New England

HUDSON RIVER VALLEY & LAKE GEORGE, NEW YORK
GREEN MOUNTAINS & BURLINGTON, VERMONT
WHITE MOUNTAINS & Squam Lake, NEW HAMPSHIRE
Camden, Bar Harbor, ACADIA NATIONAL PARK & Portland, MAINE
BOSTON, Cambridge & PLYMOUTH PLANTATION, MASSACHUSETTS
Providence & NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
CoasTal &NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT

Summary

Placid lakes, verdant mountains, rocky coast lines, charming small towns, exciting cities, history, and great food are among the highlights of this expansive vacation. Close proximity to many additional attractions (some subsequently experienced are referenced) make for easy trip customization to suit individual interests.

Trip Tic

For: Families, Couples     Travel Days: 12 Mileage: 1,475     Car Hours: 30+ (two 5.5 hour driving days)     Temps: 65-85° F (summer)

Route Map

Itinerary Outline

Western Segment

• Drive 1.5 hours  from New York City to explore the Storm King Arts Center, an outdoor sculpture garden  in Windsor, New York
• Afterwards, drive 50 minutes to Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz
• Enjoy the indoor pool, visit the gardens, take a kayak out on the lake, or relax at the beach 
• Lodging: Mohonk Mountain House

• Wake up early to take a hike around the lake or up to the Skytop Tower before treating yourself to a spa treatment
• Visit the adjacent artsy college town of New Paltz
• Lodging: Mohonk Mountain House

• Drive 2.0 hours by highway from Mohonk to Saratoga Springs for lunch and shopping, or spend a bit longer getting there by driving along the more scenic Route 9 and stopping at towns that look interesting along the way (Rhinebeck, Hyde Park)
• Continue 45 minutes beyond Saratoga Springs to Lake George
• Lodging: The Sagamore Resort

• Begin the day parasailing on Lake George via Parasailing Adventures
• Drive 1.5 hours to Ripton, Vermont to hike the lovely 1.2 mile Robert Frost Wayside Interpretive Trail
• Drive 1 hour to Burlington, Vermont; shop and dine in the Church Street Marketplace area
• Lodging: Green Mountain Suites (nothing special)
• Alternatively, drive 30 minutes to Stowe to shave time off of tomorrow's drive time and stay at the Trapp Family Lodge 

• From Burlington, drive 30 minutes (or 5 minutes from Stowe) to Waterbury and take the 30 minute Ben & Jerry's factory tour
• Drive 2 hours to Lincoln, New Hampshire, picking up Route 112, the Kancamagus Highway, which winds for 1 hour through the White Mountains, offering numerous turn offs to to hiking trails, water falls, and historic sites
• At Conway, drive 50 minutes southwest to Rockywold on Squam Lake
• Lodging: Rockywold Camp Greenwood Lodge

Begin Eastern Segment

• From Rockywold, drive 3.5 hours, picking up 95 north in Windham, to Thomaston, Maine to visit the Maine State Prison Store
• Stop 20 minutes further up Route 1 in the beautiful town of Camden to eat and shop before continuing for 1.75 hours more to Bar Harbor, Maine
• Lodging: Bar Harbor Inn

• Enjoy the day in Acadia National Park, driving the scenic Park Loop Road, stopping at the Thunder Hole and then hiking the 1.8 mile Gorham Mountain Trail
• Take a pop-over break at the Jordan Pond House, afterwards hiking the 1 mile Nature Trail there, or canoe on Long Pond
• Spend the late afternoon and evening in the town of Bar Harbor
• Lodging: Bar Harbor Inn

• Drive south from Bar Harbor 3.5 hours to Portland, Maine
• Spend the afternoon touring the city from the perspective of your desire
• Lodging: Choose from among many waterfront options (Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn, Portland Harbor Hotel)

• Drive south from Portland in the morning for the 3 hour trip to Cambridge, Massachusetts, stopping along the way at any of the following points of interest:
• Old Orchard Beach
• Fortune Rocks Beach
• Goose Rocks Beach
• Hike a trail at Mt. Agamenticus 
• Lodging: Harvard Square Hotel

• Travel into Boston to walk some or all of the historic Freedom Trail
• Head back to Cambridge in the afternoon and don't miss the Harvard Museum of Natural History (the glass flowers are amazing)
• Enjoy the shops and entertainment around Harvard Square, dine at wagamama
• Lodging: Harvard Square Hotel

• Drive 45 minutes from Cambridge to tour Plimoth Plantation, where you'll find a Native American homesite, a 17th century village, and a Mayflower reproduction
• Drive 1 hour to Providence, Rhode Island and spend the afternoon on College Hill visiting the RISD Museum of Art, walking through Brown University's campus to shop and snack on Meeting Street, perhaps continuing on to Johnson & Wales University to visit the Culinary Arts Museum (Providence is a foodie town, so be sure to take advantage of all the eateries)
• Lodging: Renaissance Providence Downtown Hotel

• Drive 45 minutes from Providence to Newport, Rhode Island to tour one of the "summer cottages" built by the likes of the Vanderbilts and other turn of the century titans of industry
• For a change of scenery, drive 1.25 hours to Rocky Neck State Park beach just of Route 95 in East Lyme, Connecticut for an afternoon of sun bathing
• Travel another 45 minutes to New Haven, Connecticut to dine on the distinctive "apizza" for which the town is famous, and subsequently walk it off on the hallowed and stunningly beautiful Old Campus grounds of Yale University
• Lodging: The Study at Yale

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