Forty minutes southwest of Green Bay, you’ll find Neenah where the Fox River empties into Lake Winnebago, in a pocket of a valley that blossomed out of paper-industry money and lake wind. For decades, this town was known as a manufacturing hub (Kimberly-Clark put it on the map). Now it’s all about sailboats, sidewalks, and a downtown that feels cosmopolitan for a community of this size. On the southwestern outskirts, you’ll find a fine base for a long weekend stay: the Best Western Premier Bridgewood Resort Hotel. It checks all the family-fun boxes, with indoor and outdoor hot tubs, tennis courts, mini golf, a restaurant, and an ice cream shop.

Start your explorations at Bergstrom-Mahler Museum of Glass, a Tudor Revival mansion housing one of the world’s top collections of antique paperweights and 16th-century Germanic glass. From there, walk to Kimberly Point Lighthouse, built in 1945 at the mouth of the river — a beautiful spot to watch boats idling in at dusk. For an even better read on the shoreline, book a Sail Neenah catamaran cruise, departing from Riverside Park; from the water, the old mill buildings and lakefront homes snap into perspective.

Downtown, shopping is the thing. Evermore & Co. is Victorian maximalism on a trend-forward level, offering lace blouses alongside glassware, teacups, and taper candles. Acre Vintage caters nicely to the worn-in Levi’s and mid-century barware crowd. Wilmar Chocolates, a family-run business from Appleton, opened a store here last August and makes a thick European-style drinking chocolate, plus buttercreams that locals swear by.

Don’t skip the Plaza at Gateway Park, which houses the java spot Globe Coffee. This is Neenah’s civic living room. In winter, you can skate the outdoor ice rink; in summer, the same square fills with roller skaters. Down the street, at Shattuck Park, is one of the region’s best farmers’ markets.

For dinner, Town Council Kitchen & Bar is the polished anchor, with an old-fashioned that pairs well with the roasted whole trout. For something more low key, Broken Tree Pizza handles the wood-fired lane, and Santé Wine Bar & Bistro keeps things intimate with small plates and a painted tin ceiling.