Rosendale

Rosendale

Once known as ‘the hippest little town you never heard of, Rosendale, NY, has for years been stealing tourists and New York City transplants from its pricier Ulster County counterparts like Stone Ridge and New Paltz. The town’s thriving underground arts and music scene, hiking trails and caves, farmers market, townwide celebrations and quirky, walkable Main Street make Rosendale one of the most popular destinations in the Hudson Valley. Crossing through the village, the town’s Main Street features: the 260-seat Rosendale Theatre, which opened as a casino in 1905 and has been showing movies (still only $5 for admission) for nearly 100 years; Belltower Lighting, a glass gallery and studio (and wedding venue) in a Gothic-style red-brick building built by the Dutch Reformed Church in the 1800s; an eclectic mix of highly-rated restaurants; a number of Bohemian art spaces and outdoor venues; a spattering of unusual shops, including one dedicated to pickles; and Victorian-era wooden houses painted in pastels, some with balconies where, during ‘freer’ times, prostitutes are said to have advertised their services. In walking distance is the infamous Widow Jane Mine, a limestone cave where subterranean parties, concerts and other events are held, as well as the recently refurbished Rosendale Community Center, with its tennis courts, pool, pavilion and playground equipment.