another vote for woodstock vt. quechee too. you might find a lot of cheaper lodging at Killington, the ski resort, this is about 45 minutes from woodstock a nice country drive. it would give you more options for lodging as killington is a big ski resort with its own accomodations and lots on its access road.

There is also the possibility of booking two rooms via Priceline for NYC when closer to your dates.

I've enjoyed just wandering through the small towns in Vermont, but on weekdays during that time of year. You will get much better prices and much less traffic. There are several "scenic drives" listed on the state's highway department website and I have thought everyone we took was lovely in different ways. With the high prices of the inns in that area the first of October, sometimes I have foregone the inn atmosphere and booked rooms at a chain motel along the Interstate highway.

I think we stayed in Littleton when we hiked in NH, so I can't help with Jackson.

Boston--on weekend once I got a good deal at Club Quarters. For business clients during the week, it is in a quiet office section, but it was near mass transit.

Plimoth Plantation is interesting history for American history.
http://www.plimoth.org/

It will be cranberry harvesting season. I thought that was an interesting sight to see. We stopped at a festival like this one and enjoyed it:
www.cranberries.org/festival/festival.html

I know I went to see the museums at Harvard with my niece. I seem to remember we enjoyed the flowers. She is an archeology student so she really wanted to show me those exhibits and explain them all to me.

Also remembered, my husband recently flew out of Newark midday, but stayed somewhere south/southwest of Newark itself the night before. He stayed in a chain motel in a nice suburb with restaurants, etc. then had an easy drive to the airport because it was after morning rush hour. The hotel was cheaper than staying near the airport and more pleasant. The locals on this board can probably tell you more, else I can ask him to check where it was he stayed.

A few thoughts about your trip and things to see along the route you are describing:

Early October in central Vermont is probably a good time for seeing "peak" foliage. Of course the exact timing varies from year to year.
Vermont has a foliage "hot line" you can call to find out where the color is best

Woodstock seems like a reasonable place to stay. It has some restored homes in the center of town and a famous inn. It is not exactly a typical, "quaint" New england village but if you drive around the area you can see smaller towns, too. Many churches have community dinners to raise money at this time of year. The billings Farm and Museum in Woodstock is a working dairy farm with historical exhibits.

On your way up interstate 89 to Vt from CT you will go right past Historic Deerfield in western Mass. This area was on the frontier in the late 1600's. There are many old homes to visit and a museum; it is worth getting off the highway to drive down the mile-long Main street through the historic village
http://www.historic-deerfield.org/about.shtml

In Boston, if you do go to see the glass flowers, it is worth while to take a tour of the campus or at least walk through Harvard Yard, too.

I can think of a couple of things you're missing Ingo; California and Colorado!

I once stayed at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont. It was nice. The restaurant was good, too. You can tour the Ben and Jerry's ice cream factory there.

Btw, I once stayed in Hartford, Ct. It was close to Mystic Seaport which you might wish to check out.

I took the tour of Harvard and I really enjoyed it. If you like history and architecture then I think you would definitely enjoy it. While in NYC I also once took a walking tour which took you around all the historic buildings and explained all of the history behind the scaffolding designs (gargoyles etc.). That was a great, different way to look at NYC and it only took about an hour. This site is also a good one for tours of NYC http://www.bigonion.com/. They are walking tours given by students in NYC. Enjoy your trip!

And I forgot to say Gute Reise! :)

Grasshopper: I'll bring my magic carpet and make a day trip to SF ;-)

Thanks again to everyone who responded. You came up with some very good advice and it's much appreciated.

The Harriet Beecher-Stowe house and Mark Twain house are on my list, so is the Freedom trail in Boston (at least parts of it). I will check out the Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum in Boston AND I will make sure to attend the GTG on 13 Oct. Thanks Bob! Touring Harvard plus the museums there will keep us busy another half day I guess.

I will make a reservation at the John Jeffries House in Boston since it looks nice and nobody had something negative to say or came up with a better suggestion.

As for accommodation in NYC - I will keep my reservation at the Riverside Tower Hotel at the moment. BUT ... I checked some websites of B&Bs and apartments which are of course more expensive, but look much better. Some are still reasonably priced. (Btw, the question is not how much I *can* increase the budget, I simply find it ridiculous to spend a fortune for the little time that we will spend at the hotel.) If the B&Bs/apartments do not work out I can still try the priceline thing and if that doesn't work I can still stay at the Riverside Tower Hotel. It won't be the end of the world.

The rental car offer did come with unlimited mileage and included the insurances+taxes.

Thanks for all the tips on sights Kay2 and Vttraveller. I will check out Historic Deerfield. Woodstock/Queechee area sounds very good. When I researched on the internet, however, I came across a place further up north - Sugarbush, Mad River Glen. www.madriverbarn.com which looked appealing to me. Anyone knows this place?

Thanks also Born2Fly - Danke! :-) The tour in NYC sounds very interesting. Will check the website out.

Another problem I ran into is that my address is going to change in August this year (home town unites with the neighbouring town). So, what happens at the immigration service if the air ticket shows a different address than the passport? I was told I need to show my return air ticket.

That's all for the moment, but I'll be back for sure to pester you with more questions ;-)

Ingo

We went to Vermont for a few days, it's a big state so we stayed in the North Shire Inn at Manchester, and then at the North Hero House on North Hero Island on the shore of Lake Champlain.

You can see more info here:
http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...2005/tpod.html

sugarbush and madriver are up near woodstock vt. generally speaking during ski season, sugarbush is kind of expensive but there is a place that i believe is called the sugar lodge or the sugar house that looks like a nice place to stay not sure but i'd guess that peeper season (leaf peepers) may be the same price as high ski season.... good luck

Ingo, may I add another museum suggestion since you already expressed an interest in the Harvard Square area? The Fogg Museum of Art (which also incorporates the Busch-Reisinger collection of northern European and Germanic art) is much smaller than the Museum of Fine Arts but has a very distinguished art collection that is well worth seeing. And it's not that far from the Peabody Museum either.

http://www.artmuseums.harvard.edu/home/index.html

As others here have said, gute Reise!

As suggested by another poster, Mystic, CT is a cute waterfront town. If you've not gotten your fill of New England waterfront towns after being in Maine, be sure to check it out on your way to Newark from Boston. (It means a slight detour - taking I-95 south from Boston instead of first heading west on I-90 - but really, what's one interstate vs. another?) We love stopping there on our returns from Massachusetts to NYC for a great little fried clam shack called the Seaview. Order at the window, then sit at picnic tables overlooking the river and the edge of town.

IMO, if you only have two nights in VT, you might not want to go as far north as Mad River Glen. I'll probably get flamed for saying this, but the mountains near Jackson, NH are very similar, at least if you're not taking skiing into consideration!

One of my favorite places in VT is Brattleboro, which sits in the very SE corner abutting Massachusetts and NH. Cute shops, good eats, appropriately VT feel. It's maybe 1 1/2 to 2 hours due north of Hartford, so it could be a good place to stop for a meal before you continue on your way.

Many of the Harvard museums have interesting collections and shows. In addition to the Harvard Peabody and the Fogg/Busch-Reisinger, the Sackler has a good, small collection of eastern art. (The MFA has one of the largest collections of Japanese art outside of Japan.)

Just to add a note about Priceline in NYC. My DD and her boyfriend just back from NYC 2 weeks ago. She was in a wedding in New Jersey but they stayed in the city their first night. Through Priceline, they got the Barclay Intercontinental for $130-I think with tax it was $159. The hotel is a 4* Midtown East. For what they paid, they were very happy with the room and hotel. Prices will probably be a little higher in Sept/Oct.

I also noticed on Priceline that a 2.5* hotel called The Exchange in the financial district is being won for $90 to $110. I guess it used to be the Manhattan Seaport Suites. But it is getting good reviews and seems like the rooms are pretty big. Check it out on tripadvisor. The location is a little inconvenient but seems worth it for the price. I would definitely book something cancellable and then try Priceline. When my daughter bid a few weeks ago, it was the first time we had tried the bidding process. It seems like it is difficult but was actually very easy.

The Mad river Valley is a very pretty area but as others have noted it is quite a bit farther north than Woodstock. There are a lot of inns and restaurants and it is a popular during both the summer and ski season. It is also fairly near one of the big tourist destinations in Vt--Ben and Jerry's ice cream factory and the state capital, Montpelier (smallest capital city in the US)
Foliage colors peak earlier in this area than in Woodstock--but really, it is hard to guess when the best foliage will be from year to year.

North Hero which was mentioned in another post is very far NW VErmont, on Lake Champlain--I would not go that far with all the other driving you will be doing.

The Trapp Family lodge in Stowe was originally developed by the Von TRapp family of sound of Music fame. Maria Von Trapp thought the landscape was like Austria. to me, both Stowe and Killington are too crowded but they do have lots of dining and lodging options.

Subscribing

First, good call on the John Jeffries House - a rare combination of affordable and well located for Boston. It's very basic but very clean and comfortable.

As for NYC, I suggest you get a place with
better reviews. NYC has some real trashy hotels. I hate to spend a lot also, but always make an exception for NYC.

Here is a great list of cheap places that have been well vetted by the Eurocheapo staff. I suggest you get something in the $175-$200 range.

http://www.eurocheapo.com/newyork/

<<nother problem I ran into is that my address is going to change in August this year (home town unites with the neighbouring town). So, what happens at the immigration service if the air ticket shows a different address than the passport? I was told I need to show my return air ticket.>>

US Passports don't even show addresses at all. Since they are good for 10 years, it is assumed that it could change. And I've never see an airline ticket with a home address on it. It is most important for you to have your passport name and your ticket name match.

You have gotten a great deal of good advice, but I might add that the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford is one of the finest smaller art museums in the country with a wonderful permanent collection and traveling exhibits or temporary exhibits of distinction. Perfect for a rainy day.

There is also a very good small art museum in Worcester, MA, in addition to the giants in Boston: the MFA, the Isabella Stuart Gardner, and the Fogg and its associated museums at Harvard. Again, perfect for rainy days even if you are not passionate about art, absolute must-sees if you are. The MFA has the finest collection of Asian art in the world, and its collection of Impressionists is world class.

I am glad you will have the opportunity to see the glass flowers. I had no interest before I went but was fascinated by them.

Parking is difficult in Harvard Square,but it is very easy to take the Red Line subway. For lunch near Harvard, I would recommend Mr Bartley's Burger Cottage on Mass Ave opposite Harvard Yard. Hard to describe, but very American, very funky, very Harvard, and very inexpensive burgers, each named for some political or social figure and garnished accordingly. Drink a lime rickey (no alcohol served).

Thanks again to everyone. Especially to ellenem for the reply re: passport/air ticket.

I appreciate all the suggestions for NYC accommodations. Let's close this topic for now, though. I will keep the cancellable reservation at the Riverside Tower Hotel and probably place a bid on Priceline in late August. Thanks for the info about recent Priceline experiences. I checked out Eurocheapo.com but all the appealing places are already booked.

You guys convinced me that Woodstock/Quechee is the area to stay in Vermont. Mad River Valley seems to be a bit too far northwest (and so is definitely Lake Champlain). I will find an accommodation in that area and let you know.

I'll consider a stop in Brattleboro on the way to Woodstock, but there are more places of interest, you know ... we'll see what fits in the schedule. But thanks for the recommendation anyway.

Once in Cambridge/Harvard we'll not miss the other museums that were mentioned - given that we're not exhausted and tired of museums by then.

I am sure I will have more questions later for you ... will start a new thread then. Thanks for now!

Ingo