Start from 28 curated places around State College, PA, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
Allen Street Grill
The best restaurant on College Avenue and one of the most reliable in Centre County — impeccable service, a well-curated wine list, and a menu of carefully executed American dishes that has earned a multi-decade reputation with both the Penn State faculty community and visiting alumni.
The Tavern Restaurant
A State College institution since 1948 — a dark-paneled American steakhouse with leather booths, a clubby atmosphere, and a menu anchored by prime cuts and classic preparations. The Penn State coaching staff and alumni visitors have been coming here for generations.
Trails & outdoors
Mount Nittany Overlook Trail
The signature hike from State College — a 3.5-mile round trip to the Mount Nittany ridgeline with seven named overlooks and panoramic views of Beaver Stadium, Old Main, and the surrounding valley. A Penn State cultural experience as much as a trail.
Black Moshannon State Park Trails
A 3,480-acre boreal bog ecosystem park 13 miles east of State College — rare in Pennsylvania for its sphagnum moss bogs, carnivorous plants, and the tea-colored Black Moshannon Lake. The lake trail and bog boardwalk loop together for a memorable 5-mile circuit.
Things to do
Beaver Stadium Tour
The second-largest stadium in the world, seating 106,572, can be toured on non-game days — the scale is genuinely staggering from field level, and the press boxes and VIP areas available on tours give a sense of the operation behind a Penn State football Saturday.
Penn State Creamery
The student-run dairy on campus that's been making ice cream, cheese, and dairy products since 1896 — the ice cream flavors like Peachy Paterno and WPSU Coffee Break have their own Penn State mythology and are made from milk produced by the university's own herd.
Landmarks & sights
Mount Nittany
The ridge looming behind campus that defines the Happy Valley skyline — 8 miles of maintained trails with 7 named overlooks giving panoramic views of Beaver Stadium, the Penn State campus, and the Nittany Valley below. The mountain's spiritual significance to Penn State culture makes it feel different from a standard day hike.
Penn State Campus
One of America's great college campuses — a rolling 5,000 acres of Georgian-revival buildings, the largest research library in the world, the Arboretum, and Beaver Stadium, the second-largest stadium in the world. The campus is walkable and genuinely beautiful across all four seasons.