Javascript is not enabled.

Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again.

Skip to content

Family caregivers: Learn how to best use your family doctor’s expertise during a free AARP webinar.

Content starts here
CLOSE ×
Search
Popular Searches

Games

Car rental

AARP daily Crossword Puzzle

Hotels with AARP discounts

Life Insurance

AARP Dental Insurance Plans

Travel

Suggested Links
Help Show me my account info Change my Address How do I contact AARP? Where is my membership card? How do I get a digital card?
Red Membership Card

AARP MEMBERSHIP

AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal

Get instant access to members-only products, hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. 

 

120x30-AARP-logo-red
Join
Renew
Enroll
Rejoin

AARP en Español

Join
Renew
Enroll
Rejoin
Leaving AARP.org Website

You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply.

Continue Cancel

5 Ice Cream Road Trips

Here’s the scoop on trails worth traveling  

a couple sharing ice cream
Ice cream trails across the country support local dairy farms and serve variations of everyone’s favorite frozen treat.​
Getty Images
By

Elaine Glusac,

 
AARP
Published July 14, 2023

As road trip inspiration, food trails celebrate regional strengths in everything from barbecue (North Carolina) to fermented foods (Pennsylvania). But we all scream for ice cream trails that champion our love of sweet, frozen treats from farm-based dairies and boutique innovators. 

​“Ice cream is truly a blank canvas for creativity,” says Maya Warren, an ice cream scientist and developer. “It brings so much happiness.”​

Get your licks on the following worth-the-drive ice cream trails across the country.

left a hand holding a cone of jenis frose ice cream right examples of jenis dairy free ice creams
Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams has numerous scoop shops around Ohio. ​
Jeni's

Ohio Ice Cream Trail

Ohio has more than 1,400 dairy farms across the state, according to the Ohio Department of Development. The official Ohio Ice Cream Trail consists of 20 creameries in cities such as Cleveland, home to Mitchell’s Homemade Ice Cream where you can watch the batches being made in the open kitchen, and towns such as Yellow Springs, home to Young’s Jersey Dairy offering nostalgic cones, mini golf and milking demos.

What to order: Established in 1870, Graeter’s Ice Cream in Cincinnati is famous for its black raspberry chocolate chip. There are also locations in Oxford, Dayton, Cleveland and Columbus. 

Where to stay: In Columbus, stay in a former 1917 Italianate home at 50 Lincoln Short North Bed and Breakfast within a half-mile of Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams’ original North Market location.

left an image of a baby cow right a man eating ice cream
An Ice Cream Trail includes more than 40 creameries throughout Pennsylvania.​
PA Tourism and the Department of Agriculture

​Scooped: An Ice Cream Trail, Pennsylvania

More than 40 creamery locations pepper the Pennsylvania ice cream trail. From soft serve ice cream nachos at Widnoon Soft Serve in Templeton to scoops of Alumni Swirl at the Berkey Creamery on the Penn State campus, check the website for the trail map to learn about all the options across the state. 

What to order: In Lancaster County in southeastern Pennsylvania, visit six stops within an hour’s drive, including Lapp Valley Farm, where the Jersey cows deliver protein- and calcium-rich milk made into 16 flavors, and Fox Meadows Creamery where you can enjoy a scoop of honeyed lavender amid fields of crops raised to feed the cows.

Where to stay: Stick with the agrarian theme in Lancaster County and book a room at Beacon Hollow Farm Amish Guest House, a working farm. 

rocky road ice cream by the beach
New flavors mix with timeless favorites in sweet shops along the Tri-Valley Ice Cream Trail in California. ​
Getty Images

​Tri-Valley Ice Cream Trail, California

About 35 miles east of San Francisco, the Tri-Valley area — made up of the Amador, San Ramon and Livermore valleys — demonstrates its culinary prowess with caffeine and beer routes in addition to an ice cream trail with about 13 sweet stops. 

What to order: Crowd favorite Meadowlark Dairy in Pleasanton dispenses towering soft serve cones in flavors such as cookie butter.

Where to stay: Book a room in view of the area’s vineyards and olive orchards at the Purple Orchid Wine Country Resort & Spa. 

the wind chill factory in ticonderoga new york
​The Wind-Chill Factory in Ticonderoga, New York, offers soft serve ice cream among other treats.​
The Wind-Chill Factory

​Adirondack Ice Cream Trail, New York

The beauty of the Adirondack Ice Cream Trail, aside from the mountain views, is that it is helpfully divided into three routes — nine shops in the north, six in the south and six in the east — for easy navigation.

What to order: In the east around Lake Champlain, order a chocolate-vanilla soft serve twist from the Wind-Chill Factory in Ticonderoga, 2023 winner of best ice cream in the Adirondacks.

Where to stay: A little more than a mile from Licks and Cones ice cream cart in Schroon Lake, also in the east, check into the new Lodge at Schroon Lake for fun activities such as pickleball and paddleboarding.  

a girl serving ice cream at maiden maryland
Visitors can sample ice cream at nine different creameries along Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail.​
Courtesy of Maryland Office of Tourism

​Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail

Nine cow-to-cone creameries populate Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail in a state that claims to have served the first ice cream in the colonies, according to the Maryland Office of Tourism. If you guessed it was strawberry ice cream in 1744 by Gov. Thomas Bladen, then you deserve a double scoop. 

What to order: Enjoy a scoop of chocolate peanut butter or caramel pretzel at Prigel Family Creamery in Glen Arm while browsing its cheeses. Dipping more than 80 flavors, Rocky Point Creamery in Tuscarora sources its milk from an 1883-vintage farm. 

Where to stay: Stage your pilgrimage from Gramercy Mansion Bed & Breakfast in Stevenson on the grounds of the state’s oldest organic herb farm.

Elaine Glusac is a freelance writer in Chicago who regularly contributes to AARP.org and writes the Frugal Traveler column for The New York Times.

Unlock Access to AARP Members Edition

Join AARP to Continue

Already a Member?

AARP Travel Center

Or Call: 1-800-675-4318

Enter a valid departing date

Enter a valid returning date

Age of children:

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

Enter a valid departing date

Age of children:

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

Enter a valid departing date

Age of children:

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

Flight 2

Enter a valid departing date

Flight 3

Enter a valid departing date

Flight 4

Enter a valid departing date

Flight 5

Enter a valid departing date

+ Add Another Flight

Enter a valid checking in date

Enter a valid checking out date

Occupants of Room 1:

Occupants of Room 2:

Occupants of Room 3:

Occupants of Room 4:

Occupants of Room 5:

Occupants of Room 6:

Occupants of Room 7:

Occupants of Room 8:

Enter a valid departing date

Enter a valid returning date

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 1:

There are children in room 1 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age for room 1

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 2:

There are children in room 2 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 2

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 3:

There are children in room 3 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 3

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 4:

There are children in room 4 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 4

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 5:

There are children in room 5 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 5

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

You have more than 6 people total

Please select a trip duration less than 28 days

There must be at least 1 traveler (age 12+) for each infant in a lap

Enter a valid start date

Please select a Pick Up Time from the list

Enter a valid drop off date

Please select Drop Off Time from the list

Select a valid to location

Select a month

Enter a valid from date

Enter a valid to date

Benefits Recommended For You

See All