Things To Do

Howell Living History Farm

Some of our earliest dates (or: ambiguously-named fun hangouts which in retrospect were essentially dates) happened here! The important points: it's fun, it's free, it's not open Sunday or Monday. If you're here a day early, it's a great place to go with kids.

Institute for Advanced Study

We got engaged in the woods behind the institute, where there are fantastic wildlife trails and streams! The wooded region is significant to the Battle of Princeton, where George Washington repelled British forces and proved his army could defeat the British. Check out the adjacent battlefields when you visit.

Washington Crossing Historic Park

[See image above. It's THAT crossing.]

Moo Hope Ice Cream

Excellent iced cream in the small PA town of New Hope. Walk through the town while you eat your frozen dairy treat and peek at all the shops!

Bowman's Hill Tower

We biked up this massive hill and enjoyed the overlook before the cranky ranger told us the tower and surrounding area were closed! Parking space at the hilltop near the tower. You can look out over the historic Washington Crossing valley from the top.

Van Sandt Covered Bridge

A beautiful covered bridge hidden in some lovely local countryside. Just for sightseeing (no giftshop).

Grounds For Sculpture

How to describe it...an open-air museum? A garden with sculptures? A cross between high art and silliness? Here you can wander around the landscaped grounds and stumble into a tableaux of sculpted people enjoying boating parties (i.e. the Renoir painting of that name), then turn around and avoid a group of modern picnickers, only to realize they're also sculptures. There's also more abstract modern sculptural art. Fun, bizarre, and sometimes stunning! Note that their website encourages purchasing timed entry tickets in advance.

Rockville Climbing Center Inc

Sourland Mountain Preserve

The tallest molehill in the area!

Baldpate Mountain

Princeton University

The university is beautiful to walk around! There's also plenty of history (though it skews nerdy). James and Abigail have both spent many years with this as "home base," and love it.

Princeton Cemetery

See the resting places of notable historical figures including president Grover Cleveland, mathematicians, physicists, theologians, controversial Revolutionary War hero Aaron Burr, puritan minister Jonathan Edwards, PCF founder and missionary Donald B. Fullerton, and signer of the Declaration of Independence John Witherspoon.

Princeton Record Exchange

We love stopping in here from time to time to look for records to play in the background while cooking, working, or dancing at James' place! A massive selection of music for only $1/vinyl (for their used inventory). Definitely poke your head in and see if you stumble on something fun! They also have cassettes, CD's, DVD's... all kinds of recording media.

Labyrinth Books

A great bookstore all around, but most importantly if you go downstairs and look in the used section, you can sometimes find rare printings of medieval texts. (We assume you might be in search of these kinds of things.)

Small World Coffee

If you're staying in Princeton, there are many good coffee shops to choose from (Rojo's, Sakrid, maman...) but Small World is the classic choice. It has lots of seating, lots of art on the walls, and (during the academic year at least) lots of undergrads. If you're not into coffee but want your sinuses cleared out, their Tough Chai Latte will surely wake you up. It's so peppery and gingery that, if you order it, they will without fail ask, "Have you had our Chai Latte before?" to make sure you know what you're getting into. Be brave: order it anyway.

Art@Bainbridge, Princeton University Art Museum

While the Princeton University Art Museum is under interminable construction, this is a nice gallery to visit. It's free!