Review of Chautauqua Institution, Chautauqua, NY

 

Lake Chautauqua, NY

My wife and I (and our Pomeranian Toby) had been staying in the town of Ellicottville in western New York for the month of June.  We came upon the Chautauqua Institution from the many marketing brochures/visitor guides we had picked up from one of many New York State rest areas.

At first glance, we didn’t know what to make of Chautauqua Institution.  It looked to us like a part college, part resort, part lakeside destination, and part concert venue.  We were right on all fronts!

Chautauqua Institution is nestled in a dramatic lakeside setting and it’s registered as a National Historic Landmark.  During the summer months (late June through late August), the institute comes alive with lectures/seminars/concerts on art, music, theater, religion, recreation, lectures, and top entertainment.

Chautauqua Institution is known for its Victorian architecture throughout the village.  In many ways, the village feels like a college campus, with its many buildings for different disciplines and students/faculty roaming around it.

The uniqueness of the place is what drew us in.  It was unlike many places we had visited in the past, and we had to see it!

Our pack left around 8:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning hoping to arrive there before 10 a.m.  I had read online that the institute doesn’t charge any admission or parking fees on Sunday mornings from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Just to make sure and to make a pit stop, we stopped at the visitor center/ticket booth to inquire about this policy.  It was a moot point.  After waiting to speak to someone at the visitor center for about 20 minutes, I found out the institute wasn’t open until the following week.  Therefore, there was no need for admission or parking fees!

We drove in through the main gate and headed to the north end of the institute to get a better view of the Lake Chautauqua.  Even though the day was hot and humid, the views were beautiful!

Toby wondering where he is
Lake Chautauqua view

We walked toward the Miller Bell Tower and the Palestine Park.  Toby was excited to see a park finally!  

We arrived to take in the beautiful surroundings, with its well maintained Victorian homes, manicured gardens, and the families taking strolls along the park.

We headed for the beach area at the park simply enjoying the natural beauty of the lake and being lulled into sleep by the slow, rhythmic slapping of the waves…

Palestine Park
Miller Bell Tower

We let Toby sniff and explore the park for few minutes, then decided to get in our car to see the village by car.  We decided to just get lost and drive around to the farthest ends of the village limits.  The entire village isn’t very big.  The institute/village is slightly over 3 square miles.  It’s best explored by biking (a popular hobby) or by walking.

Once we drove around the entire area by car, we then decided to to make our stop at a cute little park in the center of the town called Ryan Kiblin Memorial Stormwater Park.  

This park has nice walkways with beautiful seasonal flowers and plants.  We all stopped for few minutes to enjoy the short walk inside the park admiring the vibrant colors of various flowers.

Toby enjoying his walk
Beautiful little park!

After spending some time at the park, we got in our car to get to the center of the institute, Bestor Plaza.

Bestor Plaza is a beautiful plaza surrounded by impressive buildings, visitor center, restaurants/cafes, and stores.  We saw people sitting on the lawn at the plaza having a picnic, and we saw people walking around.  We slowly walked around ourselves, checking each of the stores and restaurants/cafes at our own pace.

While walking around the stores, we met a nice lady who worked at the art gallery.  She had been born and raised in Chautauqua area, and she shared her story of living there.  She mentioned the cost of living, especially the taxes, were on the high side.  She commented how busy the institute gets during the peak summer months when classes/lectures start.

We must’ve spent about 20 minutes just chatting away, after which we decided to grab something to eat.  We had been eyeing a cafe restaurant at the plaza called The Brickwalk Cafe and we checked out the menu.  We decided to order a veggie burger and a shrimp platter.  

We ate while people watching and plenty of dog watching!

Had lunch here!
Bestor Plaza

After finishing our lunches, we drove over to the famous hotel at the Chautauqua Institute, the Atheneum Hotel, which was built around 1880’s.  The gallery lady mentioned this as her favorite place to eat a nice meal overlooking the lake.  We stopped by to check out the hotel, which would be our last spot of our visit.

Beautiful hotel!

The day had been getting real hot and humid by the time we were finished with our last destination, so we decided to head home to our temporary home in Ellicottville.

On our way back, we talked about our day and the wonderful sights we had seen.  We were glad to have seen something as unique as the Chautauqua Institution.  

Thank you all for reading!

Jake

Wandering Money Pig 


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