Pennsbury ManorStroll the grounds and tour the manor house of William Penn. Visit the sailing sloop in which he traveled to and from Philadelphia. See crafts and tradespeople hard at work.

Washington Crossing Historic ParkStand where the General embarked on his daring journey to Trenton and ultimate victory over the British. See Emanuel Leutze’s famous painting of George Washington crossing the Delaware. Explore the museum, theater and the nature center with live animals.

Mercer MileThe home, museum and tile works of 20th-century “Renaissance Man” Henry Chapman Mercer are open for exploration. Find a lost way of life in the tools, trades and everyday objects of rural and village America. Enjoy a tile works living history tour. Take home an authentic, handmade Mercer Tile from the gift shop.

The Family Amusement ParkMeet all your Sesame Street favorites, including Big Bird, Elmo, Bert and Ernie. Enjoy rides, slides, shows, parades and more. Find it all at the one and only Sesame Place®, now celebrating more than 20 years of family fun!

The Great Outdoors – Right Next DoorDiscover Bucks County’s twelve covered bridges. Get lost in the shaded passages and old-fashioned charm of our scenery.

Visit the top of Bowman’s Hill Tower for the view of the wild and scenic Delaware River. Relax and enjoy Delaware Canal State Park. Hike, camp, bike, golf, tube, kayak and canoe the Great Outdoors of Bucks County.

Visit with Artists, Writers and Historic FiguresBucks County is blessed with an array of museums, galleries and art fairs. Wander the narrow streets of New Hope, a unique river town and famous artists’ colony packed with art galleries and shops.

Visit the home of Nobel Prize winner Pearl S. Buck. Tour the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown or their satellite location in Union Square, New Hope to see fine examples of Pennsylvania Impressionism. 

Ride the Old Fashioned WayEnjoy breathtaking scenery while experiencing the pace of days gone by on a mule-drawn canal boat.

Ride a steam-powered train through the countryside. Float above it all in a hot air balloon. Pedal your bike down beautiful country roads or simply stroll through quiet hamlets and byways. 

Let Bucks Entertain YouBucks County raises the curtain on entertainment nearly every day of the year. Let the region’s talented performers dazzle you with live musicals and dramatic productions. 

Festival Means Family FunMark the seasons with Bucks County’s never-ending tradition of community celebrations found in small towns, charming hamlets, and country farms.

The calendar of family fun includes strawberry and peach festivals in the early summer, haunted woods, and Octoberfests in autumn, house tours and winter festivals around the holidays, and nature walks and agricultural fairs in the spring.

Year-round, Bucks is filled with art exhibits, crafts fairs, historical reenactments, concerts, antique shows, parades, and more.

Bountiful Bucks FarmsWith its nutrient-rich soil, abundant sunshine and just the right amount of rain, Bucks County’s farmland is said to be among the best in the nation.

Embrace a centuries’ old heritage of homegrown goodness by visiting family-owned and operated farms and orchards. Pick your own strawberries and pumpkins.

Savor apples, peaches, and corn. Cut your own Christmas tree. Bucks County bounty is yours for the picking.

Non-Stop ShoppingThere’s nothing routine about shopping in Bucks County. Explore the specialty shops, restaurants and country charm of Peddler’s Village. Browse the booths of Rice’s Market, a tradition since 1860.

This 30-acre farm features hundreds of vendors selling a wide range of new and used items. Bucks County is also home of America’s beloved, handcrafted Caroler® figurines, a perfect gift for the holidays. Experience some of the finest outlet shopping centers.

At Penn’s Purchase Factory Outlet Stores you can find 50 of the best names in outlet shopping tucked in a charming country village setting. At Franklin Mills Mall, the landmark of the discount shopper, you will find fabulous designer names and discounted merchandise at over 200 stores.

A Taste of BucksA visit to Bucks County is an unforgettable culinary experience. Enjoy fun, informal dining in our classic diners and eclectic cafés. Savor the ambience of centuries-old country inns and sample gourmet cuisine from all over the world.

Religious SitesBucks County has its inspirational sites as well. Visit the Saint Katharine Drexel Shrine, honoring Katharine Drexel.

The Shrine in Bensalem, Bucks County is a dedication and final resting place of this Philadelphia saint. Katharine Drexel was canonized on October 1, 2000, in Rome. Tour the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa.

The shrine is a magnificent monument to the millennium of Christianity in Poland. Nearby in Philadelphia, the National Shrine of St. John Neumann draws thousands to sense the spiritual power of another great Philadelphian.

Bucks County – the name and the place evoke images of William Penn, the American Revolution, great artists and signature fieldstone houses and barns. The earliest residents to reap the bounty of Bucks were members of the Wolf Tribe of the Lenni Lenape Indians.

The Early Settlers ArriveIn the 1600’s, the first Europeans made their way up the Delaware River to what would become the port of Bristol in Lower Bucks County. Blocked by waterfalls, they explored the inner reaches of the county, following the streams and establishing small settlements as they went.

One of three original counties in William Penn’s Quaker Colony, Bucks claimed some of the richest farmland in the colonies. From these early settlements, and through 17th-century land purchases from the Indians, the large agricultural holdings of early Bucks County families developed. The rich yields increased their wealth. Wood houses were soon replaced by the larger stone homes for which Bucks County is famous.

The Revolution TurnsIts strategic location on the Delaware River drew George Washington to Bucks County after the disastrous Long Island campaign of 1776. The Delaware proved a natural barricade, behind which Washington planned his successful surprise attack on the Hessian garrison across the river at Trenton, New Jersey, a turning point of the war.

Commerce Brings ProsperityBucks County had become the major supplier of foodstuffs for Philadelphia, and its growing commercial interests altered the face of the region forever. The York Road, once a pre-settlement Indian trail, evolved into the major coach route between New York and Philadelphia. Where ferries crossed the Delaware, and later, bridges, many inns and taverns sprang up to serve weary travelers. It is not surprising that today’s visitors find an abundance of fine restaurants and country inns along the Delaware and throughout the county.

The Delaware Canal and major railroad lines firmly established Bucks as a major crossroads and link between Boston and Washington. Stage and rail stops developed into thriving communities, while river towns that had become industrial and mercantile centers reverted to their small town roots.

Into this turn-of-the-century scene stepped Dr. Henry Chapman Mercer. Lawyer, archaeologist, anthropologist and Bucks County native, Mercer was intent on preserving stone houses, log cabins and all the other physical evidence of the pre-industrial society.

He began to assemble a collection, “The Tools of the Nation Maker,” and built a museum 115 feet high with one million cubic feet to display them. Mercer regarded his collection as historical documents and artifacts of a vanished era.

He valued these tools as artistic expressions of their makers. Mercer also designed, built and operated the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works. The tiles garnered international attention. After a period of disuse, the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works is again producing Mercer tiles, many of them made with Mercer’s original molds and methods.

Architecture, Art, Literature & TheaterThe architect in Mercer was impressed with the quality of concrete as building material; it allowed for fluid, free-form design, yet was practical because it was fireproof. Fonthill, Mercer’s home, his tile works, and his museum were all constructed from concrete. He allowed the shape of the interiors to dictate the overall design of the exteriors.

Together, the Mercer Museum, Fonthill and the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works make up “The Mercer Mile,” a must-see attraction for any visitor.

While Mercer was busy collecting and building, the countryside around him was attracting landscape artists. In the 1920’s and 30’s, the village of New Hope became the center of a flourishing art colony spread among the farms and hamlets of the area.

Three prominent members of the group that came to be known as the “Pennsylvania School of Landscape Painting” were Edward Redfield, William Lathrop and Daniel Garber. Redfield’s dramatic, over-sized winter scenes were painted outdoors, even in blizzards.

Although painters of the Precisionist, Modernist and Surrealist schools were attracted to Bucks County, Realism enjoyed a surge in the region during the 1950’s.

In the 20’s and 30’s, people in the New York theater and literary worlds were also attracted to Bucks County by its scenic beauty, old stone houses and proximity to the city. Pulitzer Prize winners George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart along with Pearl S. Buck, Oscar Hammerstein II, Dorothy Parker, Katherine Porter, S.J. Perelman and Jean Toomer were drawn by the promise of a country retreat resembling Edward Hicks’ Garden.

Bucks County TodayBucks County is more than the sum of the history that runs through it. It is a place of enthusiasm for the future and respect for the history and creative energy of its past. It is a unique blend of pastoral countryside, colonial architecture, historic sites, museums, inns, shops, and activities that creates a sense of wonder, a feeling of being touched by history.

• Stop by the new Bucks County Visitors Center. The Visitors Center is complete with a movie theater, featuring a Bucks County orientation film, gift shop, ample restrooms and motorcoach parking.
• Spend the day at Philadelphia Park Racetrack, the home of Smarty Jones
• Window shop in New Hope, Lahaska, Quakertown, Newtown or Historic Bristol
• Hike at Tyler State Park
• Go art gallery hopping
• Visit the Peace Valley Nature Center
• Sit among the wildflowers at Bowman’s Hill Tower
• Tour Byers’ Choice Carolers’ Museum
• Visit the Silver Lake Nature Center
• Enjoy the year-round themed festivals at Peddler’s Village
• Visit the Saint Katharine Drexel Shrine
• Go fishing in the Delaware River
• Spend the day watching the birds at Peace Valley Park
• Drive along River Road
• Attend Historic Fallsington Day at Historic Fallsington, a celebration of their past.
• Picnic at the Moravian Pottery & Tile Works
• Visit Lily’s Pad in Sellersville, PA the home of the Lizzie High Museum
• Stroll around Quakertown Farmers’ Market & Flea Market, Venetian Farmers Market or Rice’s Sale & Country Market
• Explore the Locktender’s House on the Delaware Canal
• Attend a Sunday night concert in Bristol
• Browse the shelves at the David Library of the American Revolution
• Enjoy a walking tour of Historic Doylestown, Bristol, Newtown or Langhorne
• Visit the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa
• Visit the Churchville Nature Center
• Stop by the Washington Crossing Visitor Center and enjoy a movie about the history of the site.
• Take a tour of Bucks County covered bridges

Directions

Depending on your trip destination in Bucks County, there are many access roads to and through the county. Below are general routes from your point of origin.

All distances are approximations from your point of origin to Doylestown, the county seat, and the central point of Bucks County. Distances may vary significantly to other parts of the county.

BY TRAIN

Amtrak Travels through Bucks County. Stops in Trenton, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; and other nearby locations. (800) 872-7245; (215) 824-1600.
SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) Commuter stations throughout Bucks County with stops in Philadelphia, PA and Trenton, NJ. (215) 580-7800.

BY AIR

Major Airports

• Philadelphia International Airport Philadelphia, PA (215) 937-6937
• Lehigh Valley International Airport Allentown, PA (610) 266-6000
• Newark International Airport Newark, NJ (973) 961-6000

Local Airports

• Doylestown Airport Doylestown, PA (215) 340-0707
• Mercer County Airport Trenton, NJ (609) 882-1600
• Northeast Philadelphia Airport Philadelphia, PA (215) 685-0333
• Pennridge Airport Perkasie, PA (215) 257-0166
• Quakertown Airport Quakertown, PA (215) 538-3055
• Van Sant Airport Erwinna, PA (610) 847-8320