Experience the best of Harrisburg

Harrisburg grew from the ferry crossing run by John Harris on the east bank of the Susquehanna and became the state capital in 1812. The Capitol, finished in 1906, is the main sight, a granite building under a large dome, with murals inside, and the State Museum of Pennsylvania stands close by.

The river is the city's open space: Riverfront Park has a long promenade, City Island holds a baseball ground and paths, and the Appalachian Trail follows the ridges north of town. The National Civil War Museum, in Reservoir Park, tells the story of the war, and Gettysburg's battlefield is a drive to the south-west.

Pennsylvania Dutch cooking sets the table here and on the farms around: scrapple, pot pie, soft pretzels, shoofly pie and chow-chow, with produce sold at the old covered market on Broad Street. Winters are cold and snowy, and the farm country turns gold in autumn.