What better way to freshen up a relationship than to spend time alone together away from the cares and responsibilities of everyday life? And what better place to spend that time than Shipshewana?
Begin your adventure a deux at the Shipshewana Visitors Center, where they can provide maps, answer your questions and supply you with a coupon book for money off gifts you might want to select for one another. Then check into your hotel — perhaps the Blue Gate Garden Inn, where your cozy room comes with access to the pool and hot tub, fitness center, fire pit, Ice Creamery and a fresh hot breakfast.
The Farmstead Inn offers many of the same amenities plus proximity to the flea market and auctions for which the area is famous. Several welcoming Airbnbs in town are another option.
Your possibilities for dinner include the Blue Gate Restaurant or Das Dutchman Essenhaus, both of which serve up home-cooked Amish feasts that include their signature noodles and pies. Some Amish families also provide dinners for travelers.
End your evening with a romantic buggy ride. Then grab some nibbles for stargazing later — a bag of snacks from E&S Sales or a charcuterie tray from Yoder’s Meat and Cheese.
Next morning enjoy a hearty breakfast at your hotel or try out the local fare at Country Corral, the Auction Restaurant or the Corn Crib Café. Antique-lovers and bargain-hunters will want to visit the Midwest’s largest flea market & auction facility. The season flea market has on average of 300-400 vendors occupying 600+ spaces weekly offering a diverse range of products while the weekly antique auction features 6-9 live auctioneers continuously selling bargains and “rusty gold”.
Then begin your exploration of Amish country at the Menno-Hof Amish Mennonite Interpretive Museum, where you’ll learn about the Anabaptist culture before you take the self-guided Off the Beaten Path tour. You’ll drive through the countryside, stopping to tour a farm or watch artisans at work and then buying their wares. Watch for the barn quilts that give a clue to each farm’s heritage, and if you’re here in the summer, take in the floral displays of the Quilt Gardens.
Fancy some friendly competition? Play a game of disc golf at Delt Church Park, pickleball at David Rogers Memorial Park or try mini golf at Lucie’s Vede Twist, Shipshewana Pizza and Mini Golf or Essenhaus Mini Golf.
For a change of pace this evening, drive to LaGrange or Middlebury for burgers and cocktails, but be back in time to catch a concert or musical show at the Blue Gate Performing Arts Center or Music Hall Theater. Aunt Millie’s Candy Store can provide your late-night snacks.
Too soon the idyll is over. Stop at the Country Lane Bakery or Rise and Roll Bakery for sweet treats on your way out of town, then relive your holiday as you return home, reconnected by new memories that only the two of you share.
3-Day Amish Country Itinerary:
For more information visit: visitshipshewana.org
