New England in the Fall!

My wife and I have always spoken about visiting New England in the Fall.

We are from Scotland and would fly into Boston and would like to spend a 2 or 3 days there either at the start or end of our trip.

Can anyone give some suggestions

on the best time to come?

We would be there for about 10-11 days in total,so could anyone suggest an itinery. We would like not to spend all our time driving!

New England in the Fall!

You have to do your part. What kinds of things interest you? What budgetary restraints?

New England in the Fall!

If you come early in the month, I%26#39;d recommend travelling North to New Hampshire%26#39;s white mountains (about 3 hours) and using that as a %26#39;home base%26#39; for a few days. There%26#39;s lots of nature and hikes in that area as well as outlet shopping with no sales tax (on anything) in the Settlers Green Shopping Center in Conway.

If you are hear later in the month then you can stick to Massachusetts, driving west to Lexington and Concormd and Mount Wachusett or perhaps all the way west to the Berkshire Mountains.

Tell us a bit more about what you like to do (hiking? scenic drive? Golf?) and we can help you more.

If you are flying into Boston you might want to consider the southern areas of Vermont or New Hampshire. If you come in early Oct you will be sure to see plenty of gorgeous foliage, as well as covered bridges, nice walking/hiking trails, good restaurants, bed and breakfasts. These areas are a great place to make day trips from so you wouldn%26#39;s spend all your time in the car and you can be back in Boston in 2 - 3 hours. These areas also tend to be not as touristy as some of the more well known destinations.

Forgive me, you are correct. I should have given more information on our interests.

We enjoy a bit of culture museums etc but are not averse to some interesting sight-seeing and enjoying some of the %26#39;touristy%26#39; attractions.

We are in our 60%26#39;s and fairly mobile, but, with hip replacements etc we do not walk for miles anymore!

It would be nice to have a base where we could travel out each day, but I guess with the distances involved it would be better to tour and perhaps stay in each place for a couple of days. We very much enjoy good food.

Would we have to book accomodation in advance?

Is $120-140 per night a reasonable budget for accomodation/Would that get us a hotel or a Bed %26amp; Breakfast?

What temperatures can we expect?

If you choose to visit Vermont, you could base yourself in Stowe. Here is a route suggestion from Stowe to enjoy some foliage:

From Stowe, head north on Rte 100 to Hyde Park. Then bear north on to Route 15. In Jeffersonville, head south on Route 108 back to Stowe. It%26#39;s a loop that, if you bring a picnic, will make a most enjoyable day trip.

check out the new hampshire forums. there are a number of itineraries that have been suggested recently for others. A ride up the cog railway would be a wonderful way to spend a day, especially because it is on the Bretton Woods side of the mountain near the Mt Wash Hotel. Great place to sit on the veranda and have a drink or a meal.

Someone else suggested Stowe which is another of my favorite places. Another suggestion is a ferry ride to provincetown. Cuts off a couple of hour ride and really takes you to another world when you leave Boston

If you want some culture, sightseeing and %26#39;touristy%26#39; activities, then Boston and Western Massachusetts best fill the bill. Plan on spending at least a few days in Boston itself and then it%26#39;s a pleasant 2 hour ride to towns like Stockbridge and Lee, where you%26#39;ll get your fill of foliage and cute little towns with several museums and lots of cultural events being held. Can%26#39;t get into temperatures unless you get a little more specific on when you%26#39;re planning your trip. Fall can be from September through November.

You will be able to find some accomodations in your price range, but another $50 or so a night will open up some nicer places for you

I agree with Alanm%26#39;s comments as well. While I grew up in NE, I have spent the better part of the last 30 years vacationing both summer and winter in places that I spent little time in when I was a let%26#39;s just say younger. My family tends to stay in 1 place for 7-9 days rather than move around but we have the luxury of being a car drive away. My next vacation is to Aradia Natl Park as Maine is the 1 state that I have neglected. With 11 days, you can get a taste of a number of areas in NE. You could spend your entire trip in 1 place and take day trips or spend 3 days in a number of different places. The only thing I guarantee is that you wont be able to see everything. Cape Cod is wonderful in the fall, as is Newport RI.

So, my suggestion is pick 2 or 3 places which are 2-3 hours away from each other as base and explore what you can without spending the entire trip looking at NE thru a car window. Find the local breakfast places, have some local beers ( I love Tuckerman%26#39;s from Conway, NH) eat some lobsters at a lobster in the rough where it is much cheaper than the fancy restaurants, drive up a mountain top, visit a museaum etc and you will have a great time.

As an aside, in the Williams College museum there is King Georges response to our Declaration of Independence. I was not aware he had written one until I stumbled across it last summer.

Fall weather is really nice. You%26#39;re probably looking at temps in the 60%26#39;s by day and 40%26#39;s at night. I%26#39;d book your reservatiions as soon as you can. It%26#39;s a busy time up North. I really like Jackson and North Conway NH. I also enjoyed York and Ogunquit Maine. Usually by the 10th of October the foliage is past peak in Northern NH. It should be right around peak for Boston and points South. You%26#39;ll love New England.

Things vary from year to year, and perceptions of foliage vary from person to person. That said, I disagree that October 10 is late for foliage in the White Mountains, or certainly for places between there and Boston.

I agree with everything else msar1076 posted.