New Hope is located approximately 30 mi (48 km) north of Philadelphia, and lies on the west bank of the Delaware River at its confluence with Aquetong Creek.

New Hope and neighboring Solebury and Upper Makefield townships are part of the Philadelphia metropolitan area.

The two-lane New Hope–Lambertville Bridge carries automobile and foot traffic across the Delaware to Lambertville, New Jersey, on the east bank.

It was generally regarded as the halfway point, where travelers would stay overnight and be ferried across the Delaware River the next morning.

The current name came into use following a fire in 1790 that destroyed several mills in the area; their reconstruction was considered a "new hope."

Freight service to James D. Morrissey Materials Co. ceased sometime in the late 1970s and to Union Camp Paper Corp. in 1985.

In 1983, NBC network anchorwoman Jessica Savitch and her boyfriend drowned after their car overturned into the Delaware Canal.

The canal passes by Odette's Restaurant, where the couple had dined on a rainy evening when visibility was poor and two warning signs were missed.

Near its end in New Hope, the creek forms a scenic millpond and waterfall near the Bucks County Playhouse, a former mill.

Ice storms and large snowstorms depositing ≥ 12 inches (30 cm) of snow occur once every few years, particularly during nor’easters from December through February.

Pennsylvania Route 32 follows Main Street through the center of town, running north-south parallel to the Delaware River.

New Hope has historically been a location where Broadway theater shows were "tested and fine tuned," and many notable stage actors bought weekend homes in the area.

[17] New Hope was the location of an art colony, founded by Edward Willis Redfield and William Langson Lathrop, that produced noted regional work.

[citation needed] Union Camp Corporation had a bag production facility in New Hope until the mid 1990s, which employed about 100 and was located uphill from the railroad.

[21] In 2010, the New Hope and Lambertville area Chambers of Commerce conducted a fireworks show every Friday night during the summer to increase tourism and merchant revenue.

Bars and restaurants benefited from the fireworks show, but residents criticized the weekly event, claiming it was disruptive and reduced parking.

In 2014, the New Hope Chamber of Commerce canceled the firework show, citing a rise in shoplifting, garbage, and an overall decline in store traffic and Friday night revenues.

[24] The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia announced in 2011 that St. Martin of Tours School was closing as the number of students had declined.