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[ktjl]

Hi all, my husband and I and our 16mnth old daughter are planning a trip to New England from July 3-18th 2009. We are trying to put together an ittinery but are finding it a bit tricky. We will be hiring a car and would like to tour around. We can't do long driving journeys due to our young daughter (who will get bored for too long in the car). This is what we have come up with so far:

1. Arrive in Boston 3rd and stay until the 6th
2. Drive to Kennebunkport on the 6th (stopping at Salem on the way)
3. Leave Kennebunkport on the 8th and drive to Jackson, New Hampshire

right, now this is where we get stuck

We need to be in Martha's Vineyard for the 14th

we can't work out where to go inbetween?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

[2olives]

If I were you, I would pass through Portland, ME for a day or two for some seaside charm and some LL Bean Outlet shopping and then drive up the coast to Bar Harbour, ME for a quaint village rest along the beautiful coast, and some lobster fresh from the trap.

http://www.portlandmaine.com/index.php?sec=2
http://www.acadiamagic.com/BarHarborMore.html

If Bar Harbour is too far, try Newport and/or Providence, RI.

http://www.gonewport.com/
http://www.goprovidence.com/

[starlagurl]

I agree with spending some time in Portland, but I wouldn't bother going up all the way to Bar Harbor. It's definitely a nice and quaint village, but there are lots of nice and quaint villages all along the coast. Bar Harbour just happens to be inside of a national park. So, yeah, it's lovely.

What's in Jackson? Why are you going there?

The drive really from Jackson to Martha's Vineyard is not that long. Five hours could be driven early in the morning, while your daughter is still asleep, that's what I always did when I was a kid. My parents would wake up super early and then put me in the back of the car to sleep while they drove until we got there. I missed a good chunk of the trip, and it ended up not seeming that long.

If you still want to break it up, why not put your Boston part of the trip in the middle? You could rent a car for the Jackson/Kennebunk part of the trip, then stay for a while in Boston and rent another car for the Martha's Vineyard part.

Does that make sense?

[ktjl]

What's in Jackson? Why are you going there?

Well we don't want to have to go up the coast then come back on ourselves so were trying to do a loop. Go up the coast from Boston then head inland and loop back round to Martha's Vineyard. I really wanted to find somewhere inland inbetween Jackson and martha's to break up the drive if that makes sense. If we drive up to Bar Harbour then we'll have to turn round and come back on ourselves.

[starlagurl]

Oh I see...

I think anywhere you stop will be good. It doesn't look like there is any sort of "famous place" in between Jackson and Martha's Vineyard.

Some of the best trips are unplanned. Just drive until you feel like you need to take a break, you're sure to find something interesting wherever you go.

This reminds me of the time I was stuck in the rain on my motorcycle in Vermont. I pulled over in the middle of nowhere to find an amazing organic hippy farm/bistro sort of place. It was unplanned, but I had a blast anyway.

Blog post here: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entri...72840/tpod.html

[semi-backpacker]

Hey there! Sounds like a fun, relaxing trip. Here are two suggestions for stops between Jackson and Martha's Vineyard.

#1 - From Jackson, go to Franconia Notch, NH...it's only about an hour and it's my favorite place in all New Hampshire. There are so many attractions. My favorites are the flume, full of waterfalls and cute bridges http://www.visitnh.gov/flume/index.html , Cannon Mountain, which you can take the tram up and so many fun trails to hike http://www.cannonmt.com , the Basin is also beautiful http://rosswarner.com/basin2.html . You could easily spend 2-3 days in this area. For more info:

http://www.franconianotch.org/things-to-do/attractions.aspx

#2 - From Franconia Notch, you can go to Rhode Island (my state, so I may be a little biased!! :-) ) It's a 3-hr drive from NH. Visit Newport (1 day)...and then take the ferry from Newport to Block Island...it's my favorite place in all of New England. http://www.blockislandinfo.com/ There are so many beaches to choose from, wonderful hiking and biking trails, amazing seafood, and a relaxing atmosphere like no other. You can spend days here and recharge your batteries before heading to Martha's Vineyard.

Hope this helps!

[ktjl]

Hey there! Sounds like a fun, relaxing trip. Here are two suggestions for stops between Jackson and Martha's Vineyard.

#1 - From Jackson, go to Franconia Notch, NH...it's only about an hour and it's my favorite place in all New Hampshire. There are so many attractions. My favorites are the flume, full of waterfalls and cute bridges http://www.visitnh.gov/flume/index.html , Cannon Mountain, which you can take the tram up and so many fun trails to hike http://www.cannonmt.com , the Basin is also beautiful http://rosswarner.com/basin2.html . You could easily spend 2-3 days in this area. For more info:

http://www.franconianotch.org/things-to-do/attractions.aspx

#2 - From Franconia Notch, you can go to Rhode Island (my state, so I may be a little biased!! :-) ) It's a 3-hr drive from NH. Visit Newport (1 day)...and then take the ferry from Newport to Block Island...it's my favorite place in all of New England. http://www.blockislandinfo.com/ There are so many beaches to choose from, wonderful hiking and biking trails, amazing seafood, and a relaxing atmosphere like no other. You can spend days here and recharge your batteries before heading to Martha's Vineyard.

Hope this helps!

Thank you this is extremely helpful, I think this is our route planned finally I'm going to have a good look at some lodgings now. Many thanks again x

[2olives]

Great work, Judy!

[semi-backpacker]

Thank you this is extremely helpful, I think this is our route planned finally I'm going to have a good look at some lodgings now. Many thanks again x

Good luck on your trip! Please post pictures when you come back.

[semi-backpacker]

Great work, Judy!

:-) New England is my specialty...though I hated it growing up, I definitely learned to love and appreciate its beauty as an adult.

[starlagurl]

Yep, Judy is the queen of New England hee hee! Thanks for helping out again.