orangetravelcat

I have frequent flyer tickets on hold for an october trip to Montreal, Quebec City and Charlevoix, but my husband now says he would like to go to New England - I can get FF tickets to Hartford on my dates, and from there could drive to Vermont, and then maybe to ME for some lobster. Help. I can't decide.

gb944

Hartford is centrally located for visiting Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, as well as Boston or even NYC. Their peak leafpeeping time is around mid-October, so hotel or B&B rooms might be at a premium.

Hope this helps...

bm

You could do both Vermont& Quebec. Spend a few days in Montreal, Over to Quebec City, down to Vermont or vice/versa.

bon100

I live in Ct, so I can tell you a little about the Hartford area. The city of Hartford has Wadsworth Antheneum (art museum), the Old State House (history museum) and a very nice theater for the arts. All of these things are downtown near the state capitol bldg. That said, there are parts of Hartford that are not safe to drive around in at night.
There are some lovely B&B's in Avon, which is close to Hartford. Pricey, though. What are you looking for in a New England vacation? Historic charm? Maritime scenery? Nightlife?
Harford has culture and some nightlife, but not much charm.
There are other areas of CT that you might enjoy more if you want to experience charming, historic New England.

djkbooks

Can you get FF tickets to Manchester, NH? That would be much more convenient for visiting VT and ME.

What part of October? If the first half, I would definitely recommend VT and NH for the fall foliage. However, you would want to book accomodations just as soon as you've finalized your flights. Note that lodging rates will be at their very highest.

October is "iffy" for visiting the Coast of Maine. Weather can be nice or awful. Much more foliage in western ME (or anywhere with mountains).

October is also a terrific time to visit Montreal, Quebec City and Charlevoix. Don't know if it matters to you, but the exchange rate right now is dismal (.87) and there are heavy taxes on everything in the province - 15% (some you can have refunded).

If I couldn't decide, I'd go with whatever my husband preferred, only because I feel so lucky to have him and he usually goes along with whatever I want.

If you can only fly into Hartford and it's more toward the end of October, the foliage will be better in CT and MA.

bm makes an excellent point - If you fly to Montreal, northern Vermont, such as Burlington, in only an hour and a half drive away. For me, Quebec City would be a bit out of the way (3 hours north of Montreal). But, you could easily land in Quebec, and spend time in Vermont.

Much would depend on your dates, though, as it would be awful to arrive "just past peak" for the foliage.

dfrostnh

The dates are really critical. If you aren't arriving until late October, go with Western Massachusetts and RI. I've seen decent foliage as late as Oct 23 in RI. A lot of the really good lobster places (i.e. shacks) close after Columbus Day. Of course, regular restaurants serve lobster but it's not quite as much fun as sitting on an open deck admiring the ocean. For early October a combination of Montreal and VT would be great fun. You'll be able to find a few places in Vermont that serve lobster but it will be pricey. I have friends from the Burlington VT area who get their seafood fix at Newicks in NH. VT to ME is too far, do-able but not the nicest route. The least expensive lobster available pretty much year round is from the grocery stores which will steam it for you while you shop. If you stay in a condo you could have a private lobster feast.
I agree, Manchester NH would be the best but for late October Providence RI would also work. We recently visited a year round casual lobster/seafood place in Seabrook NH. No crowds but just not as good as lobster outside in the summer.

isabel

What are you looking for in a vacation? I live in New England and have been to Montreal and Quebec and they are actually quite different. Montreal and Quebec were great small cities - very old world European feel. But driving from one to the other, and from them to New England, I moslty remember pretty boring scenery. New England will be much more about small towns and scenery. Also, how much time do you have (a few days, a week, two?).

If it's scenery and small towns I'd fly into Bradley (Hartford) and head north. Stop in Western Mass (Berkshires with Stockbridge, etc and/or Northampton/Amherst/Conn River Valley). Then either north to Vermont for lots of small towns, foliage (if first half of Oct) and then east through New Hampshire (White Mountains - great scenery) to Maine and down the coast. Or if you have less time and it's towards the end of Oct, skip Vermont and Hew Hampshire and go east through Mass (Sturbridge) to the North Shore of Boston - not quite Maine but still plenty of New England Rocky Coast, lighthouses,lobster shacks, etc and better foliage later in the month. Boston itself is worth it for a few days of Colonial New England Historical city stuff.

orangetravelcat

Thanks for all your replies. bon 100-we wouldn't stay in Hartford; would just fly in and out of there. Everyone else - our interests are seeing fall foliage, scenery and small towns. The dates would be Oct 6-13. I checked availability for FF tickets for Albany, and Providence, and there was none. Will check MHT (not sure if AA flies there or not).

bardo1

I agree with the Vermont/Montreal combo idea.
Flights to Burlington can be pretty cheap and it's less than 2 hours between Burlington and Montreal.
Do both.

orangetravelcat

From AZ, flight to Burlington are not cheap. We have to use FF tickets and our miles are on AA. So far, the only availability on these dates is into BDL.

zootsi

BDL airport is a good gateway into western Mass, Vermont, and NH. However I wouldn't call Hartford CT a great tourist destination (as opposed to Boston which is a world class destination). As for the choice between New England and Quebec, this is apples and oranges - both are fabulous in thier own way. If lobster is a prime consideration, realize it's readily available throughout most of the Northeast, including Quebec (maybe a little less so in rural Vt). As others have mentioned if you do get up near Burlington, you are only an hour from Montreal anyway.

djkbooks

Here's a nifty foliage predicting calendar

http://www.yankeefoliage.com/features/findcolor.php

Enter your dates for an idea of where to go.

The leaves turn starting in the northeast, moving south and west, so it's best if you travel likewise.

If you fly into Hartford, I would recommend going as far north as you care to go, then work your way back to Hartford.

The coast of Maine is a bit out of the way, but if you don't mind driving for lobster, go for it! The weather will likely be most pleasant along the southern coast. Ogunquit, Kennebunkport, York Harbor are all lovely seaport towns to visit.

Then, you could head for the White Mountains in New Hampshire. Jackson, Bretton Woods, Franconia are all nice places to stay. I wouldn't usually recommend one-night stays, but during foliage season, the colors vary from place to place and driving all over is the very best way to enjoy the scenery!

Then, you could head over to Vermont. Our favorite places are Stowe and anywhere in the southwest corner.

From there, you might want to spend some time in the Berkshires in MA - Williamstown, Lenox, Stockbridge are all terrific destinations.

Be advised that some, but not all, accommodations will have minimum stay requirements (sometimes only on weekends).

Please know that you do not have to travel back roads to see foliage. The scenery along the interstates is also spectacular.

bm

Did you look at fares on Jet Blue into Burlington (BTV)? My DH and I are flying to Tucson & out of Phoenix in March for under $250r/t each. American does not service Burlington.

sobster

I'd like to vote for NW CT. For ex, the beautiful Washinton, CT w/ its world-class Mayflower Inn and the nearby gem Litchfield Ct.

AuntAnnie

I must put in a plug for Quebec City! It is a fabulous destination!!! History, architecture, food, and it feels very European. We spent a week there and thoroughly enjoyed it. The dollar is strong in Canada, so that is a perk.
Have fun, wherever you decide!

dfrostnh

Oct 6-13 is prime time!!! Use your FF for Hartford. It's only about 2 1/2 hours to the NH Seacoast and right over the bridge is Maine. You could head up the coast then over to NH's White Mountains into VT and then down thru western MA to CT. In fact, we use Rt 91 as an easy route to CT to avoid the congestion on Rt495/90 in MA. (I hate the Mass Pike).

orangetravelcat

Again, we would only fly into BDL. It is not our "destination" as far as sightseeing or spending any time. Although Jet Blue may have good fares, we would prefer to spend nothing on airfare, as opposed to $500 - would rather put that money toward lodging or dining. I'm finding some good rates at the Courtyard in Middlebury VT so looking at that as an option, and then maybe head over to ME from there. Will have to plan out a route as I know we can't "wing it" at that time of year.

virginia

hi ocat, re:route planning. just a thought for a basic route. from hartford to maine you might take rte84 east up to worcester,mass; then 90 to 495 around boston. then take 95 into maine. i would pick a couple coastal towns to go to.(you should be able to find lodging almost anywhere if you look now). stay a couple days so you can poke around and see the area. all towns will have lobster.
if you go up to waterville and get on rte 2 west this is the best/only road that actually goes all the way to vermont (to burlington). its a little busy in maine but as you get past rumford it gets nicer. once you pass bethel (a very nice town to stop in - try the bethel inn) you'll be in new hampshire and the views get really pretty. if the leaves are still up you might drop down into the white mtn nat'l forest here on rte 16 at gorham (another cool town). you can cut back up on rte 302 and rejoin rte 2 at st. johnsbury. all of vermont is gorgeous! i'd try to spend as long as possible there. on the way south, if you go through montpelier to get on 89 - just north of white river jct is hanover, where dartmouth college is located. great town. from there you can take 91 south all the way to hartford. this is a major highway but very few cars until you hit mass, and a very good road.

djkbooks

When looking for accommodations in New England, keep in mind that mostly only chain establishments come up with typical web searches and online booking sites. Chain hotels/motels tend to be located on major highways and in very congested areas. There are plenty of small, family owned, charming places to stay for reasonable prices in much nicer settings.

You'll find many, many more possibilities by checking the visitor's websites for each state, and the visitor's websites for specific areas (Berkshires, for example) or even towns (Stowe, for example).

Since you have so much time, you may want to collect some actual printed visitor's guides. Incredibly, there are many nice places to stay that do not have websites.

I highly recommend "Maine, An Explorer's Guide" (along with New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, etc.). You may not want to collect them all for one trip. But, I would, as each is incredibly comprehensive (seeing and doing, sleeping, dining, scenic drives, shopping, everything!) and well worth the price. In the alternative, perhaps you could peruse them at your local bookstore.

Also terrific is "New England - Best Loved Driving Tours". I live here and refer to it all the time.