Toronto to Pittsburgh and back

Thanks for helping me in the past, I am back for some more help with my next trip.

I am planning a short road trip with family (kids: 3 & 7) to Pittsburgh and back. Trip is from Friday July 2nd (starting late afternoon) to July 6th with a flexibility of adding another day at the end.

We (well the wife) would like to do some shopping; I would like to take a scenic drive, and would have to do one (maybe two) activities for the kids which the whole family could enjoy. As for shopping we would be visiting the outlet mall in Grove City. Now I am looking for some ideas for scenic drive and also something for the kids. I think that kids would enjoy beach (lake, weather permitting), kids museum, factory tour? Last year we visited Ben & Jerry’s in Vermont and they had a blast, so something like that would be great. We also enjoy visiting quaint town like Solvang, CA, Tarpon Springs FL, etc.

Here is the initial plan:

July 2nd: Friday: Leave Toronto area around 4pm and make our way pass Buffalo or as close to the Pittsburgh area as we can. We will stop for the night by around 8pm.

July 3rd Saturday: Make our way to Pittsburgh and do something in the city (need suggestions)

July 4th Sunday: Either spend the day in the city or find a scenic drive to quaint town and spend the day and possibly watch fireworks in a small town. (Looking for ideas)

July 5th Monday: Make our way north towards Grove City and possibly find a quaint town on the way for lunch and walk on Main Street or lake side walk/sand play. (Any recommendations)

July 6th Tuesday: Shop during the day and head towards home around 2pm in hopes to make it home by 10 or 11pm.

July 7th Wednesday: If we can’t make it home on Tuesday, then we will complete the trip home on Wednesday.

Thank you for your suggestions and input.
Regards.

You should be able to make it from Grove City to Toronto in 5 hours taking Interstates unless there are substantial border crossing delays.

I don't know if it would fit into your plans but it is certainly on your route, but Presque Isle in Erie, PA is a great place to check out. There is a cute diner/hot dog joint when you first enter the park. The area is great for kids with a light house and beaches to walk on.

Well, we are back safe and sound.

Our trip started on Friday afternoon around 2:30. With a short stop in Buffalo and then dinner in Erie following a walk in Grove City, we reached out skirts of Pittsburgh around 10:30pm.

Saturday we visited the Pittsburgh Children's Museum. This was an excellent place and kids had a blast, I would highly recommend it. Following the museum, we took a walk on Strip district and had dinner at a local eatery.

Sunday was a dedicated shopping day and we visited the Tanger outlet mall in Washington PA. We also were able to find a local baseball stadium to watch the fireworks from. The fireworks show itself was nothing to write about, but the proximity to the show was amazing. We could see the parking lot where the stuff was flying from, just amazing. We found a hotel in a small town Bentleyville, PA just outside Washington, PA.

Monday was Pittsburgh Zoo. Since we are member of Toronto Zoo, this was a free visit and a very nice one too. Pittsburgh zoo is in a very nice setting and quite different then Toronto zoo. Since it was very hot that day, we had to cut our visit short and had to find refuge indoors. Indoor would off course be a mall :) Monday night we found a hotel on the border of PA and OH in small town West Middlesex. At the recommendation of the hotel stuff, we tried a local bar and grill 'Hickroy Grill' which was excellent.

Tuesday was yet another shopping day and we spent few hours at the outlet mall in Grove City before heading home around 2:30. With a dinner stop outside buffalo, we made home around 9:30 to a sweltering 86 degree (inside temp) home.

Thank you for the help with planing of the trip.

Driving around the Pittsburgh area was really fun with all the hills and greenery. I can't image the winter driving there tough.