<p>Just found out I may be making an unexpected drive this week from Northern Ohio to New Jersey via I-76 (70) for a funeral. Will have my 80 year old mother along as well as my SIL and D15. All plans currently up in the air, but I’m just wondering if there is anything scenic,shopping or significant worthwhile close to this highway that would be worth a short stop for. Hate to drive all that way without taking advantage of seeing SOMETHING besides the funeral home!</p>
<p>(hopefully there is at least a Cracker Barrel along the way!!!)</p>
<p>If you want to stay close to the turnpike, then there really isn’t much through the state of PA. But…there is King of Prussia Mall, which is right at the Valley Forge exit, close to Philly! There are lots of restaurants and stores, or you could choose to visit Valley Forge National Park. I’d pick KofP, but that’s me.</p>
<p>I76 is the turnpike for much os PA and it is a toll road. There are the usual rest stops but it is pretty boring in western PA. You could get off in the Lancaster area and see some of those sights, depending on how much time you have.</p>
<p>King of Prussia mall is literally feet off of 76 and is the east coast’s largest shopping mall complex, in fact I think it is second only to Mall of America in square footage. </p>
<p>Where in NJ are you headed? That may affect where you get off the turnpike or 76.</p>
<p>The turnpike is a toll road all the way through PA, as well as OH, I believe. I-80 is not. Last I drove it (a few years ago) I think the tolls were up to about $20 for a car, though I was driving only to Pittsburgh from a bit west of Philadelphia.</p>
<p>Vally Forge National Park is absolutely worth seeing if you can - right off the turnpike and so full of history. You can get a sense of the history if you only have an hour or two, in the visitor’s center and seeing the huts the troops stayed in. If you have more time there are walking trails and a trolley tour.</p>
<p>Have you driven 76 (aka the Schuylkill Expressway) before? It can be very tricky, and I would try not to go during rush hour. The turnpike portion of 76 will be fine and easy, but once you transfer to the non-toll 76 expressway, the road is not much fun. Two lanes, no real shoulder, lots of fast drivers and curves. You will pass the gorgeous Boathouse row, but you’ll be too busy trying to stay in your lane to enjoy the view. :)</p>
<p>I was going to mention KOP mall, too! If you do choose that, abasket, have a look at their website prior to your trip because it is HUGE, like a city in and of itself, and you’ll want to target particular areas before you park.</p>
<p>If you’re headed to Cherry Hill, there’s no reason to get off onto the Schuylkill. Stay on the turnpike across the Delaware and get right onto the NJ Turnpike. Get off at either exit 4 or 3, depending where in Cherry Hill you’re headed.</p>
<p>You guys are the best. I appreciate all tips even not related to my ask, but related to the journey! Hopefully I’ll find out more specifically where we will be going later today.</p>
<p>The Mall sounds SO D15, but unfortunately would not probably suit my 80 year old mother. The National Park if the weather is nice could be a good choice.</p>
<p>If the weather is terrible you’ll get a much better feel for what George Washington and the Continental Army had to go through the winter they spent at Valley Forge. ;)</p>
<p>Alwaysamom - thanks for that advice. I don’t go to Cherry Hill that often and Google took her on 76 which sounds like a nightmare. I agree the turnpike all the way is the better route if it still gets you to Cherry Hill!</p>
<p>If the weather is not nice, don’t rule out the mall. There are nicer food courts (Court and upstairs Plaza) that mom can sit in, plus benches everywhere. Of course you’d never get your teenager out quickly though. There’s a huge new Apple store, plus every imaginable clothing store you’d find at any mall or on 5th Avenue.</p>
<p>Honestly the KOP Mall, which is truly large, is just a mall that has the same stores you’d find in any urban area. IMO Valley Forge would be much more interesting. My youngest D went to college in the Philly area, so I’ve been to both places. There’s a great seafood restaurant in Conshohocken (not too far from Valley Forge)–it’s called Blackfish.</p>
<p>You could take Rt 80 into PA and then take 376 south, joining up with the PA Turnpike/76 and avoiding some of the interminable traffic around Pittsburgh. Or if you want the simplicity of “I’m on the right road and I just stay on it” PA 76 goes by Shanksville and the 9/11 memorial site. </p>
<p>You can stop in Carlisle (near Harrisburg) which is antiquey and quaint, or take a simple slight detour to Hershey – they have a Hershey museum easily located —not the Chocolate World thing at the park ----and not very big, but it’s a nice pit stop for halfway. I think by the time you get to the other end of PA you will not be wanting to stop for the hugenormous KoP mall. </p>
<p>Valley Forge, as mentioned, has a very nice visitor’s center, mini-museum and it’s simple to find. Having just traveled the opposite way across all of PA/Ohio, I will say that Ohio’s rests stops are MUCH nicer, but PA’s are much less crowded. Travel safe!</p>
<p>If planning on 476, be sure you have lots of change with you. The last time I was through there, granted a couple of years ago, the toll plazas required exact change and were not manned. </p>
<p>Another possibility if you’re heading east on 80 is to get off at route 11/15 and head south towards Lewisburg. There’s a nice restaurant there called the Country Cupboard, which also has a few little shops. You could have lunch, stretch your legs a bit then head back south on 11 and pick up the turnpike near Harrisburg. The drive along the river there just north of Harrisburg is very pretty.</p>
<p>Nope, I mean 376, you’d get off 80 at Hermitage/New Castle, east of the Ohio border, and take it south to 76. You are right, it is a toll road for a while, but you wouldnt be on it all that long, and avoid 76 around Pittsburgh. And 76 is a turnpike the whole way, anyway.</p>
I appreciate all tips even not related to my ask, but related to the journey! Hopefully I’ll find out more specifically where we will be going later today.</p>