Honesdale in the Poconos was dubbed cool in 2020 — and it’s hotter than ever

01.14.2025


Honesdale, Wayne County, PA - The Wayne County Arts Alliance walls are painted Guggenheim white, and were awash in local landscapes and abstract paintings during a gallery sale on the Friday before Christmas.

Next door, behind the glow of a giant, neon happy face, a South Philly man was getting a Star Wars tattoo. The gallery and Happy Tattoo, which opened in 2021, were both visible from Honesdale’s newest Airbnb across the street, a simple, chic loft with hardwood floors and white linens. The loft is owned by a man who opened the new wine, charcuterie, and nonalcoholic wine shop around the corner, across the street from a new brewery.

Philadelphia Magazine described Honesdale as “accidentally cool” in 2020 and today, on the cusp of 2025, it’s certifiable, stamped by the type of businesses — yoga studios, plant shops, coffeehouses, breweries, and galleries — that can terraform a sleepy rural town into a place tourists want to visit, alongside Wayne County’s longtime draws like Lake Wallenpaupack and the Delaware River.

“It has only gotten better here,” said Damian Grzejka, 30, owner of the Airbnb loft and Pocono Provision. “It’s still up-and-coming, too.”

Read more from the Philadelphia Inquirer at the link below;