New England Coast weekend
 

Looking for an early Spring, 2011 New England coastal destination for the April 29-May1 weekend! We are occasional travelers who would benefit from the experiences of many of you Fodor's Forum members familiar with this particular journey. Thanking you in advance for any help.

Weather can still be chilly then.

What are you looking to see/do? Do you want rocky coast or sandy?

I love Portsmouth, NH and the surrounding area.

It's historical, coastal, has a great walkable downtown, eclectic shops, good restaurants, night life with great live bands.

Don't know where you're coming from, but you can fly into Manchester, NH (MHT) and drive to Portsmouth in about 35 to 45 minutes.

Thanks Cranachin and Jaya! Portsmouth area sounds great. We will be starting out from the Springfield, Mass. area and looking for a New England oceanside setting, either rocky or sandy. Possibilities from Madison, CT to Portland, ME considered. What do you think?

Some of the other coastal towns are too small and sleepy or a little too run down. They have the beach and some hotels. At least in Portsmouth there is a lot to choose from without having to drive elsewhere. If you're into outlets, about 10 minutes north are the Kittery Outlets (above average selection of stores for an outlet) and super popular with locals and visitors.

Springfield to Portsmouth drive time will be about 1.5 to 2 hours. Just avoid weekday rush hour wherever you decide to go to.

I think Portsmouth is a great idea. There should be some spring color. Our favorite drive is Rt 1B from Strawbery Banke Historic area out thru New Castle. The coastal road thru Rye past the mansions is also nice. Even if you don't want to shop, if you go over the bridge to Kittery and follow signs to Kittery Point, it's a nice drive along the river. You can go to York ME for sandy beaches and the Nubble Light or south to Hampton.

Portland, Maine is also good.

If you spent one night in Portsmouth and the next night in Portland, you could enjoy both.

The road from Portsmouth north to Portland along the coast is interesting very interesting. It takes you through the Yorks (upscale and downscale), Ogunquit, Kennebunkport, Biddeford Pool, Prout's Neck, and past various lighthouses.

Portland has an excellent art museum, lots of restaurants, and, if you got great weather, the incredible and incredibly cheap mailboat ride through the offshore islands.

On Sunday, you could have brunch, drive a few miles north to LL Bean, and still get back to Springfield in time for dinner via the interstates.

The virtue of this trip is that it will show you a lot of highly varied areas that you might like to return to. The downside is that it is a lot of driving. But it is a lot cooler at the coast than inland at that time of year, so you may be happy to be in the car.

Old Portland Maine is great that time of year, and a real foodie destination with lots of eclectic stores and old world charm.

Ogunquit Maine offers 3 miles of hard sand beach and the rocky Marginal Walk with limited places open, but a very romantic time of year to visit if you bundle up. - and again it could be in the 60's or the 30's that time of year.

Additional thanks to dfrostnh, Ackislander and Kealalani! Any thoughts on reasonably-priced oceanside accommodations in the Portsmouth/Portland areas?

Portsmouth and Portland are both built on harbors and not technically "oceanside". And, both are year round destinations, so waterside accommodations are the priciest all the year.

For "reasonably priced" oceanside accommodations, you'd want to look for shoulder/off season rates in more seasonal destinations that are actually oceanside.

A quick check at the Strawbery Banke (excellent place to visit) website suggests that they will open for the season on May 1. Other historic houses in Portsmouth NH are well worth a visit but will likely not open until Memorial Day or possibly later. It's likely that the USS Albacore (a submarine) will be open by then for tours. And there are plenty of shops and decent eateries here as well.

Chances are good that a number of the attractions in Portland ME will be open by then. And again, there are lots of good places to eat and shops to visit here.

I'd do a website check in general of any New England based attraction you hope to visit that time of year, as a number have limited seasonal hours, often from Memorial Day to Columbus Day each year.

bachslunch gives sage advice, as quite a few New England attractions (especially the smaller or less-known ones) do not open for the season until well into June or even July 1.

goog point, bachslunch. BTW when I mentioned sandy beaches I was thinking of all the activity that might be there is the weather is warm and sunny - kite flying, lots of people enjoying spring.
Friends like the Anchorage in Ogunquit and it's right on the Marginal Way. There's also an Anchorage in York across the road from the beach. You'll have to check off season prices. Oceanfront means $$$ even off season.

Thanks to all! This is all great feedback, and what makes the Fodor's Forums the absolute best! We have agreed on Ogunquit for the 4/29/11-5/1/11 weekend; has anyone had experience with either The Terrace by the Sea or Anchorage By The Sea? Any help will be appreciated.

Go with whichever has the most lenient change/cancellation policy. At that time of year you are going to have to keep a close eye on the weather, could easily be cold and rainy.