Skip the major retailers and find something truly unique during your next shopping trip to Happy Valley. Whether you want a taste of the region’s agriculture and local food products, the best gear for your next outdoor adventure (and Happy Valley certainly has lots of outdoor adventure to offer!) or a perfect gift for your favorite person, you’ll find it at one of these six spots.
Many of us dream of wandering in the kind of charming, provincial communities we see on holiday cards at this time of year, but one needn’t travel overseas to London, Brussels, or Paris to make that vision a reality. While the “wilds” aspect of the PA Wilds gets much of the focus in our modern tourism industries, the storied towns that comprise the PA Wilds are just as worthy of a visit, offering guests the chance to unplug, reset and experience the holidays in places that welcome strangers and foster a genuine sense of community during the time of year that we crave it most.
For Fritz Smith, president and CEO of The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, the love for hospitality started at a very early age, in a place fueled by tourism.
“I grew up in Washington, D.C., a place where the two major industries were government and tourism,” he said. “You saw thousands of people visiting the Washington Monument and going in and out of the Smithsonian Museum buildings almost year-round. Something inside me said, “I bet those people are spending a whole lot of money while they are here!”