We are having our first ever fall break and would like to head to New England to see the leaves. Our break starts Oct. 7... can someone give me an idea of what area the peak leaves would be at???

I would also appreciate any suggestions for areas that might have fun kid activities (ages 11 & 5) along with the scenery.

Thanks for your help!

I would check weather.com. They probably have info on peak times, if not for this year maybe archives of last year. I would say northern MA, southern VT/NH is probably peak then. I won't give specific places for kids since we don't know where you'll be, but I live in Boston and the Museum of Science is great for kids. May not sound like a place kids would like, but they do - it's fun and educational.

Get your hotel rooms NOW!!!

If you drive Highway 100 stop by the Ben & Jerry's outlet near Stowe.

Ditto what Sue said about rooms. Get them ASAP. I grew up in the Berkshires and our peak was *normally* around Columbus Day weekend, Oct 10-12, or so. Anywhere from around Manchester, Vt on down into the Berkshries should be just beatuiful during this period.

Thanks Sue and OliveOyl - Before posting my reply I was racking my brain trying to think of what else it was I had to tell DD...and it was BOOK NOW!!!

Starting in mid-summer (when it's too late to book rooms), there are lots of forecasts and maps available that predict when the foliage will "peak".

Since your date is fixed, why not just book a place where the foliage is USUALLY peaking at that time (second week in October), and then at least you'll not be too far from the actual peak if it's different. That would mean Berkshires in western MA, or southern VT and NH. Don't go farther north than that -- if you're going to miss the peak, it's better to be ahead of it (and have too much green) rather than behind it (and have bare trees). Right now we're having a sever drought, and can bring an early season.

Yankee Magazine has a great foliage website. You can get to it from here:
www.newengland.com
Oct 7 sounds just about right for Southern Vermont. Manchester, Bennington, Wilmington, or Brattleboro would be good places to look for lodging. Definatly BOOK NOW, especially for weekends.

I concur with the recommendations about booking now. Since you can't be 100% sure right now as to when the peak foliage will be in any specific area, I'd recommend booking in the Berkshires in Massachusetts or just across the state line in the Hudson Valley in NY. We were in the Catskills last fall and the foliage was peaking in early October.

DD. Just wanted to add, if you stay in the Berkshires, you can easily make a loop drive on Rte 7 as far north as Manchester, have lunch at the lovely Equinox Inn, cut over on 11 plus something else to Grafton, then south to Townsend or Newfane, eventually hitting 9 back to Bennington and south on 7 again. From my parents home, this was a nice day drive with some beautiful scenery. If you do stay in the Berkshires, I'd look at either Lenox or Stockbridge...both B&B's and some inns available.

Of course you could stay in Manchester too, and reverse this drive. Plenty of B&B's there and the Equinox Inn is beautiful. There are horse and carriage rides through town which the kids would enjoy.

You'll run into some pumpkin patches on 7 in MA for the kids, there's a little park in Bennington, a covered bridge in Grafton, but really...not so much for them to do on this loop.

Warner NH has a 2 day Fall Foliage Festival on Columbus Day weekend. There is a children's parade one day, a big parade the next. There's crafts, farmers market, very small midway, and other events. You could also include a visit to the Kearsarge Indian Museum and an easy hike to the top of the mountain. During the same weekend there is a country fair in Sandwich NH. I haven't been to this one but it is reputed to be an old fashioned agricultural fair. The Science Center at Odiorne Point just outside of Portsmouth NH focuses on the ocean and marine biology. Concord NH's Christa McAuliffe Planetarium is another idea, esp if you have a rainy day. Check to see if there are any haunted hayrides starting that early in the month. Charmingfare Farm in NH has gotten good ratings for horse-drawn wagon and sleigh rides, year round.

Charmingfare Farm has a website which strongly suggests reservations for the haunted hayrides.
http://www.charmingfare.com/

I remember some weather guy on TV this fall presenting a graphic of "peak" foliage days each fall and giving an explanation of, despite lots of "expert forecasts", it actually does not vary by more than a week ech fall since leaf colors are more light mediated (length of day) than temperature controlled. That said, I agree with Southern VT/NH area - you could always drive a short distance north/south or to higher/lower altitude to catch the ultimate. From there, it is not far into Boston area, since leaves won't do it for long for many kids. Check some of the ski areas - some operate year-round ski-lift type things for scenery. Also, as above, book now.

Here's another recommendation for booking accomodations early and www.newengland.com. A fabulous recource is "Best Loved Driving Tours of New Englnd" to see which areas you find most appealing, with activities for the kids. I would disagree, though, about not going farther north than Southern Vermont or New Hampshire. The dates vary a bit from year to year, but if you START on the 7th in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, particularly around any of the notches (Crawford, Franconia, etc.) there will be glorious colors around that time. If you head south and west from there, through the Green Mountains of Vermont (Stowe and on south) an then on to the Berkshires in Western MA, you'll enjoy plenty of gorgeous foliage. It is impossible to predict when "peak" will be anywhere at any time, and "peak" is described differently by folks. Also, the colors can be at a substantially different stage on one side or the other of the mountains in the same area. The best plan is to start as far north as you care to, then drive west and south. Note than many accomodations have two or three night minimum stays that time of year, especially on weekends. And, it's best to spend only a night or two in each location before driving on. When calling around, just keep trying until you find places without minimum stay requirements. All of the states have phone numbers with daily foliage reports (all toll-free, except Vermont) which you can find with a web search.