Located at the northern part of New York Metropolis is the Upstate New York region, a place famous for its historical importance, prestigious educational institutions like Cornell University, University of Rochester and State University of New York, bustling cities like Albany, Buffalo, Rochester, Ithaca and Auburn, and diverse natural resources like rivers, mountain ranges, lakes and forests.

The Upstate New York region is considered as a tourist's paradise with million of tourists visiting this region annually. Some important tourist destinations that are widely preferred by tourists include the majestic Niagara Falls located at the U.S.-Canadian border, mountain ranges like Adirondack Mountains and Catskill Mountains, Corning Museum of Glass, The Great Escape and Splashwater Kingdom, Soccer Hall of Fame, Baseball Hall of Fame, International Boxing Hall of Fame, Saratoga Race Course, Seabreeze amusement park, Sylvan Beach and Turning Stone Resort and Casino.

Upstate New York region is also known for its beautiful lakes and breathtaking waterfalls. Famous among them are the Finger Lakes located on the west-central part of Upstate New York. Finger Lakes are actually a collection of eleven lakes that are linear in shape and located in the form of fingers. Famous among these are the Cayuga Lake and Seneca Lake. Others include Conesus, Hemlock, Canadice, Honeoye, Otisco, Skaneateles, Owasco, Keuka, and Canandaigua Lakes. Region around Finger Lakes is a natural paradise. Located in the region is the Taughannock Falls State Park famous for Taughannock Falls. Most of the area contains forests filled with oak, hickory, maple, chestnut, ash, and hemlock trees. Activities like fishing, hunting, skiing, snowmobiling and ice fishing are famous around the Finger Lakes.

Prairie grasslands are located in this region. Hence, the entire area is an important agricultural destination in New York. Farms raise crops like corn, hay, wheat, soy, oats, barley, cabbages, sweetcorn and potatoes. Finger Lakes area is New York's largest wine producing region.