Go Back  Fodor's Travel Talk Forums > Travel Topics > Road Trips
Reload this Page >

Summer road trip return DC to Conneticut-New Hamp-Maine-Vermont

Summer road trip return DC to Conneticut-New Hamp-Maine-Vermont

Old May 2nd, 2014, 05:35 PM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Summer road trip return DC to Conneticut-New Hamp-Maine-Vermont

Hi

My husband and I are planning out road trip up the East coast. We are currently living in DC so would look to drive up and spend two weeks. We have stayed in Boston and New York on previous trips from the UK so not fussed about stopping in the cities. We are planning to travel last week of July and the first week of August as it's the hubby's 40th birthday whilst we are away. We have heard great things about Rhode Island, Plymouth, Bar harbor, Burlington and lake placid.

Firstly is this do'able in 2 weeks? What would be the best round trip direction? We like to relax and take in some culture, eat in local places and stay in decent accommodation, not crazy expensive but nice. All ideas welcome as we are only in the research stage and don't really have anything set well apart from a visit to Ben & Jerry's!

Thanks
j_patts_249 is offline  
Old May 3rd, 2014, 02:57 AM
  #2  
 
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 30,951
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Yes, 2 weeks is do-able. Plymouth MA would not be high on my list unless you really want to see Plimoth Plantation. I would plan the trip so you are in popular coastal areas mid-week and then get reservations for the weekend as soon as you can. Suggest Portland Maine for at least a full day and an overnight but longer if you want to cruise Casco Bay and eat at various restaurants. On way to Bar Harbor stop in Camden and Rockland. Check the Maritime Museum in Bath ME for the schedule of lighthouse cruises. Bath is more of a blue collar city but Brunswick is a college town. Explore the Harpswells for lobster places and easy hiking.

Get a list of wineries and ice cream places from the state. NH has an ice cream trail. MDI ice cream has wonderful but bizarre flavors and only two shops, one in Portland in the Old Port Area and the other in Bar Harbor (Mount Desert Island ice cream). You can probably find a good list of nano breweries with a google search. The foodie tour in Portland is pretty good but not as good as the ones in Boston. You can visit shops on your own. Both Bath and Brunswick have nice farmers markets and you'll be able to buy blueberries from trucks by the side of the road. Local yogurt + blueberries for a snack, local cheese, fresh pastries, etc.

Take shortest distance over to NH which might be to go south to Portland and then west to the Conway area of NH. Ditto food places in NH. I'm not big on the Ben & Jerry's tour but it is kind of fun (but usually crowded). You can find locally made ice cream elsewhere like MDI in Maine. Here's the link to the NH ice cream trail http://www.nh.com/dairytrail
You can also visit the Sandwich Creamery and meet the cows
http://sandwichcreamery.com/
This is close to the beautiful Lake Winnipesaukee and also NH's White Mountains. Sandwich is one of our favorite tiny towns. We haven't been to science center in Holderness in ages so I have a pontoon boat ride on Squam Lake with our granddaughters on the to-do list this summer. Squam is very pretty but not very commercial like Lake Winnipesaukee.

you could connect with I93, head north (more ice cream in Littleton NH) and then over to VT for a stay in Burlington.

If you like pizza you can find Pizza on Earth but have good directions and know when they are making pizza. Like the Sandwich Creamery, you're not going to find it unless you have directions.

The drive south is pretty thru farm country but then you can aim for Bristol VT and the Lincoln pass over to Rt 100. Just outside of town you can stop for a picnic and/or swim. You can't see the small waterfall from the road but you'll see cars parked. People jump off ledges into deep pool but downstream the river is very shallow. VT has some good swimming holes. You can google a list.

Head south on Rt 100 and continue to I91 thru western MA and CT back to DC.
dfrostnh is offline  
Old May 3rd, 2014, 03:42 AM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 5,904
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Check this site:

www.visitnewengland.com

It will give you a start for the things that are available, fairs, special events etc. in the area and how things are orientated with respect to each other. You can look at the individual state sites also.

You could plan a loop through the area to hit the spots that interest you and then decide on which direction to proceed based on what will be going in the area that is of interest to you.
emalloy is offline  
Old May 7th, 2014, 05:10 PM
  #4  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thanks we have really tweaked our itinerary so we have the next draft! we have this worked out

Friday drive DC to Stonington/mystic
Sat drive to Newport
Sun drive to sandwich
Tues drive to Marblehead or Gloucester area (this is hubby's 40th in the middle day)
Fri drive to Portland
Sat drive to Bar Harbor
Mon drive to phippsburg/bath
Tues drive to Montpelier/Burlington
Thurs drive to Albany
Fri drive to philly
Sat drive home

We have looked into the maritime boat tour at bath and also the ice cream and wine tours. If this looks like a good plan the next step is accommodation! A mix of b&b and hotels would be great

Thanks for the suggestions
j_patts_249 is offline  
Old May 8th, 2014, 12:55 PM
  #5  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I would do Phippsburgh/Bath on the Saturday and Bar Harbor on Sunday/Monday to avoid the brutal weekend traffic. There's one road in/out of Mt. Desert.
hverity is offline  
Old May 8th, 2014, 02:04 PM
  #6  
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 17,990
Received 22 Likes on 4 Posts
Stonington, Connecticut is very nice. Look at The Inn at Stonington for a beautiful place to stay.
In Burlington, VT Church St is pedestrian, lots of very good restaurants there. Go to Shelburne Museum and also Shelburne Farm a short distance south of the city to see a fine collection of Americana.
HappyTrvlr is offline  
Old May 14th, 2014, 03:21 PM
  #7  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thanks for the tip, we will switch bath and bar harbor so we don't hit the mass influx to bar. We will also look to take in Shelburne in Burlington as we have some time there.

Thanks it's shaping up to be an excellent trip
j_patts_249 is offline  
Old May 20th, 2014, 11:24 AM
  #8  
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 39
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
New England is a wonderful part of the country. Very different from anywhere else in this America (I am not a native New Englander but we lived there for 14 years and my wife cries every week about going back) and there are an overwhelming number of places to visit and things to do. You have already received some excellent advice so I’ll just add a few more things.
We used to live along the Connecticut shoreline about 30 minutes west of Stonington, which is a beautiful little NE town. You will be travelling up Interstate 95 and as you pass New Haven, CT, you will cross a bridge (the Quinnipiac River Bridge – or just the Q to locals). New Englanders like to say that NE begins on the other side of the Q Bridge. I’m not sure what time of day you will be passing through there, but here are a couple very good options for lunch or dinner. Some of the best pizza in America is made on a unique little street (Wooster Street) in New Haven. The street is not too far off I-95. Wooster Street is only two blocks long, but it doesn’t get much more Italian than this in America (New Haven was home to many, many Italians from the Amalfi Coast area of Italy). Frank Pepe’s is in the middle of the block (Wooster is a one way street and Pepe’s is in the left). Pepe’s is famous for “white clam” pizza, but all their pizzas are great! If you eat there you will be eating at a restaurant where three American Presidents [George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush] stood in line to get a table [when they were students at Yale – which is in New Haven also]). The entrance to I-95N is right at the end of Wooster Street. If you drive down Wooster Street and go straight you will get right on I-95.
If you would rather have seafood, on the other side of Q the bridge is the exit for Branford. One of the best seafood restaurants we have found anywhere (pizza, seafood, etc. is a debatable subject – everyone has their favorite, but I will tell you that we try to avoid tourist places). It is called Lenny’s (not to be confused with Lenny and Joe’s in Madison, CT, which has good seafood, but is a tourist place) and just about anyone in Branford can tell you how to get to Lenny’s. It is the real deal. Great seafood. Lobsters, oysters, clams, etc. if you have the time and it is still light, keep driving on CT 146 all the way to Guilford, CT (about 12 miles). Yankee Magazine calls this drive on of the prettiest drives in New England. At the end of the drive you come out on the Guilford Town Green (again, Yankee Magazine claims this is the 2nd prettiest green in all of NE). You can get back on I-95 here and you have not gone out of your way because CT 146 parallels I-95.
As a non-New Englander, we used to tell our friends who were not from NE that Rhode Island is the “best kept secret in NE.” You will probably be in a hurry to get farther north so I will not bother you with info about Rhode Island. I hope this helps.
crossen is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Original Poster
Forum
Replies
Last Post
marvelousmouse
Road Trips
14
Mar 2nd, 2017 06:55 AM
tapper2
United States
10
Sep 15th, 2012 06:31 AM
sweets36
United States
4
Mar 8th, 2010 02:50 AM
sundancer
United States
14
Sep 11th, 2009 08:30 AM
rbenlien
United States
4
Sep 3rd, 2006 09:21 AM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are On


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -