Where to stop on drive from NYC to Montreal?
 

Hi,

My husband and I are driving up to Montreal from NYC with friends of ours for a long weekend. We plan to leave around 5 AM. Do you have any suggestions of places to stop along the way? Perhaps a picturesque lunch spot?

Thanks,
Michelle

If you leave NYC at 5 in the morning, you will be in Montreal by lunch time. How about Saratoga Springs as a stopping point for coffee and pastry? http://www.mrslondons.com/

If you are going in August, know that it is the busy track season in Saratoga, but at that time in the morning, traffic probably won't be bad getting in and out of town.

I've done this trip both ways a couple of times and Saratoga Springs is my usual stop. Even at lunch time during the racing season (which has already started) I've had no trouble parking downtown and only light traffic getting in and out of town. Try the northernmost exit for Saratoga off the thruway (is it 14 or 15?) as it keeps you away from the racetrack area and let's you approach the downtown area from the north.

I dream of Mrs London's pastries! Get an almond croissant and some chocoltae chip biscotti for me :)

I don't think the food options at Mrs London's are worth it, but the connected and related Max London's next door is a great lunch spot if your timing works out that way. If you are looking for a full breakfast, I liked Corner Cafe a couple of blocks off the main street (Broadway). Saratoga has a nice walkable downtown (not too big) with plenty of other restaurants, shops, Stop by Congress Park if you can to see sculpture, historic buildings, some of the famous "waters".

Depending on your driving speed and traffic, you could be in Montreal in a little as 7 hours, or more like 8. I don't know what the border crossings are like these days, but they are usually better going into Canada and from OK to pretty bad coming back.

Good advice about the Saratoga exits. Exit 15 is the one that lets you approach downtown from the north. Exit 14 takes you right past the race track and should be avoided if you want a quick in and out in August. And just to avoid confusion, the highway north of Albany is called the "Northway". The "Thruway" is used to refer to the toll road which runs from western NY to Albany then south to the NJ state line. So to get from NYC to Montreal, you would take the Thruway to Albany, then the Northway to Canada.

If you are too early for Saratoga Springs, there are a mess of hotels outside Albany. Once you start south from Albany, places ot stay are further off the beaten path, but Woodstock is a nice place for a night if you book ahead.