast is served all day with views over Mirror Lake at The Breakfast Club, THE local institution in Lake Placid. Indulge in some hot chocolate paired with big BC waffles ! Or pick one of the 10 signautre bloody Mary with crab cake Bene ! Your choice! The full menu is huge!
Family Kayaking on Saranac Lake
The waters of the Adirondack wilderness beckon. It is often said that the best way to see the Adirondack Park is in a canoe or in a kayak.
Go on a guided kayaking tour led by experienced kayakers and outdoor guides. Canoe wilderness about 10 miles from the village of Saranac Lake and 20 miles from Lake Placid. No worries about your way back, shuttling services will take you back to your departure location.
Enjoy dinner on your own at the inn or steps away in Lake Placid’s downtown.
Day 4: Tupper Lake Adventures
After breakfast, drive the scenic road to Tupper Lake (30 miles-40min) along Saranac Lake and High Peak wilderness. Stop at the Wild Center, a natural history center created with families in mind.
Learn more about wildlife in the Adirondack at the beautiful interactive center: experience animal encounters, hands-on exhibits, outdoor activities in winter and in summer.
The Pines Wild Play Area is straight out of nature. Kids can climb on a tipped up tree, play with piles of sticks, or beat on log drums in this perfectly natural clearing in the woods.
Discover the Adirondack environment from a new perspective on Wild Walk. Hang out high above the forest floor in the spider’s web and take in the view from the eagle’s nest.
*Entrance tickets included
Tupper Lake Cool Lunch Recommendation: Raquette River Brewing & Food truck. This is hotspot for craft beer and food truck for locals to meet. Stop at Raquette River Brewing and mingle with locals !
Pick up some food from the trucks and sit outside to enjoy your lunch.
Afternoon Guided canoeing adventure: A great 1-2 hour two-mile loop starting from Tupper Lake. This is the perfect trip for beginners, families, birders or anyone looking for a quick on a beautiful pond and river around Tupper Lake.
Enjoy dinner back at the inn or in Lake Placid.
Darley Newman at Raquette River Brewing 
Raquette River Brewing in Tupper Lake 
Canoeing in the Adirondacks
Day 5: Leisure Time With Option For Cooking Class
Have fun at Mirror Lake Inn. Go on a mountain bike ride, stay at Mirror Lake Inn private beach, which features a designated swim area, main dock and two swim docks, go boating from the hotel (Complimentary for hotel guests), indulge at the spa, or walk to the Olympic village for some window-shopping, the day is yours. Enjoy it!
Suggestion: Cooking class with Chef Curtiss Hemm and dinner (not included) Meet Chef Curtiss at Mirror Lake Inn, and embark on a gourmet voyage during a unique cooking class with your Chef.
Participate or simply watch Chef Curtiss instruct each course, step by step, as he prepares, cooks and plates his way through the menu. Hands-on or not, experience this intimate and educational dining experience.
All cooking classes include digital and printed materials, detailed instruction from Chef Curtiss, and planned in-the-moment teaching experiences that will elevate your cooking skills.
The spa at the Adirondacks inn 
Adirondacks Mountains resort meal 
Hiking in the Adirondacks at Cobble Hill
Day 6: Lake Placid Flying High
Morning heights: Lake Placid Olympic Ski Jumping Complex and Sky Ride zip line adventure
This morning, jump on the brand new Skyride, an eight-passenger gondola to transport you up to the base of the ski jumping towers. From there is the newly-remodeled scenic elevator that takes you to the sky deck of the 120-meter ski jumping tower. With its glass exterior, the ride up gives a stunning bird’s-eye view of the Adirondack High Peaks. At the top, the sky deck offer 360-degree panoramic views of Lake Placid—the kind that would usually require an hour-long hike up a mountain—all accessible in just a 30-second elevator ride.
This is a cool chance to understand the heights from which those intrepid ski jumpers started during the 1980 Olympics held in Lake Placid. The 120-meter ski jumps towers have various interesting vantage points and those who want an additional thrill, can travel back down to their starting point on a zip line.
Afternoon Zipline Family Fun: Fly through the sky on your own or race your friends at speeds of up to 21 mph on our brand new 300-foot-long zipline at the base of Whiteface! Riders must be at least 40” tall and weigh between 45 – 250 lbs.
Lake Afternoon Motion Theater Sports Simulator: Experience the thrill of bobsled, luge, skeleton, and ski jumping all from the driver’s point of view! You don’t have to choose to experience them all—sit on a full-motion platform and watch a 75″ flat screen TV!
This activity is located in the Olympic Center just steps away from the historic 1980 Herb Brooks Arena.
Lunch or dinner on your own.
Day 7: Homeward Bound
Enjoy the morning at the inn and make your way back to NYC, the Albany train station or your next destination.
*Please note that this is a sample itinerary. Prices are subject to changes based on dates and activities, which Darley Vacations’ Preferred Travel Advisor can customize for you. Please check out why you should book trips through our Preferred Travel Advisor and other FAQs.
Trip Price & Inclusions
7 days / 6 nights starting at $3000 per person USD* per person based on double occupancy
* Daily inclusions listed below. Itinerary pricing based on double occupancy. We are happy to customize this itinerary to fit your needs.