“A Buffalo weekend getaway of all the places in New York State?”
Of course, everyone’s travel taste is different and my idea of fun – history, architecture, culture, food – differs from others. If you’re into bar hopping, clubbing, and all things rooftops, Buffalo is not for you, but hey! you might find other activities here to entice you to this rust belt city.
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Getting To Buffalo, New York
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- Buffalo is a 40 minute to 1 hour flight from JFK in New York City but if you’re a train enthusiast and want to utilize Amtrak to Western New York, it is a 10 hour journey!
- You can generally experience Buffalo car-free with the use of ride shares, light rail, buses, and plain ol’ walking.
- Alternatively, reserve a Buffalo Airport to downtown airport transfer if you want to go fancy.
Tip: Get to Niagara Falls by flying into Buffalo-Niagara International Airport and taking a private transfer van to your Niagara Falls hotel.
Buffalo Weekend Getaway Itinerary
#Day 1: Buffalo AKG, Canalside & Sunset Catamaran Sailing
Okay…you’ve only got three days so you have to maximize this Buffalo weekend getaway. Start by taking the 8 am flight out of JFK Airport to get you in Buffalo within the hour and your hotel thirty minutes after exiting the terminal.
Downtown Buffalo has conventional hotel options but I love boutique stays, especially if historic, and InnBuffalo, formerly the Hewitt mansion built in Gilded Age style in 1898, is perfect for the weekend. Each suite has high beds, an antique-looking easy chair, chest of drawers, and a sleep sounds device.
Watch TikTok below on staying at this lovely Gilded Age mansion.
@musingsandadventures SAVE👉🏾 For your New York travel itinerary, this historic inn in Buffalo, NY. In a quiet, walkable area, close to main streets, Uber accessible, free breakfast & snacks. 📌 619 Lafayette Ave, Buffalo, NY #traveltiktok #buffalony #newyork #upstateny #WNY #weekendgetaway things to do in New York, upstate new york activities, historic inns and hotels, Gilded Age homes, Buffalo places to stay, weekend getaways from New York
You will require comfortable walking shoes on this Buffalo weekend getaway, so take your pick from options below:
Rest from the flight then begin exploring Buffalo.
Start at the Buffalo AKG Art Gallery which is a 30 minute leisurely walk from InnBuffalo or a 15 minute Uber ride. It’s a warm spring day so I walk. The streets are easy to navigate and they have sidewalks! Which is more than can be said about a lot of U.S. cities.
On my way, I pass many murals and sculptures. I definitely wasn’t expecting Buffalo to be a walkable arts city. There are many buffalo (you know it’s an animal, right?) murals and sculptures all over the city and I delight in finding them as I walk.
The gallery was founded in December 1862 as the Buffalo Fine Arts Academy and it collects, conserves, and exhibits contemporary art. It is a magnificent light-filled building and the art here is absolutely exquisite.
Another modern gallery is the Burchfield Penney Art Center at Buffalo State University dedicated to the artists of Buffalo and Western NY.
If textile arts is more you, pop by Stitch Buffalo, a shop and community center. It sells vibrant textile items made by refugee and immigrant women who also perform mending and alterations.
Most importantly, they collect and re/upcycle donated textile scraps that would otherwise be sent to landfills.
Don’t believe me that Buffalo is an arts city? Just watch… TikTok below.
@musingsandadventures SAVE👉🏾You didnt think Buffalo, NY, would ever be travel inspo. Did you? Well, joke’s on you😄 cos between the Buffalo AKG Museum, street sculptures & art, murals, and buffalo art, the city is past its rust belt decline and is a cultural escape from NYC in summer. #creatorsearchinsights #buffalony #upstateny #traveltok #sculptures #museumtok #traveltipsandhacks #blackgirltiktok #blacktravelfeed travel inspo, new york itinerary, things to do in upstate new york, places to visit in New york, art in New york, things to do in Buffalo new york, New York summer
After Buffalo AKG, call Uber to Canalside. It is the heart of Buffalo’s downtown and is a mixed-use district with a Naval Museum, restored canal boats, sailing, entertainment, seasonal events, and 200-year old Erie Canal history.
Grab a Tim Horton’s and walk towards the Buffalo River where in warm weather, you might pass an event holding on the green. There are Adirondack chairs present for tourists to rest their weary legs before beginning their tour of Canalside.
For the history buffs, Canalside marks the west end of the canal that opened in 1825. The canal transported people and goods between Lake Erie and the Hudson River. Canalside is also the departure point for the historic “Wedding of the Waters” of October 1825, when Governor De Witt Clinton boarded the Seneca Chief packet boat on the grand opening of the canal.
Governor Clinton boarded with two kegs of Lake Erie water where he poured a keg into the Atlantic Ocean to symbolize the “wedding of the waters” of Lake Erie and the Atlantic Ocean. A replica of the Seneca Chief docks at Canalside alongside historic reads on Erie Canal construction.
Finish the day with a serene catamaran sunset sail on the Buffalo River with Moondance Cat.
Even in warm weather, wear a sweater or take a warm shawl because it gets chilly in the middle of the river. The sail nears the Canadian border for a beautiful orange sunset. Take a beverage and snacks on board for the two hour sail then Uber back to your accommodation.
Buffalo Weekend Getaway Itinerary
#Day 2: Dwtwn Buffalo Architecture Tour, RiverWorks & Silo City
Second day on a Buffalo weekend getaway is an Explore Buffalo architecture walking tour of downtown Buffalo where you will be regaled with stories behind its historic Gothic and Beaux-Arts buildings.
Stop to read plaques and keep eyes peeled for interesting murals.
- Buffalo is one of two cities with standing structures by three of America’s starchitects of the day: Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, and Richardson. The latter constructed the stunning castle of the NYS Capitol building in Albany and has The Richardson Hotel named for him.
- Hotel Lafayette was designed by Louise Blanchard Bethune in 1904. She was the first female fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and she designed over 150 buildings, mostly in Buffalo.
- The original Buffalo post office was built between 1804 and 1901. It is made from pink Vermont granite and has Gothic and Romanesque features.
- The Erie County Hall site was one of Buffalo’s burial grounds.
- Buffalo is known as the Queen City, City of Good Neighbors, City of Light, and Nickel City.
If you have time, book a No Illusions tour of Forest Lawn cemetery for the statuary alone. It is peaceful with a pond and ducks, but most interestingly, visit the resting places of Buffalo notables like Shirley Chisholm and Rick James. Yes, THE Rick James!
Finish the day with a tour of Silo City, a post-industrial site comprising of the world’s largest collection of historical grain elevators. You need a vehicle to get here with its brutalist, brown architecture.
Enjoy arts workshops, local ecological regeneration, and wandering deer. Grab a pint at Duende, a bar and restaurant on the grounds of Silo City with an interior that harks to the past of the granary. It has live music on certain weekends.
If you’re keen on a workout on this Buffalo weekend getaway, fret not, because there’s RiverWorks. There are axe throwing and ropes courses, hockey and skating in winter, silo climbing, ziplining, and water sports in summer and fall.
Architecture tour of Buffalo, NY
Buffalo Weekend Getaway Itinerary
#Day 3: African-American Heritage Corridor & Stained Glass
For your last day, go to church!
By this, I mean the Trinity Episcopal Church on Delaware Avenue. For lovers of art, the church is one of only three places in the world where renowned glass artists Louis Comfort Tiffany and John LaFarge worked side-by-side. These artists created glowing windows depicting saints, sinners, and biblical stories seen in the façade of the church,
It is the Center of Glass and Light for preservation of the historic stained glass works of the church completed in the 1880s.
Next, explore the Michigan Street African-American Heritage Corridor that encompasses Michigan Avenue, Nash Street, and Broadway Avenue. You will need a vehicle as historic sites are spread out over these areas.
Even though this corridor is under revitalization, tours of its historic sites are available. These are the Michigan Street Baptist Church, billed as a stop on the Underground Railroad; The Historic Colored Musicians Club & Jazz Museum (closed for construction); WUFO – Black Radio History Collective, and The Nash House.
For mural lovers, drive down Michigan Avenue for the Freedom Wall of vibrant murals of historic Black people, like W.E.B. DuBois, Frederick Douglass, Shirley Chisholm (buried in Buffalo), and so many more!
After this, find the Cobblestone Commons 12 Murals on the South Park Avenue façade of the NFTA Yard (DL&W Terminal) in downtown Buffalo’s Historic Cobblestone District.
Cocktail at DiTondo, Buffalo
Buffalo Weekend Getaway Itinerary
#Where To Eat In Buffalo
Buffalo has an alphabet of cuisine types from A-Z due to an immigrant population, with everything from Afghan to Yemeni.
DYK: Buffalo has the highest population of Burmese/Thai residents in the country at 5% Burmese.
Southern Junction – 365 Connecticut Street
This James Beard semi-finalist restaurant is a fusion of Texan BBQ and southern Indian cuisine because the co-owner grew up in Texas of Indian heritage. It opens at 4 pm but the line starts 90 minutes early so be outside and in line.
It has a bar and backyard patio with seating, where the locally made smoker sits for its daily beef char. Most orders are to-go and all food is made on-site so add another hour wait to your order…but it is so worth it!
Order the roast chicken, sliced smoked beef, herb dressing, and salad. Prepare to take leftovers because they are a scrumptious lot!
The smoker uses four cords of cherry wood and Mesquite from Texas is sometimes used because of its unique flavor.
Waxlight Bar a Vin – 27 Chandler Street
Another James Beard semi-finalist, this wine-focused restaurant is run by sommeliers and chefs with French fusion elements. Menu dishes range from $4 teas to $52 large plate of scallops, roasted garlic, and shrimp beurre blanc. Desserts have delicious names like burnt basque cheesecake and ruby chocolate ice cream. Non-alcoholic beverages are available.
DiTondo – 370 Seneca Street
A fourth generation Italian restaurant run by the great grand-daughter of the original owner, DiTondo is delicious fine dining. Indulge in cocktails by skilled bartenders and take your pick of the curated menu because everything is delicious.
Seriously, I am surprised by these dining options that I was able to experience on a Buffalo weekend getaway. Ok, Buffalo!
@musingsandadventures SAVE👉🏾 BUFFALO: Southern Junction BBQ & DiTondo Italian Restaurants; NYC: Wolf @ Nordstroms on 57th/Bway, Fish Cheeks and Wayan. #creatorsearchinsights #newyork #foodies #newyorkcity #upstateny #buffalo #blackgirlluxury New York Itinerary, new York hidden gems, new York best places to eat, best places to go in upstate new york, New York things to do, New york restaurants
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