kittenlover5

So I'm thinking of 1 day to travel to Portland, Maine then staying there for one day, one day in Cape Cod, one day in Boston and one day in Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard (haven't decided which yet) and one day to travel home. Are there any of those towns that I should stay an extra day in or another town that is better? Since Cape Cod and Boston are only 1-1/2 hrs from each other, I thought staying in between would be a good choice and just drive over to visit. Then if we liked one town better than the other then we could spend more time there. Not sure how busy the towns are if we are better off just staying inside of Boston and walking or taking public transportation places. Need some advice. Someone also mentioned Camden, ME. Would that be a better town than Portland. Any other suggestions?

nytraveler

Sorry - but with so few days and so little time you will just be racing around from place to place, spending most of your time in the car and not seeing much of anything. And I fear you have a poor perspective on how far apart these places are and how long it will take to get from one to the other.

IMHO Boston deserves at least 3 nights (2 full days) and I would pick one other place to go - depending on what you want to see/do.

Also I don't see what time of year you will be there which will make a huge difference.

emalloy

Where are you coming from, by car, train, plane? When are you planning on doing this trip? What do you want to do/see? Are you interested in nature, museums, history, beaches, hiking, food, etc?

If your plan is to do a been there/check that off trip then you might be able to hit those places in your time frame. Many folks could spend three days in Boston or on Cape Cod and still not feel they had "seen it all" or even a little.

kittenlover5

We will be coming by car from Michigan. Either mid June or beginning of September. We will travel straight through to get there and home. Would I be better off skipping Nantucket or Martha's Vineyard to spend more time in Boston? We don't do theatre. I like to see historical things like the Portland Headlight, souvenir shopping, maybe if time a fishing trip, just walking around. It is looking like Portland might be more modern than I'm looking for in Maine. Was thinking of spending a night in a B & B. If I spend 2 days travel time then I will have 5-7 days left to spend vacationing.

kittenlover5

I think visiting Salem would be fun also

jenabeat

I think you should either choose Maine or eastern Massachusetts. You don't have enough time to do both and you don't want to spend all your time driving. I would suggest staying in Cape Cod and doing day trips into Boston, Nantucket, etc. Or, you could go to Maine and stay at a B&B near Portland or further up the coast near Camden. If you're looking for a beautiful harbor and more touristy experience, you may want to focus on the Camden area. There's a state park there with a fabulous view over the harbor and plenty of nice restaurants. You could stay a night or two in Portland and then drive to Camden, visiting other towns along the way.

doug_stallings

My personal preference is to visit fewer places. With only 5 days, I'd limit myself to 3 places, doing 2 days in Boston and 3 on Cape Cod, and I'd visit Nantucket as a day-trip on one of those three days, Provincetown on another, and Plymouth and a light house (rather than Salem) on either the way to or from the Cape.

If you really don't think you can stand two full days in Boston, then I guess Salem could make a nice day-trip, coupled with either Marblehead or Gloucester.

marvelousmouse

Some relatives just drove the Maine coast for a week after our trip to Boston. That's probably what I would do, based on your post. Get out of Portland and just sightsee in all of the little towns.

I don't really think you'd like Nantucket if you're looking for quaint or quiet. It is quaint but felt artificially so, and my favorite part of my daytrip was when I got out of the crowds and biked to the beach. I did enjoy the whaling museum though.

Provincetown is along the same lines but I loved it. Maybe because it has a very different energy. I took a ferry there from Boston, and that was fun. You really need at least two nights on the Cape. You could spend your whole week just exploring the Cape, though. I really only saw 3 towns and I was there for 5 days! But it was more about relaxing than active sightseeing.

Boston is amazing- I am not a theater person and I spent 4 days just exploring the neighborhoods and museum. Could have easily done a week or two or three! Salem is fun, but again, quaint in an artificial way. But it has an amazing museum and the area is pretty. Spent 2 nights there and I would have liked a few more to explore the region in depth.

suze

That itinerary doesn't make any sense. How are you going to drive between those places with only "1 day" in each? They aren't exactly close together.

suze

Some parts of Cape Cod are "quaint" and "quiet"... other parts more definitely are not!!

nytraveler

Agree that by the time you have driven between these places you will have eonly a few hours in each to see/do anything.

IMHO Boston needs AT LEAST 2 days - just to hit the main historic highlights (Freedom Trail, Revere's house/shop, etc) and check out Fanueil Hall and the waterfront. Museums would be on top of that.

And a car is a nonsense in Boston - you should stay in a central hotel and put the car in a garage - you do not want to try driving there - except tot take out to Lexington and Concord.

I would do Boston and Cape Cod

Inakauaidavidababy

What is your travel route? I'm ganna jump on the bandwagon with head either north or south. A couple of days in Boston and one direction. Not sure the non love of Nantucket above. I'd do a one nighter and have a fabulous meal and stroll, maybe rent a jeep and hit the sands. I like the suggestion of Plimouth Plantation and visiting the fake rock and then going to one of the countries most LGBT communities Provinetown, where America was actually discovered. Since you're a history buff.

I've summered in both Woods Hole/Falmouth and southern Maine and adore both areas.

Yes you can stick with your schedule, but in this case I think less is more.

marvelousmouse

Was basing my comment about Nantucket on the day trip idea and the fact I got the feeling the OP is looking for a quieter, less touristy experience. I thought Nantucket was beautiful but I don't think I'd go during high season again (but I feel that way about a lot of places at high season.) I would definitely go back for a long weekend though. Loved the food

kittenlover5

Well my plan was from Michigan to Portland via Hwy 90 to 495 to 95 on a Friday night, arrive in Portland Saturday afternoon (15-1/2 hrs according to mapquest). Signtseeing and either go at some point on Sunday to see the Portland Headlight or see it early Monday morning on our way out. Arrive in Boston afternoon on Monday. Sightsee all day Tuesday. Head out early Wednesday to Cape Cod. According to mapquest it was 2 hours from Boston to Cape Cod and I thought about staying outside of Boston and just making a day trip to Cape Cod but it sounds like the traffic is too heavy for that. Take a day trip to one of the islands on Thursday and start heading back to Michigan Friday afternoon and evening. Be back home Saturday afternoon/evening. Not sounding like this is doable and need more time in places. Was really hoping to see parts of Maine and go somewhere a little further south where it would be warmer but will live if it doesn't happen. I have been to Philadelphia and New York City. Are either of those places like Boston or Cape Cod? Would it be better to go back to Boston on a plane for a long weekend and maybe just hit Maine and Cape Cod? Or better to visit Maine and Boston and do Cape Cod by plane another time? I'm not sure what there is to stop at on the route to Maine if we skip Boston and Cape Cod all together. Looks like that route will only be abt an hour from Boston.

shayanjack

Wow guys, All of you have shared great information about places which are located out of East. I never go such kin do places in my life but I can go there easily. I appreciate all of you for this effort. Thanks a lot.

emalloy

Boston is a city that is easily explored without a car so if flying in for a weekend is a possibility, I would skip it this trip.

Take I-90 and unless it is rush hour in the Worcester, MA area, it will be a bit quicker if you head north on I-190 to 495 to 95 to Maine. Then you can go south to the Cape and avoid traffic in Boston if you take 95 to 495 to the end then follow signs.

Your trip will be much faster if you have a transponder for the tolls in 90 and 95. If you don't have one, go to the Mass DOT site or call them and you can have one sent to you that is good all along the east coast, out to Chicago at least, except for Florida.

dfrostnh

Southern Maine is tricky because so much of it has been built up. Beautiful beaches but congested Rt 1 on weekends. Portland's Old Port area is fun shopping and many recommend a mailboat cruise which you might enjoy after so many hours in the car. The view of Casco Bay from Fort Williams park where the lighthouse is, is fantastic. Plan to take a picnic and enjoy the view. We got lobster rolls from the Bite Into ME food truck that parks there. We carry bag chairs so always have a seat but there are some benches.

Camden is a beautiful tourist town with a gorgeous harbor that is home to several windjammers. I always recommend the view from the top of Mt Battie (take the auto road) but it is hardly the real Maine. I think you might get a better idea if you head to a lobster shack like McLoon's near Rockland. But you can condense your travel just doing Portland with a stop in Portsmouth NH. The boat dock is within walking distance of the parking garage, the harbor cruise or the inland rivers are boat great. The architecture is wonderful and you can drive past Historic Strawbery Banke if you don't want to do any tours. Prescott Park is across the street from the Strawbery Banke entrance and gift shop. If you take Rt 1B it will take you through New Castle which has lot of beautiful old homes and then you can also go by Wentworth by the Sea hotel which has been restored. There's a causeway on 1B where you can see the old Portsmouth Navy Prison in one directions (it's actually across the harbor in Kittery ME) and the hotel in the other. You can choose a restaurant on Bow Street, there are several but they all share a back deck. Get there early for lunch for a window table or eat on the deck and watch the boat traffic in the harbor. I guess it's both old and new together. We have not gone on a gundalow cruise which is one of the historic boats but enjoyed a trip up the Pistaqua (one of the inland rivers routes) on a different boat.

Boston is about an hour south via I95.

IF you don't mind adding an hour or 2 to your drive, I would recommend an alternate route. I90 to 495 to 95 is extremely boring interstate. You could drive from Albany NY to Bennington VT to Brattleboro VT to Keene NH - winding roads but more scenic. Depending on where you go next choose a route from Keene. If headed to Portsmouth/Portland, MapQuest will insist you take Rt 101 from Manchester east but that's another boring limited access highway. If you head to Concord and take Rt 4 to Rt 16 it will be mostly rural with places to stop plus the prettiest approach to Portsmouth over the bridges that go over Great Bay/Piscataqua River. This route connects with I95.

Yes, I think Boston is best done on a long weekend, arriving by plane. You won't need a car.