Mountains, Southwestern Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands play host to a foliage extravaganza. Set on the state’s highest elevation, with thousands of acres of preserved state forests, parks and game land, the region provides plenty of unobstructed views of striking scenery.
Drive time: 4 hours, 30 minutes
Colors peak: Late September to early October
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright built some of his most iconic homes, including Fallingwater and Kentuck Knob, in the Laurel Highlands. Another, the Duncan House, was brought here from Illinois, along with three other signature return-to-nature-style homes designed by his apprentices, Peter Berndtson and John Rattenbury. Polymath Park Resort offers visitors an opportunity to stay in one of these accommodations. Each house can sleep up to six guests.
Luminaries like Henry Ford and Thomas Edison stayed at the Historic Summit Inn, built in 1907 atop 1,200 acres of Chestnut Ridge, with its breathtaking panoramic views. Amenities include a mountaintop nine-hole golf course (no weekday greens fee for guests), a heated indoor pool, and several on-site restaurants.
