A Short Trip to Woodstock and Kingston

Last week, we took a little trip to the Woodstock–Kingston area, about a two-hour drive from New York City.

Woodstock is famously tied to the legendary music festival—though the actual event took place in Bethel. Still, Woodstock has strong roots in art and music culture.

We arrived around 1 p.m. and had lunch at Allison’s Restaurant & Bar on Tinker Street. It's a cozy spot that looks like a cute house inside.

As we walked around afterward, we noticed many signs shaped like guitars, a small reminder of the town's musical history.

The main purpose of this trip was actually to see Corridor’s concert at Tubby’s—a show my husband had been looking forward to. (More about that part later!)

After seeing this sign

A black cat appeared!

After lunch, we headed to the world’s largest kaleidoscope at the Emerson Resort and Spa. Instead of peeking into a handheld tube, you stand inside a giant kaleidoscope built inside a silo. They play a 10-minute visual performance inside. It’s less about high quality and more about the sheer size, which somehow felt very American to me in a fun way.

After visiting the kaleidoscope (in the middle of nowhere), we drove through Bearsville theater to reach Kingston, where we stayed for two nights.

Later that evening, after taking a break, we went to dinner at The Dutch in Saugerties. Their French onion soup was especially good—made with beer instead of wine!

The next day, we drove about half an hour to Phoenicia for brunch at the popular Phoenicia Diner. Fun fact: this diner appeared in the Apple TV + show Severance as "Pip’s Bar & Grille." (Did anyone recognize it?) Despite being a Friday morning, it was packed!

After brunch, we strolled along Phoenicia’s charming main street and enjoyed the beautiful nature views along Esopus Creek on our way back to Woodstock.

(Second half coming soon: Italian dinner by the water, and the concert!)