Lydia Pert

We have absolutely fallen in love with the entire state of Ohio, and one of our favorite places of all time here is Hocking Hills State Park. Historically, I have not been a big hiker, camper, or outdoorsy person in general. But Hocking Hills changed that for me.

We have visited Hocking Hills more times than I can count, and I feel like we have done “almost” everything there is to do. I feel pretty confident providing recommendations since we have experienced so much. I hope if you ever find yourself in Ohio, you’ll spend some time in Hocking Hills and check out some of the truly cool things we have found!

Best Times to Visit:

• Fall. The first time we ever went to Hocking Hills was for my 30th birthday, and it was just perfect. The temperatures were still nice enough for us to be comfortable spending a lot of time outside, and the fall foliage was just beginning to turn so we had some really awesome views.
• Spring. We also love getting to Hocking Hills in the spring — and I recommend it especially if you live somewhere where you end up cooped up over the winter. It is so nice to be able to emerge from the winter gloom and spend a ton of time out in nature. The flowers start blooming, birds are chirping, and it feels like a shot of serotonin straight to the brain.

I will say, we also just spent the winter holidays in Hocking Hills, and had a lovely time. We had surprisingly good weather so we were able to be outside quite a bit. However, the weather in Ohio is so unpredictable, I don’t recommend it unless you live close by. You’re just as likely to get snowed or iced in as you are to have decent temperatures, so it’s a big gamble if you’re planning on traveling in for just a few days.

Best Hotels:

• Treehouses at River Ranch. This was the very first place we stayed in Hocking Hills, and it proved very hard to beat! The treehouses are all spacious, comfortable, well stocked, and very unique and fun. Each treehouse has awesome outdoor living space (and each one has a massive jacuzzi), and the ranch itself has hiking trails, life-size games, and beautiful sitting areas for large groups. Our favorite treehouse at the ranch is loaded with trap doors, secret rooms, spy windows, a huge multi-level deck with swings and slides and fire pits and an outdoor bar and kitchen and hammocks and…you get the point. It’s fully loaded. There are some other treehouse resorts in the area, and some of them might be a bit more “Instagrammable,” but I don’t think it’s worth paying 4x the price for 1/4 the amenities just for a photo.
• The Cave at Dunlap Hollow. I know, I know, I know…the Cave was alllllllll over Instagram for several weeks. It’s very basic white girl of me, and seemingly contradictory to what I said above about not spending more for the sake of Instagram photos. But in the case of the cave, you get what you pay for, AND it’s very aesthetic. The place was well done from end-to-end, and stocked with everything you need to have a perfect vacation. We have done pretty much all the trails at the state park, and the cave has its own private trails to explore which is a nice way to change things up. And it’s the perfect place to go with friends for celebrations…like masters degree celebrations and doctoral program acceptances.

Best Restaurants:

• Ale House 1890. We absolutely love this restaurant and go out of our way to eat there. It’s only open for dinners, so sometimes it requires some schedules adjustments, but it’s very worth it. They rotate the menu seasonally, so we have been able to try a lot of things across the years, and there hasn’t been a dud yet. I love their homemade charcuterie and mezze platters for appetizers, and all of their fresh seafood is delicious (and shockingly fresh for rural Ohio). Their seasonings are on point, and Dave is obsessed with their infinity bottles.
• 58 West. We tried this for the first time just recently, and it instantly rose to become a favorite restaurant. It’s more laid back than AH1890, catering more to the lunch crowd with soups and sandwiches. But the food is delicious and filling — the Colcannon Cakes are amazing for an appetizer, the beer cheese soup is aces, and the French dip is one of the best I’ve had (besides the one at Hazels in Louisiana). The drink menu was also very impressive, and Dave was downright giddy at the amount of rare offerings they had on rotation. We drag everybody to 58 West now!

Best Activities:

• Hiking. This is pretty obvious, but Hocking Hills is primarily a hiking destination. There are loads of amazing trails by lakes and through caves and behind waterfalls. I don’t think we ever had a disappointing hike there. Now, to be fair, there are a few trails we haven’t hit yet. I’m not at the stage in my life yet where I am down for a single ultra-long hike. I’d rather do a bunch of shorter hikes with breaks (specifically, meal breaks) in between.
• Train Ride. This isn’t an absolute must do, but it’s definitely a cute option. I’m a nerd about trains, so I never turn down the chance for a ride even if it’s not the most spectacular thing in the world. The Hocking Hills Scenic Railway offers standard train rides throughout the day, the specialty options throughout the year. You can hop on just to zip around a bit, or you can do a dinner theater train ride, murder mystery show, wine tasting, fall foliage, haunted halloween train, and countless others.
• Relaxing. For me, Hocking Hills is the perfect place to relax in nature and disconnect from the stress of real life. And the places we like to stay have game rooms, hot tubs, outdoor beds, etc etc. So it’s perfect to stay in a place that allows you to just put your phone away and chill out. Play some board games, read a book on the deck, take a nap in a hammock, relax in the hot tub. And it’s especially nice to veg out for a bit after you’ve hiked 10+ miles in a day!

Anything Overrated: