When New Yorkers flee the city for a weekend away, they often weigh two classic options: the Hudson Valley or the Hamptons. But straddling the southern portion of the Delaware River, where New Jersey kisses Pennsylvania, is a region whose rolling hills, grassy farms, quaint main streets, and sweeping river views make it a fair contender for the ultimate country-chic East Coast getaway. The region is often referred to as the Delaware River Valley, and within it, the town of New Hope, Pennsylvania—described to me by tight-lipped locals as “Hudson without a train stop”—has long been a popular spot for those seeking relaxation and inspiration. New Hope first came across my desk within the last year, and the frequency illusion quickly took over—once I heard about it, I couldn’t stop hearing about it. Perhaps, in part, thanks to stars like Bradley Cooper and the Hadid family, who have all taken up residence in the town.
But the more I looked into it, the more I learned that there’s a lot to love about New Hope and its surrounding small towns. George Washington had a famous run in the area (remember when he crossed the Delaware River one fateful Christmas Eve?), and in the 1920s, a group of artists, authors, and playwrights—Oscar Hammerstein and Dorothy Parker, a few among them—flocked to the region in search of a creative retreat, granting the area its historic “genius belt” moniker.
Similar to Hudson and its Hudson Valley counterparts, a visit to New Hope also puts you in proximity to a string of sweet little towns along the PA-NJ border—Doylestown, Lambertville, and Frenchtown, to name a few—and you can easily idle away your days between them, paddling along the river, hunting for antiques, or catching a show at a local theater. As for the food and drink scene, many local restaurants are helmed by former big-city chefs who have thrown in the towel for a simpler life, which gives diners the feeling of being let in on a little secret. And thanks to a new crop of boutique hotels in the area, there’s no shortage of places to stay, where innkeepers go above and beyond to make your experience feel like something special.
I finally succumbed to my desire to see the region for myself this past spring, and you’d be remiss not to do the same. When you’re ready to plan a trip of your own, here’s where to eat, stay, and play in and around New Hope.
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About an hour-and-a-half drive from midtown Manhattan, New Hope makes for an ideal weekend jaunt, provided you’ve got a license. Driving is really the best way to hop from town to town. While Uber is certainly an option, I found that rides were not always readily available (there are pickup restrictions across state lines), and I had better luck scheduling my cars in advance.
Where to stay
Perhaps the most popular hotel in town, the 38-room River House at Odette’s, with its picturesque views of the Delaware, offers a splashy stay on the site of a 1960s bohemian cabaret run by musician and actress Odette Myrtill. Remnants of midcentury glamour persist in the lobby Piano Lounge—where you might run into a bride or two, due to its popularity as a wedding venue—or on The Roof, a members-only bar where Yolanda Hadid’s signature is displayed proudly on the wall.
For lodgings that feel a bit more personal, check in at the eight-room Stockton Inn, a 1700s historic inn in nearby Stockton, New Jersey, that was revitalized in 2024. The on-site restaurant, helmed by chef Bob Truitt (formerly of Michael White and Stephen Starr), and the hotel’s casual sister café, Stockton Market, are both food destinations in their own right. While the walls carry echoes of a creative past—F. Scott Fitzgerald and Margaret Mitchell spent time at the hotel—the digs are decidedly modern, from the contemporary photographs that line the dining room to the chic paper lantern lights that hover above the beds.