Greetings,

We will be traveling from Manchester NH to Quebec City in August with two kids (one toddler), and will appreciate some advice as to which route to choose and where to stop for rest or small side trips.

The first half is easy, we will take I-89 to White River Junction, then I-91 to the border. I-91 can be considered a "scenic route", and we plan to stop in Hannover and have a lunch in Northern Lights in St. Johnsbury.

The first question: what route to take after the border? As I understand, Rt 55 to Rt 20 is the fastest way, but it does not seem to be very scenic, does it? Is Rt 112 through Thetford Mines more interesting? How much slower it is?

Also, we'd like to make two more stops along the way, to get some walking excercise. Are there any interesting towns to visit between the border and Quebec City, or may be some parks?

Thanks in advance!

Omigosh - the Granby Zoo (see the website!) would be just perfect. It's just off Route 10 in Canada on the way to Route 20. It's worth the stop, just for the baby animals. There's also food, ice cream, beverages, and so forth.

Would make a nice stop as it's about 2/3 of the way along.

My husband and I loved this place (and we didn't bring any kids...).

Thank you, djkbooks!

Granby may be just too far from Rt 55, it's almost like driving to Quebec City through Montreal. Hmmm...

The trip would be considerably longer though more pleasing to the eye if taking Rt.112 rather than Rt.55 to Rt.20. If you do decide to take Rt.112, you will have to eventually take Rt.73 to get to Quebec City. You could stop in Ste-Marie or St-George de Beauce. It is a much more rural and pittoresque area to see. Thetford Mines isn't especially pretty though, in my opinion, and I LOVE Quebec.

Have fun.

Ross.

To Quebec City via Granby would be about 40 miles longer, getting onto Route 20 about 25 miles east of Montreal. The most direct route is actually 55 to 116 to 162 to Route 20.

So which one is more interesting, Rt 112 or Rt 116? If we take Rt 116, does it make sense to plan a stop at Victoriaville?

Also, just how much slower Rt 112 is? What is considered the "normal" traffic speed there? 50 km/h may be a bit slow.

And please, offer more suggestions! Your help is much appreciated and I promise to post back when we return.