You will have a great time.

Do you want beaches or lakes or mountains or a bit of all of that?

History or art museums?

Are driving? If so which direction are you coming from?

Lakes and mountains would be great. We will probably drive in from the south or fly into Boston and go from there.

Architecture is an interest, we will do the history stuff:) in Boston for sure. Outdoor adventure would be popular with some of us. I think Newport would be of interest.

If you have never been, I do think Newport and the "cottages" are worthwhile. In Boston proper, I would do a duck tour and I really like their aquarium. There are a ton of good choices in Mass/VT/Maine of course, but three that just spring to mind that were favorites of my family are

1. the 8-mile Rails to Trails bikeride on a spit of land into Lake Champlain (Burlington VT), with a stay at One of a Kind BandB,

2.a Rails to Trails near Williamstown, Mass along a river, and the nearby MassMOCA museum and Porches Hotel,

3, a stay at the GooseRocks lighthouse in Maine (you have it all to yourself, you take a boat to it, and it is rustic but so cool!)

I was going to suggest Newport.

NH is beautiful...Franconia Notch, Mt. Washington which has a cog train to the top...the Hotel at the bottom is famous to economists and had a gorgeous view of the Mt., Lake Winnipesaukee you can take boat rides or stay on the lake.

Maine coast is gorgeous...Acadia Nat'l Park is fabulous

VT has lots of wonderful scenery and Lake Champlain...Hilldene was a Lincoln family home, Shelburne Museum which is near Burlington

In Boston, the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum is one of my favorites...great city to walk...take the Freedom Trail which hits the highlights like the public garden, beacon hill, quincy market. Haven't been in years, but the science museum and the aquarium used to be nice.

If you head north of Boston, Salem was actually more interesting than I expected with the witch trials, house of 7 gables and the Peabody Essex Museum which is a treasure in and of itself.

About the only New England state I wouldn't recommend spending time in is CT... while it's a nice state and it has some history, nothing that I'd consider a fabulous draw.

You might take a look at what Tauck does when they do their New England tour...might give you ideas of what to see, where to stay and how long it might take to get from one place to the next....

Or there's this one...hidden gems

Here is a link that might be useful: Tauck New England

Aquarium is very enjoyable. Then go over to the North End for a lovely Italian dinner.

If you end up in Western Mass, Williamstown is beautiful and it has a wonderful art museum...the Clark Institute. There's other interesting museums in that neck of the woods...Edith Wharton's home, the Norman Rockwell Museum, Chesterwood...home of Daniel Chester French who sculpted Lincoln in the Lincoln Memorial among other things. If you want a stay with luxury, there's Blantyre in Lenox, Ma.

In the middle of the state, near CT, is Historic Sturbridge Village which is fun to visit...a whole working town recreated to the 1830s including a bank, meeting house, pottery, tinsmiths, black smiths, grain mills, farm, residences, etc. where the workers all wear period clothes and perform activities of the period.

Oh be sure to see the Shaw Memorial across the street from the State Capitol in Boston...it's a St. Gaudens and is fabulous. His home is a national park in Cornish NH.

I second the suggestion for Sturbridge Village.

Personally, in summer weather I would pick the historic sites in Concord over Boston's Freedom Trail. There are excellent ranger talks at the Old North Bridge, and a variety of historic buildings, including the homes of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Louisa May Alcott. The advantage is that it's cooler and greener, the disadvantage is that you will wind up taking a number of short hops in the car to get to various sites.

If you do have interest in the Freedom Trail, the high point is the U. S. S. Constitution. Check the schedules, and try to get there early, as the lines can be quite long. And while we're on the subject of naval vessels, there's Battleship Row in New Bedford, MA, and the submarine museum in Groton, CT, along with nearby Mystic Seaport. Or you might combine a trip to Groton/Mystic with a visit to the Mashantucket Pequot Museum (associated with Foxwoods but separate from the casino).

Another water-themed possibility, one that many natives miss out on, is to go to the Boston Harbor Islands. I've only been to Georges Island, where we had a great time exploring the fort, but it's on our list of things to do again.

If you do make it to northern VT, the obvious tourist destination is the Ben & Jerry's factory - but it's fun.

And if you're planning an evening in western MA, you might want to try for tickets at Tanglewood.

Boston: Walk around Beacon HIll and Charles St., including Louisburg Sq.;

Yes to dinner in the North End!

View from top of the John Hancock building.

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is beautiful

Be sure to pahk your cah in Hahvahd Yahd.

Memorial Drive/Brainiac Drive: Harvard/MIT on one side of the Charles River, BU on the other;

Newport, RI, is wonderful, and small, really just Bellevue Ave., church where JFK and Jacqueline Onassis marriedâ¦but it's a beautiful area to drive around, follow Ocean Dr. along the coastâ¦Little Compton, RI, is also beautiful, as is Jamestown.

Climb Mt. Monadnock in southern, NH; Acadia National Park in ME which is pretty far north;

Lake Sunapee, New Hampshire;

Cape and Islands

This post was edited by Tibbrix on Wed, Jan 7, 15 at 8:48

One more thought: If you do decide you want to take in Newport, see if you can schedule it for one of the Saturdays of the Providence Waterfire event, which you could do in the evening. See http://waterfire.org.

One thing that occurs to me, is you could go to Martha
's Vineyard. It's a pain and it would take a chunk of your time, but it is lovely and special.

I also like Block Island, to me it feels like Ireland, and it is a great little place to bike around. However I find the hotels pretty sub par.

Ahem, they can rent my house, which is central on Cape Cod! 15 minutes to the ferry to the Vineyard! Next day, hour's drive to Ptown; following day, zip-line tree park adventure at the Heritage Museum in Sandwich; Plymouth Plantation across the bridge; bike on the rail trail; whale watch, 1/2 hour to the National Seashore - straight drive...
And I've got a pond with rope swings and no one there, clear water, sandy bottomâ¦

Thus ends my shameless plug.

::: has no connection to Tibb and has not received any compensation :::

Don't count out New Hampshire!

Portsmouth has a lot to offer. Take a cruise to the Isles of Shoals located 6 miles off the coast. Stroll through Strawbery Banke to see the 375 year old homes in their original neighborhood. Tour the U.S.S. Albacore submarine.

While in NH, take a cruise around Lake Winnipesaukee in the Lakes Region. Remember the movie 'On Golden Pond?' It was filmed on Squam Lake.

Up north, stay at one of the grand hotels from the past. Either the Mount Washington Hotel or the Balsams Resort where they vote first in the nation.

I live just outside of Boston. You could spend a fun afternoon having lunch in Quincy Market, walking from there to the aquarium and the waterfront, then dinner in the North End. The Museum of Fine Arts and the Isabella Gardner Museum are close to one another so you could see them both in one day...then go to a Red Sox game! Fenway is not far from the museums.

Portsmouth, NH, is a great town about an hour from Boston. Ogunquit, ME, isn't much further and is also a great place to explore. Actually, from Boston, you could hit Portsmouth, Ogunquit, Kennebunkport, and Portland, all great places to see and the furthest (Portland) is only about 2.5 hours from Boston.

I love Burlington, VT, too.

We have a summer place in RI. If you go to Newport, stop in Jamestown too. It's a pretty town with a couple of great restaurants.

Rockport and Newburyport (both MA) are fun towns to visit, too.

mtn thank you! The check is in the mail!

If you like Pizza, gotta have Regina's in the North end...better than the one in Quincy market.

And I wanted to mention that the Shelburne Museum has art, but is much more than an art museum...the steamboat Ticonderoga, antique carousel and circus figures, horse drawn carriages, historic homes and buildings, a covered bridge, a light house and gardens....lots to see.

Oh! How could we forget? If you have kids, the Boston Museum of Science is fantastic, including the Hayden planetarium and the Omni theater. Your kids would have a blast there. You can also get a whale watch out of Boston.

Thank you all so much for the suggestions. I can see this is going to be difficult :) So much to do. Off to start the research.
I am really looking forward to it now though. I love planning and anticipating a fun trip.

Researchers indicate that most of the satisfaction from vacation does in fact come from planning and anticipating.

That may be true of most anything!

Here is to great fun planning, anticipating ... AND going!

Bit OT: Boston just nominated by the US Olympic Committee to host the 2024 Olympics.

AS if we don't have a traffic problem already!

Two more historic sites that (I think) haven't been mentioned:

Greenfield Village in central Massachusetts, somewhat north of Sturbridge Village, is an "original" setting -- all the old homes are original to the site, not brought in. The earliest date back to the original European settlement of the area. I've only been there in the dead of winter and on a short time budget, but had a wonderful time and plan to go back.

Canterbury Shaker Village, north of Concord, NH -- if you haven't (and even if you have) visited a Shaker village before, it is well worth the trip. The buildings are fascinating, the guides give you insight into the Shaker way of life, and you can even try out some of the crafts -- rugmaking, Shaker box making, etc.

That reminds me of Historic Deerfield, MA. I haven't been to either Deerfield or Greenfield (other than driving through), but Historic Deerfield has been advertising on PBS. I'll have to add them to our list, next time we have guests in town or need an excuse for a drive.

One of my favorite vacations was in Bar Harbor, Maine when my DS was 15. We both loved Acadia National Park and visited there two days. We also enjoyed the town of Bar Harbor, its beach, and walking the shore path. We did a whale watch, but I wouldnâÂÂt recommend it for anyone who gets seasick easily. I hope to get back there some year.

Oh, I love Bar Harbor too! We were just there in October.

I live in Boston, and I think a great summer trip would be two weeks with stops in Portsmouth, Ogunquit, Kennebunkport, Portland, Rockport/Camden, Boothbay Harbor, and Bar Harbor. Hm, maybe 3 weeks!

This is great info. My main professional conference in 2016 will be in Boston, with days including my birthday. It would be great if DH and I could take more time to spend in NE once the conference is over.

Tibbrix, do you rent by night or by week only, LOL? This would be the first week of June. The conference ends Sat June 4, 2016.

gs, technically, after Memorial Day Weekend the weeklies begin, but the first and second weeks of June are flexible as they're unlikely to get rented, esp. for the whole week, since kids are still in school.

Whether mine or another rental in another town, I would be more than happy to help you with suggestions and recommendations as far staying on the Cape is concerned, the pros and cons of different places, my house versus another area, etc.

Is the conference in Boston proper?

This post was edited by Tibbrix on Sat, Jan 10, 15 at 17:37