Buffalo, New York

BUFFALO, NEW YORK ITINERARY AT A GLANCE

While Buffalo may be known as the City of Trees due to its high number of parks—designed by the celebrated landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, no less—New York state’s second-largest city is also home to beautiful architecture, incredible art and historical sites. (It’s no slouch, either, in the dining department, but we’ll save that for another article.) From a recently reopened art museum to a complex featuring one of the most important projects from Frank Lloyd Wright, Buffalo gives that other New York city a run for its money. Bonus: Buffalo is just a 30-minute drive to one of the most magical natural wonders of the world, Niagara Falls.

Colored Musicians Club-Credit Onion Studio

Enjoy These Great Buffalo Attractions and More:

Buffalo Double Decker Bus Tour
Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site,
Buffalo AKG Art Museum
Buffalo River History Tour
and more

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Enjoy a Buffalo river history tour

BUFFALO, NEW YORK DAY-TO-DAY ITINERARY

DAY 1: SEE BUFFALO ON A DOUBLE DECKER BUS TOUR

After getting settled into your hotel, get a lay of the land with a Buffalo Double Decker Bus Tour. The Best of Buffalo tour starts with a 40-minute walking tour of the Naval and Military Park led by an Irish cop from the 1800s (wink, wink), who brings to life all the hidden stories of the Queen City. Afterwards, sit back and relax on the bus with your front-row seat to amazing downtown architecture, Millionaire’s Row mansions, the city’s hippest hoods and more.

Not far away in downtown Buffalo is the Theodore Roosevelt Inaugural National Historic Site, the spot where Theodore Roosevelt was inaugurated as the 26th President of the United States. Here, visitors experience for themselves what that monumental day was like with the aid of historically restored rooms and interactive exhibits. Additionally, the TR Site is home to an extensive collection of artifacts and documents that offer further insights into Roosevelt’s presidency as well as the assassination of President McKinley, which happened on the grounds of an international fair being held in Buffalo. The inaugural site is open year-round, seven days a week. Note: A guided tour is needed to visit the historic home.

Canalside

DAY 2: EXPLORE THE MASSIVE BUFFALO AKG ART MUSEUM

Formerly known as the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, the newly reopened Buffalo AKG Art Museum has been dramatically transformed with more than 50,000 square feet of state-of-the-art exhibition space. Inspired by a desire to expand its accessibility and offer deeper local and global engagement, the revitalized museum features a 6,000-square-foot community gathering space highlighted by Common Sky, a beautiful new sculpture that covers the former outdoor sculpture garden. New too is Creative Commons, a multigenerational learning and play space featuring a LEGO build station.

Longtime fans of the museum will be pleased to see old favorites, such as from Giacomo Balla’s Dynamism of a Dog on a Leash and Paul Gauguin’s The Yellow Christ, still on display. And when those inevitable hunger pangs arrive, the museum’s new restaurant Cornelia is happy to help. Stretch your legs post-lunch with a walk around the stunning new public green space.

Located in an area of Buffalo known as the Parkside East Historic District, which was designed by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, the Darwin D. Martin House Complex features buildings from another well-known name, Frank Lloyd Wright. Comparable with other designs from Wright’s celebrated Prairie School, a visit here should be on every architecture-lover’s must-see list. Built for Buffalo business executive Darwin D. Martin and his family, the house features everything Wright was known for and is considered a masterpiece of 20th century architecture. Even Wright himself referred to the Martin House as “the opus.”

Completed in 1907, the project’s 394 stained glass windows are particularly noteworthy and include some 15 distinctive patterns, more than any other Wright Prairie house. The Martin House is also distinguished from other Wright Prairie-style houses by its large size and open floor plan. In addition to the other buildings, the complex includes beautiful outdoor areas, such as the open-air pergola, which connects the other residences to the conservatory. There are a variety of group tours available—from an evening behind-the-scenes to a landscape tour.

Keep the Wright love going with a visit to Graycliff, the summer estate of the Martin family overlooking Lake Erie in Derby, a short drive away. Dubbed “the Jewel on the Lake,” the 8.5-acre estate features Wright’s signature cantilevered balconies, ribbon windows and expansive terraces. Fully restored to its grandeur, Graycliff is open for guided tours year-round.

DAY 3: LEARN ABOUT THIS HISTORIC CITY ON THE BUFFALO RIVER HISTORY TOUR

After all the previous day’s walking, give your legs a rest with a Buffalo River History Tour. On the 90-minute boat tour, visitors will learn the story of the Erie Canal and Buffalo’s history as the largest grain port in the world. As you drift along, view the stunning structures that led to the area’s growth as well as hear about Buffalo’s ‘scoopers,’ those who worked the docks and nearby mills.

Duly rested, head to Canalside, which is at the heart of waterfront revitalization of downtown Buffalo. Here you’ll find a variety of activities, ranging from bike rentals and paddleboats in the canals to a boardwalk and a lovely food and beer garden. For the more adventurous, there’s a roller rink, which morphs into an ice rink in the winter. Or what about a spin on the newly restored Buffalo Heritage Carousel, also located along the boardwalk? The vintage, park-style, menagerie carousel is solar-powered and celebrates the history of carousel manufacturing in western New York.

Finish your Buffalo adventure with a visit to the Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor, an internationally neighborhood that serves as the focal point for learning about Buffalo’s rich African American history through its vibrant neighborhoods, shops, restaurants and historical markers. Along with a number of seasonal festivals and cultural events, tours of various noteworthy Michigan Street spots, such as the Historic Colored Musicians Club & Jazz Museum and the Michigan Street Baptist Church, are available by appointment.

For more itineraries, see our Group Itinerary Ideas

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