Travels – Scouting in Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Lancaster Pennsylvania Family Travel

We kicked off June with a family trip to Pennsylvania. A boots-on-the-ground scout was needed for an upcoming movie, some film-related meetings and visiting with friends all happened to be in the same state. We did some preliminary research, put together an itinerary and hopped on a plane. Our expectation was just to see about filming around Pennsylvania, but we ended up loving our time there and came away feeling very excited and refreshed.

Our flights were in and out of Philadelphia and of course our first stop was for a Philly Cheesesteak! I found Oh Brother to be highly rated and they had a very impressive gluten free cheesesteak option. They were incredibly delicious! We are talking a substantial sandwich, with the meat and cheese wiz and the works. 10/10.

It was about a 2hr drive to Lancaster county from Philadelphia and the city quickly turns into beautiful rolling hills. The Amish farms start to pop up and you’ve never seen such clean and beautiful properties. The gardens were so tidy and absolutely bursting in June. I’m in my gardening era and inspiration is everywhere!

Our Airbnb was a 1700s property that was fully renovated and had been added onto many times over the years. It was a fun place to stay and imagine what it had seen over the years. The kitchen had a huge double fireplace and there were two front doors (something I wasnt familiar with and had to google.) It was also very close to the road and we could hear horses and buggies going past all night long.

Lancaster Pennsylvania Family Travel: Activities

Lancaster was nothing like what I was expecting, I had always assumed it was only Amish communities and set back in time, I didn’t realize that it is such a mix of old and new. We would drive past a huge farm and then pop out onto a highway and there is Costco! There are beautiful roads and tiny towns and then huge restaurants, shops and tons of tourists. It’s easy to get around and the small towns make it so that you can see a lot in one day.

Life with the producer…

Our highlight was visiting Sight & Sound theater and watching “Daniel.” We have gotten to know the people behind S&S through mutual friends and over the years they’ve invited us to come and see what they are all about. This was finally the trip where it all worked out. Besides having a gorgeous 2500 seat theater where they perform original stage plays, they also create all of their own props (which are incredible, when we walked in we were surrounded by the walls of Babylon!) there is a farm with dozens of animals that are performers in the show, a costume shop and more! It is truly an operation.

The performance was beautiful, the theater was packed out for a Tuesday morning and it was inspiring to see the story of Daniel from the bible told in a beautiful and creative way. I cried several times. The production quality was outstanding (this is from a girl who spends a fair amount of time behind the scenes.) If you are in Lancaster or Branson, Missouri, add Sight & Sound to your list!

Sight and Sound also made a beautiful movie several years ago, one of my favorite recent films, “I Heard The Bells” It’s a wonderful Christmas movie that you will love, the history of the famous Christmas carol.

The Strasburg Railroad was huge part of our visit. I’m not at liberty to discuss “why”, but we took a train ride one day and explored the museum another. There were so many different kinds of trains and the kindest staff members to answered questions and showed us around. Josh and Hugo were in heaven!

I said to Josh “I think Hugo is a train guy” and he replied “All guys are train guys”. They were giddy as we spent hours with the trains.

As you would suspect, the food in Lancaster County is just fantastic. I never travel without a list of gluten free restaurant options. Mainly because I hate to waste a meal on bad food and also because there’s nothing worse than being hungry and without gluten free options.

Lancaster Pennsylvania Family Travel: Gluten Free Restaurants

Here are a few of the spots we visited while in Lancaster County.

• The Speckled Hen – A great cafe with breakfast. It was so good we ate here twice. They also had the sweetest play area for kids and Hugo loved it.
• Agape Cafe & Grille – This restaurant is next to Sight & Sound and perfect for popping in before or after a show.
• Chellas Arepa Kitchen – I love whenever I can find an arepa shop, they are Venezuelan and naturally gluten free. AND DELICIOUS!
• C’est la Vie – We went here with friends and it was such a beautiful spot. The crab cakes are not to be missed!