Lancaster Country Is the Heartland Of The Amish, And These Tours Offer An Inside Look

While the Amish are spread out over much of the eastern United States and Canada, Pennsylvania is particularly famous for its large Amish population. Here one can walk through the valley where they harvest their grain see how their plain traditional ways of life haven't changed much since 1699. One will see them milking cows while another plows.

One will see traditional ways of life where what is considered important is different and see their strong emphasis on family and community. Amish country is worth visiting and there are plenty of things to do there.

Background of The Amish

The Amish began in Switzerland after a schism within a group of Swiss and Alsatian Mennonite Anabaptists. Those who followed Jakob Ammann became known as Amish. In the 1800s the Amish split into the Old Order Amish and the Amish Mennonite. It is the Old Order Amish that repudiates much of modern technology like motor cars. Today the Amish are in various other subgroups (like the Old Beachy Amish, Old Order Mennonites, etc.) and many continue to speak Pennsylvanian German (also called "Pennsylvania Dutch").

The Amish are closely related to the Mennonite churches and are known for their simple living in a world transfixed with modernity, materialism, and whatever the latest model iPhone happens to be on the market. This is a community that doesn't go "wow" every six months when the latest iPhones get a new number or new letter "S".

The Amish are famous for their simple living, plain dress, Christian pacifism, and slowness to adopt modern technology or even outright rebuttal of that technology. They are a community that emphasizes family time, rural life, manual labor, and Christian living.

Founding: 1693 In Switzerland
Population: 350,000 Old Order Amish In The USA And 6,000 In Canada
Non-Amish: Generally Called "English" By The Amish
Language: Pennsylvanian German (Although Virtually Everyone Speaks English as Well)

Today their population is growing very quickly having more than doubled from 2000 - largely due to very high birth rates.

Various groups accept or reject different technology according to Amish America. Almost all reject using tractors for farming while most use mechanical washing machines. They are more split on fancy things like mechanical refrigerators and inside flush toilets. There are many things that seem strange to outsiders about the Amish communities in America and Canada.

Lancaster County Is The Main Tour Hotspot

For those wanting to go and see this unconventional community in America, the main attraction is the Pennsylvania Amish in Lancaster County. This is America's oldest Amish settlement where thousands still live a centuries-old "Plain" lifestyle with farm work like churning lots of butter and raising new barns.

Visitors coming here enjoy the slower and peaceful pace of life, a life where the horse and buggy remain the main form of transportation. Doting the landscape are windmills. One can tour in an Amish horse and buggy and explore various Amish-themed attractions including shopping for hand-made Amish crafts and enjoying authentic PA Dutch cooking.

Old Windmill Farm – Experience an Amish Dairy Farm Tour

Visit the Old Windmill Farm and enjoy a wonderful hands-on Lancaster County experience on an Amish working dairy farm. On this tour one can milk a cow, bottle feed baby calves, feed little pot-bellied pigs, gather eggs and feed the chickens, meet the mules, learn about the windmill, and more. It is educational where one will learn how cows are milked and how their milk is refrigerated. Walk through the old barn dating from the late 1700s.

Afterward, one will tour their gardens and see the myriads of fruit and vegetables growing. Learn all about farm life from an Amishman and his family.

Location: 262 Paradise Lane, Ronks, PA 17572
Feed: Cows, Pigs, Chickens, Pigmy Goats, and more
Milk: Milk the Cows
Duration: One Hour
Hours: Open Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 10 AM-4 PM. Closed Sunday and Wednesday.

Amish Experience Farmlands Tours

Another option for an Amish tour is Amish Experience Farmland Tours. This offers three ways to learn about the Amish by touring the Amish Farmland, the Heritage Site Amish House and School, and the Multi-Media Theater.

In this tour, one will learn about the history and origins of the Amish and the Amish way of life today. One will get a glimpse of this strong commitment to family and community while seeing farmlands still farmed with horses and mules.

Address: 3121 Old Philadelphia Pike (Rt. 340) Bird-in-Hand, PA 17505
Combo Tickets: Combines The Amish Experience Theater, With Admission To The Guided Amish Country Homestead (House And One-Room School)
Adults: $19.95 | Children: $14.95
Duration: 1.5 Hours

Farm Tours: