Like a mini Brooklyn, upstate
Hudson: 48-Hour Escape from New York
Warren Street's mile of antiques, design shops, and restaurants, the Hudson Valley's coolest main street.
Hudson: Warren Street's mile of antiques, design shops, and restaurants, the Hudson Valley's coolest main street.
At a glance
Hudson, New York is a 2 hr drive from New York, best visited April–June or September–November. Like a mini Brooklyn, upstate. Top things to do: Olana State Historic Site, Warren Street antiquing. Where to eat: Fish & Game. Stay at The Maker Hotel or The Wick Hotel.
41
of 100
Escape score
Worth a stop on the way
A good day and a half, with an evening to spare.
- Drive
- 2 hr from New York
- Best window
- April–June or September–November
- Typical stay
- ~$257/night
Escape score: what there is to do and eat (40%), typical weekend lodging cost (30%), drive time (25%), rounding (5%). Computed from our own guide data, never from paid placement.
Why here
Hudson, New York is a city of 6,000 that has spent 20 years becoming the Hudson Valley's design and dining capital. Warren Street, a mile-long stretch of Federal and Victorian buildings, is packed with antique dealers, independent boutiques, and restaurants that would be at home in Brooklyn. You can take Amtrak here from NYC's Penn Station in 2 hours, no car required, making Hudson, NY one of the best weekend road trip ideas from the city.
Hudson was a whaling port before it was an antiques capital. Founded by Quakers from Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard in 1783, it sent ships to the Arctic whale fishery until the industry collapsed in the 1840s. The deepwater port left behind a grid of brick Federal townhouses that, by the 1990s, were cheap enough for Manhattan dealers to buy by the dozen. The revival began with the antiques trade and accelerated with the restaurants, and today Warren Street runs seven numbered blocks from the river to the hills, each one denser than the last.
A weekend in Hudson is a walking weekend. Start at the Amtrak station and walk Warren Street north, stopping at the antiques barns, the design shops, and the coffee bars. Climb to Olana, Frederic Church's Persian-style hilltop estate, for the view the Hudson River School painters made famous. Come back for dinner, Hudson punches far above its size, and end the night at the bar of The Maker. No car needed, which is the point.
The plan
48 hours in Hudson
Same town, two different weekends. Pick the arrival that matches your Friday.
Friday, on arrival
Check inThe Maker Hotel
From ~$300/night
From the founders of Ace Hotel. Each room is themed (Artful, Musician, Writer) with original art and vintage furniture. The bar is the best in town.
Leave New York after work: the 2 hr drive lands you here in the evening.
Friday night
Dinner, then the main streetFish & Game
A 26-seat restaurant in a brick townhouse. Seasonal, ingredient-driven, and one of the most acclaimed restaurants in the Hudson Valley. Book a month a...
Eat first and walk it off after. Most small-town kitchens stop seating by 9.
Saturday morning
First stopOlana State Historic Site
$10. The Persian-inspired home and 250-acre landscape of Hudson River School painter Frederic Church. The views from the house are the paintings, in r...
Saturday afternoon
Second stopWarren Street antiquing
Free to browse. A mile of antique dealers from 1st to 7th Street. Start at Hudson Supermarket and walk north. Most shops close by 6pm.
Timings are a suggestion, not a schedule. Shift the whole plan by how late you leave.
The Basecamp
Where to stay in Hudson
The Maker Hotel
From the founders of Ace Hotel. Each room is themed (Artful, Musician, Writer) with original art and vintage furniture. The bar is the best in town.
The Wick Hotel
A Tribute Portfolio boutique hotel in a 1827 candle factory, with a spa and a restaurant, walkable to Warren Street. The grandest new stay in town.
Warren Street Inn
A small boutique inn on the antiques mile, walkable to every shop and gallery. The central, no-frills upstate base.
What to do
Olana State Historic Site
$10. The Persian-inspired home and 250-acre landscape of Hudson River School painter Frederic Church. The views from the house are the paintings, in real life.
Learn more ↗
Warren Street antiquing
Free to browse. A mile of antique dealers from 1st to 7th Street. Start at Hudson Supermarket and walk north. Most shops close by 6pm.
Learn more ↗Pack for Hudson
River & paddle kit
Curated for swimming holes, float trips, and slow rivers in Hudson.
Waterproof phone pouch
Lanyard-sealed, touchscreen-friendly, and cheap enough to distrust.
See price on Amazon →Inflatable paddle board
Rolls into a backpack, floats all day on flat water.
See price on Amazon →Quick-dry water shoes
For rocky put-ins, gravel bars, and hot parking lots.
See price on Amazon →Floating sunglasses retainer
Because the river keeps every pair it is given.
See price on Amazon →As an Amazon Associate, book2escape earns from qualifying purchases.
Where to eat
Fish & Game
A 26-seat restaurant in a brick townhouse. Seasonal, ingredient-driven, and one of the most acclaimed restaurants in the Hudson Valley. Book a month ahead.
Most reviewed on Yelp
The most-reviewed restaurants in Hudson. A solid indicator of where locals actually eat.
Feast and Floret
Italian
Wm. Farmer and Sons
American
Via Cassia
Italian
Review counts and ratings are curated from Yelp and may change over time.
Go even deeper
Side trips near Hudson
Once you've settled into Hudson, these nearby towns are close enough to fold into the same weekend without moving your basecamp.
10 min from Hudson
Catskill
Across the Rip Van Winkle Bridge, 10 minutes east. The Catskill Creek waterfront, the Magdalena restaurant, and the Hudson Valley satellite worth a dinner.
10 min from Hudson
Athens
10 minutes north on the river, a tiny village with a restored main street and a quieter Hudson River frontage than Hudson itself.
Getting there
Drive logistics
From NYC, Amtrak from Penn Station to Hudson, 2 hours, ~$30. Or drive: I-87 North to Exit 21, then west. ~120 miles, about 2 hours.
Drive time
2 hr
Best time
April–June or September–November
Questions & Answers
Hudson weekend FAQ
Hudson is about 120 miles from NYC, a 2-hour Amtrak ride from Penn Station or a 2-hour drive via I-87 North.
No. Amtrak goes directly to Hudson station, and Warren Street's shops and restaurants are walkable from the station. A car is only needed for nearby sites like Olana.
Warren Street's mile of antique dealers and design boutiques, the Olana historic site, and one of the Hudson Valley's best restaurant scenes.
Yes. At 2 hours by Amtrak or car, Hudson is the original Hudson Valley revival weekend from NYC, with antiques on Warren Street, farm-to-table restaurants, and a walkable 19th-century downtown straight from the station.
Yes. Amtrak Hudson Line trains run from Penn Station to Hudson in about 2 hours, and Warren Street downtown is a short walk from the station, so no car is needed.
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