State College

State College is a home rule municipality (styled as a "borough") in Centre County, Pennsylvania. Along with the adjoining College Township, it is home to the University Park campus of the Pennsylvania State University.

Get in

By plane

By bus

Megabus serves State College with numerous buses from New York City, Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Toledo, and Chicago. Greyhound has more limited service to State College, with buses mostly from Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

Each company uses a different station, Greyhound buses use the 🌍 State College Bus Station on 152 N Atherton St, approximately a half mile (10 minutes' walk) from the center of town. More inconveniently, the 🌍 Megabus bus stop is located at a Walmart parking lot, on 1665 N Atherton St. (Public transport to downtown is available nearby.)

Ourbus serves bus service from State College to New York City & vice versa. These buses operates from 152 N Atherton St, N. Atherton Street Bus Terminal, about 1/2 mile (10 minutes' walk) from the college.

By car

State College is connected to nearby cities by the following highways.

  • I-80, which traverses the state and goes towards Cleveland westbound and towards New York City eastbound, connects with I-99/US 220 north of State College.
  • I-99/US 220, which connects State College with I-80 to the north and Altoona to the south. US 22 meets I-99 in Altoona and continues on to Pittsburgh.
  • US 322 connects State College with Harrisburg to the east. The Pennsylvania Turnpike continues on from Harrisburg to Philadelphia.

Get around

Pennsylvania's 3rd largest city, sort of

Football is a big deal throughout the Midwest, but college football is an especially big deal for Penn State fans. While the population of State College and adjacent College Township is less than 50,000, during Penn State home games as many as 110,000 people crowd into Beaver Stadium. On football Saturdays, there are more people in town than live in Pennsylvania's third largest city (Allentown, pop. 106,000)!

Most of downtown State College can be seen by simply walking around the compact downtown and university campus. Although a car is convenient to get to the outskirts of town, a bike is sufficient.

If you prefer to take public transportation, CATA provides on-time bus service to most of the county. There are also free buses running through the downtown area, as well as through campus. Most State College routes run from 6AM until 2:30AM (shortly after last call) the following morning.

See
  • 🌍 Pennsylvania State University, ☏ +1 814-865-4700. Penn State, home of the Nittany Lions, is the main campus of a university system with nearly 100,000 students in all. The State College campus has over 45,000 students, and its undergraduate enrollment of over 40,000 makes it one of the five largest university campuses in America by undergraduate enrollment. 
  • 🌍 Shaver's Creek Environmental Center, 3400 Discovery Rd, Petersburg, ☏ +1 814-863-2000, . 10AM-5PM. Free (groups of 12+ are $2/person, arranged in advance). (updated Jan 2020)
  • 🌍 Scotia Barrens, Scotia Range Rd, Port Matilda (drive 0.6 miles down Scotia Range Road to park at a gate, and then follow the trail, taking every left until you reach the ruins). Ghost town just outside of State College. Scotia was an iron mining town until the early 1900s. There are a few concrete structures remaining, now covered in graffiti. Exploring further from the main hub reveals an abandoned car hidden in the pine forest. Free. (updated Sep 2020)

Do
  • Watch a Penn State football game.
  • Ride your bicycle: There are many dedicated paths and bike lanes around town. Nearby Rothrock State Forest, which has hosted world-class mountain bike races, has miles of trails for all levels of mountain biking. Many of the country roads surrounding State College are also ideal for road cycling. The Centre Region Bicycle Coalition has more information on cycling in the State College area.
  • 4th of July fireworks.
  • 🌍 Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts. A variety of artists come to display their work on the streets of downtown State College and surrounding campus area. Live music, food stands and family friendly activities bring people from all over Pennsylvania. 
  • The Pennsylvania State University IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon, known colloquially as THON, is the largest student run philanthropy in the world raising money for pediatric cancer care and research at the Hershey Medical Center administered by the Four Diamonds fund. It is a 46-hour dance marathon held typically the penultimate weekend of February. Entry into the Bryce Jordan Center is free and open to the public during THON.
  • 🌍 The State Theatre, 130 W College Ave, ☏ +1 814-272-0606. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Penn State Golf Courses, 1523 W College Ave, ☏ +1 814-865-4653. M-Th 6ː30 AM-8ː30 PM, F 6AM 8ː30PM, Sa Su 6AM-9PM. 18 holes: M-Th $28-33, F-Su $37-47. (updated Jan 2020)

Buy

There are a number of small shops downtown along College and Beaver Ave. Nittany Mall is also only a few miles away.

Eat

There are the usual number of chain restaurants and various student eats spots, but a number of must-attend restaurants also exist.

  • 🌍 Lupita's Authentic Mexican Food, 3180 W College Ave, ☏ +1 814-954-8768. M-Sa 11AM-8PM. State College's most authentic Mexican cuisine is in a hole-in-the-wall restaurant located inside a Uni-Mart. A Downtown location also exists. Serving Oaxacan street food. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 The Tavern, 220 E College Avenue, ☏ +1 814-238-6116. Dinner: Tu-Su 5-9PM, lunch: Sa Su 11:30AM-3PM. Upscale downtown restaurant serving classy cuisine, including fresh local salads and wagyu steaks. Adjacent to Penn State, and a town mainstay. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Penn State Berkey Creamery, 119 Rodney A. Erickson (in Rodney A. Erickson Food Science Building), ☏ +1 814-865-7535. M-F 7:30AM-9PM. The largest university creamery in the nation. Serves ice cream and sherbets, as well as snacks, milk and coffee. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Kimchi Korean Restaurant, 1100 N Atherton St, ☏ +1 814-237-2096. Tu-Su 4-9PM. Best Korean food in town. Offering easygoing options including bulgogi, bibimbop & galbi, plus lunch deals. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Otto's Pub and Brewery, 2235 N Atherton St, ☏ +1 814-867-6866. M-F 11AM-9PM, Sa Su 11AM-10PM. Microbrewery with many local beer options, and pub-style food including burgers, mac and cheese, and pizzas. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Barrel 21, 2255 N Atherton St, ☏ +1 814-867-6866. W-Sa 4-10PM, Su 11AM-2:30PM. Locally sourced cuisine, including craft sandwiches, with whiskey tastings and cocktails made with in-house spirits. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Meyer Dairy Store, 2390 South Atherton Street, ☏ +1 814-237-1849. Yummy ice-cream and fresh bottle milk. Old fashioned flavors of ice cream can be found here. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 The Waffle Shop, 364 E College Ave, State College, ☏ +1 814-237-9741. Sa Su 6AM-3PM. Extremely popular breakfast and lunch diner famous for waffles, pancakes and sandwiches. (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Gigi's Southern Table, 2080 Cato Ave, ☏ +1 814-861-3463. M-F 11:30AM-8PM, Sa Su 11AM-9PM. Farm to table Southern cuisine and soul food served in a rustic dining room (updated Jan 2023)
  • 🌍 Little Szechuan, ☏ +1 814-308-9906. Lunch: Sa Su 11AM-2:30PM, dinner: Sa Su 4-8PM. Mouth-wateringly authentic Szechuan cuisine served in a no-frills eatery. Popular with Chinese transfer students. Classic Chinese dishes are also offered 
  • 🌍 American Ale House, 821 Cricklewood Dr, ☏ +1 814-237-9701. Sa Su 11AM-10PM. Beers on tap with ever evolving menu, as of this writing focused on seafood and Creole cuisine 
  • 🌍 Way Fruit Farm Downtown Market, 250 E Calder Way, ☏ +1 814-862-9718. M-F 10AM- 7PM, Sa 10AM-5PM. Downtown location of markets with seasonal fruits & local vegetables for sale. Cafe lunch menu including hearty sandwiches and soups 

Drink

Drinking is what State College is known for, second only to football. Whether you prefer sports bars, dance clubs, or Irish pubs, with over 20 bars in a mile radius, everyone is sure to find something to their liking.

  • 🌍 Phyrst, 111-1/2 East Beaver Ave, ☏ +1 814-238-1406. Daily 5PM-2AM. The Phryst is one of State College's basement bars with a dedication to local music scene, friendly atmosphere, pool tables. Order a cheesesteak or a famous egg roll and enjoy local music. (updated Jan 2023)

Sleep

Go next
  • Greenwood Furnance State Park is located approximately 30 minutes southwest of State College using PA-26 and PA-305. It offers camping, hiking, fishing, and other outdoor activities in season.
Routes through State College
to Williamsport ← Bellefonte ←  N  S  → Altoona → Bedford
Meadville ← Clearfield ←  W  E  → Lewistown → Harrisburg


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