allset2travel

Stay in the Big Apple during first few days of this northeast vacation trip. No question regarding NYC except one; and several questions re New England. Net time available = 3 days in NYC; 8 days in New England (starting out from NYC with a rental car). Must make it back to JFK for home bound flight.

Purposes of trip:
1. Photography in NYC (and restaurants, of course)
2. New England scenic drives to view fall foliage & small villages
3. Photography and seafood indulgence in New England.

My prelim thoughts & associated questions in { }:
1. Shoot photos all over the Big Apple, day and night. { locations for city skyline, especially from Brooklyn Bridge area; is it safe at night?}
2. Drive straight from NYC to Burlington, VT. Make it in one day with stops (or short detours) to see sights. {Which is the best route? Any worthy spots to stop for meal/snacks and for sight-seeing?}
3. Scenic drives near Burlington for day trip. My initial thoughts were to include Morrisville and Johnson { Are M & J worth it? please make your suggestions & identify route and names of places if possible}
4. Drive from Burlington to Portland, ME, via North Conway and Conway, do it in one day. {Which would be a good route and what other stops should I make?}
5. Drive from Portland ME to Manchester NH along the coast {please suggest places to stop and for seafood}
6. Driving from Manchester and hook-up to Hwy 101 west with stops at Peterborough, Harrisville and Keene. End day in Boston. {What other scenic spots and villages should I included}
7. 3 days in bean town, probably stay in Copley Place area. Day trip to Portsmouth along coast {restaurants suggestions in Boston & coast?}

Sorry for the lengthy questions & lumping NYC in this other NE sub-forum. Thanks in advance.

BlackBear05

#4 the drive through the presidential range is great, i did it once just after 1st snow, and it was great to see all those colors with the white background.

another possible route, is take route 2 from troy/albany to greenfield, MA. that is also another fantastic pick.

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

allset2travel, I'm not competent to comment on the routes through New England, but instead of driving from NYC, have you considered taking Amtrak from NYC to Albany? You'll not have as long a drive, you'll get a pretty train ride along the Hudson, and you'll probably save money on the car rental. The Avis office at Colonie Center (location code A23) picks up from the Amtrak station, and has in the past offered some pretty decent one-way weekly rates down to NYC, including the airports. If you did not want to go as far as Albany by train, there is also an Avis office in Poughkeepsie (location code PO2) that has even lower one-way rates to JFK. (I'm not sure if PO2 picks up from the Poughkeepsie train station, however.)

Just one more option to think about.

Efrem

You haven't said a thing about when this trip will be. Foliage depends on the calendar. It varies a bit from year to year, but things move from north to south over about 3 weeks sometime between late September and late October. If you want suggestions, you have to tell us when you'll be there! (Or, if that's still open, say that.)

allset2travel

Thanks.
Presidential range noted.
I will check out Route 2.

allset2travel

Fantastic suggestions, Amtrak and Avis.
I have not thought about Amtrak at all. But I will look into it now. Riding along the Hudson is quite tempting.
Thanks.

allset2travel

Just an oversight.
Will be arriving at NYC 09/26/2009. Tricky trying to synch up with mother nature. I have been checking a few web sites that track fall foliage. Since my dates are firmed, I decided to do the north first and work my way south.

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Just an update: It looks like Hertz is even cheaper than Avis on a one-way rental from Albany to JFK. Select the Hertz Central Avenue location, and Rate Code "drive"; if you have a Hertz CDP number (from AAA, the Entertainment Book, etc.) you may be able to add that as well for a further discount.

Have a great trip!

vicarious_MR'er

I am not sure I think item #6 on your list makes sense:

6. Driving from Manchester and hook-up to Hwy 101 west with stops at Peterborough, Harrisville and Keene. End day in Boston. {What other scenic spots and villages should I included}

That seems like going way out of the way to me.

I would visit the Keene and Peterborough areas on my way to Burlington, VT, and use the trip from Manchester to Boston to visit the Massachusetts coastline; Newburyport, Plum Island, Ipswich, Essex, Gloucester and Rockport, maybe visit the withcraft museums in Salem.

Going from Manchester to Boston by way of Keene just doesn't make sense IMO. If you did a one-night stopover in the Pioneer Valley area of Mass or the Keene, NH area, you could visit, have dinner, and get to Burlington VT early the next day. NYC to Burlington is a doable one-day trip, but it doesn't leave a ton of time for stopping and sightseeing like you said you want to do.

allset2travel

Welcome competition. Good to hear that Hertz is in the game here. I am with both Avis & Hertz. Also have AAA discount! Thanks for more heads-up.

allset2travel

My original thought was to spend a night at Manchester where I wanted to meet up with former business client/colleague.

I will take this under advisement. Thank you for suggesting various points of interest along the coast. Among those names, I had only Gloucester & Rockport under my radar. I will make revision.

I do need to make it to Burlington that day. I would like to cover the Keene area on my way back (perhaps a few days after Burlington). I will double check the maps and logistic to make sure the flow of driving makes sense.
I don't know anything about Pioneer Valley but will do a little research on the area.


Yes, I realized that from the beginning that there is not much time for sight-seeing. Perhaps a 30-45 minutes stop at a couple of places (along the way) would be considered as gravy.

As of now, I am seriously considering taking Amtrak from NYC to Albany and pick up a car from there. Thanks to guv for suggesting that.

mareh

Parker River Wildlife Refuge on Plum Island: You can see the salt marshes from your car, but you need to park and walk down to the best part--it's long, beautiful beach. It isn't really a place for just a quick stop or worth a quick drive through.

I don't think you can see much of the coast by just driving around Newburyport or Ipswich, but Newburyport does have some interesting Federal mansions and colonial houses. Ipswich has some amazing antique houses. Some date back as far as the 1600's. Essex is actually known for it's river and it's antique shops.

Rockport and Gloucester do have plenty of coastal scenery that you can easily see from your car. I know you won't have much time, but maybe consider a quick stop at Hammond Castle to walk around. (Don't get me wrong, it IS worth it to go inside, but maybe another time?) Also, Halibut Point State Park in Rockport has gorgeous ocean scenery. I would allow a minimum of 90 minutes for that one. The prettiest beach in Gloucester is Wingaersheek, but it's bit out of the way.

allset2travel

mareh,
Thanks for the heads-up. So much to see and yet so little time
I do plan to make many stops at various coastal towns. In addition, I may also do day-trip out of Boston at least 1 day to see the coast.

wideman

One of the better drive to enjoy the coast is in New Hampshire, on Rt 1A between Portsmouth and Rye. In addition to the excellent views, there's also a wonderful little park, Odiorne Point State Park (a few miles south of Portsmouth, on 1A), which is a terrific place to stop and stretch your legs at the ocean's edge for an hour or so.

mareh

If you do decide on Gloucester and Hammond Castle is open that day, PM me and I'll get you directions for a road you might want to drive that's in the vicinity. It's just a short drive, but very nice and off the radar for most visitors.