<p>We’re going to a wedding in Vermont this fall and will be flying into Boston and driving from there. Our orginal plan was to spend the night in Boston before driving to Vermont, but now I’m thinking I’d rather spend the night somewhere on the shore before driving to Vermont the next day. Other than the city itself, I haven’t been in the Boston area for years and I have no idea what’s available. Any suggestions???</p>
<p>Well…if traveling from Boston to Vermont, the shore is the opposite direction. Also, the shore properties are a premium through the fall foliage season. It might be too late to get reservations (I’m saying this from experience…we went to a wedding in Providence and there were NO hotel rooms within 50 miles…).</p>
<p>Having said that…you could look into Old Orchard Beach or Wells, Maine, or you could try the Salem/Newburyport/Gloucester area of Massachusetts.</p>
<p>Or you could try somewhere in the Berkshires if you can still get a reservation. That’s en route to Vermont. </p>
<p>The areas that thumper1 suggested would still leave you a good 3 hours from the Vermont border.</p>
<p>But keep in mind that the Berkshires are NOT near the shore!</p>
<p>When IS this wedding? If it is before October 15 or so, room availability in the Berkshires will be limited.</p>
<p>Fall foliage is a HUGE thing in New England, and many places are filled well in advance of now.</p>
<p>Portsmouth, NH. Strawbery Banke.</p>
<p>If you want to forgo the shore and go inland, The Fitzwilliam Inn near Mt. Monadnock in NH, is nice, especially if you would like to hike the mountain. (I think you can drive to a spot nearby where there’s a ridge walk that is shorter and less strenuous than the other approaches.)</p>
<p>[The</a> Fitzwilliam Inn | The Fitzwilliam Inn](<a href=“http://www.fitzwilliaminn.com/]The”>http://www.fitzwilliaminn.com/)</p>
<p>Caveat: I haven’t stayed there in years.</p>
<p>Salem is a lot of fun in the fall.</p>
<p>The Northampton-Amherst area could also be a nice place to spend a night.</p>
<p>It may help if you tell us where in Vermont the wedding is to take place and what is your intended driving route. We may be able to suggest locations not too far off your intended route.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for your thoughts!</p>
<p>The wedding is in early October at Mt. Snow so it’s relatively south in Vermont. We get into Boston around noon and we don’t have to be to the wedding site until late afternoon the next day so we have lots of time to go out of our way and wander around. I was thinking of the shore because we live in a land-locked area and I love the ocean/seafood but we’re really quite open to all ideas.</p>
<p>I second visiting Salem.</p>
<p>That is a busy time in New England. You might have trouble actually getting hotel reservations…but look starting NOW. </p>
<p>If you are driving to southern Vermont, you might enjoy visiting Northhampton, Massachusetts…very charming New England town with lots of boutique types of shops and good restaurants too. It’s not the shore, but it IS in the right direction.</p>
<p>You could go to southern Maine. October should be off season there (or at least shoulder season). You could stay right on the beach and you’d be in the land of lobster. Map quest says from Logan to York Beach is under 1 1/2 hours. I live in Vermont not too far from Mt. Snow and southern Maine is our “drive through the country to the beach” trip. Granted it takes 3 1/2 - 4 hours but it’s a pleasant ride. Mapquest routes you from Maine to Vermont by going past Portsmouth NH and down and over to Manchester NH and then toward Concord but we go from Portsmouth over towards Concord by way of the Spaulding Turnpike and Route 4. Seems more direct and you don’t spend much time on any interstates. Should be a beautiful drive in October.</p>
<p>I will second the Portsmouth NH idea. It is an hour or so from Logan Airport. Close to Portsmouth is Rye Beach. I used to take my kids there all the time. You can take a nice long walk on the beach. Then at night, walk through Portsmouth and you will have a choice of restaurants. Snow Mt is a little over 3 hours away.</p>
<p>Ahh, October in Salem. The traffic backed up to the exits on 128 as the witch industry cranks into high gear. Great place to visit but I avoid it in October.</p>
<p>The thing about Mt. Snow is its below 89 and above 90, so you have to go west to 91 and up or down unless you do the sensible thing and take 89 to 9 and cut across NH. That route strongly suggests you go up toward NH, maybe to Portsmouth or Newburyport so you can take 95 to 101. That route across NH is super fast.</p>
<p>I’d be a third vote in favor of Portsmouth NH. You can walk on the beach and have a great meal. There are many good restaurants in Portsmouth. You could also go a few miles farther north and go to Kittery, ME or Kittery Point (both are much small towns than Portsmouth). If you want seafood–there are a number of lobster places in that area.</p>
<p>Why dont you just stay in the Boston area near the harbour. Its a fun town, lots of things to do and you can drive to Salem and take in the sights and shops. Fun time in October.</p>
<p>Another vote for Portsmouth - we were there last year (on our way to Bar Harbor) and thought it was a lovely little town.</p>
<p>Nope, if you’re driving from Boston to Vermont, go to Walpole. NH, stay at the Walpole Inn, and have dinner at [Burdick’s[/url</a>] . . . and try their [url=<a href=“http://www.burdickchocolate.com%5Dhandmade”>http://www.burdickchocolate.com]handmade</a> chocolates](<a href=“http://www.burdickchocolate.com/restaurant.aspx]Burdick’s[/url”>Shopping).</p>
<p>Unless you don’t like chocolate, in which case I’m sure Portsmouth is lovely (despite being in the wrong direction).</p>
<p>Ogunquit, Maine, just north of Portsmouth NH is lovely!</p>
<p>A little brain drain here…</p>
<p>Portsmouth and and the Maine cities are lovely but they’ll take you out of your way if you’re headed to Mt. Snow. The most direct route from Boston to Mt. Snow takes you west along Rte 2. You’ll have to decide whether it’s worth more than an hour of additional driving to stay in Portsmouth. The pros to taking the direct Rte 2 drive are that it’ll take less time and at that time of the year you’ll see some pretty foliage. The disadvantages are no ocean and the possibility of being stuck behind leaf peepers.</p>
<p>If you do choose to take Rte. 2 you can stop off in Concord, MA for a meal or a stroll. North Adams, on the MA side of the VT border, is home to the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Arts (Mass MOCA), which I’d highly recommend. You may also want to leave some time to explore Brattleboro, VT, a fun and funky little city directly on your route.</p>
<p>So many great suggestions!!! Now I wish we were going for a week! I have to have a serious talk with DH about what we should do.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone!</p>