Ellicottville is a charming, small town in Western NY. Nestled in the mountains, which make up Holiday Valley Ski Resort, this special town is a perfect escape from the city.
The streets are lined with boutique shops, swanky restaurants, and fun breweries. The town itself is surrounded by beautiful nature views, including gorgeous parks and hiking trails. And then of course as I already mentioned, there’s Holiday Valley- a wintertime wonderland for skiers and snowboarders alike, or just anyone who enjoys a little mountain retreat.
Holiday Valley is located just minutes from the “downtown” of Ellicottville and it’s the perfect place to stay for an Ellicottville getaway.
I recently had the pleasure of doing an overnight stay at Holiday Valley. During my time there, I got to thoroughly enjoy the resort, as well as the town of Ellicottville. If you’re looking to plan your own short getaway and want to make the most out of your time, here is the perfect itinerary for 24 hours in Ellicottville, New York!
Please note, this itinerary is planned specifically for the winter months. But if you’re looking to visit Ellicottville during the summer, please check out my guide here on what Ellicottville and Holiday Valley have to offer during the summertime.
11:30 am- Plan to arrive in Ellicottville
Ellicottville is an easy destination from most cities in the Western New York area within a 1 to 2-hour drive. Give yourself enough time to enjoy the scenic drive and take into account any delays caused by the weather.
If you’re visiting from Buffalo, NY expect about an hour drive by taking the I-90 W to the US-219 S. If you’re coming from Rochester, you’ll have closer to a 2-hour drive by taking the I-490 W to the US-219 S.
11:45 am- Brunch at West Rose
If you happen to be visiting on a Sunday, start your day off with brunch at West Rose. I would recommend making a reservation ahead of time, which you can do right on their website, here.
West Rose is an eclectic dining space, offering an inspired menu of fresh, seasonal ingredients. The ambiance of the restaurant is warm and comforting. You can tell that every detail and corner of the place is extremely well thought out. This is obvious from the beautiful light fixtures and stunning color scheme to the rose and gold speckled marble tabletops.
The brunch menu is fairly simple, but there isn’t a bad choice on there. We each got a local pork sausage breakfast sandwich on a fresh biscuit with chili aioli, cheddar, and a farm egg and then split an order of the crispy patatas bravas with aioli, scallion, and sea salt. This was also accompanied by a refreshing mimosa. Needless to say, everything was exceptional.
Unfortunately, if you don’t happen to be visiting on a Sunday, West Rose will not be open for brunch. But thankfully Ellicottville has some other wonderful breakfast/ brunch options including Dina’s, The Gin Mill, and Katy’s Cafe.
1 pm- Try Out a Fun Winter Sport
After a satisfying meal, it’s time to make your way to Holiday Valley to enjoy a fun winter activity. Holiday Valley offers it all from skiing, snowboarding, tubing, and snowshoeing!
I went on this getaway with my cousin and both of us grew up skiing. We decided to try something that neither of us had done before that wouldn’t take up the entire day since we had other things to check off our list. This gave us the idea of giving snowshoeing a try. If you’ve never tried it before and you’re looking for an affordable activity that won’t take up the entire day, I’d highly recommend it.
Upon entering Holiday Valley resort, the first lodge you’ll encounter is Holiday Valley Lodge. Here, you’ll be able to find parking. Then you’ll make your way to the High-Performance Shop, which is located at the front of the lodge facing the slopes. Someone will be able to assist you with any rentals you would like for the day.
To rent snowshoes for the day you’ll have to fill out a simple form and pay a $20 rental fee. This gives you 8 hours. I’d highly suggest taking poles, which they’ll offer you at no additional cost. Snowshoers are allowed anywhere that there’s snow, as long as you stay out of the way of skiers and snowboarders.
We made our way along the golf course- which you can’t really tell is a golf course, as it’s covered in snow- but is easy enough to navigate with a map offered by the High Performace Shop. This is a great way to spend an hour or two, taking in the scenery and enjoying a leisurely winter activity, that can also end up being a bit of a workout!
3 pm- Get a Swedish Massage at Ellicottville Salt Cave Halotherapy Spa
After spending some time out in the snow, can you think of a better way to warm up and relax than with a rejuvenating Swedish massage? Just a minute down the road from Holliday Valley you’ll find Ellicottville Salt Cave Halotherapy Spa. This is the only Salt Cave in the area!
For those of you who aren’t familiar, salt therapy is an all-natural way to treat a variety of modern ailments including congestion, allergies, and colds. This salt cave is made up of over 20 tons of Himalayan salt and created as an authentic European-style salt cave. What a unique and therapeutic experience! We, however, decided to go for the Swedish massage.
Upon entering the spa, you’ll be immediately transported into a calming atmosphere, with soft music, lovely fragrances, and an array of body lotions, scrubs, and stones for you to look through or purchase while waiting to be called for your appointment.
The massage suites have an incredible atmosphere all of their own. The dimly lit rooms have a comforting fireplace and feelings of coziness and relaxation. As I mentioned, we choose the Swedish massage for 45-mins. However, they do offer intervals of 60 and 90 minutes as well. Let’s just say, it was so wonderful I wish I would have splurged on the 90-minutes! I found their prices to be very reasonable- the 45-minute massage being $65 and definitely worth every penny!
I would highly recommend making your reservation well in advance-they can book out at least a full week ahead of time. Check out their website here for all of their services, prices, and reservation options.
4 pm- Check Into Your Accommodation at The Tamarack Club
By this time you’ll surely be ready to check into the accommodation where you’ll be spending the night! I couldn’t recommend more staying at The Tamarack Club hosted by Ellicottville Escape vacation rental. You’ll have an option to stay in either a studio, one or two-bedroom condominium.
The Tamarack Club is the very first lodge upon entering the resort and when you stay with Ellicottville Escape you’ll have access to the parking garage right on-site or the valet parking option. You can get assisted with checking in at the front desk, where they can answer any questions for you and direct you to your condo.
We were very impressed by the beautiful one-bedroom condo. Upon entering, you’ll find a full kitchen to the left, with a fridge, oven, and microwave. The living room is very spacious, yet cozy, with a working fireplace, dining room table, and comfortable seating area. After touring our queen-size bedroom with a flat-screen TV and gigantic bathtub right in the bedroom, we headed out to the incredible balcony, which looks right out onto the resort and ski slopes. It’s the perfect view to wake up to in the morning or watch the sunset at night.
For more information on renting a beautfiul condo through Ellicottville Escape, check out the link here.
5:30 pm- Dinner at Ellicottville Brewing Co.
After getting to unwind and/or explore The Tamarack Club, it’s time for dinner! Head on over to Ellicottville Brewing Co. which is located right in town, just a few minutes from the resort. EBC is a brewhouse, 8,000 sq. ft restaurant, and German beer garden. They have an incredible menu with a little something for everyone and an exceptional beer list!
I highly recommend starting out with a beer flight- you’ll be able to choose any six of the beers on their list to sample. The samples are very generous and one flight can easily be split between two people.
We decided to have a traditional German meal for dinner and we loved each of our choices. For appetizers, we chose Bavarian soft pretzels which came with their signature beer cheese, and their locally sourced potato pierogies sauteed in brown butter and served with peppers, onions, creme fraiche, and bacon. For our main course, we shared the pork schnitzel, which truly is the largest schnitzel around! It was absolutely incredible and garnished with candied maple bacon and fennel slaw.
Don’t forget to save a little room for dessert- the chocolate chip cookie skillet with vanilla ice cream is out of this world!
7 pm- Unwind By The Fire Pit
After dinner, the night is yours to relax and enjoy! I suggest making use of the cozy fire pit right outside of The Tamarack Club or enjoying the fireplace in your own condo! Another way I recommend spending your evening is with a hot bath and a glass of wine.
9 am- Go For A Morning Dip
After a cozy evening in and a wonderful night’s sleep, plan to start your morning at the outdoor heated pool and jacuzzi. The heated pool opens at 8 am and is usually pretty quiet first thing in the morning, so this is a great time to go and have it to yourself. You can gain entree to the pool by going to the second floor and using your room card to get in.
The best thing about this outdoor pool is that it starts indoors! There’s an indoor heated section where you can leave your belongings and enter the pool. That way you can avoid the cold temperatures during the winter months. There are two jacuzzis right next to the pool both heated to different temperatures. Go for a morning dip and start your day off in a calm, relaxing way.
10 am- Check Out of your Accommodation
After getting ready for the day and gathering your belongings, it’s time to check out of The Tamarack Club. The checkout process is very simple at the front desk. If you have a little time before leaving Holiday Valley, enjoy the lounge area and relax by the fireplace.
10:30 am- Have Breakfast at Dina’s
After departing the resort, head to town for breakfast. Just a couple of minutes’ drive will bring you Dina’s, a fine dining restaurant that serves breakfast every day. Dina’s has a great ambiance and an even better breakfast menu. We sat at a comfortable table right in the window, where we could people watch while enjoying our morning chai lattes. We shared the two eggs plus dish which comes with eggs your way, choice of meat, home fries, and delicious homemade toast. But that’s not all! We also ordered the large Belgian waffle served with raspberry sauce, powdered sugar, fresh berries, and whipped cream. It did not disappoint. We also really enjoyed the homemade cookies we got to go, for the road!
If you’re not pressed for time, after breakfast stroll around Ellicottville and stop in some of the cute shops and boutiques.
12 pm- Hit The Road
By this point, you will have experienced 24 incredible hours in Ellicottville, NY and it will be time to hit the road!
I hope you found this itinerary helpful and full of ideas for spending time in Ellicottville during the wintertime. Please feel free to leave any comments or questions below. Thank you for reading and happy travels!
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