What to see in New England?

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Dh and I are discussing the possibility of a driving trip through New England for our 25th anniversary next summer.

I’d like to spend a day or 2 in Boston. Where else do you suggest? Historical sights? Religious sights? Interesting places to stay?

We’re pretty open to anything at this point.
 
I think the Boston Aquarium is the BEST aquarium I have ever been to, and I have been to many, I usually always try to visit an aquarium when I am visiting a city that has one.
 
IMO, it would be a shame to go to New England and spend the time in just slightly different urban area from where you came from.

The best parts of NE are the rural and small towns. I loved Franconia Notch and the White Mountains. If you go in the later fall, some of the 3-4 day Maine windjammer cruises aren’t impossibly priced either (we loved the J&E Riggin - google her).

Go bed n breakfast. If you pick the ones with shared bathrooms, they cost no more than soulless motels and have a lot more charm!
 
It has been many years since I lived in New England. However,I recall there was a walking trail of Revolutionary sites in Boston that was well worth the effort. After I left, a part of the Battle Road in Lexington near Hanscom Field has been restored as a park [it was a short cut to work when I was there - didn’t realize that I was driving through history each morning.]

The Franconia Notch area of the White Mountains is particularly good. Unfortunately The Old Man of the Mountains is gone.
 
Having toured New England a number of times on my motorcycles, I suggest the Green Mountains of Vermont, White Mountains of New Hampshire, and the up the Main Coast to Bar Harbor.

Connect these places with via backroads and have a nice road trip. Stay in local motels or B and Bs along the way. After doing that drive back south to the Boston area for a couple of days.

You’ll find it a great way to spend 4 or 5 days.
 
Hi!

I grew up on the South Shore of Boston (the area between Boston and Cape Cod) and still get back when I can. For a first-time visit to the area, I highly recommend walking the Freedom Trail, and especially seeing the North End (GREAT Italian neighborhood, and the location of the Old North Church.) Lexington and Concord are beautiful and full of history; Louisa May Alcott’s home is wonderful to visit, and Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord is where many of the famous authors of the 19th century are buried. The area around Concord Bridge, and the Lexington Green are interesting. You can effectively retrace Paul Revere’s ride, or the route the colonial soldiers took in 1775.

Harvard Square in Cambridge is fun, and you can explore some of the wonderful colleges in the area, if that is up your alley (don’t miss the beautiful campus of Boston College, my alma mater, in lovely Chestnut Hill.) Boston is FULL of colleges and students.

Plymouth is fun (my dad and several family members live there now) and you can take a peek at Plymouth Rock (not that much to look at!) Plimoth Plantation is simply terrific - a real look at how the pilgrims lived with excellent re-enactors in period costumes. Cape Cod is not far, though avoid summer weekends when things get very hairy, traffic-wise. One of our favorite places is Nantucket, which we prefer to Martha’s Vineyard. You can take a ferry over from Falmouth or Hyannis; even for a day it’s worth it. You can walk around the compact downtown and explore lovely streets with old whaling captain’s homes, etc.

The north shore of Boston (Marblehead, Gloucester, Newburyport) are all great places to see. The coast of Maine is wonderful, and the White Mountains (New Hampshire) and Green Mountains (VT) are all delightful.

If you are a history buff, love great seafood, Italian food (best pizza in the world!), down-home cooking, beautiful, quaint towns, incredible arts and sports scenes, breathtaking ocean and mountain views, then you are going to the right place!

If you have any more questions, please feel free to PM me, as I love talking about what will always be “home”, even if I have lived for 30+ years in Alabama!
 
I would put Newport, RI on your list of places to visit. We loved our time there.
gonewport.com/

God Bless and Happy 25th Anniversary !
 
I rode through Newport one time. Ain’t that where they have all those mansions where the rich people outta NYC and Boston summer?

If I ever hit the lotttery, I wanna “summer” some place. LOL. I wonder why rich folks get to “summer”, and the rest of just go on vacaton 😃

And then dixieeagle said-
If you have any more questions, please feel free to PM me, as I love talking about what will always be “home”, even if I have lived for 30+ years in Alabama!
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So are you “tawkin like this here” now or do ya still “toik like dis?”
 
The National Shrine of The Divine Mercy! 👍

It is so beautiful and peaceful there. It’s located in western Massachusetts (Stockbridge). The grounds (approx. 350 acres) are named “Eden Hill” and my Mom says she always feels like she got to visit heaven after going there. 😉

Lots of info. here:
thedivinemercy.org/

(You can even stay in the Pope John Paul II Guest House there! :D)
 
I love the Duck tours in Boston. Provides a fun and excellent tour of the city by land and water. Tons of history on the tour.

If you want to walk through Boston, the Freedom Trail is interesting.

Also, Franconia Notch in NH is a great hiking spot - scenic but as someone else said, the famous "ol man of the Mountain is now gone as he took a nose dive off the mountain and crumbled to pieces. 😃

Depends on how far into Maine you want to go but one of the most spectacular National Parks is Acadia in Bar Harbor.

Love Portsmouth NH - one of my favorite places in NE. Very old with brick roads, shops and tons of cafés. It’s along the lines of Newburyport in my opinion - though better.

VT offers Alpine slides at some of the major ski resorts. Now I have not done that since I was a kid but man was it fast and fun.

http://www.bromley.com/upload/photos/683callout_alpine_slide.jpg

http://www.bostonducktours.com/images/hp_hero.jpg
 
KCT said:
Dh and I are discussing the possibility of a driving trip through New England for our 25th anniversary next summer.

I’d like to spend a day or 2 in Boston. Where else do you suggest? Historical sights? Religious sights? Interesting places to stay?

We’re pretty open to anything at this point.
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Make sure you visit The North End in Boston. They have great Italian Restaurants & Bakeries. DH & I Loved it!
 
Lucania said:
Make sure you visit The North End in Boston. They have great Italian Restaurants & Bakeries. DH & I Loved it!
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Problem is - Boston is not a 2 day thing. There is just so much cool stuff to see, do , eat, drink there. Faneuil Hall alone is a taste extravaganza. 😃
 
jrabs said:
Problem is - Boston is not a 2 day thing. There is just so much cool stuff to see, do , eat, drink there. Faneuil Hall alone is a taste extravaganza. 😃
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I agree! I loved Faneuil Hall, too. DH & I were there for 3 days right before September 11, 2001 (business trip for DH). We crammed alot in a short visit. Took a Boston Harbor Boat Tour, went to a couple of authentic Irish Pubs:D, The North End, Faneuil Hall and had to tour the factory for DH’s job!
 
Well you could just call me when you get here and I’ll show you the sights. 😃

I agree with all the suggestions for Boston and the North Shore.
I would also reccomend spending time on Cape Cod. With all the suggestions here, plan on spending about 2 months in New England.

If you’re into Naval history there is battleshipcove.org/ and while in town try some Portuguese food at a local resturant.

There are some beautiful churches and shrines.

St. Anne’s Shrine
St. Anthony of Padua
St Mary’s Cathedral
Cathedral of the Holy Cross
National Shrine of Our Lady of LaSalette

If you want to know any specifics, feel free to PM me.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions.

We are so up in the air right now . . . we could decide to spend 3 or 4 days in Boston before heading to VT, NH and ME.

I want to see city, countryside, mountains and seashore. Dh has plenty of vacations days, so we’re not limited to just a week.
 
One nice thing about Boston is that it’s a very walkable city. On your walk to the North End, why not swing by Old Ironsides? The tours on the U.S.S. Constitution are great. The ship is still commissioned by the Navy and the tours are given by young sailors for whom it’s an honor to serve on the ship. I’ve been on the tour at least a half-dozen times. It’s always a hit for out-of-town visitors.
 
BamaRider said:
So are you “tawkin like this here” now or do ya still “toik like dis?”
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:cool:

I never heard a soul in Boston “toik like dis”; I think you must have them confused with someone from Brooklyn or New Jersey!

Actually, I never had much of a Boston accent even when I lived there; people in Alabama usually know I’m from somewhere else but can’t tell where. I know that I do stretch words out a bit, and say “y’all” consistently (much nicer than “you guys”.)

Now, my dear departed mother “pahked the cah” with the best of them, and my niece thinks things are “wicked cool.” 🙂
 
You don’t think they accents in Boston?? We’re tawkin about Boston, Mass right?

When I’m up there I can’t understand them, and they can’t understand me, but I’d love to here a y’all with a city accent.
 
Vermont is quite lovely. (Of course I’m a bit biased, since I live here and all) 😛

The leaf-peeping season is mostly over now, but there’s still plenty to see. Lots of little towns, interesting general stores, museums, etc. And the scenery is gorgeous.
 
A little off the beaten track is Proctor, Vermont. A nice little town in which marble is the primary building material. There is a marble museum with a nice gift shop. vermont-marble.com/

Another off-beat place to visit and shop is the Maine Prison Store in Thomaston. No Kidding. Get a souvenir with Maine Prison on it. Prisoners make all kinds of wooden things from the schlocky to the really nice. state.me.us/corrections/industries/index.html

Also in Maine, the** L.L Bean Store** in Fremont is a nice stop. Some sales and bargains but it is not an outlet store.
llbean.com/shop/retailStores/freeportFlagshipStore/freeportLander.html?nav=ln&qs=3006413&trkid=21207S59707150

Bar Harbor and Acadia National Parknps.gov/acad/ in Maine would be musts for me. acadiamagic.com/ One of our favorite places.

In Maine, you MUST get a lobster dinner in a tiny local place next to the ocean (there are many) and get a lobster roll for lunch.

In Boston, if you are fan of the TV show, visit Cheers. cheersboston.com/ Boston is very nice but be prepared for heavy traffic. Early Reservations are recommended for Bar Harbor. If you are a member of AAA, be sure to get a New England tour book.
 
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