Sometimes in between our big adventures, my family starts to get restless. We just love to travel so much that it’s hard to wait. Enter: Day trips! These quick little adventures are just the thing to keep us from going nuts. We still get to explore a new place, meet new people, and sample yummy food. And then we’re home in time for dinner! Since our family had a day off from work and school, we decided to take a quick day trip to Berlin, Ohio.
Berlin is a darling little Amish town. It’s about 2 hours away from Columbus – which means it’s the perfect distance to fit in one day OR just far enough that you can talk yourself into getting a hotel for the night. All the places we explored were kid-friendly, but would also be fun on an adults-only trip.
Day Trip to Berlin, Ohio – What We Did
Our first stop was at The Farm at Walnut Creek. There is so much to do and see at The Farm. We brought along grandparents and our 4 year old and everyone had a great time.
There are two large Amish-style Farm houses to explore. It was really interesting to chat with the Amish families who were there. My little one got to help churn butter, watch them make delicious Amish bread, and even sample some just-out-of-the-oven chocolate chip cookies!
It was a beautiful day and there was fresh laundry hanging out to dry.
It was neat to learn about canning food, gardening, and quilting. We are 100% city folk, so even peeking into the barns and checking out the machinery was endlessly fascinating. They also have a blacksmith shop, produce stand, gift barn, and playground to explore.
But the highlight of our day trip to Berlin, Ohio was the amazing wagon ride! We rode in an open air wagon pulled by two horses named Kendra and Ricky, and spent about an hour hand-feeding animals.
Before we started, they told us that the 4-legged animals were gentle and nice to feed out of the palm of your hand, and the 2-legged animals were best fed out of the bucket.
The elk were so friendly – and HUNGRY!
By the end of the wagon ride, there was another cute little animal that needed to be fed so we decided to head into downtown Berlin in search of a good meal.
Day Trip to Berlin, Ohio – What We Ate
We stopped for lunch at a lovely little Amish restaurant, called Boyd and Wurthman. We stopped for a late lunch and at 2pm, there was still a line out the door. It seemed like it was moving fast, so we hopped in line.
The restaurant serves classic Amish dishes at affordable prices. The bread that they brought out as soon as we sat down was soft, warm, and addicting. They had a delicious peanut butter spread on the table, and it reminded me of peanut butter frosting. It was delicious.
We all enjoyed our meals and were sad that we didn’t have any room left to try their famous coffee (at a spectacular price of 75 cents!) or a slice of pie. They had 16 different pies to choose from, so it was really poor planning on our part. I will say that the meals are incredibly generous and you will leave STUFFED. I can’t wait to go back and this time I might split a meal so I can sample the pie!
After our meal, we spent some time perusing all the cute little shops in the downtown area. My mom loved the Helping Hands Quilt Shop, and couldn’t help from buying one. It was a work of art!
We spent a few hours browsing the shops and speaking with the shop owners…and by this time we were in the need of a little break. We ducked into the Main Street Fudge shop. This is a cute little fudge, gourmet popcorn, and ice-cream shop. They also had lots of local goods for sale. Perfect spot to take a little break.
We loved the Stewart Sodas, and our little one LOVED her “Superman” flavored ice-cream.
After our snack, it was time to return to Columbus. Our little day trip to Berlin, Ohio was just what we needed. If you’d like to make a weekend out of it, you can also visit nearby Sugarcreek.
Have you been on any day trips lately? Where do you like to visit?
I’ve only done a very limited amount of travel in Ohio. It looks like Berlin would be a fun stop!
Awww, fuzzy cows and fudge – you can’t go wrong! Sounds like an amazing escape from the ordinary 🙂
I do day trips all the time! It ‘s what keeps me sane when I can only go on big trips once a year or so. I loved reading your post because I’ve always been fascinated with all things Amish. Loved the quilts, the homecooking, and the horsecart ride you took!!!
They are so much fun!
That seems like a pretty cool trip. That peanut butter looks delicious, the foodie in me got excited when I saw that photo!
This looked like such a fun day trip. I must admit now I would love to try that Superman Ice Cream, too 🙂
What an awesome day you had, the Amish farm is a great place to visit. Love the laundry on the clothesline lol.
It’s always fun to peek into the Amish way of life…and buy their produce!
This looks like such a lovely place to visit! I’ve never visited Amish Country, but I’ve wanted to for a long time!
I love taking day trips, too. They do quench that thirst for travel. I bet my mom would have liked that quilt shop, too.
I’m in Utah and have only been to Ohio a couple of times. But this visit looks fun. I’d love the homemade bread with the peanut-butter spread. Divine!
Day trips are one of my favorite family activities! It looks like you guys had a great time 🙂
That sounds fabulous. I need a day away! I’m fascinated with the Amish culture and would love to visit one of these days.
I might be one of the only people on the planet that have not ever visited an Amish community. I would love to visit. That peanut butter spread but most of all….those precious cows!! How darling!
Sounds like a great place to day trip. I love seeing farm animals and I miss Amish bread. It is the best!
I have a lot of day trips on my list but always have a hard time carving out en entire day to do them! Cute little town you visited and I always love Amish food.
We have been to the Farm at Walnut Creek and we LOVE it!
it’s such a fun day trip!