Over the years I’ve answered a number of questions from people planning to visit New England for a vacation.

The region is rich in both history and scenic beauty and when people start to plan their own vacation they quickly become overwhelmed and seek out guidance and help. Unfortunately most web sites confuse people even more and people like the opportunity to ask a “real” person questions.

So these questions are the most common ones asked when people need help planning their New England trip, and hopefully they’ll provide you some options for your visit.

We are visiting New England in July (or pick your own month) for a week and want to see as much of the region as possible can you offer me some suggestions for what to see and where to stay?

This is the nightmare question I get in one form or another at least a few times every month so I thought I’d start with it.

First, you can’t see all of New England in one week. I know New England looks small on a map especially when compared with some of the states out west, but the reality is, it is not small, and it has a wide diversity of destinations. So unless you want to spend the whole week in the car and see everything whiz by and not experience anything – you’re going to have to be selective.

Pick a theme such as coastal, mountains, or lakes, or maybe revolutionary history, or museums, or an activity such as hiking, biking, antiquing, and let that drive the destinations you visit and where you stay.

Here’s a basic sample itinerary and further resources covering popular New England destinations:

Boston, Massachusetts – 2 days of sightseeing of historical Boston and includes side-trip to Plimoth Plantation and Mayflower II.
Cape Cod, Massachusetts – 2 days includes visit to Cape Cod National Seashore, cycling bike paths and a whale watch cruise.
Mystic, Connecticut – 1 day includes Mystic Seaport and coastal Connecticut.
Newport, Rhode Island – 1 day includes mansions and harbor cruise.
Lake Champlain, Vermont - 2 days includes Burlington and Lake Champlain Islands and scenic mountain town of Stowe.
North Conway, New Hampshire – 2 days includes the Presidential Range and Mount Washington and Flume Gorge.
Bar Harbor, Maine – 2 days includes Acadia National Park and lobster dinner.
New England Lodging – Accommodation options and deals broken down by states.

This is a 12-14 day trip and is really a sampler package as I’ve spent a whole week in each of these areas and still only scratched the surface of everything on offer in these areas. As regards staying somewhere central, there really isn’t such a location for this tour. You’ll need to move “house” six times for this trip, which is a lot of moving for one vacation. And this is why I suggest choosing a theme. But if you want to see a lot in a small amount of time and you can take the driving, then this is your tour.

We want to stay in one place but also want to visit and see as much as possible – where should we pick for a base?

Similar advice as before – pick an area to focus on. This could be coastal Maine where you can see a lot of what Maine has to offer on day trips, or Lakes Region of New Hampshire, where you can also make visits to the White Mountains and make a few excursions across to Vermont. For Maine consider Bar Harbor or Boothbay Harbor for your lodging base or one of the Lake Winnipesaukee towns such as Meredith or Wolfeboro for a New Hampshire Lakes Region base.

Boston also makes an excellent base as apart from soaking up revolutionary history and monuments in the city and nearby towns of Lexington and Concord, you can visit Plymouth and Cape Cod, and even Newport, Rhode Island. While staying in downtown hotels can be expensive, there are much better deals if you’re willing to use public transportation for getting around – most people use the “T” subway system to get around… or walk. Keep the car for day trip excursions only. Where to stay in Boston deals here.

For Vermont vacations I like Stowe for a base or a nearby town such as Waterbury. Stowe is central for Burlington and Lake Champlain, and day trips into the Northeast Kingdom or south to the Green Mountains National Forest and the Woodstock region.

What do you recommend as the best destination for family vacations in the summer?

If you’re a beach-loving family, then Cape Cod remains the primary choice for New Englanders, with the towns of Yarmouth, Dennis and Harwich packing in a lot of the cottage rentals and attractions during the summer for young families. Older families may prefer the lower Cape with the National Seashore beaches which are less protected and cooler ocean temperatures. The Bay side beaches of the Cape are best for very young families as the water is warmer and safest for swimming.

Also high on the list are the Islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket for older family vacations. The beaches are plentiful and if you have a bike you can usually cycle to a beach that is not crowded even during the summer months.

Rhode Island has some outstanding beaches in South County along Rhode Island Sound and near to Westerly - head out to Misquamicut or Watch Hill for not only the beaches but the entertainment and restaurants. And for older families check out Block Island. Beaches north of Boston with plenty of things to do for a family include Hampton Beach in New Hampshire and York and Ogunquit beaches in southern Maine.

If you prefer your beaches and water to be on a lake then New Hampshire’s Lake Winnipesaukee is one of New England’s popular family destinations, especially where water sports is preferred – the lake activities cater for all family age groups. There are also boat cruises and railroad trips leaving from Weirs Beach every day to keep the kids from getting too bored or too tanned.

Also in New Hampshire are the White Mountains National Forest and a number of destinations and attractions in the forest such as Mount Washington, Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch Park. These are all doable day trips from the towns in the Lakes Region. The White Mountains also has Storyland and Santa’s Village for a young family with themed rides and attractions.

Becoming popular with families for a vacation is staying on a Vermont farm, and the state has a network of working farms where you can lodge just like a bed and breakfast and become engrossed in the workings of the farm and/or tour attractions of surrounding area. Just be sure your children will find this sort of vacation exciting enough.

And by far the most popular question I get asked is…

When are the best dates to visit to see the New England fall foliage?

This really is one of the toughest questions to answer as there is no one best date or dates to visit to catch brilliant fall foliage in New England.But its not a good enough answer for the trip of a lifetime.

You know people have to book well in advance (sometimes a year) to get the accommodation they want, so you want to ensure they get to see good color.

What most people mean by best dates is usually peak foliage. However, peak foliage is just a point in time and the colors are spectacular two weeks before and for two weeks after the actual peak date. Also, the peak date varies every year and can be impacted by weather events in the late summer months and other factors. The change of colors progresses from northern New England down to its southern tip sometimes taking a month to complete the journey.

Traditionally, Columbus Day – the second Monday in October – usually provides superb fall foliage viewing in New England, but you’ll need to be prepared to drive around to flush it out from wherever you’re staying. For example, one side of a mountain may just be turning color, while driving a few miles to the other side will provide the best peak foliage pictures of a lifetime.

My personal favorite spots for viewing fall foliage in New England are:

• Almost anywhere in Vermont, especially in the Green Mountain National Forest in central Vermont.
• White Mountains National Forest in New Hampshire.
• The Berkshires in western Massachusetts.

Because I get asked this question so much I have put together what I humbly submit is the best New England fall foliage resource on the web – and it’s free. You can find it at http://www.squidoo.com/fallfoliage. I update it every year to keep it current and I’m always adding new resources to it. So if your question is around fall foliage now you know where to go.

Look out for other state specific vacations planning information in future posts.

Another New England post by one of our writers is being prepared right now so be sure to visit again or just subscribe to our RSS Feed here and get notified automatically of events and news.

Cliff Calderwood
Publisher
New England Online Magazine

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Related posts:

1. The Itsy-Bitsy New England Vacation Planning Guide
2. AMC 2009 Summer Planning Guide