Welcome to the U.S. Belgiantraveller:

I have no real advice, other than April could still be quite cold, so dress warm; the Canadian side of the Falls are generally considered more picturesque--something to think about.

Enjoy. Geri

My first thoughts is that it may be cold and snowy in April for that trip. Will anything even be open at the Falls?

Well, lets see. Do you mean 2-days, one night on the road? If so, you will mostly be driving and not have much time to stop and see things.

But it is a little too early in spring for that area to be at its best, so no harm done. The weather is very unpredictable in April -- could be snow, could be sunshine and warmth. Not a lot of green on the trees yet.

The drive across New York state will mostly be farms and small towns. The drive from the New York border will be mostly woods and hills and pretty small towns.


Once you get to the eastern NY border, you have some options as to your route -- it will probably involve smaller highways since the Interstates don't go the right way. From Schenectady:

a. You could drive straight north on I-87 and then cross over to Burlington VT. This would send you through the Adirondak Park, which is very scenic, hilly, and remote (unpopulated). You can cross the river at Port Henry or take a car ferryboat from Port Kent across Lake Champlain to Burlington. Spend the night in Burlington, which is a lovely town with views of the lake. Then drive on state roads (not divided highways, but not bad) to Waterville. This will send you through a very scenic and mountainous part of VT, NH, ME.

b. You could drive to North Adams or Williamstown, MA and spend the night. These towns have several small art museums and are at the far north end of the Berkeshires (smaller mountains than the Adiarondaks). From there, take secondary roads to Manchester, NH, and then interstate highways up to Waterville, ME. This would probably be a faster route than (a).

Saratoga Springs is a nice small city in eastern New York. It is known for horse racing in the summer.

Portsmouth, NH, and Portland ME are also nice small cities to stop in and walk around. They have cobblestone town centers and views of the ocean and harbor.

When you visit Niagara Falls make sure you visit the Canadian side. Its nicer than the US side. It will likely to still be cold at that time of year. Spring comes late. I hope the Maid of the Mist would be operating - its a spectacular boat trip right up to the falls.

Will you be driving from Niagara to Waterville and then back in two days or are you taking the two days to get to Waterville? I think that Route 90East through NY and Massachusetts is the way to go. In Mass, get on Rt. 495 N and then Rt 95 N to Maine. In Maine you can use either 95N or 295N to get to Waterville. That seems to be the most direct route. Other posters hear will have better advice as to the more scenic routes.

Enjoy your trip. I hope you have good weather. New England can be pretty unpredictable at that time of year.

oops. The Lake Champlain Ferry doesn't operate in April -- so don't take the boat.

I don't want to discourage you, but it is important that you know that this will be a very long drive, at least 12 hours, IF there is no bad weather to impact the driving conditions. (Snow and/or heavy rain are possible in April in this part of the country.)

April will be anywhere from chilly to downright cold. Snow is still possible in Maine. Too bad you can't come in June when all of the flowers are blooming in this area.

Why is Niagra Falls on your itinerary? Where are you arriving at in the US? If you are flying into Boston, you could do a very nice Boston to Maine trip and see the New England area.

Niagra Falls is more of a warm weather destination because of snow and cold.

I should have been a bit more explicit. Our stay is linked to the Belgian school Easterbreak, starting 3 Apr. We'll be arriving in NYC, stay there for a couple of days, then drive to the falls (2 nights stay), from there on in 2 days to Waterville, spend Estern with our daughter there, then via Boston (2 nights) back to NYC. I reckon it'll take quite a bit of driving, but we want to "taste" the US. It's early in the season but we really have no other option, this year. Thank you all for sharing your opinion. Looking forward!!!

Personally, I would skip trying to see Niagra Falls in April. New York City and Boston stays can EASILY be extended and you will have plenty to see and do.

You can also include Portsmouth, New Hampshire (great city with a lot of history and charm) on your way between Boston and Maine.

Save Niagra Falls(and the the fact that it's quite out of the way for getting to Maine) for another trip.

April is likely still winter in that area. There can still be quite a bit of snow and many of the attractions don;t open until May (since things are still frozen).

That part of the US is much colder than Belgium, and April is generally considered mud season (melting snow makes a mess everywhere) and snow storm are still possible. Not really a time to go to Niagara Falls.

Separately, the drive from Waterville ME to Niagara Falls will take more than 10 hours each way without stops - so you would have to take a minimum of 3 days for the trip - a long drive there, one day at the Falls - and a long day driving back. You would also have to be sure you're allowed to take the car into Canada.

Also, most sights are on the Canadian side - so you need to be sure that your paperwork allows for multiple entries to the US.

Really - not a trip I would attempt then.

Have you looked into what there is to see and do in Niagara Falls? I found that an afternoon was plenty of time to spend there, so you should consider if it is worth it for the time it will take to drive there from NYC and then to Waterville.

It sounds like you will be in the US for about a week. The itinerary you are considering will have you driving in your car on interstate highways most of that time. (In my opinion, not the best way to get a taste of any country!) I agree with the previous poster - skip the falls and concentrate on NYC, Boston and New England.

I think your route will be dependent on the weather. Our part of the US has experienced notorious blizzards in April but in other years spring comes early. I would skip the Niagara trip because the drive will be very boring for such a short visit. You can pack more into fewer miles with a better route from NYC to Maine.
If you want to include a bit of Vermont you could come up thru CT and western MA and take I91 to VT. Even if you took I90 (MA turnpike) to Rt 495, you could cut off at Rt 3N to go up thru NH. You could continue north to Rt 93 and go thru the White Mountains. The ski areas should still be open. Cut across to Portland ME then north on Rt 95. You can visit Portsmouth NH on your way back from ME when you are headed to Boston.
Keep in mind that the Rt 495 to 95 route is part of Boston's high traffic commuting route. Avoid commuting hours and esp Fridays.

Welcome to the USA!

At the risk of being overly negative (for all I know, you're a major waterfall enthusiast), I would definitely skip Niagara Falls for this trip. It's impressive, but I think it's only worth about a half-day visit. Maybe a full day at most. Any longer than that, and you'll just find yourself mired in some extremely tacky tourist traps on the Canadian side. It would be a tragic waste of time after flying so far. Besides, the trip that you have proposed would entail far, far too much driving for the amount of time you have planned, even if you like to explore new places by driving (as I do). Even if you drive straight from NYC to Waterville and back again, you'll still be doing a lot more driving than is really ideal for a one-week vacation.

I think you should try to make all of your long-distance driving one-way, heading north. If you want to include New York in your visit (and New York is a fantastic place for any first-time visitor to the U.S. to see), you might see if you can convert your plane ticket to an "open jaw" ticket, in which you fly into New York, and fly back to Europe from Boston. Alternatively, if you must depart from New York, then I'd recommend booking a one-way domestic flight from Portland or Bangor back to New York on the day of your departure, and connecting to your international flight (just make sure your Maine->New York flight goes to the same airport from which your flight back to Europe is leaving, because there are three airports in New York). Either of these options will free up a lot more time for you to explore both the cities and the countryside of America.

Here's what I'd do: consider extending your stay in New York a little bit. It's an enormous, complex, and fascinating place. The population of New York City is almost as large as the population of Belgium! And the New York metropolitan area has about twice as many people as Belgium.

Plan your exit from New York City carefully. Get some advice from locals here on what route to take out of town, and try hard to avoid rush hour traffic. Drive directly to Boston, by taking the Merritt Parkway through Connecticut, and connecting to I-91 through Hartford. This is the most scenic route, which should give you a nice view of the Connecticut countryside in April, and it also happens to be the fastest way to go. Other than watching the scenery along the way, I wouldn't make any major stops on your way to Boston.

After spending a few days in Boston, you could then start driving up into Maine. Even a direct trip to Waterville will take a pretty long time. You'd be surprised how far apart things are up there. I would use this part of the trip as your "exploring by automobile" time. You could explore some small towns on the Maine seacoast, which can be quite picturesque. You might even head all the way up to Acadia National Park, which is farther north than Waterville, but quite beautiful.

The previous poster brings up a important point - things are far apart up here (I'm in New Hampshire).

Go to a website like expedia.com and plot out the mileage and hours driving of your itinerary. Since you're doing a cartrip and new to the country, make sure you have a really good road map

We have given you our best suggestions. Please reply with specific questions.

Good idea. maps.google.com is my favorite map site. But I would suggest even more than carefully planning a route and having a good set of maps -- I'd bring a GPS device, or rent a car that has one. This is a topic that has been covered many times on these forums, but I'll recapitulate my feelings on the subject briefly. I think it's far more relaxing traveling by car if you have GPS. You'll have a much better sense of where you are, how far you have left to drive, what lunch options are available nearby if you're getting hungry, where the closest gas station is... and most importantly, you can meander aimlessly off the main roads for as long as you want, without having to worry about whether or not you'll be able to find your way back.

*an important (not a).

Hello Belgian traveller
I just had to reply to this post as I lived 20 minutes away from Niagara Falls Canada for most of my life. Here are some facts. If you want to see the Falls and this is your chance then it will be well worth your drive. It is awesome during all the seasons. The first of April is our spring and the weather is varied. We can have a freak snowstorm but that is unusual we can also have beautiful spring days around 10-15C. My birthday is the first of April and I often went to the falls to see the daffodils blooming. Not every year mind you as if it is still chilly they will be behind. There is lots of things to do and we don't shut down for the winter! The butterfly conservatory is open on the Niagara Parkway check out www.niagaraparks.com for info on all kinds of things. Take the drive on the parkway to the small village of Niagara on the Lake and stop for wine tastings at the local vinyards along the way. Buy some local jams at Greaves or Kurtz Orchards in NOTL. You should be able to get really good hotel packages in April but do stay on the CAD side as it really is much prettier. Even if the Maid of the Mist and some other river attractions are not open just watching the Falls and taking a walk to see both the Canadian and American Falls is fun. If we still have big ice mountains below the Falls that is good to see as well.People from all over Ontario go to the Falls all winter long as there is lots of things to see and do. If you can't make it this trip I hope you can visit another time!

You really need to leave your options open regarding the Falls. If there's an early spring it may be doable. If not, that area can still have a lot of snow - meaning things are not open, road conditions can be bad (the 7 hour drive from NYC to Niagara Falls could easily be twice that).

That whole area is in the snow belt and often it falls in earl November and you don't see the ground again until the end of April (this is FEET of snow). And similar is tru across the state heading straight east - you can have a LOT of snow.

So - I would be prepared with an alternate plan - more time in NYC and Boston (which can still have snow - but usually has an earlier spring being right on the coast). You might drive up the CT, RI, MA coast to avoid the worst of the weather if necesary.

I don't know about NYC but the Niagara Peninsula does not have FEET of snow in April!! Snow belts are in the southtown ski areas south of Buffalo and I don't know if they are even still open mid April. Golf courses try for an April 1 opening and are usually all up and going by the 15th. Can't golf with FEET of snow! Who knows we may just have that odd April storm so watch the weather channel and have an alternate plan. Look how cold FLA has been this past week you never know.

Am not saying there WILL be feet of snow. Just that there can be. (The blizzard of 88 dropped almost 2 feet in NYC at the very end of March).

The weather is very different than what someone from europe would expect.

Just suggesting they have some alternate plans in mind.

hello Belgiantraveller

We live near Portsmouth, New Hampshire, which is about 2.5 hours south of Waterville, Maine. My husband goes to Niagara Falls every year. He tells me driving from the Canadian side of the Falls to my area would take approximately 10 hours, going a bit over the speed limit and stopping once for gas and fast food. If you get held up in Customs for any reason, you might add another hour. Then, add on another 2.5 hours to get to Waterville.

As far as places to see between Waterville and Boston, I recommend Portland, Maine; Portsmouth, New Hampshire and/or Newburyport, Massachusetts. All are small enough to navigate easily and all have lots of shops, restaurants, etc. You could probably find lots of threads on Fodors describing each location.

As for weather, you may get lucky and experience lovely spring weather (and mud!) or you may get cold, wet, snow/ rain. And you may get both! That's the mystery of New England weather.

Whatever you decide for an itinerary, I hope you have a great time! And if possible, do get a GPS. It will give you directions and tell you where to find close gas stations, restaurants, etc. along the way. I think that would be enormously helpful for the trip you describe.

I've been to Niagara Falls twice, both times in December. It was very cold, but still very impressive and worth the stop. I don't think I'd let the weather be a dissuading factor in April. But the distance -- I still think it's far too much driving for a one-week trip that's also supposed to include New York, Boston, and Maine.

You should consider making the trip from NYC to Niagara Falls on either Amtrak Train or MEGABUS... you board in NYC and ride in the bus or train... you can then rent a car for your stay, enjoy the area and train or bus to Boston... same price or lower, less problems...

I just noticed this is a YEAR OLD POST... how was the trip?