Get away for less this season Visit Coshocton County – home of the horse-drawn canal boat ride
By Jan Myers
If you’re looking for inexpensive ways to get away, shop and relax this season, then Coshocton County is a great place to start. Coshocton is centrally located near the heart of Amish Country and next door to the home of Longaberger Baskets. Guests often comment on how warm and friendly the people are here and how much they appreciate the feeling of safety in our quaint community.
You can create your own affordable getaway package right on their website at www.visitcoshocton.com. You’ll find comfortable lodging including their premier site – the Coshocton Village Inn & Suites, the Roscoe Hillside Cabins, Super 8, Roscoe Motor Inn and numerous other guest houses, inns and lodges. For family fun, a great girls’ getaway, multigenerational travel or a romantic weekend away, create your own package deal in Coshocton.
Here are just a few of Coshocton’s highlights
• Monticello III horse-drawn canal boat ride
• Historic Roscoe Village
• Unusual Junction
• Raven’s Glenn Winery and four other wineries
• Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum
Historic Roscoe Village is a restored 1830s canal town offering first-person tours of the historic buildings and lively shopping and dining experiences for visitors. Admission to the village is free and the Canal Town Journey tour tickets are: adults $9.95; students $4.95. Tours are offered daily Tuesday-Sunday through October and on weekends in November and December. Shopping and dining in Roscoe Village is a real treat seven days a week. For shopping and dining information, visit www.roscoevillage.com.
When you visit Coshocton, a ride on the Monticello III horse-drawn canal boat is a must. You’ll get a feel of what life was really like in the early 1800s. Kids will love meeting Fred and Rock, the huge draft horses that pull the canal boat. Tickets are $7 for adults; $5 for students; ages four and under free. Hours: Memorial Day through Labor Day: Tuesday–Thursday 1– 3 p.m., Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, 1–5 p.m. Closed Mondays. The boat departs on the hour. www.coshoctonlakepark.com
Enjoy a wine and cheese tour of the area by visiting our soon-to-be five wineries—Raven’s Glenn Winery, Heritage Vineyard Winery, Rainbow Hills Vineyard and Shawnee Springs Winery, and opening this season is Yellow Butterfly Winery. Don’t forget the cheese. Stop in at Pearl Valley Cheese, makers of award-winning cheese.
Right across the highway from Raven’s Glenn Winery is Unusual Junction, a unique shopping and dining complex housed in a restored 1895 railroad depot and several train cars. The station contains the Lava Rock Grill restaurant and a gourmet food market. You’ll also find Bob Barker’s ‘Price Is Right’ sign hanging in the restaurant. The Freight House Building is where you’ll find Universe - Ohio’s Premier Bridal Salon with hundreds of designer wedding gowns, prom dresses, wedding apparel and accessories. Admission is free. Visit www.theunusualjunction.com.
The Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum is accredited by the American Association of Museums. The museum is located in Roscoe Village and houses permanent exhibits of American Indian, historic Ohio, Euro–American decorative arts and Asian arts. Several of the Chinese pieces are so rare that the Chinese government would like to see them back in China. They are also home to the controversial Newark Holy Stones. They were uncovered in the 1860s in the Newark Earthworks, part of the Hopewell Indian culture. But the inscriptions are in Hebrew and one of the stones even bears the image of Moses. Many speculate that this mystery could change history as we know it. Admission is nominal. www.jhmuseum.com
Find more information on lodging, dining and experiencing in Coshocton County by logging on to www.visitcoshocton.com or call 800-338-4724.
Coshocton County also has several events and festivals throughout the year that are perfect for an inexpensive getaway.
