Driving time from Boston Logan to Brunswick ME
 

Flight will get in around 3 (this is in July). Mapquest and the AAA website say it;s a 2 hour and 6 minute drive. Is this accurate or will traffic at that hour increase the drive time? Wondering if we should overnite on the way since we might be tired from our flight. Thanks.

It's about 130 miles. 2 hour and 6 minutes is optimistic, because the first part on 1A and Rte 1 is slower - it's a limited-access road with no lights, but it's not a real freeway. Speed limit is about 50MPH and there's traffic.

Having said that, it's not a particular difficult drive. Since you get in at 3, I don't really a need to overnight anywhere. It doesn't get dark until much later.

Much depends on your date in July and the day of the week. I agree that just over two hours is quite optimistic, especially during the first two weeks of July, when, it seems, everyone is on vacation.

Assuming it's an ordinary weekday, I would recommend grabbing your rental car forthwith and heading north ASAP. Hopefully, there won't be much of a slowdown at the Hampton toll booths. Without an EZPass, you're at a real disadvantage if it's very busy there.

But, even if you do run into a few slowdowns, it's probably not worth spending a night on the way. Checking in, unpacking, repacking, will take longer than the extra driving time.

Traffic will be heaviest on a late Friday evening. If you are arriving on a different day of the week it shouldn't be too bad. I was on Rt 495 which circles Boston last Friday night. It gets pretty heavy after 4 pm because of commuters. There were creep and crawl areas but be patient. Traffic thins out and speeds up. If it's a Friday night in July travel time could easily take another hour. Traffic from the west will connect to Rt 95 at the Portsmouth NH traffic circle and there's congestion around Portland ME. Last July on a Friday we had no trouble traveling on Rt 95 in the late morning but friends said it was really bad by late afternoon and took them a lot longer. This was the Friday before the 4th of July weekend.

We'll be arriving on a Thursday. After speaking with my husband, we decided to stay someplace between BOS and Brunswick. We'll be tired after our flight and after sitting all day on planes won't feel like sitting for another few hours. Any suggestions for a place that would be north of BOS, along the route to Brunswick, and maybe 45 minutes or so out of BOS?

Portsmouth, NH. Nice town. About an hour north of Boston.

I try and avoid traffic as much as possible, and Portsmouth is a nice town, motels and B&B's, a shipping town that has come to life with art galleries, shops, and eateries. There are plenty of places to stay. And if you decide to go a bit further, crossing into Maine - the first town is Kittery - all the shopping and outlet stores that you could want (if you're into that kind of thing). Most of the towns in Maine between the State line and Portland are full of motels, and B&B's. YOu can take Route 1 or the interstate and you'll miss alot of the stop and go. And, there are exits if you choose a town on the coast. Kennebunk & Kennebunkport are about 30 -40 mins. from the State line - lots of tourists, slow going. Portland is another 30 minutes or so from Kennebunk - on the highway. And, I'd take 295 through Portland to get to Brunswick, rather than 95. And there is usually traffic between Portland and Freeport, especially in July. My experience is it doesn't matter the day of the week. And, Brunswick is about another 30 - 45 minutes from Portland.
And as an aside, I go up there every year, I use to live much further north than Brunswick, and last year we went to 5 Islands - one of the peninuslas just north of Brunswick. It was beautiful, and the lobster shack was the best.
I also love Two Lights State Park, in South Portland, and the restaurant/lobster shack right on the rocks where you can walk and take in the beauty and majesty of Maine.

fridays will significantly increase your driving time....you will be in rush hour and weekend traffic....it could take 3-4 hours if traffic is heavy...

There are a variety of hotels around the Portsmouth traffic circle/Rt 95 but the downtown area would be a lot nicer. Unfortunately, we never stay in Portsmouth since it's a day trip for us. Maybe someone can suggest a hotel that is in the downtown area. All I can think of is the Sheraton but I'm not sure it's within walking distance of the great restaurants. A great place to stretch your legs would be to wander around Prescott Park. It's right on the water across from Strawbery Banke historic area. Depending on the date, there might be an event going on (outdoor theater) and maybe too crowded. Although maybe not early evening. If you don't want to get in your car again and it's not walkable, I'd suggest a cab because Portsmouth has a lot of one way streets. It's a very popular downtown with nice shops and galleries and some great restaurants. Several years ago we took a horse and carriage ride around the historic area. Not sure if they still do it.
Brunswick is a great area. Five islands isn't our most favorite lobster place but in the top 5. Funny website. Don't miss the Brunswick farmers market, maybe Fridays (there's a guide to farmers markets at the Maine state visitors center on I95). Wonderful baked goods, jellies, etc.

What are your thoughts on staying at Lamies Inn in Hampton NH on the drive from Boston to Brunswick?