Start from 32 curated places around Jim Thorpe, PA, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
Moya
Jim Thorpe's most ambitious restaurant, with a menu of elegant, ingredient-focused New American dishes in a beautifully designed dining room that feels genuinely sophisticated for a town this size. The kitchen works with European technique and local sourcing in a way that would hold its own in Allentown or Philadelphia.
Notch Eight Craft House
A craft bar and kitchen in downtown Jim Thorpe with a locally sourced rotating menu, a strong draft selection of regional craft beers, and an atmosphere that balances the town's visitor traffic with genuine neighborhood regulars. One of the more reliable spots for an everyday good meal in the downtown.
Trails & outdoors
D&L Trail — Lehigh Gorge Section
The Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor trail through Lehigh Gorge State Park follows the former Lehigh Canal and railroad grade for 26 miles of virtually flat trail along the river, with the gorge walls rising hundreds of feet on both sides and waterfalls accessible via short side trails. The most popular bike ride in Carbon County.
Glen Onoko Falls Trail
A steep, challenging 1.5-mile trail rising from the Lehigh River to three waterfalls — Chameleon Falls, Onoko Falls, and Cave Falls — in a dramatic cascade through a hemlock ravine. The trail is unmaintained and genuinely demanding, with scrambling sections and slippery rocks that require solid footwear and physical readiness.
Things to do
Whitewater Rafting on the Lehigh River
The Lehigh River through Lehigh Gorge State Park runs Class III-IV whitewater during dam releases and spring snowmelt, with several rafting outfitters operating guided trips from Jim Thorpe and White Haven. The combination of gorge scenery and moving water makes this one of the most dramatic rafting experiences in the eastern United States.
Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway
A heritage railway offering round-trip excursion rides from Jim Thorpe to White Haven through the Lehigh Gorge on vintage equipment, providing the same gorge scenery as the trail ride but from the comfort of a railcar and without physical exertion. The 26-mile round trip covers the full gorge length.
Landmarks & sights
Historic Downtown Jim Thorpe
A remarkably well-preserved Victorian mountain town that earned the 'Switzerland of America' nickname for the combination of steep hillsides, 19th-century stone and brick architecture, and a river gorge at the base of town. The entire downtown — courthouse, Opera House, Asa Packer mansion, and Millionaires' Row — has the density of preserved Gilded Age architecture that most Pennsylvania towns lost to urban renewal.
Asa Packer Mansion
The 1861 Italianate mansion of Asa Packer — coal baron, railroad builder, and Lehigh University founder — preserved in near-original condition with original wallpapers, furnishings, and family artifacts. The guided tour reveals the extraordinary degree to which Victorian wealth was expressed through domestic objects, and the view over the town from the mansion grounds is exceptional.