HARRISBURG , Pennsylvania's capital, lies on the Susquehanna River thirty or so miles northwest of Lancaster City. It's a surprisingly attractive small city, lined with shuttered colonial buildings and well complemented by its kitsch Chocolatetown neighbor Hershey . Harrisburg is also known as the site of the Three Mile Island nuclear facility, which stands along the river on the east side of town, and suffered a famous meltdown in the 1970s.

The ornate capitol at Third and State is undeniably beautiful; at its dedication in 1906, Theodore Roosevelt called it "the handsomest building I ever saw." Italian Renaissance in style, it has a dome modeled after St Peter's in Rome (MonSat 9am4pm; free). The complex includes the archeological and military artifacts, decorative arts, tools and machinery exhibited in the free four-floor State Museum of Pennsylvania , a cylindrical building that holds a planetarium, at Third and North (TuesSat 9am5pm, Sun noon5pm; free). But undoubtedly the real attraction here is the excellent new National Civil War Museum , at Lincoln Circle off Market Street (MonFri 9am5pm, Sat & Sun 10am5pm; $7; tel 717/260-1861). Almost 730,000 Americans were killed in the Civil War more than in all other conflicts since the Revolution combined and the museum offers an intelligent analysis of the reasons for, and results of, the war. Especially evocative are the fictionalized monologues, playing on video screens in every gallery, that focus on the human cost of the conflict. There's also a good terrace caf with great views across the city.

One of the best ways to spend a Harrisburg afternoon is to cross the Susquehanna along the Walnut Street footbridge and stroll through City Island , a waterfront development with vast sports facilities (including a family-filled concrete beach, a baseball stadium and a football ground), shady picnic areas, regular festivals and concerts and paddlewheeler rides (MayOct; call 717/234-6500 for schedule; $5).

HERSHEY , ten miles east, was built in 1903 by candy magnate Milton S Hershey for his chocolate factory so it has streets named Chocolate and Cocoa avenues, streetlamps in the shape of Hershey's Chocolate Kisses and air rich with the smell of cocoa. Hershey Chocolate World (daily 9am4.45pm; longer hours in summer; tel 717/534-4900) offers a free mini-train ride through a simulated chocolate factory (accompanied by sugary, piped warblings of It's a Chocolate, Chocolate World ). Those not content with the free sample given out at the end can gorge themselves in the vast gift and souvenir shops and cafs.

Hersheypark , which began in 1907 as a picnic ground for Hershey factory workers, is now a huge, if poorly organized amusement park with roller coasters and sundry other rides (mid-May to Sept daily hours vary; $27.95; tel 717/534-3090 or 1-800/HERSHEY). The adjacent Hershey Museum of American Life has exhibits on the Pennsylvania Dutch and tells the Milton S. Hershey story (daily 10am5pm; $6).

Twenty-five miles south of Harrisburg, the blue-collar town of YORK is home to the final assembly plant of Harley-Davidson . The company runs free tours of its factory and is set to open a full-scale museum in late 2002 (MonFri; call 1-877/746-7937).