Destinations / Vermont & New Hampshire
New England in Fall
Covered bridges, mountain roads and maple forests at the peak of their colour. Five days in a loop from Boston.
- Length5 Days 4 Nights
- Best weeksLate Sep – mid Oct
- DistanceAbout 540 miles
- Budgetfrom $980
Why Go
Three Weeks a Year, the Hills Catch Fire
Every autumn the hardwood forests of northern New England turn red, orange and gold, and for a few weeks the whole region becomes the destination. Maples do most of the work, with birch and beech filling in the yellows.
The colour is only half of it. This is a landscape of white church steeples, village greens, farm stands selling cider and doughnuts, and two-lane roads that follow rivers through the mountains.
This route loops out of Boston through the Green Mountains of Vermont and the White Mountains of New Hampshire, then comes home by the lakes. It runs north first, where the leaves turn earliest.
The Route
Day by Day
A loop from Boston, north through Vermont and back through New Hampshire.
Boston to Woodstock
150 miles · 2.5 hoursDrive north-west into Vermont. Stop at Quechee Gorge, then settle into Woodstock, a village of brick houses and covered bridges. Taste cheese and maple syrup at a hillside farm above town.
- Quechee Gorge
- Woodstock village green
- Middle Covered Bridge
- Farm visit
Route 100 to Stowe
95 miles · 2.5 hoursFollow Route 100 up the spine of the Green Mountains, through one small town after another. Stop for fresh cider doughnuts near Waterbury, and reach Stowe with its white steeple under Mount Mansfield.
- Route 100
- Waterbury cider mill
- Stowe village
- Stowe Community Church
Stowe to Franconia Notch
95 miles · 2.5 hoursTake the gondola or the toll road up Mount Mansfield for the long view. Then cross into New Hampshire and walk the boardwalks of Flume Gorge and the short trail to Artist’s Bluff above Echo Lake.
- Mount Mansfield
- Smugglers’ Notch
- Flume Gorge
- Artist’s Bluff
The Kancamagus Highway
60 miles · 2 hoursThirty-four miles of forest road with no towns, no billboards and a viewpoint at every bend. Walk to Sabbaday Falls, cross the Albany Covered Bridge, and end in North Conway beneath Mount Washington.
- Kancamagus Highway
- Sabbaday Falls
- Albany Covered Bridge
- North Conway
Lakes and home
140 miles · 3 hoursHead south to Lake Winnipesaukee. Walk the waterfront at Wolfeboro and follow the shore to Alton Bay, where the hills reflect in the water. Then an easy run back to Boston.
- Lake Winnipesaukee
- Wolfeboro
- Alton Bay
- Boston
Where to Stay
Four Nights, Four Villages
Country inns are the point of this trip, and they fill up early.
Woodstock, then Stowe
A classic Vermont inn with a porch and a fireplace. Both villages are walkable once you have parked.
Lincoln or Franconia
Simple lodges and motels at the foot of the notch. Choose for location here rather than charm.
North Conway or Jackson
Jackson is the prettier and quieter of the two, with its own covered bridge at the entrance to the village.
When to Go
Timing Is Everything
Peak in the north
Colour usually arrives first in northern Vermont and the White Mountains, then moves south and downhill.
Peak further south
The lakes region and southern Vermont follow a week or two later. The holiday weekend in mid-October is the busiest of all.
A different trip
Summer is for lakes and hiking, winter for skiing. In spring the back roads turn to mud.
Budget
What Five Days Cost
An estimate for one person travelling as a pair and sharing the car and the room. Flights to Boston are not included. Foliage season is the most expensive time of year here, and many inns ask for a two-night minimum at weekends.
Practical Notes
Worth Knowing Before You Go
Follow the foliage reports
Peak colour shifts by a week or more from year to year. State tourism sites publish weekly updates in season.
Book months ahead
Inns in Woodstock, Stowe and Jackson sell out for October long before summer ends.
Travel midweek
Weekend traffic on the Kancamagus and through Stowe can crawl. Tuesday to Thursday is far calmer.
Fill up before the Kanc
There is no fuel, food or phone signal on the Kancamagus Highway. Bring water and snacks.
Dress in layers
Mornings can be near freezing and afternoons mild. Mountain summits are much colder and windier than the valleys.
Watch for moose
They wander onto roads at dawn and dusk, especially in the north. Check entry rules for the United States before you fly.
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