genesee country village & museum

I have lived in upstate NY my whole life and had never been here before. What a amazing place...should have went sooner. I loved the old houses..and the people dressed in period clothing. There also is a old time baseball game you can watch. Wonderful time..will go back again.

It is a great place to take anyone. From young kids, to older adults. It is a Summertime place. Not open from Oct. through winter but it is a wonderful adventure to learn about the 1700's up through the 1920's. A working village where you get to hear the history and see the craftsmen/women working and teaching you what they did back then. Love this place.

Amazing place! They have moved buildings from the surrounding area to create a replicated village from the 1800's. Interpreters are dressed in period clothing and are very knowledgeable and excited to share their stories. Two places to eat, a gift shop, a nature center with trails to hike, and a very elite art gallery. Make time to visit - you won't regret it.... and be sure to join as a member because they always have special events to entice you to visit again and again.

I haven't visited this museum in quite a few years. My daughter and I went this summer and loved it just as much as we used to. It seems a little bigger than last time we were there. We were a little disappointed that some of the buildings were closed though. This is a nice place to spend an afternoon strolling the grounds and exploring the buildings. We ate at a little cafe onsite and the food was very good.

When we pulled up we initially thought the place was closed, as there were so few cars there. I think there were more staff than there were visitors the day we were there. That is one of the beauties of visiting in late September. We very much enjoyed the wonderful art museum and the galleries of authentic period clothing. A beautiful young woman took us on an hour tour of the history of women's fashions. We visited about 6 different homes with a woman in each site with a different period dress on. My wife loved this tour. The buildings, grounds, flowers are immaculate. We had a very nice chicken salad for lunch at their restaurant. We were there about 4 hours and wished we could have stayed longer. The site is a real jewel. It takes some circuitous driving to get there but it is well worth it. We learned a tremendous amount about life in the early 1800s. I highly recommend visiting here if you are in the area visiting LDS historical sites around Palmyra.

I remember coming here on field trips as a child and GCVM has this mystical appeal. As an adult, it is not quite a magical, but I still find it entertaining. We took our daughter (4 years old) for the first time this year and she liked it.There is a lot of walking and I was disappointed with the number of rooms that were not available for the public to view in some of the houses. But it is still a very fun and educational experience.The volunteers do a great job of demonstrating and explaining life in the 1800s.Definitely worth going to, at least once.

This was actually my first time visiting and it was for a wedding. The area is just absolutely beautiful. I loved being able to walk around and look at everything. The life in the 1800's is very interesting to learn about. I will definitely be returning so I can spend the entire day roaming through the villages and will be bringing my daughter with me. The barns for weddings are beautiful, very old fashioned style. Food that was catered was just absolutely delicious! All of the staff working were wonderful, so friendly and attentive!

We enjoyed our visit so much we went back again the next day & ended up buying a membership. The Village showcases the history of the area through the 1800's. There are 3 separate village areas depicting life in the very early 1800's when the first settlers came to Genesee County, then life in the 1830's to 1860's, and lastly the Victorian era, 1860's to early 1900's. The period buildings & furnishings are originals salvaged from surrounding counties of Western NY. One of the actors told us that the founder would go around to estate sales, etc & pick up antique pieces to go in the Village. He even collected the original glass panes to go in the windows of the buildings.The Living History Actors are all very knowledgeable and interesting to talk to. We spent a lot of time chatting with each one we met...so much that we felt we missed a lot and wanted to go back. It was also a hot day at the end of August and we sat for a long time in the Town Square where we learned about children's games with our 3 nieces. The young woman actor spent a lot of time teaching the girls about the games and playing with them while us adults sat on the benches working on the puzzle games. My husband & I also really enjoyed talking with the Beer Brewing guys, learning about the brewing process and equipment of the time. We also spent some time learning about early farming practices and tools. They did a threshing machine demo and told us about some of the plows they had that would have been used at the time. They actually hitched up their steers and plowed later in the afternoon. We missed that, but we saw them after the fact in the Town Square... THe Farmer-Actor giving a talk with the yolked Oxen standing there under the shade trees. He explained about the breed, etc. We thoroughly enjoyed our time & will be going back many times!

A gem in the wilderness of Western New York. Enjoyed a Fall visit to the Genesee Country Village and Museum. Definitely worth the price of admission. A week early before the Agriculture Celebration. The Village gets little advertisement if any support from New York State. The buildings are all transplants, but very interesting to say the least. People are dressed in the fashion of the times. The gent in the farm area is interesting to listen to as is the tinsmith, who enjoys talking to kids about history. The Print show is also educational. There was also a baseball game in play with old time rules. Worth seeing.The streets/roads are gravel and there are no sidewalks except near the main gate. The buildings in most cases are handicap oriented. The buildings could use some love and more should be done to keep their historical nature intact. The grounds are well maintained, however. There is a picnic area, if you want to pack a picnic basket. In addition, there is a Wendy's and a restaurant on site. A hotdog stand is located further into the property. Agriculture Days are also, worth seeing with local vendors present in the main field. This is truly a good day to visit, with all the excitement it brings with the chickens, rabbits, geese and ducks.I would be remisce, if I did not mention the Intrepid Civil War ballon & exhibit. You can actually go up in a tethered balloon to 225 feet for an additional fee.. Might be worth the price for the adventurous. The man who explains the balloon usage during the Civil War is enlightening. Enjoy the sights, smells and the walk.

My wife and I brought our 9 yr old granddaugther to visit Genesee Country Museum. It was wonderful overall. She loved the homes and the actors depicting the 1800's population in terms of dress, conversation, things they did, etc. One could eaisly spend 4 hours there....a day there would be adequate. It's like a live history lesson yet a fun recreational/social experence.They had a restaurant there and I must say it was great...and those sweet potato fries were the best I have ever had anywhere.Great employee's whether actors, maintenance workers, restuarant workers, ticket agent, etc. I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone at any age.

I'm sure that plenty of others have reviewed this place. It had been about 8 years since I last visited but certainly it has not changed for the worse. Well kept and always interesting with pleasant and knowledgeable staff. Definitely worth a visit. Plan to spend at least 3 or more hours visiting. Great for kids of all ages.

We really enjoyed our visit here. It covers such a large span of time, something you don't see to often. There are so many different styles of homes and other buildings. While we were there they were have a baseball tournament. This is was fun to watch, of course they were all in period correct uniforms and using period correct equipment (or lack there of). It was like watching "Field of Dreams". My favorite part of the entire day was the chance to go up in the "ONLY" replica of a civil war balloon. You remain tetered, but go up about 230 ft. Our guides name was Chris and he was a joy to listen to. Chris was very well informed, I wish that the rest of the "cast" had been as knowledgeable. This was probably my biggest complant. At every stop where they had people in period correct dressed staff it seemed they really didn't know the answers to some rather easy questions. One lady even said "I don't know, I guess I need to read the information on this home" That's dissapointing. Tips: To help you out. I don't know what admission price is cause we were treated to this. However, to go up into the balloon is $25.00 a person. But well worth it.... There is no where else where you can get this experience. You stay a good bit of time also. But keep in mind that due to wind, upflows etc. it is best to try and go in the morning. They find that many afternoons they have to ground the balloon. There are several "shops" to shop in. The best one is right at the entrance. There is a "market" in "town" But it is mostly kid toys, a few knick nacks...But they do have some drinks for sell, some candy ect. As for eatting. At the front is a resturant and a pub. It is a sit down type. We didn't eat there so I cannot comment on that. Inside the "town is another food stop. This one is outdoors, you can get sandwiches, chips, Ice Cream etc. For those who can't get around to well you might like to know they do have a "trolly" and several stops through out the place. You can take strollers, just keep in mind you are on gravel, grass & dirt.There are plenty of places to stop and use the restrooms, get a drink, and places to sit and take a break. You could spend as few as a couple of hours or make it an entire day.

We have been to a number of pioneer type villages but this would rank as one of the best. Three different eras that had an authentic feel . The costumed interpreters really added to the experience. Leave at least two to three hours to see everything. It was worth the four hour drive the night before to see this.

Visited for my birthday with my family (Wife and two boys who are 3 and 5 yrs). Wasn't sure if the boys were old enough to appreciate it yet but my eldest was asking when was the next time we could come by the time we left. Wide variety of houses collected in both age, purposes and locations. The octagon house was most interesting to me but only the bottom floor was open. The civil war encampment was a nice addition and the boys pretended they were soldiers. The staff were very friendly and answered the boys' questions and helped make the experience fun for them. Appreciated that there was a tasty vegetarian burger available. It was the "Christmas in July" event and got to try fresh eggnog and gingerbread cake. Overall the event itself would not be a reason to make a special visit but nice to add some variety. We will definitely visit again.

We forgot the park closed at 4 and we slept in and didn't get there until noon. We saw less than 1/3 of the area but enjoyed it very much! We especially enjoyed when the Cooper taught us to make a bucket...and were surprised when he started signing to my wife who is deaf. The Potter was also incredible as he showed his soup bowl making skills. In truth, all the characters were fabulous as they showed their cooking, cheese making, and medicine broom making skills. My 12 year old son, who hates that "history stuff when school is out", even had fun...and sat and quilted for 10 minutes but will never admit it to friends. If you like history, even a little bit, I would highly recommend this place.