The Best College Towns In Upstate New York

What makes a great college town? It might have a strong late-night food scene, a high number of cool coffee shops per square mile, or a campus that looks like it stepped out of "Good Will Hunting." College towns have a unique charm, and not just for students but for visitors, too. They buzz with youthful energy, creativity, and have a surprising number of entertainment options for their size. Whether you're heading off to college or looking to do a tour of the best college towns in the country, nowhere beats Upstate New York.

The area is packed with colleges, from Ivy League Cornell in Ithaca to the prestigious Skidmore in Saratoga Springs. Many of the campuses are incredibly scenic, and the students who attend are integral to the culture of the towns that surround them. For visitors, college towns tend to offer a thriving arts scene, plenty of restaurants and bars, and pretty campuses to explore. We've taken several factors like walkability, nightlife, culture, as well as food and entertainment options into consideration to find the best college towns in Upstate New York.

Beautiful Saratoga Springs is known for its cultural scene and college-town atmosphere. It's home to Skidmore College, a liberal arts institution with a picturesque campus full of greenery, open spaces, and modern architecture, providing an ideal setting for its 2,500 undergraduates to relax. The campus also houses the renowned Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery, which features around a dozen rotating exhibitions each year, so there's always something new to experience.

The downtown area is just one mile from the Skidmore campus. It's full of coffee shops, independent stores, restaurants and bars, which range from an upmarket speakeasy to lively sports bars. Getting outdoors is easy, with two nearby state parks offering hiking and biking trails. While fall is a beautiful season in Upstate New York, Saratoga Springs is one of the top-ranked destinations to spend the holidays in America, so you may want to postpone your visit until December. 

Small but perfectly formed, Geneseo is a wonderful college town in Upstate New York. The gorgeous 220-acre campus has a classic American college look, with ivy-clad buildings and tree-lined walkways. It sits in the center of the village, where students and visitors will find cafes, bars, and restaurants, as well as a variety of stores.

Despite its modest permanent population of around 7,000, Geneseo offers a surprisingly vibrant arts and nightlife scene. There are art galleries both downtown and on campus, live music venues, and a few unique museums to visit. Bars often stay open until the early hours all nights of the week. In the Reddit r/geneseo forum, posters familiar with the place call it "a really fun town" and say they loved the vibes and community feel.

Outdoor enthusiasts have tons of choices throughout the year. The area around Geneseo has plenty of trails for hiking and biking, and when the snow falls, cross-country skiing is popular. Letchworth State Park, a short drive or cycle from campus, is easily accessible and particularly beautiful, with waterfalls, forests and even a place to swim.

For those looking for an intimate but lively college town, Oneonta is it. It's home to two colleges — Hartwick and SUNY Oneonta — which together host over 6,000 students. The hilltop Hartwick campus offers panoramic views of the area and is the starting point for the short but scenic Table Rock Loop Trail. Meanwhile, the pretty SUNY campus has wide-open spaces and is surrounded by trees on several sides while also sitting a short walk from downtown.

In fact, Oneonta is a "walker's paradise" according to Walk Score, and students and visitors won't need a car to explore. The streets of downtown are lined by red-brick buildings, which are filled with coffee shops, thrift stores, and many independent restaurants. The arts scene is thriving, and you can visit the gallery downtown or the three others on the SUNY campus. Bars in Oneonta open late into the night so students and visitors alike can enjoy the nightlife.

If you're hoping for a picture-perfect fall vacation, plan a trip to New Paltz. Set in the Hudson Valley and hosting the SUNY New Paltz campus, the town bursts into color in the fall. The 257-acre campus is beautiful, and you can download a self-guided audio tour to learn while you explore. For more exploring on foot, visit the Mohonk Preserve, where you can immerse yourself in the outdoors on its miles of hiking and biking trails.

Downtown New Paltz is rated as very walkable, meaning it's a pleasant place to stroll and easy for students to get around without a vehicle. Visitors will want to check out Historic Huguenot Street and then head over to Water Street Market, where the pedestrianized shopping area has a European feel. It's the perfect place to hunt for antiques, pick up some local art, and grab a bite to eat.

Water Street Market is also home to The Denizen Theater, which shows independent movies and often invites people from the film industry to present there. As SUNY is known for its fine and performing art programs, it's no surprise that New Paltz is an incredible place for the arts, with tons of live music and theater performances on regularly. If that's not enough, the SUNY campus is also home to the free and wonderful Dorsky Museum.

Ithaca might be the ultimate college town. Home to Cornell University and Ithaca College, it hosts around 30,000 students — just about equal to the number of permanent residents. Both campuses are close to the pedestrian-friendly downtown area, Ithaca Commons, which is full of quirky shops, diverse restaurants, and a lively arts scene. With another ranking as a Walk Score "walker's paradise," Ithaca is perfect for exploring on foot and is one of the most picturesque towns to visit on the East Coast. Visitors are also welcome to explore the campuses, and the Botanic Gardens at Cornell are a must-see.

When it comes to evening entertainment, students and visitors are spoiled for choice. There are theaters and cinemas, tons of live music venues, and cozy college bars. The restaurants range from fine dining to cheap and cheerful, with plenty of vegan options and many late-night eateries. One spot not to miss day or night is Collegetown Bagels; open until midnight, one Google reviewer describes it as "the main and beloved joint for all Cornell students."

We focused on smaller towns with a population of around 30,000 people or under and looked at places where the college campuses were close to the center and play a large part in shaping the town's culture. We considered the walkability scores using Walk Score and explored the town's entertainment, food, and arts scenes. We used Reddit forums to get a feel for how students who attended college there feel about the towns.