Things To Do in Rochester
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Rochester Attractions
Start your visit in the High Falls Historic District, the one-time mill area at the edge of the Genesee River and a 96-foot urban waterfall. The High Falls Heritage Area Visitors Center, 60 Browns Race (tel. 585/325-3020; www.centerathighfalls.org), has a small museum on the history of Rochester and some great views of the falls.
Where the Dead Outnumber the Living -- More people are buried in sprawling Victorian Mt. Hope Cemetery, Mt. Hope and Elmwood avenues (tel. 585/428-7999), than currently live in the entire city of Rochester, including a handful of its most notable citizens, such as Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony.
Especially for Kids
The outstanding Strong Museum and the 19th-century Genesee Country Village & Museum are musts for kids visiting Rochester. Also of interest is the Seneca Park Zoo, 222 St. Paul Blvd. (tel. 585/336-7200; www.senecaparkzoo.org), which has polar bears, African elephants, and Eurasian Arctic wolves. High Falls is also a good place for families. Kids will enjoy the urban waterfall and laser-light show, shown there on weekend nights in the summer; the High Falls Visitors Center also has an educational exhibit aimed at youngsters. Lake Ontario's beaches and the nearby Seabreeze Amusement Park, 4600 Culver Rd. (tel. 800/395-2500; www.seabreeze.com), open mid-June to Labor Day, are great spots in the heat of summer.
- Historic Site
George Eastman House
George Eastman, the founder of the legendary company Kodak and known as the father of popular photography, was born in upstate New York and reared in Rochester. An innovator, philanthropist, and consummate businessman, Eastman endowed the Eastman School of Music at the University of… Memorial Art Gallery
One of the country's best regional museums, the Memorial Art Gallery (MAG), part of the University of Rochester, covers the gamut from medieval to contemporary art, and occasionally hosts excellent traveling shows. Very good galleries of 17th- to 19th-century European art have…
Rochester Shopping
The biggest mall in the area is Eastview Mall, 7979 Pittsford-Victor Rd., Victor (tel. 585/223-3693), about 20 minutes south of Rochester. Craft Antique Co-op, 3200 W. Ridge Rd. (tel. 888/711-3463 or 585/368-0670), is one of the state's largest craft-and-antiques co-ops, with 210 shops. Antiques hounds will want to visit the Bloomfield Antique Country Mile corridor along routes 5 and 20 in Bloomfield, on the way to Canandaigua, where a few dozen antiques shops are located. Craft Company No. 6, 785 University Ave. (tel. 585/473-3413), which deals in all manner of contemporary American crafts, including jewelry, art glass, and home decor, occupies a Victorian firehouse 1 block from the George Eastman House. One of the best strolling and shopping areas downtown is along Park Avenue and Alexander Street, with lots of food and drink pit stops along the way. Don't forget the excellent gift shops at the Strong Museum and George Eastman House.
Rochester Nightlife
The Eastman School of Music presents more than 700 concerts a year, including jazz, classical, chamber, and opera, among others, at the Eastman Theatre and other venues in Rochester. For concert information, call tel. 585/274-1100 or visit www.rochester.edu/Eastman. The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra also plays at the Eastman Theatre. Call the box office at tel. 585/454-2100 or see the schedule at www.rpo.org. The Rochester International Jazz Festival (first 2 weeks of June), one of the city's biggest festival and music draws, features more than 50 concerts by major players at 15 venues. Contact the hotline at tel. 585/234-2002 or visit www.rochesterjazz.com.
The Geva Theatre Center, 75 Woodbury Blvd. (tel. 585/232-4382; www.gevatheatre.org), is the major venue in town for theater productions, and the most-attended regional theater in New York State.
Free laser light shows are projected in the gorge at High Falls on Friday and Saturday nights beginning at 9:30pm from Memorial Day to Labor Day; families and couples on dates hang out on the Rennes bridge that spans the river. The High Falls district is on the way up, with a number of new pubs and restaurants moving in. Expect more on the way. The East End "entertainment district", along East Avenue, is one of the best spots to hang out on weekends. The cool Art Deco Little Theatre, 240 East Ave. (tel. 585/232-3906), shows independent and foreign art-house films and often has live music in its cafe. The St. Paul Quarter, along St. Paul and Main streets, is also replete with lively bars and restaurants. Among its hot nightspots is Club Industry, 155 St. Paul St. (tel. 585/262-4570). Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, 99 Court St. (tel. 585/325-7090; www.dinosaurbarbque.com), a biker bar and lively ribs joint in the old Lehigh Valley Train Station downtown, has live blues bands on weekends and can get pretty raucous.
