The Budgetlist: Come Along As We Enjoy An Affordable Weekend Getaway To The Finger Lakes In New York

There’s little I love more than travel, but it can become expensive quickly, especially when you consider paying for airfare, long hotel stays, and spendy attractions. However, if you opt to drive instead of fly, stay at a local campground or vacation rental instead of a hotel, and stick to low-cost activities, travel can be quite affordable – take my 2023 trip to the Finger Lakes, for example. 

When my family moved to the East Coast in 2021, I immediately began compiling our bucket list. At the top of that list was Ithaca, New York. I had a close friend from high school who went to college in Ithaca, and they always spoke so fondly of the area that I knew I had to experience it for myself. Centrally located within the Northeast United States, the Finger Lakes region of New York is an underrated getaway location we can’t get enough of – and it’s the perfect spot for an affordable vacation for nature and culture lovers alike. 

Accommodations In The Finger Lakes

Airbnb

When we visited in 2023, we redeemed points earned from our InterContinental Hotels Group credit card – a travel card we signed up for years ago during a cross-country road trip. If we hadn’t used points, we would have spent approximately $540 to stay at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Ithaca for three nights over a long weekend.

There are also several incredible vacation rentals available in the area if you want a little more space – some with lake views. This cozy cottage is perfect for two guests (pictured above) and costs just $600 for a three-night stay. If you have a larger group to accommodate, this stunning lakefront property sleeps up to ten guests and is on the Seneca Wine Trail. The cost for a three-night stay is $1,100 but the cost would be only $110 each if split among ten adults.

Planning to visit during peak season from June to August or during fall foliage? You can expect to spend more on accommodations, especially on weekends – I would budget $300 per night during this peak season unless you can visit during the week.

Estimated Cost: $150 - 300/night

Low-Cost Activities In The Finger Lakes

Ithaca Farmers Market, Ithaca Market Steamboat Landing, 545 3rd St, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA

Ithaca Farmers Market

This seasonal weekend market housed in a charming covered pavilion in Ithaca offers everything from baked goods, produce, and street food to crafts, local wines, and homewares. Since 1973, the Ithaca Farmers' Market has been located on a breathtaking park on Cayuga Lake waterfront. Stop by Saturdays from April to December and Sundays from May to November.

Pro Tip: Bring cash and be sure to arrive early – the parking fills up quickly! While some vendors accept credit cards, many don't, so cash is helpful.

Estimated Cost: $25+

Advertisement

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

Of course, you aren't required to spend anything while at the Ithaca Farmers' Market, but we suggest picking up a meal or snack from one of the vendors. When we visited, we purchased an apple cider slushie and two cider donuts, a hand-dyed dress for our toddler, and a mushroom vodka for my spouse. We enjoyed our donuts on the docks overlooking Cayuga Lake (pictured above), and let me tell you, it was just as picturesque as you'd imagine.

Advertisement

Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, 114 Central Ave, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

Located on the main campus of Cornell University, the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art is home to more than 35,000 works in its permanent collection, including two windows from Frank Lloyd Wright's Darwin D. Martin House. We love a good art museum, and this one does not disappoint! Plus, the views of campus and the lake from the top floor are truly outstanding.

While on the Cornell University campus, you might also enjoy a visit to the Cornell Botanical Garden and Arboretum, both of which are free to explore.

Cost: Free

Women's Rights National Historical Park, 136 Fall St, Seneca Falls, NY 13148, USA

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

While there are countless small towns to explore around the Finger Lakes, our favorite was Seneca Falls, where we enjoyed a peaceful walk through town as well as a visit to the Women's Rights National Historical Park. This museum tells the story of the first-ever Women's Rights Convention, which was held July 19-20, 1848 in Seneca Falls – a story of struggles for human rights, civil rights, and equality. It was a moving experience that our entire family thoroughly enjoyed.

Cost: Free

Outdoor Adventures In The Finger Lakes

Watkins Glen State Park, 1009 N Franklin St, Watkins Glen, NY 14891, USA

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

A 400-foot deep gorge cut through shale by Glen Creek, Watkins Glen State Park is an ancient crevice formed by giant glaciers during the Ice Age. Most famous for its Gorge Trail, this might be one of my favorite hiking trails I've ever taken – and I lived in Hawaii for seven years! Featuring breathtaking rock formations and endless cascades – including waterfalls you can walk behind and tunnels through the rock – this hike is strenuous (or at least it was with a 30-pound toddler on my hip), but truly remarkable. Don't forget your camera!

Cost: $10 per vehicle

Related Stories

Enjoy A Sense Of Peace At This Incredible Waterfront Restaurant In New York

Your Ultimate Guide To Summer Fun In New York

The Magnificent Lakefront Airbnb In New York That Is Perfect For A Spring Retreat

Taughannock Falls State Park, 1740 Taughannock Blvd, Trumansburg, NY 14886, USA

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

The tallest waterfall in New York – beating Niagara Falls by 33 feet in height – Taughannock Falls is, in a word, awe-inspiring. The stream has cut a massive gorge into the park's bedrock, and the 1.8-mile Gorge Trail is easy, gaining only 183 feet in elevation, and leads to the stunning Taughannock Falls, cascading nearly 215 feet into a pool below. Our toddler ran most of the trail, and it was one of my favorite memories of our trip.

The trail showcases the falls from below, but you can also see the falls from above at the Taughannock Visitor Center. Taughannock Falls State Park is also home to campsites and cabins that overlook Cayuga Lake, as well as ample green space with picnic areas, grills, and pavilions.

Cost: $8 per vehicle

Buttermilk Falls State Park, 106 E Buttermilk Falls Rd, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

The state parks surrounding the Finger Lakes are nothing if not impressive, and Buttermilk Falls State Park is no exception. Located slightly more off-the-beaten-path than the first two waterfall state parks on our trip, Buttermilk Falls is home to an epic swimming area as well as several jaw-dropping hiking trails. We loved the 1.6-mile Gorge and Rim Loop Trail that leads adventurers past waterfalls, across the stream, and up staircases carved into the gorge. It was a peaceful retreat we would love to visit again when it's warm enough to swim!

Cost: $8 per vehicle

Advertisement

Cayuga Nature Center, 1420 Taughannock Blvd, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

Providing indoor and outdoor programs encouraging visitors to explore and understand the natural history of the Cayuga Lake Basin, this nature center was one of our favorite stops during our trip. Home to 100 acres of woodland and fields, as well as live native animals, a gorge, and a waterfall, Cayuga Nature Center is a gem. Our favorite was the six-story treehouse that you could explore for yourself – I think we spent nearly an hour hanging out in the rustic treehouse.

Cost: Pay-what-you-wish, donation-based admission.

Food & Dining In The Finger Lakes

Ithaca and the surrounding area are home to countless delicious restaurants as well as coffee shops, wineries, breweries, and more. This is one area of your travel budget that you can be frugal or splurge – or land somewhere in the middle as we did.

Downtown Ithaca/Facebook

Our favorite restaurants were located in Ithaca Commons: the Ithaca Ale House and The Yellow Deli. We were recommended to visit Viva Taqueria, but it was clearly popular and incredibly busy – it’s still on my list for the next trip!

Pro Tip: If you have kids, Ithaca Commons is home to a small playground our daughter loved – allowing my spouse and I to sip coffee while she played.

Megan Shute/OnlyInYourState

The Finger Lakes region is known for its incredible wineries, namely along the Seneca Wine Trail, and you absolutely must make time to visit a winery – or five – during your trip. We visited two unique destinations during our trip that we loved and would wholeheartedly recommend. We visited Wagner Valley Winery, where we purchased two wine flights for a total of $24 (bonus: each flight came with a coupon for $4 off a bottle of wine), and Finger Lakes Cider House, where we enjoyed a full meal, cider flights, and live music. Both featured stunning lakeside views.

Gimme! Coffee/Facebook

We stuck to the hotel for breakfast but splurged on coffee (and sometimes pastries) once per day, at an estimated cost of $15-20 per day, for a total of $70 during our four-day trip. Our favorite coffee shops we visited were Press Cage and Gimme! Coffee.

You also won’t want to skip a trip to Purity Ice Cream – which serves dozens of delicious flavors – cost an additional $25.

Estimated Costs

I personally value experiences over things, so we tend to watch our budget more closely at home and let ourselves splurge a bit more than usual on vacations. You could spend less by forgoing spontaneous shopping, drinking less coffee, or checking into one of the many campgrounds in the area. I estimate you could easily spend less than $1,000 on a four-day trip if you were watching your budget more closely than we did. Here’s a breakdown of our costs for your reference.

• Accommodations: $540
• Outdoor Adventures & Low-Cost Activities: $32
• Restaurants & Dining: $276
• Coffee, Dessert & Wine Tasting: $114
• Gas: $80 for 2 fill-ups on our five-hour drive + explorations
• Misc. Shopping & Fun: $168, including two bottles of wine from Wagner Valley Winery and goodies from the Ithaca Farmers’ Market, a vintage store in Aurora, New York, and a local bookstore I can’t remember the name of.

This brings our grand total for our four-day trip to New York’s Finger Lakes region to $1,210 total (including the $540 we would have spent on a hotel if we didn’t have points — our out-of-pocket total was only $670). This breaks down to $101 per person per day for our family of three.

You can also absolutely spend more – or less – than we did depending on where you stay, what you do, and where you eat, but we’re talking budget travel here, so we focus on budget travel, where we aim to spend $100 per person, per day of travel.