Here's our general plan. We want to go to Boston for 2 days and some of the quaint towns outside of Boston for 2 days. Our plan is either October 10, (a Saturday), or leave on October 15th, (a Thursday). We thought it made more sense to spend Thursday & Friday in the small towns & villages and the weekend in Boston. Is there any reason to go 1 week later? Will the leaves be changing by the 15th? Also, I know the small towns get tons of tourists on week ends, but is everything open on week days in October? Last question. My husband wants to go to Nantucket and Newport, Rhode Island? What are some charming places around these 2 points. He has business in New Bedford and has seen the ferry stop to Nantucket there. How about Salem or Concord. The more charming the better. We're from Kansas. The oldest building around here is a bar from the late 1800's. We want some good ole US history, and oh yes...charm! Thanks in advance.

I believe the ferry from New Bedford only goes to Martha's Vineyard, not Nantucket. www.nefastferry.com The area around the Whaling Museum is a national historic park: www.nps.gov/nebe/index.htm

You have two things to look out for on your choice of weekends. The first weekend is Columbus Day weekend, and the following is when many of the colleges around Boston hold their Parents' Weekends.

The second weekend would probably be better in terms of foliage in the southern part of New England. (New Bedford, Newport, the islands) www.yankeefoliage.com/peakmap/

Posted too soon. You could easily do Newport as a day trip from New Bedford. Depending on which day you need to be in New Bedford, it would probably make sense to visit Boston on Thursday the 15th and Friday the 16th. You could then leave the city on Sat. morning, dividing the remaining time between business in New Bedford and visiting Martha's Vineyard and Newport.

Thank you for answering so quickly. Got a feeling Columbus day's a big deal in Boston. So we have to reevaluate. Is there ever a perfect time to go anywhere?

It's not that it's a bad time, necessarily. It's just there may be less availability and higher prices for your lodging in the city on those two weekends. It is "shoulder" season for the islands, so it may all balance out for you.

I personally think Concord is very nice, and if you go during the week, everything will still be open minus the crowds.

The obvious site to visit is the MinuteMan National Park
http://www.nps.gov/mima/index.htm

But if you like American Literature, you can visit:
~ Walden Pond (http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/walden/ )
~ Orchard house - home of Louisa May Alcott - I was just there 2 days ago (http://www.louisamayalcott.org/ )
~ Wayside - home of Nathaniel Hawthorne (part of Minuteman National Park)
~ Old Manse (http://www.thetrustees.org/places-to...old-manse.html )

The following photo was taken by me @ Walden Pond on October 12, 20008; just to give you an idea of foliage:
http://i406.photobucket.com/albums/p...8/IMG_2474.jpg

Salem gets a bit crazy in October (for Halloween), though perhaps not too bad in mid-October...

yk, we ended up visiting Concord on our trip. We really enjoyed it - lovely little town plus of course all the history (it amazes me that so many well-known authors lived there -- Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau, Alcott). We have pix of us "in" (as opposed to "on" ha ha!) Walden Pond. Your picture is gorgeous and makes me want to visit during "leaf" season.

sf7307, I'm glad you enjoyed your visit there too! We live about 15 minutes from Concord, yet we haven't spent much time there yet. I hope to drag DH there during the Fall.

Another place which I enjoyed in Concord is the Concord Museum: http://www.concordmuseum.org/

Across the street from the Concord Museum is Ralph Waldo Emerson's house: http://www.rwe.org/emersonhouse/

Lincoln, MA is very nice too. It's just south of Concord. I like the DeCordova Sculpture Park http://www.decordova.org/
and Gropius House http://www.historicnewengland.org/vi...es/gropius.htm

Now I am excited to see Concord. If we want to spend Thursday & Friday outside of Boston, can someone help me with an itinerary including New Bedford, Newport, Concord, Lexington & Salem. I of course still want to fit in Nantucket, but only if it's not a hassle to get there. Am I being too ambitious? Thanks in advance.

If you only have 2 days to explore outside of Boston then, yes, Nantucket is a bit of a hassle. It's 90 minutes with no traffic from Boston to Hyannis, then a 45 min ferry ride (cost is about $65pp round trip).

I'd do a day in Newport and a day somewhere else. Newport has lots to do and see so you'll really be packing a lot in a day anyway.

We had breakfast at this cafe in Concord. Self-service, but very quaint (and local). We enjoyed it:

http://www.mainstreetsmarketandcafe.com/

Hey Zho,

I told you Concord was a good choice. The history is amazing and it's a pretty little town.. Remember Peyton Place? Well so many of the towns in Connecticut ( where I'm from) look so much like the the little towns in Mass..
I don't think you'll have time for Salem though for this trip..
Plymouth, Mass is terrific too. How far is Plymouth from
Concord? I can't remember.. natjgc

Hey Nat, You wrote me as z HO!!! instead of z WHO! I hope that isn't a freudian slip! I really want to see the towns I have heard about all my life like, Concord and Plymouth, but Ricky still has busineess meetings in New Bedford, so our 1st day will be spent in the southern part of Mass. I haven't looked at a map yet, but I hope Concord & Plymouth aren't in the north. Just my luck, they will be. Thanks everyone for sending all the links. Very informative and also a good way to show me so many terrific places we should see. I am sure we don't have near enough time to see all I want.

Have you looked at a map (just checking)?

If you're in Boston on 10/10, it's the date of the annual Fodor's GTG, and you and your family would be most welcome to attend. I'm from the midwest (Michigan) and have attended for the past few years. Bob Kimball and Andy Levine have served as the organizers. Bob and his wife are on a trip to the Baltics right now, but if you'd like more details, e-mail Andy at [email protected]. A few different "events" comprise the GTG, and it's a great deal of fun, the majority of the folks attending are from the greater Boston area, and we all tell a brief travel story to the whole group. Good fun, good food, good people--always a recipe for a great trip!

Hope you get the info you're seeking, have a good trip, and think about coming, if you're able, to the GTG.

BC

Yes, you must look at a map (and mapquest to give you estimated driving times)
Yes, you are being too ambitious for the amount of time you have.

I would drop Salem and Nantucket.

Spend a couple of days in Boston and Concord.
Plymouth and Newport can easily be done as day trips from New Bedford.

As pointed out before, Martha's Vineyard is easily accessible by ferry from New Bedford, but to get to Nantucket, you would have to drive to Hyannis, then take the ferry over.

IVK, I think your advice makes the most sense for us. <My DH really wants me to see Newport (maybe he's thinking of buying me a house) HA!! I want to see Plymouth because well, I grew up in the US and heard about the Pilgrams at least once every year along with every other American school child. Reading is definitely one of the things I love and seeing where some of my favorite authors lived & worked sounds wonderful, plus I assume the countryside is gorgeous in the fall. We will probably leave, Nantucket and any other island to another trip. Same with Salem. I would like atleast a day to do the Freedom Trail in Boston and see Harvard. The main thing is I know we'll be back again. Bookchick, YES I would love to go to a Fodor's GTG. I'm usually on the Europe Forum, and since I consider myself a travel fanatic (like all good Fodorites) I love the iea of getting together with others (like me). I just don't think there has ever been a Kansas City GTG, so this would be a great treat! Please let me know the details. Even my DH will love this. Thanks, I'll email Andy. Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. I have looked at a map, but I'm no good at it. That's what GPS are for!

Here's the thread about the Boston GTG:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...er-10-2009.cfm

I assume you plan to visit Plimoth Plantation? I found it a bit underwhelming when I went earlier this month. Go with low expectation or else risk major disappointment.

If you're really interested in the Puritans, you can check out this 2-hour walking tour in Boston by a costumed historian guide on Tu/Th/Sa:
http://www.puritan-tour.com/tour.htm

No personal experience.

What a great contrast, to tour a couple of Newport mansions and then also go see Plimoth Plantation and Mayflower II! Note that the modern town is Plymouth, but the re-created historic village is spelled Plimoth. They're only about 30 miles from New Bedford.

My favorite Newport Mansion is the Astors' Beechwood, which has actors portraying the former residents. They give a fun, gossipy perspective on life both upstairs and downstairs. By contrast, some of the other homes' tours are just recitations of where all the knicknacks came from.

http://www.astorsbeechwood.com/tours.shtml

Doing the Freedom Trail (or at least part of it) and Harvard is practical since Harvard has its own stop on the subway's Red Line, and the Park Street stop also on the Red Line is at the beginning of the Freedom Trail. I would plan to end the "Freedom Trail day" in the North End for dinner.

I agree that mapping out your plans would be a good next step: Get one map of eastern Massachusetts (including RI) to plan field trips like Newport, Concord, etc, and then also a street map of Boston (preferably one with subway lines superimposed) for planning the Freedom Trail/Harvard outing.

One word about regional perspectives: If you are from Kansas, then you will not find "small villages" within an hour of Boston; the communities named in this thread were settled hundreds of years ago and they now are built-up as bedroom suburbs of Boston. You will find quaintness where it has been deliberately preserved, often through expensive and highly-vigilant historical zoning, in places like Beacon HIll (in Boston) and Newport. Wear your sturdy shoes, since those quaint brick and cobblestone sidewalks are murder on the ankles.