Late August - Boston to New England Itinerary Advice
 

I wanted to run this itinerary by all knowledgeable New England travelers:
1st night - 8/23/08: Arrive Boston and drive to Portsmouth, NY for the evening.
2nd night: Stay in Portland, Maine
3rd night: Stay in Camden, Maine
4th night: Stay in Bar Harbor
5th night: Stay in Bar Harbor
6th night: Stay in Burlington, Vt
7th night: Stay in Boston
8th night: Stay in Boston
9th night: Stay in Boston with an early flight out the next day.
What do you think? Any suggestions or tweaks to the itinerary.

oops..first night is Portsmouth, NH.
Let me know all thoughts on itinerary. :-)

It is not feasible to do a day in Burlington in between Bar Harbor and Boston. Drive time between the first two is 7 hours, then 4 hours back to Boston.

I also do not understand the Burlington, Vt night - is there some reason? friends/relatives?

To me, it is a different trip - a trip to the Vt mountains, lakes, Woodstock/mid-vermont , etc.

The areas of Maine you want to visit are absolutely gorgeous and you should take the time to enjoy them - that coastal part of Maine and then back down to Boston -

I don't know where you are flying from or if cost is an issue, but you may want to check into flights to Manchester, NH - spend your night in Portsmouth if you want, then head the next morning early and drive the 4-5 hours from Portsmouth to Bar Harbor, stopping for lunch - then hit Camden for a night and Portland on the way back to Boston -

and then Boston to Manchester for your flight home is about one hour.

Also don't know if you are staying in Portsmouth b/c you want to (it is a lovely spot) or if you thought it would break up the ride your arrival day

- otherwise, you could do Manchester to Portland as your first stop - then straight up to Bar Harbor, hit Camden on your way back and either spend a day or night in Portsmouth then or just go direct the 3-4 hrs from Camden to Boston.

I only say this b/c the way you had it, you have stops all the up to Bar Harbor, then the haul back to Boston - I'd rather do it the other way, but that's just me :)

Either way, make sure you leave yourself some time to stop along the way and enjoy the coast - some great hidden spots along the way.

Thank you for the advice. We are flying in and out of Boston as we have tickets already. Thank you for the advice. We will have to tour Vermont another time since it doesn't make sense this trip.

After Bar Harbor we will drive back and stay in Salem or Rockport, MA. Then head back into Boston. Does this sound a little better?

We agree with you in that we need to take full advantage of the coast since that is our primary route.

If you have any other suggestions please pass this along. Thank you very very much. You just made our plans easier!!

What about southern Maine? That is where the best sandy beaches are. What about Ogunquit or York? I am partial to the York Harbor area as we have a place there. Very nice area!

Salem and Rockport are nice, but I agree with bnb in that the southern coast of Maine is so lovely and gives you a different feel than the northern coast.

Good to leave Vt out this trip - so much to do and see and another magnificent area of New England, I'd rather see you save it for a week some other time -
but I prefer concentrating and enjoying one area and not the "if it's tuesday it must be belgium' traveling. .

For me, stopping in either Salem or Rockport on the way back to Boston would be enough - I love a few hours in Rockport to walk the streets, see the harbor, enjoy the art galleries and such -

I also love the same about Salem, and if you are intersted in things like the House of Seven Gables, etc - "witch" history, then that might be a stop for you -

In that area, my choices would be to stay in southern Maine for a night, then on the way to Boston, stop and spend an hour or so enjoying the harbor and galleries and lunch in Rockport and/or then head down to Salem and the Peabody Essex Museum or what interests you there - and then either have an early dinner (so you drive into Boston from there post rush hour ) or plan that day on a later dinner and don't leave to drive into Boston until say 6 or 6:30 and plan on eating later in town at 8 or so. But I'd hit both of those in one day and then have all your time in Boston.

I think best is for you to decide based on your interests - goodle Salem, Rockport, the tourism pages, Peabody Essex Museum and see what you think

- also in the search this forum bar at the top, plug in things like "salem, ma" and "rockport" and "ogunquit" and "york, me" and see what other people have said about trips there.

Skip Burlington Vt. for North Conway NH. it would be easier to get to coming down from Bar Harbor.
Dont forget to go to the Jordon Pond tea house for tes, on the carriage trails in Bar Harbor state park.
Suggest staying in a B&B in Camden called the Hawthorn Inn on the high Street (must admit I use to own it).

You need more than a day in N. Conway as well. It is about 6 hours from Bar Harbor to N Conway (lots of backroads to get there) and then another 3 hours to Boston from N Conway. I have done this ride as we have home in N Conway and Boston and it was not fun!!

I agree that it makes more sense to stop someplace right on the way home versus veering off the route - Southern Maine, Salem & Rockport are all good choices depending on your interests.