Downtown State College

State College is a town solely built around one thing...Penn State University.  There is no doubt about that as when you walk around off-campus, you'll see references to the school basically everywhere you go.  Outside the campus, one main portion sticks out as the place to go...the Downtown area.  While this is a far cry from what a traditional "city downtown" area looks like (it really is just one long block on College Avenue that runs parallel to the school), it is quite charming with plenty of restaurants to check out.

During our trip, we had a delightful breakfast buffet at The Corner Room.  For only $9.99, you get all you can eat of top-notch breakfast food.  You'll also find plenty of other local culinary options such as coffee shops, italian, chinese, etc.  There are a few chain-restaurant type places along this strip as well, but you'd be much better off trying the local fare first.

The shops along the strip are loaded with Penn State memorabilia.  For any one who needs some of the college's shirts, hats, etc., this is the area to buy it in.  For a nightlife, many bars are around here, which really come to life during the school year.  One cannot be found bored in this area during the night if bar-hopping is your thing.  You can also find live entertainment at local theaters here.