One comment: Old Sturbridge Village is a fantastic place, basically showing all aspects of New England life in the early 1800's. We had a family membership for a few years when the kids were growing up, so we could visit often.

However, be sure to plan to spend the DAY there -- not just an hour or so! Once you step inside, it is, literally, an entire reconstructed village, with people ("interpreters") dressed in original garb, well trained to "act the role" in whatever they do there, and able to answer questions.

I hope you get to go there and enjoy it -- and that you enjoy your whole trip!

The admission ticket for OSV (Sturbridge Village) is good for any two days in a 10-day period after it's bought. So if there isn't enough time for a complete visit on Wednesday, then they can go back the next morning, or even later in the trip if they're in the area, without paying again.

Thanks to everyone for responding.
I feel a little better now about drive times. Sounds like I should be able to get to where I want to be and have time to see things too.

We do plan to spend the day at Old Sturbridge Village. We've read more about it and it sounds great.

Just to confirm, I can drive from Old Sturbridge to Stowe in a day and still have time to make plenty of stops, or should I plan a nite on the way?

I really would prefer not to make any reservations. Anyone think that's a bad idea?

Sturbridge to Stowe would be about 4 hours, so a leisurely day with stops.

For travel in New England October 9 - 18, you would be foolish to travel without reservations. The beginning of your trip is one of the busiest tourist weeks of the year.

Again, your best plan - for maximum foliage - during your dates - is to start as far north and east and you plan to go, then work your way south and west.

If you are departing from Logan at 6:40 PM, you could spend your final night in Sturbridge, which is about an hour drive from Logan, and it's almost a straight shot on I-90 (the Mass Pike). The later in your trip you visit, the better the colors will be (though still a bit early).

Without reservations, you may not have to sleep in the car, but you will see mostly "No Vacancy" signs everywhere, spend a lot of time looking for a vacancy, and pay more for less. Note also that many places have minimum stay requirements (2 or 3 nights) that time of year. And, there are very few "chains" (none in most places) with 24 hour desk clerks.

It would be a really good idea to select a few "base points" and book lodging. No matter where you stay, there will be scenic drives and much to explore in every direction. And, the very best way to enjoy the foliage is by driving all over.

I live in Burlington, VT.

I don't know if you've been to New England before, but the New England towns many tourists picture are found in southern New England more than the mountains of New England.
I know you only have so many days, but if I was going to Sturbridge Village, I'd squeeze in a day in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts (around Lenox or Stockbridge) and lose a day in the Mountains of Vermont or New Hampshire. Yes, this will pull you a
bit west for your drive to Woodstock, but I think the Berkshires will give you a taste of New England that you can't experience further north.

I know you have your trip set, but if I had the amount of time you had,
I'd fly into Boston-go to Sturbridge
Village-spend a day around Lenox-spend a few days anywhere from Woodstock or Jackson NH-zip over to
the York Beach, Kennebunk Maine area - and back to Boston. It sounds like a lot of driving but it really isn't. You'd be seeing the classic old New England(Berkshires)the Mountains(VT and NH) and the New England coast.

As for Stowe, I much prefer the White Mountains areas. You're going farther west than necessary and could spend time somewhere else.

Have fun

Vt has a "foliage hotline" each fall which you can call to find out what areas have the best color. The Northeast Kingdom has a week long foliage festival in different towns at the end of September or early October. Foliage will probably be better in that area than Woodstock. Small towns will often have church suppers and other activities/tours for "leaf peepers."

Just a brief caution about foliage planning. I don't know if I'm over-romanticizing the old days, but it seems that foliages have been more unpredictable lately. And perhaps more disappointing. I think most New Englanders would agree that foliages have been later recently. And for some areas, late foliage means no or little foliage as the rain often blows the leaves off the tree before they turn.

Last year, the Lake Champlain area had a beautiful, but late foliage. Many southern areas lost leaves before the color changed.

For many areas in the region, last years foliage was disappointing. The year before was decent. Either the year before that( or the year before that) foliage was a full blown disaster for all of New England. Leaves in my area went from green to brownish yellow, then straight to the ground courteousy of steady driving rain.

My rambling point is it takes a lot of luck to target a week in New England and get blue skies and bright reds and orange leaves. My advice is to enjoy all stages of leaf changing. Don't let peak color make or break your trip. . I've also learned to really appreciate the colors during rainy weather. Last year I drove around the Northeast kingdom in a rain storm. The lack of sun and rising steam from the trees gave the leaves a stunning appearance. I enjoyed that day as much as any foliage on a sunny day.

Of course foliage could be early this year. You just never now. It's been a wild snowy cold winter. Who knows what that will do to the tree schedule.

For those of you still awake, plan more of your trip around things other than leaf peeping.
Don't put all of your eggs in one basket.