I started traveling in 2014, but have really stepped up in recent years, looking to knock off a whole lot of top destinations and under-the-radar gems from my bucket list. Starting from my base in central New Jersey, I've discovered that my style of travel requires a good deal of flexibility, a sense of adventure, and a willingness to take chances.

But there's one thing it doesn't require – a car.

For a number of reasons, I've never gotten my driver's license, and I'm blessed to live in a place with a great public transportation system. When it comes to travel, Amtrak is an amazing way to jump up and down the East Coast, and with research on local transit systems, I've been able to explore Virginia, Washington D.C., Boston, and even further-flung spots like Minneapolis and Edmonton. But when it comes to more remote destinations, exploring without a car takes a lot of planning and some good timing. That was definitely the case for my summer road trip to Knoebels Amusement Resort in Elysburg, Pennsylvania – the most remote theme park in the Northeast.

Traveling without a car requires more time, but that gives me the opportunity to find and explore hidden gems along the way. From my starting point in Edison, NJ, I took a casino bus to the Wind Creek Bethlehem complex and then took a local bus to Allentown. After a day of shopping and a meal at Dunderbak's Market Cafe, a unique German restaurant in the Lehigh Valley Mall, I settled in for the night at the Renaissance Allentown Hotel.

That left me with the 80-mile gap to Elysburg, located deep in the Pennsylvania mountains in an area with no public transportation. But it is possible to get there – two days a year. Perkiomen Tours, a popular PA-based tour bus company, offers a one-day excursion to Knoebels, including about eight hours at the park after a trip there on a comfortable motorcoach. The trip is typically offered in late June and early August, and I had made several past attempts to pull off this trip but called it off due to weather and other factors. But in 2024, everything aligned.

After less than two hours on board, I was there – at an amusement park in one of the Keystone State's most rural areas that felt like it was frozen in time. Knoebels has been around since 1926 and is the largest free-admission park in the USA. You don't have to pay anything to get in the door – each ride has its own price that you can pay in tickets, or you can buy an unlimited-ride wrist band. The park is massive, too, and while there are no hotels here, the surrounding campground offers fully furnished cabins that are ideal for families.

Knoebels has a total of 64 attractions, most of which are family-friendly carnival-style rides. However, there are some massive standouts – including the park's five main roller coasters. The headline attraction is the award-winning Phoenix, a classic wooden coaster known for its copious amount of airtime – where you feel like you're about to be tossed out of your seat. There's also the offbeat bobsled coaster Flying Turns, the only one of its kind in the world, where your car leaves the track and slides up curved walls.

And then there's the Sklooosh, a shoot-the-chutes water ride that creates a massive wave that soaks everyone on board – and on the observation platform. And on the nearby sidewalk!

If there was one thing that made me determined to pull off the trip, though, it was the park's two old-school dark rides. The Haunted Mansion is a classic jump-scare-filled ghost train with some big surprises along the way. I wound up riding multiple times to catch all the clever and creepy details! Equally chilling is the nearby Black Diamond, a roller coaster/dark ride hybrid taking place inside a cursed mine. This eerie tale is actually inspired by the real-life ghost town of Centralia, Pennsylvania, where an underground coal fire still burns to this day.

The rides are just the beginning, though – Knoebels is known for its eclectic collection of side attractions. During the summer, the Crystal Pool offers a large place to cool down and some thrilling waterslides. Several free museums are on-site including a mining museum and a carousel museum where dozens of "retired" carousel mounts are on display. Then there's my favorite spot – the Fascination Parlor, one of the few remaining examples of an early-20th-century competitive arcade game that plays out like a combo of skeeball and bingo. Watch out – some of the veteran players here are sharks!

Shopping at Knoebels is also not to be missed – it has many unique establishments, including a year-round Christmas store and a fudge shop.

Another surprising highlight at Knoebels? The food. It's far more affordable and diverse than your average theme park, and I found myself snacking all day. I dug into a BBQ rib sandwich, deep-fried bacon, alligator bites, potato cakes, and an apple cider slushie. The place has a surprising international presence, with a special tribute to the Polish immigrants who helped build the area.

Knoebels also has two larger restaurants – the indoor diner-style Alamo Restaurant, and the Oasis Cafeteria, where I enjoyed an all-you-can-eat Friday fish fry. This mess-hall-style establishment was created to cater to the many large school and camp groups that frequent the park.

From there, it was a ride back on the tour bus, a Greyhound home from Allentown to New York, and a much-deserved night's sleep after an exhausting but highly rewarding trip I had been planning for several years.

Have you ever visited Knoebels Amusement Resort? What did you think of this retro paradise in the mountains of Pennsylvania, and what was your most memorable road trip? Let us know in the comments section!

Knoebels operates on a seasonal schedule, operating every day in the summer and weekends in the spring and fall. They also have annual Halloween and Christmas events, so make sure to check out the Knoebels Amusement Resort website for more information on everything you can do here! For something unique close to my starting point, Allentown is home to the beautiful Malcolm W. Gross Rose Garden.