Seneca County, located in the Finger Lakes region is home to many beautiful outdoor experiences, but one of the best attractions are the lakes and parks. In Seneca County alone there are not one, but two Finger Lakes: Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake. In addition there are three big state parks: Sampson State Park, Seneca Lake State Park, and Cayuga Lake State Park. Each park offers its own unique amenities and experiences, offering both adult and family fun for everyone! Here, we have compiled a list of all three parks and what you can find for fun at each one.
📍Seneca Lake State Park
1 Lake Front Dr, Geneva, NY 14456
What Seneca Lake State Park offers:
- Biking
- Boat Launches
- Dockage
- Fishing
- Food
- Grills
- Hunting
- Ice Fishing
- Marina
- Pavilions and Shelter Rentals (Accessible)
- Playgrounds
- Playing Fields
- Showers (Accessible)
- Snowshoeing/X-Country Skiing
- Swimming Beach
Seneca Lake State Park is a great lake to go to for a day trip with your family. It's dog friendly as long as they're on a leash and you clean up after them. There are a number of different playgrounds for children, with some geared toward toddlers and others geared toward older kids who are able to do more. They offer shelters for rent for graduation parties, family reunions, and any other type of gathering. They have Disc Golf baskets built into fields for visitors to utilize as well as other fields to play sports on! There is a beach to swim at and a large spray park for children to play in during the summer with a concession stand that sells snacks and drinks. There are showers and bathrooms for visitors, charcoal grills, picnic tables, boat launches and seasonal docks for people that want to keep their boats there for the summer. While there is no overnight camping, there is plenty of room and activities to make everyone happy!
📍Sampson State Park (located along Seneca Lake)
6040-6144 NY-96A, Romulus, NY
What Sampson State Park offers:
- Biking
- Boat Launches
- Camper Assistance Program
- Campsites, Cabins & Lodging
- Dockage
- Fishing (Accessible)
- Food (Accessible)
- Grills
- Hiking
- Hunting
- Ice Fishing
- Marina
- Pavilions and Shelter Rentals (Accessible)
- Playgrounds
- Playing Fields
- Showers (Accessible)
- Snowshoeing/X-Country Skiing
- Swimming Beach
- Tennis
- Visitor Center
Sampson State Park is operated by Seneca Lake Resorts, and they offer a lot of really great things for both adults and children! There is camping here, seasonal or just for a little bit, and they offer campsites and cabins for visitors. Many people choose to keep their RV there for the season. They operate a venue called The Vista where on weekends you can find food trucks, live music, and a bar for adult beverages. There's a large screen for kids to have movie nights and a fully operating pizza place called Pat's Pizza. There is a large marina for boats to park and they recently opened a mini golf course called Putt & Play that was built to showcase some of the greatest places in the Finger Lakes region. There are playgrounds, a beach to swim, and plenty of things to do as a family. For the Fourth of July the park does fireworks.
Sampson State Park is also home to the New York State Veterans Cemetery – Finger Lakes formerly known as the Sampson Veterans Memorial Cemetery. It's located on the former land of the Sampson Naval Training Station and Sampson Air Force Base, where hundreds of thousands of service members trained during World War II and the Korean War. The Sampson Military Museum is located on the park's property as well and offers a great look into the history of the military and the Seneca County area!
📍Cayuga Lake State Park
2678 Lower Lake Rd, Seneca Falls, NY
What Cayuga Lake State Park offers:
- Boat Launches (Accessible)
- Camper Assistance Program
- Campsites, Cabins & Lodging (Accessible)
- Fishing (Accessible)
- Hunting
- Ice Fishing
- Pavilions and Shelter Rentals (Accessible)
- Playgrounds
- Showers (Accessible)
- Snowshoeing/X-Country Skiing
- Swimming Beach (Accessible)
Cayuga Lake State Park offers a beach for swimming with campsites and cabins for visitors. Fishing is common in the park with largemouth bass, bullheads and carp in the shallow waters and northern pike, small mouth bass, lake trout, landlocked salmon and many other varieties of fish in the deeper waters. They offer a boat launch for those coming to fish as well as a playground and playing field for family fun. There are four pavilions to rent that can accommodate 36 to 127 people and can be reserved through ReserveAmerica.com.
Pets are allowed to stay at campsites with visitors with a limit of 2. They must be supervised at all times and either in a crate or on a leash. You may be asked to provide proof of rabies and they are not allowed in playgrounds, buildings, golf courses, boardwalks, pools and spray-grounds or guarded beaches.
What to do if staying in Seneca County at the Parks
There are so many great things you could do within the county if you're staying at one of our parks! If you're looking for family fun you could visit Lively Run Goat Dairy in Interlaken, check out the Rose Hill Mansion in Geneva, or grab a bite to eat at Tucci's Family Diner for breakfast or Mac's Drive-in for dinner!
If you want to have some adult fun, you can ride your boat over to Tiki Bar North in Seneca Lake, or stop by Ventosa Vineyards for a tasting.
For those looking to get active, you can walk, run, or bike the Cayuga- Seneca Canal Trail or rent kayaks from Canal Side Experiences.
You're sure to find something for everyone!
