Being a school teacher, I have the luxury of going on a 3-week trip this summer. I will be traveling from Virginia, by car, to Killington, VT for a week. This will be followed by a week traveling toward Bayonne, NJ to board a cruise ship. I am looking for suggestions on where I should spend my days while heading to NJ from VT. I will have a road bike with me but am open to any experiences....as long as they don't break the bank! Are there any hidden gems along the way? Lodging suggestions? Thanks so much for your time!

Have you been to the Shelburn Museum in Vt?

Or head to the Mystic CT area and do up the Seaport Museum and/or Aquarium, then take the ferry from New London, CT to Orient Point on Long Isaland and stop at some of the NY beaches on your way west to Bayonne.

Depending on your interests and the route you want to take (including how far east you want to head), consider among other options:

--the Berkshires (Stockbridge, Lenox, Williamstown, Pittsfield, and such)
--Pioneer Valley (Amherst, Northampton, Historic Deerfield, and such)
--Old Sturbridge Village
--Hartford, CT
--New Haven, CT

Mystic is supposed to be excellent, but haven't been. Ditto on the Litchfield Hills area of Connecticut, various Vermont towns (Bennington, the Arlington/Dorset/Manchester area, Woodstock, Montpelier/Waterbury), and New York state's Hudson River Valley leading up to Albany.

As you're heading south along the main corridor I thik it's worth a stop at:
downtown Brattleboro VT
Northampton MA
and Skinner Park...
www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/skinner/

Vermont: Seconding Shelburne Museum, Burlington in general, Middlebury

Massachusetts: Amherst (Emily Dickinson House) Old Deerfield historic houses and museum, west on back roads to North Adams and Mass Museum of Contemporary Art, west to Williamstown for Clark and Williams College museums, south to Berkshires (as above). Melville's house is in Pittsfield, Hancock Shaker Museum is near NY state line.

Connecticut: US 7 along the Housatonic to Danbury. Very scenic.

New York: Hudson Valley, West Point, Dutch mansion, Roosevelt home

I think you've gotten some nice suggestions. My one caution is that Mystic Ct. would be a little out of the way, and in general I'd suggest trying to avoid I-95 in CT-- you are bound to get caught in construction/traffic unless you drive it in the middle of the night (and even that isn't foolproof).

Brattleboro is a fun place to stop, and I also agree with the suggestion to see the Shelburne Museum, and the town of Burlington. Really, anywhere in Vermont is wonderful. Have a great trip!

The Clark Museum in Williamstown and MassMoCA in nearby North Adams are both world class museums. The Clark is featuring an exhibit of Picasso/Degas this summer - very well done. Also in Williamstown - the theater festival with Broadway quality shows. Mezze is a great Williamstown restaurant - a number of nice bed and breakfasts in the area.