Vermont, NH, Maine road trip
 

Author: Kallie
Date: 08/13/2003, 05:46 pm
Message: We would much appreciate any feedback on the following proposed itinerary for our brief trip to New England in late September:
Day 1: Travel from Boston to Manchester VT and stay at the Equinox Inn
Day 2: Travel north in Vermont to Stowe area and stay at the Trapp Inn
Day 3: Travel south in New Hampshire on the I-93 and then end up in Maine (Ogunquit? or any suggestions) for the night.
Day 4: Head back to Boston
Any input on road conditions, hotels, sights, etc. would be most helpful!! Thank you all!

Post just ONE more time and maybe someone will answer!!

The Equinox is really lovely, we stayed there a few years ago - service, professional, absolutely no complains only raves -
In Manchester, there is a great lunch place called Al Ducci's - Al is superb, he and his son are cheese makers, everything is top notch homemade italian, you'll want to take balls and balls of fresh cheese home, and Al as well!
I'll be exploring northern Vt. next week, so no comment until then... and southern New Hampshire, so Southern you are actually in MA. Newburyport is a neat little village just about on the Atlantic and on the Merrimack - great stores, fine dining...and about 2 miles to the New Hampshire border...

Thank you, jtp! Sorry to bother you,
Gretchen!

We were in Stowe last September. Pick up a Vermont Guide at a rest area. There was a parade in the morning. The Dutch Pancake House is great for breakfast and so is the restaurant next to the movie theater.
Stopping at the Vermont Country Store in Weston is fun and you are sure to find some gadget or something to buy. Try to have lunch at Raspberries and Tyme in Chester. The sandwiches are huge so share one to leave room for dessert. If you stop at Cold Hollow Cider in Waterbury, get the Apple Cider salad dressing and marinade. YUM! I liked the wine tasting but this June when we explored Vt my husband much prefered the wine tasting at Boyden Valley Winery. The Culinary Institute runs several restaurants. My favorite is in Monpelier, Main Street Grille. There is another one in Burlington. We didn't find the traffic bad last September since it was just a bit before foliage started coloring. It sounds like you will take Rt 93 then Rt 393 over to Rt 4 to get to the coast. If so, you will go thru Northwood which is called Antique Alley. If you like fine handcrafts consider stopping in Concord NH before heading to Rt 4 for lunch and walking Main St. You will have several choices of restaurants and some nice gift shops including the League of NH Craftsmen. The Museum of NH History is also on Main St/Storrs St.
On the way back from Maine heading to Boston, if you have the time, Portsmouth NH is a great little city with Strawbery Banke historical area. The drive thru Newcastle is delightful and if you drive over to Rye you will go past the famous hotel that has just been renovated and beautiful mansions on the coast road before you get to Hampton. There are several places were you might want to stop to enjoy the ocean view. Find you way back to Rt 95 and back to Boston.

Kallie - you are covering a lot of ground in just a few days. The Equinox is a very nice inn and Manchester is worthy of more time to explore. Hildene is the family home of Robert Todd Lincoln, President Lincoln's son. There are often events planned there.

By the same token, Stowe is great as is the Trapp Lodge but also worthy of more time to explore. I love the recreational trail in Stowe for biking.

I guess if you are trying to see as much as NE as possible you are okay. But I personally would go to either Stowe or Manchester but not both and then spend additional time on the Maine/NH seacoast. And I prefer Stowe over Manchester. You'll cut down a lot on your driving and have more time to see the sights.

I would recommend the York Harbor Inn in York Harbor Maine.There is also the Stage Neck Inn which is down the road a bit. Never stayed there but I hear its very nice. From there you can drive a few miles north to see the Nubble Lighthouse and a few miles south to see a NE port city - Portsmouth. Or you could look into the new Marriott Wentworth by the Sea in New Castle NH - right outside of Portsmouth and on the ocean.

Have a great time.