Start in Manchester, NH going to Boston, family of 4 (2 teens) have 1 week in NE, what should we see?

What's your interest?

Manchester and Boston are very close anyways. You can start by going north to the White Mountains of NH, or go NE to the coast of Maine, before heading into Boston. Or west to the Green Mountains of Vermont. Or south of Boston to Cape Cod, or Newport, RI. Or just stay in Boston to see all the universities, museums, etc...

Don't know where you're from -- but what about New York City? There is so much to see there.

rkkwan has it right. You need to narrow down your interests and plan from there. Mountains, seacoast, historic Boston and area or Cape Cod & Plimouth Plantation/Mayflower. Can't do justice to it all in one week.

SE New Hamp, to Portland, ME, to Boston, then Providence, RI. We are nuts about capitals. Is this too much. The distances are hard to pin down. tks for all help.

Distance are very close in New England. For example, Providence is under an hour from Boston by car, unless you hit traffic. But there's really not much to see there. I worked at Brown for 2 years, and hadn't got into the Capital building. Newport is a much nicer place to visit.

Capital of NH is Concord. It's just about 20 minutes from Manchester.

Capital of ME is Augusta. It's an hour from Portland, which is about 1.5 hours from Manchester.

What I'm saying is that it's possible to drive from Manchester to Augusta to Providence to Boston in a day. A very hectic one, but the driving distance is pretty short, compared to other parts of the US.

Tks for lesson on capitals. We will do the drive and then end in Boston. As we work on this we have changed to taking only 1 teen and shortening the trip to 4 days! We start by visiting a new cousin in Jaffrey, NH. Appreciate the help in decision process. kb

Go to the coast of Maine (York, Kennebunkport, etc... you won't regret it. Portland, Maine is also a great city. It's also a relatively short drive from Manchester or Boston (2-3 hours tops... I once did Boston to Portland in 1.5 hours for a job interview, but neither I nor the state police would recommend doing that again).

Otherwise, all of New England is great! I moved to Boston 7 years ago after living in NJ, upstate NY and London England ... I've stayed in New England for a reason.

What to do in each capital depends on your interests. You can go canoeing in Concord NH within a mile of the state capitol building. The Museum of NH History is almost directly across the street from the state house. Christa McAuliffe Planetarium is nearby. If your teenager is female she would probably enjoy shopping downtown Concord's unique shops such as Gwondanna, Cardvaark, League of NH Craftsmen. Visit Canterbury Shaker Village.
Portland, take a lobster boat cruise. Get some beach time at York Beach, walk up to the Nubble Lighthouse or walk the marginal way in Ogunquit.
Providence, have dinner on Federal Hill. Johnson & Wales has a museum devoted to cooking. Visit Newport.
Boston: Duck Tour and the Blue Man Group show. The Kennedy Library.

Drive to the top of Mt Washington, where the highest wind speed ever recorded occurred. The views are incredible (providing the day is clear.)