camillec

My husband and I are driving from Philadelphia to Kennebunkport in early September and plan to stay there for 3 days. Because we like to go exploring, we want to make a 1 night stop on the way up and another on the way back and check out some other interesting areas. Any suggestions? We're not interested in Boston or New York City_looking for something more relaxing.

Perkins

Check out Newburyport, Mass. Sweet little oceanside town with lots of shops and restaurants and a few B & B's Also check out Portsmouth, NH. This is only about 45 minutes from Kennebunkport, but a great little city also on the waterfront. It has great restaurants, outside dining. B & B and boat trips. From there you can take a leisurely ride to Kennebunkport along Route 1 and stop in Ogunquit at Barnicle Billy's for a lobster roll. for lunch. If you want something about half way, what about Mystic, Connecticut. Have fun.

rkkwan

Try the Berkshires in western MA, or someplace in southern hills of VT or NH. Good contrast with the Maine coast.

dfrostnh

If you stayed in Mystic you could have a lobster roll at nearby Abbott's. It was kind of hard to find but is in a beautiful location on the water. I visited the Indian Museum at Foxwoods because friends wanted to go. I was very interesting and well done.

If you get off Rt 95 and come up thru Hartford CT and continue up to Brattleboro VT you can go thru Keene and then take Rt 101. This is a quiet corner of SW NH. Peterborough NH is a beautiful small town with a great gallery and I love the Toadstool book store. Several of the towns in this area were old mill towns. Harrisville has beautiful old brick mill buildings but they're not huge like the ones in Manchester. They're from an era that has pretty much disappeared but the buildings are being preserved and used. I usually recommend Concord NH which has a lovely downtown with unique shops. The Museum of NH History is in one of the old stone buildings. The State Capitol is on Main Street. If you stayed at the Holiday Inn you could park your car and explore Main Street on foot. On the southern end/east side you can take a coffee break at Bread and Chocolate. Cross the street and windown shop your way back. Take a slight detour up Warren Street to the Granite State Candy Shop. If you knit there is a wonderful yarn shop on South Main. You might want to drive around the nearby streets. There's a lot of nice architecture. A lot of locals don't even realize there's a lovely riverside park behind the ice arena. You'll probably see some kayakers but rarely a motorboat. Leave Concord and head over to the coast via Rt 4. There's a lot of antique shops in Northwood. Enjoy the trip.

epi

I have a few ideas. We went from Boston to Philadelphia a couple of months ago by way of Hyde Park NY. This is not the most direct route, but not bad. That way you can see Hyde park attractions such as FDR museum and Vanderbilt and Mills mansions, then drive through Lenox MA in the Berkshires. Lenox has the Norman Rockwell museum, which I highly recommend. If you stay in or near Hyde Park, it is probably about 4 1/2 hours to Kennebunkport from Hyde park (I think) without a stop in Lenox. An easier option if you want more ocean is to go to Rockport and Gloucester MA. The only problem with that is that they are only 1/1/2 hours to Kennebunkport, so not really a half way stop. Rockport is a really pretty coastal town with many B&Bs.

Nosnhoj

Have you considered sturbridge, MA--
right off the MA pike ... Cute restaurants, lots of antique shops and there is a village that is a reenactment of the origial settlement
>> This would be on the way-- especially if you are cuting thru Worester, MA on your way to K'port...
By the way-- K'port is approx.. 3hrs+ from Hartford< CT.. just sot you have a time line of sorts