Family-friendly, peaceful living in Rice
Rice is a family-friendly township offering peaceful living in the wooded landscape between Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton. The lake-dotted enclave bisected by Interstate 81 is part of the greater Mountain Top area, a Luzerne County region known for its tight-knit townships and boroughs where residents enjoy outdoor recreation, hanging out at local pubs and small community events. “People who come from bigger cities like the small-town feel. Everybody knows everybody, and there’s not a lot of traffic,” says Pamela McGovern, a longtime Mountain Top resident and a Realtor with Classic Properties – Mountaintop.
With two lakes in its center, Rice had a thriving ice harvesting industry in the early 20th century until the rise of the electric refrigerator. Today, that history is honored with street names like Ice Harvest Drive and Cutters Lane. The community is primarily residential, with thick swaths of forest in between subdivisions and small parks, so residents typically commute to other areas for work. Crestwood Industrial Park, home to warehouses of familiar brands such as PepsiCo and Quaker, is a few miles away.
Single-family homes and condos surrounded by trees, lakes and ponds
Woods wrap around many of Rice’s single-family homes, which typically rest on spacious lots along wide and winding streets. Several subdivisions offer neotraditional homes built between the early 2000s and today that borrow design elements from Colonial and Greek Revival styles, such as column-framed entryways and double-hung windows. Various other architectural styles are available around the township, from bungalows and Dutch Colonials to American Foursquares. The Laurel Lakes and Ice Lakes subdivisions offer waterfront properties. There are also a few condo communities. Properties don’t go on the market often. From March 2025 to July 2025, only one property was sold. The average value for a home in the area is about $440,000. Potential buyers should note that flood maps show some properties near lakes and creeks are in or near hazard areas.
Ice Lakes Park and other nearby green spaces offer recreation
Rice residents can enjoy the great outdoors at Ice Lakes Park and Lower Ice Lake Park. Once the sites of a bustling ice harvesting operation, the adjacent parks today offer a peaceful atmosphere for kayaking and fishing. Nearby, Rice Township Park is a popular spot for sports with courts for pickleball, tennis and basketball. The park’s picnic shelter sits between a playground and a baseball field. Disc golfers can take on an 18-hole course on the grounds of American Legion Post 781. Nearby, the Blue Ridge Trail Golf Club offers a 27-hole public course. McGovern says a lot of bicyclists love to ride down the Delaware & Lehigh Trail, which has a trailhead in Mountain Top. “You can ride all the way to Jim Thorpe, but if you go too far, you have to come back and it’s uphill,” McGovern says. Nescopeck State Park, Pinchot State Forest and several state game lands offer year-round recreation within a 15-mile drive of Rice, from hiking and hunting to cross-country skiing and ice fishing.
Crestwood School District earns a B-minus
The Crestwood School District receives a B-minus overall grade from Niche. Rice Elementary serves the entire township and gets a B. Students move on to the B-minus-rated Crestwood Secondary Campus, which houses the district’s middle and high schools under one roof. A private school is nearby in Mountain Top, St. Jude School. The Catholic school, not yet rated by Niche, offers prekindergarten through eighth grade.
Rice residents get together for community events throughout the year
A fall event is becoming an annual tradition in Rice. The Halloween Extravaganza takes over Rice Township Park with a haunted trick-or-treat trail, pumpkin decorating and s'mores making. The celebration gives children a chance to don their costumes early, as the event usually happens during the second weekend of October. Other annual events in Rice include an Easter Egg Hunt in April and a Holiday Tree Lighting in December.
Dining at Ice House Pub and shopping at Wyoming Valley Mall
Whether dining out or grabbing a post-work drink, Rice residents often see familiar faces at Ice House Pub. The long-running staple is one of the only restaurants in the township and serves wings and burgers in lovingly preserved digs from the 1950s. Nelly Travel Plaza is close by for a quick meal and picking up convenience items. Weis Markets, less than 5 miles away, is the nearest grocery store. National retailers fill shopping centers around Wyoming Valley Mall, about 13 miles away in Wilkes-Barre. The indoor mall has more than 50 name-brand and department stores. Wilkes-Barre General Hospital, the closest full-service hospital, is around 17 miles away.
Rice is a car-dependent community
Interstate 81 passes through Rice, connecting the township to nearby cities, including Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton . Interstate 80, a major east-west route across Pennsylvania, is less than 10 miles away and links commuters to the northeast extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. Commercial flights take off from Wilkes-Barre Scranton International Airport, about 20 miles away.
