Binghamton Is Lucky To Have One Of Music's Biggest Events Nearby

I can't tell you how many tickets we've given away to concerts at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, NY, home of the 1969 Woodstock Music and Arts Fair. It's been a lot, and we continue this concert season. But the odd thing is, I've never taken the trip to visit where one of the most important events of the 1960s and in music history occurred.

I decided I had waited long enough (53 years), and recently took a ride to Bethel, where I was pleasantly surprised it was well under a two-hour drive from Binghamton and easy to navigate along the journey.

I was accompanied by Eric, one of my long-time co-workers and friend who has been at the site many times in the past. He had decided it was time to visit, since I kept lamenting how I'd like to go, but never seemed to get off my you-know-what and make the short trip.

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The trip was well worth it. We first pulled up where the Woodstock plaque is located, where you can clearly see where the concert stage used to be, and a full view of the field where over 400,000 people gathered the weekend of August 15 to 18, 1969.

To be honest, I could have sat there all day (it was a warm partly sunny spring day), to take in what had happened there 53 years ago. But there was more to see, including walking the field and the amazing museum that sits at the top of the hill at Bethel Woods.

The museum not only gives you a detailed journey over the long Woodstock weekend, but it also takes you through the turbulent 1960s leading up to the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair.

There are plenty of memorabilia and artifacts from the Woodstock festival, several short videos, and loads of pictures, along with many interesting displays to view as you journey from the 1960s era to the festival weekend. And there are always new exhibits built and on display each year for people to learn more about the Woodstock experience.

In addition, the grounds feature other buildings for various events throughout the year. The museum also features a gift shop and cafe. And of course, music being at the forefront of the experience, Bethel Woods has a large amphitheater for major music concerts during the warm weather months.

It was a fun trip, and I'm glad I finally took the ride out to Bethel Woods. Take a look below at some of the pictures I took during my visit along with the new exhibit and a video from the 1969 Woodstock Music and Arts Fair.