essential stops for a new england roadtrip

AA forested wonderland dotted with beautiful family farms and traditional town squares, New England was made for long drives! One of the nice things about zeroing in on New England for a road trip is that you can cover several states in the amount of time it might take you to traverse just one Southern or Midwestern state. New England will take you from rocky shorelines to sharp peaks jutting from dense forest in the blink of an eye! New England is also rare because it hosts some of the most innovative cities just miles from the quaintest towns belonging to great American novels. The other great thing about New England is that you’ll get a vastly different experience depending on what time of year you come. That means you can shape your New England road trip around lazy beach days set against cranberry bogs and lavish summer homes or powdery ski slopes paired with lodges serving up hot cocoa and boiling chowder. Here are my top picks for a New England road trip bucket list. Boston, Massachusetts The quintessential New England city, Boston is peppered with neighborhoods, museums and Bay Views that evoke that revolutionary spirit that put it on the map. Beantown is very much a pedestrian city. I like that you can take your time to window shop or admire the architecture without the feeling that people are on your heels like when you’re exploring New York or Chicago.

A great opening for a Boston tour is a stop at the Boston Public Garden to see the famed bronze ducklings positioned by the Charles. To put your tour into high gear, follow the Red Bricks of the Freedom Trail to hit up must-see stops like Faneuil Hall, the home of Paul Revere, Quincy Market and the site of the Boston Tea Party. I also like to get away from some of the more prominent attractions to admire the manicured brownstones lining the cobblestone sidewalks in Boston’s Beacon Hill neighborhood. For shopping, I love Newbury Street in Back Bay on a Saturday morning when all of the students from Boston College, Boston University and Northeastern fill the sidewalks. I never visit Boston without making a quick detour into the Little Italy neighborhood covering Hanover Street. It’s here that you’ll find what is universally considered the best cannoli in the country at Mike’s Pastry.

Concord, Massachusetts I’m not sure there’s anything more “New England” than sitting on Walden Pond. The site where Henry David Thoreau wrote his famous essay, Walden Pond is now a state park with a lovely beach. However, this is far from the only thing that draws literary fans to Concord. This is also where you’ll find the orchard house belonging to Louisa May Alcott where “Little Women” was penned. Another highlight of Concord is Minute Man National Historical Park. Covering close to 1,000 acres, this park lines the route of the 1775 battles of Lexington and Concord.

Cape Cod, Massachusetts A hook-shaped peninsula that has been the site of summer dreams for decades, Cape Cod makes it easy to check every New England

pleasure off your list. There are too many spots along the more than 40,000 beautiful acres spanning from Chatham to Provincetown that make up the Cape Cod National Seashore to cover. My top beach pick is Mayflower Beach in Dennis if you like a beach with tons of space that can be explored for miles at low tide. For surfing, Race Point Beach is my top pick due to its rougher waves. I also think a self-guided lighthouse tour can be the best way to cover mile after mile of coast lined with cranberry bogs, crab shacks and grey-shingled cottages. The Nauset Lighthouse, the Chatham Light, and Race Point Lighthouse top the list of Cape Cod’s 14 lighthouses. Madison, Connecticut Named after James Madison, Madison’s beautiful town is positioned on Connecticut’s Long Island Sound shoreline. The crown of Madison is Hammonasset Beach State Park. This sprawling beach features soft sand, walking paths, jutting rock walkways and beautiful piers. There is also an extensive campsite attached to the beach. A day in Madison is never complete without a tour of Meigs Point Nature Center and a clam-strip dinner at world-famous Lenny & Joe’s Fish Tale.

Burlington, Vermont Perched on Lake Champlain not far from the Canadian border, Burlington is a quaint spot where there’s always a lot going on. The presence of the University of Vermont (UVM) makes Burlington a certified college town. I love the vibrancy of the Church Street Marketplace. This is a pedestrian-only, cobblestone route lined with beautiful shops and restaurants. However, the attraction that I’ll crown as the best thing about Burlington is the Burlington Bike Path. This stunning paved path takes you along the water to enjoy Lake Champlain’s beautiful views and the Adirondacks with peeks at

the bustle of Burlington mixed in.