yestravel

We will be driving from Lubec, ME to DC at then end of Auugst. We're looking for suggestions for a place to spend the night about halfway between the 2. Not interested in Boston. We will be driving up thru Maine so looking at maybe someplace in NH? Any suggestions?

gail

NH is no where near halfway and if you take a direct route, you will not really be in NH. Hartford, CT is the approximate halfway point, and if you are just looking to sleep and eat, that would work. There is not a whole lot of excitement or interest around there that I know of - unless you are into the Foxwoods Casino thing - which would give you a variety of lodging and food options. But there are also plenty of generic chain hotels along I84.

The driving time for this trip is listed as around 13 hours. Depending on time of day and day of week, the second half could take considerably longer than the time listed - I drive to DC area several times/year and something always happens to delay the trip. It is also important to time it to avoid rush hours in the major metro areas along the route.

You could take a detour to one of the CT coastal cities along I95 - Mystic comes to mind. But I encourage you to take the more inland route for the bulk of the trip (via Hartford and then over Tappan Zee Bridge). Hoping this will be mid-week, or you will also have to plan around weekend traffic as well.

yestravel

Thanks! We aren't necessarily looking for the most direct route (Hould have mentioned that). After a leisurely drive up the coast we are looking to break up the very long drive home. Going a few hours out of the way is fine. Leaving Lubec around 9am and driving maybe 6-7 hours before stopping would work. It may make the next day's drive a very long one, but that's an impossible drive no matter how you make it. And yes, it will be mid week. Will look into the coastal cities in Conn.

china_cat

well, you could consider heading inland across Massachusetts, and stop in Stockbridge or somewhere in the Berkshires. Yes, this drive adds about an hour to the overall (according to google maps), but it also will take you inland from the worst of the coastal traffic through CT/New York...basically away from I95, which could end up saving time in the long run. And the Berkshires ends up around the midpoint of the drive, with plenty of interesting ways to spend a couple of hours or just have a nice meal.

gail

I am liking the idea of Stockbridge. It is about 7 hours from Lubec. There are cute shops, nice restaurants.

What if you then took an even more inland route thru Pennsylvania rather than heading east to pick up the roads thru NJ? If you look at a map, DC is almost due south of Stockbridge - and if you head thru eastern PA you avoid the hateful Garden State Parkway and NJ Turnpike. Probably a route less familiar with you, and then you approach DC from the west rather than dealing with Baltimore.

yestravel

Good ideas, thanks! Never been to Stockbridge and always love the Berkshires. We've actually driven up to NE via PA. It's a lot more enjoyable than I95, GSP & NJ Turnpike all of which I hate.

yestravel

Thanks...decide to go to Hudson Valley.