Key Takeaways
- 🟡 Chittenango, the birthplace of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz author L. Frank Baum fully embraces its legacy with a Yellow Brick Road, Oz-themed shops, and the charming All Things Oz Museum
- 🎉 Every first weekend in June, the town hosts Oz-Stravaganza! — the world’s longest-running Wizard of Oz festival — featuring parades, costumes, performances, fireworks, and thousands of fans
- 🌿 Just outside town, Chittenango Falls State Park stuns with a 167-foot waterfall, while The Wild Animal Park adds a playful “lions and tigers and bears” adventure for families
If Wicked Parts 1 and 2 leave you wanting more — like the story still hasn’t fully cast its spell — here’s the twist: you can actually step into Oz in real life. And it’s only five hours from New York City. Just east of Syracuse, Chittenango, New York, looks like a quiet canal-era town at first glance, but it is actually the birthplace of L. Frank Baum, the author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Though Baum later wrote the book in Chicago — where it was published in 1900 — Chittenango proudly claims its place in the story’s origin. And instead of letting that legacy fade into a modest historical marker, the town leaned all the way in, transforming itself into a full-on Emerald City homage.
The town’s sidewalks are paved in bright yellow bricks, forming a “Yellow Brick Road” that winds past local businesses, public art, and Oz-themed signage. Downtown shop windows nod knowingly to Dorothy and the Emerald City, with playful names like Auntie Em’s Place, Emerald City Grill, Tin Man Construction, and the Yellow Brick Road Casino & Sportsbook. Festival banners overhead flash flying monkeys and ruby slippers. At the heart of it all is the All Things Oz Museum — a volunteer-run passion project devoted entirely to L. Frank Baum and the world of Oz. Inside, rare memorabilia, books, artwork, and ephemera trace Baum’s life and legacy across generations. It’s compact, charming, and packed with plenty of visual details.
That’s not all — every first weekend in June, the town takes things even further with Oz-Stravaganza!, widely recognized as the world’s longest-running The Wonderful Wizard of Oz festival, first launched in 1978. During the three-day celebration, what’s normally a sleepy village springs to life with parades, costume contests, live performances, Oz authors and illustrators expanding the canon, fireworks, carnival rides, and thousands of visitors flooding the town at once. The best part? The festival is completely free!
Just outside the village, Chittenango Falls State Park offers a completely different kind of magic. Its namesake waterfall plunges an impressive 167 feet over layered limestone into a deep, forested gorge — a dramatic sight in any season. There is a short, accessible trail that leads to scenic overlooks and a footbridge at the base of the falls. In warmer months, the park is perfect for picnics, hikes, and fishing. Come winter, the falls partially freeze into towering ice formations that feel almost otherworldly, transforming the park into one of upstate New York’s most striking cold-weather landscapes. And for nature nerds: the gorge is also home to a rare, threatened snail species found in only a handful of places on Earth.
About an hour and 20 minutes from the park, you’ll find The Wild Animal Park, a family-friendly attraction home to lions, tigers, bears, giraffes, camels, kangaroos, and more — and yes, it really is a “lions and tigers and bears” moment. The park offers a drive-through safari, allowing visitors to get up close with a wide range of animals from the comfort of their own vehicle, along with guided tours that make it a favorite with families. Back in Chittenango, the vibe returns to classic small-town comfort: roadside ice cream stands, casual diners, local golf courses, and laid-back spots to refuel between adventures…