Known as the “most famous small town in the world,” the Town of Woodstock, NY, with its Hamlets of Bearsville, Sawkill, Shady and Zena, is one of the most visited towns in the Hudson Valley.

A “Colony of the Arts” since 1902, Woodstock is the oldest operating Arts and Crafts Colony in America. This haven for artists was home to many of the revered Hudson River School painters during the late 1800s, and world-renowned musicians from The Rolling Stones to Bad Brains have written, recorded, rehearsed and performed here. Over the years, the Town has hosted hundreds of writers, poets, painters, actors and musicians, who’ve come for residencies, festivals, recording, and teaching engagements.

Established in 1787 at the northern edge of Ulster County, in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains, Woodstock is northwest of the City of Kingston and a mere two hours from New York City.

Woodstock is known for its thriving, walkable town center, or “Village,” and its music, theater, shopping, culture and world-class cuisine, which have made it a mecca for tourists and urban transplants. Others vacation and settle on the outskirts of town for easy access to wilderness trails and mountains, rivers, falls and watering holes, and other natural and spiritual attractions.

DID YOU KNOW?

The Woodstock Music & Art Fair was not held in Woodstock, NY; rather, it took place in Bethel, NY, 43 miles southwest of the Town that bears the festival’s name. The concept — to celebrate the 1960s social movements, and raise enough money to open a recording studio in Woodstock — was developed by Woodstock resident Michael Lang, a concert promoter, producer and artist manager, after he moved to town from Miami and met Artie Kornfeld, a musician turned record company executive. The problem was, there was no suitable site for the event in Woodstock itself, so Lang, Kornfield and their partners John P. Roberts and Joel Rosenman opted for Wallkill, a hamlet in Orange County, NY. But, the Woodstock organizers were rebuffed by local residents and officials. Then, unexpectedly, Max Yasgur offered up his farm in Bethel. The fee to host it there: $75,000.