Tourism in Rhinebeck: Good for Economy, What About the Locals?
New York state’s Hudson Valley has become a tourist destination in recent decades for city people looking for a peaceful get-away.
“There’s really no place like it,” said Rhinebeck local Ally Stevens. “I’ve been here for 45 years now, and plan to stay for as long as I can!”
The Hudson Valley truly is a marvel to witness. Trees covering every sloping mountain, and the limitless supply of water provided by the Hudson River creates a flourishing landscape chock-full of biodiversity. The mountainous landscape also makes for perfect, pocket-sized foundations of the small towns here, including but not limited to Hyde Park, Beacon, and Rhinebeck.
Rhinebeck, New York is especially quaint; usually drawing attention for its hiking trails and exceptional restaurants. However, in recent decades city-goers have been making a sort of pilgrimage here; escaping the bustling traffic and loud noises from the city even for a few days to enjoy the splendor the Hudson Valley provides.
“It’s only a two-hour train ride away,” said Bronx local Donovan Mattoli. “I started coming up here in 2010 with my wife and our kids for the Sheep and Wool Festival… each trip we really enjoy ourselves.”
The Sheep and Wool Festival is only one of the many attractions that bring in the trains of people from the city to Rhinebeck each year. Other famous attractions include restaurants such as Pizza Posto and the Terrapin, as well as the hiking trails of Ferncliff Forest and its famous Fire Tower, which allows visitors a 365 bird’s eye view of the Catskill Mountains.
All of these charming sights in such a small town however, have created an unintentional congestion within Rhinebeck. According to Rhinecliff Train Station worker Paul Step, a train pulling in from New York City in the fall months could unload more than 200 people.
“People just keep coming and coming…it could take five minutes sometimes more during morning hours for everyone to get off.”
Approximately 200 passengers only accounts for a single train.
According to Step, “On weekends, you could have upwards of maybe three to five trains pulling in to Rhinecliff from the city.”
That could mean approximately 1,000 people entering Rhinebeck in one day; and for the locals, that number does not go unnoticed.
“The best way I can describe it is hell on earth,” said Ally Stevens. “On the weekends [from September to November] you can’t go anywhere, or get anything done…I now strictly work weekdays to avoid dealing with the customers coming in from the city.”
Stevens is an employee at famous bread shop ‘Bread Alone’, a bakery that is completely overrun by tourists during its morning hours on the weekends.
At another restaurant, the ‘Terrapin’, Brand Manager Christen Wagner also expressed her concerns. “There’s a lot of areas you need to know to avoid at different times… and you have to be prepared to leave earlier… if I were to take a route that would normally be a 10 minute drive, I add at least an extra 15 minutes to my trip because of the extra congestion.”
It’s not just the busier streets and over-crowded shops that keep the Rhinebeck locals on their toes.
“People from the city come here…they see how nice it is, and they think ‘Oh, what a lovely place to build my vacation home.’ ”
That was Ivy Silvermann, a Rhinebeck local who has had trouble in recent months keeping her home in her name.
“I’ll get people knocking on my door, leaving me mail inquiring about my house, and the land my house is built on…One of the letters, I remember was someone’s agent, and they wanted me to know that the person interested in my home, wanted me to name my price.”
This is only one of the many instances in which city-folk are trying to get their own piece of Rhinebeck. Another approach city people are taking besides bribing the locals is building their own giant, multi-million dollar vacation homes. Therefore driving up the market-value, and making it more difficult for Rhinebeck families to stay in town.
“I have grandchildren that are looking for homes near me,” explained Silvermann. “And they can’t find anything, it’s all so expensive and [the prices] keep going up.”
With housing market prices rising, along with the over-crowded streets and shops, makes Rhinebeck in the fall months — although a pleasant get-away for New York City locals — a difficult place to navigate for town locals.
“Sure [tourism] helps the economy, but it’s also making it hard to live here and enjoy it,” said Silvermann. “I want my old Rhinebeck back.”
