We're headed to Connecticut via Niagara Falls. Then to Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Down to Boston for the 4th of July. Then on to visit relatives in Wash DC before heading back to the Midwest.

My DD, my elderly parents (80) and I are driving. I was excited to see Niagara Falls on the way (just a little out of the way). Dad is excited to spend the 4th in Boston (he's hoping we can listen to the Pops on the waterfront and watch the fireworks).

So far we have Ben & Jerry's on the list of "must see". And I discovered we could stop by the big quilt shop in New Hampshire. And I'd like to find a good stop for lobster in Maine.

Mom and Dad are pretty good for travel. Mom's legs give out sometimes but she is perfectly happy to sit on a bench or the car to people watch or read a book if she doesn't feel up to the event of the day.

Any other suggestions?

Plymouth,Ma. is so. of Boston. Really neat place. Then there is Marthas Vinyard and Nantucket Isl. All great places.

I'm in CT, glad to give some tips - PM me if you want, let me know where you're staying and perhaps I can recommend local places of interest.

If you are driving thru PA in the way to DC,stop thru Lancaster, Intercourse, and Bird in Hand, they all have fantastic quiltshops and great food served family style as this is the heart of Amish Country. REmember, the Amish close everything on Sunday.

in Vermont you must see the Shelburne Museum just south of Burlington - a fantastic collection of quilts.

And don't forget Keepsake Quilting in the lakes region of NH. Great shop.

That's the shop I'm hoping to stop at. I'll only be allowed one or two quilting type stops as my fellow passengers might balk after that!

Amish country sounds good. I'll check the map for our route to see about this!

Plymouth sounds good

Travel the coast...many really neat houses and towns along the coast of MA, NH, and Maine. Vermont has many craft stores and Burlington Vermont down town is like a little boston. Lake Champlian is a must in Vermont..lots of old time towns in like Barnet Vermont and your cell phones may not work in some areas. Beautiful mountian. Now in NH...the White Mountains is the place to be/see...http://www.visitwhitemountains.com/ win

Boston...oh I could go on and on...I love Boston we go all the time!!! When you go for lunch or dinner go to the North End of Boston to Eat! If they like Art the Boston Art Musuem is AWSOME...there also is a Wonderful Quilt Musuem in Lowell MA

I live a couple miles away from Plymouth, in Kingston MA. If you have any questions on the area, just send me a message. The beachs are beautiful and the waterfront area is a nice area to see.
- Harry B.

Oh...and Salem, Ma...wonderful history...witches...and Plymouth Rock...and the plantation. And I love Gloucester MA http://www.gloucesterma.com/
My sister lives on the Martha Vineyard - its expensive to bring your car over and back.

Must try to get to Plymouth Plantation, it's a recreation of the original settlement. There are people there who take the part of the settlers going about their day. We loved that place.

Just a word to the wise about Boston.........Unless things have changed since we visited, traffic is a little crazy. It's a wonderful place with lot's to see and do but it's not easy to dr

On your way to DC you could also detour thru NYC and see a broadway show. There are some really good ones out there.

many of the theaters in Boston are made for small, short people...if your folks are in their 80's they may have a hard time sitting in many of those small seats. I have never been to a show in NY they may be better.

Actually, you can get fantastic lobster in all the seacoast states. I find that RI, MA, CT, lobster is just as good as Maine,,,,cost less too for some reason.. Passing thru Rhode Island - Newport, RI has beautiful mansions, the cliff walk, beaches, etc. It is a port city so there are awesome things to do all year long.

Totally agree with adding Shelburne Museum to your list.

Lowell National Park --- birthplace of Industrial Revolution, looms, quilt museum http://www.nequiltmuseum.org/ . The NPS does a wonderful job explaining the area and they have a great tour with a canal boat ride, visit to the factory and boarding house. Really makes you feel for the young women and kids who were employed by these mills. http://www.nps.gov/lowe/index.htm

Willard Clock Museum in N. Grafton, MA. http://www.willardhouse.org/ Just visit their website and if you fall in love with the photos then it is a must stop. The tour will take at most 2 hrs and when I visited with my elderly parentsthe docents really geared their talk to older folks, very nice visit. I returned a year later with my boys and they did not care for chatting with my boys---very well behaved and listening boys--but the docents were not engaging at all.

Higgins Armory, Worcester, MA --- The Higgins family was quite wealthy and one loved armory. This unique collection is a must-see if anyone in your travelling party likes medieval armor.

Battleship Cove, Fall River, MA --- If you are into seeing historic naval ships it has a few. From here stop in to see Submarine Base in New London, CT There is the USS Nautilus, first nuclear sub, and a few others there. http://www.militarynewcomers.com/NEW..._historic.html

And if you like aquariums the New England Aquarium in Boston is the finest in the country IMHO.

Carole, (lived in middle-Mass for 16yrs)

While in Vermont, consideer going to the Vermont Teddy Bear Factory! It's a wonderful tour on how the bears are made, repaired, etc.

As for Ben & Jerry's, I wasn't impressed. People tell me it used to be better a few years back before it was bought from the original owners. Also, the tour, if I remember correctly, involved a lot of stairs.

Just MHO.

Between Niagara Falls and CT, go through the Finger Lakes region. There are many many wineries to visit, but it is also just a beautiful part of the country.

Totally agree.

Thanks! I take my ice cream very seriously. :)

[Edit: maybe I should "take" my grammar a little more seriously?! :shock: I read my post and had to laugh.]

This has been great info,...there are several places that I am now going to visit.

Have you been to DC? If not, and have to do it rather quickly, try one of the bus tours that go to the momnuments. You will get to spend a little time at each one.

There are SO many things to see in DC. We have been there 3 times, and still have more to see.

Have a safe and grand trip! Take pics for all of us to see!

And Ginny Beyers place is close to DC if you like her things ( I have to admit, I was a little disappointed, but that is just me)

Niagara Falls.... be sure to do the Maid of the Mist boat trip... we went in June and it was super. The butterflies in the conservatory weren't up and about yet so you might wait on that. We did have a room on the Canadian side right above the horseshoe falls on the 15th floor and spent all evening just looking out the window...then they had the fireworks and it was like we were in the middle of them.

NYC -- if you have a chance, take the 4 or 5 hour bus tour...well worth it. They take you around and show you everything! You don't have to worry about getting lost or ran over either. It included a ride on the ferry past the Statute of Liberty and back.

Also there was a ferry we did from I think it was Long Island up to Groton CT or near there...was really cool.

Next time we'll take the time to visit in Norfolk and see some of the shipyards rather than just seeing them from the interstate.

Have a super trip...we loved it when we went there.

Concord, Mass. is a great historical site; also Old Mystic Seaport in Mystic, Conn. was nice back when i lived there (25 years ago).

I agree the Ben and Jerry was not impressive, but the town of Stowe, near by, is amazing! You can squeeze a quilt shop there too. The Shelbourne Museum is great and near by is also Strawberry and Rhubarb (name may have changed recently) quilt shop.

Have fun!

If you need a break between Boston and DC, Philadelphia has some well know attractions. The Liberty Bell and Independence Hall are close together and there are usually story tellers and other actors around to give tours and explain the area history. Parking can be a problem, but tour busses are available. Sounds like a great trip.

That is just what I was going to say!

I know you will get some wonderful tips from people who actually live in the areas that your will be visiting, but I thought I would tell you about some places I've enjoyed as a tourist:

Mystic Conn (Mystic Seaport)
Salem Mass (Witch trial history)
Bar Harbor Maine (eating lobster by the water at a lobster
pound)
Freeport Maine (LL Bean)
http://www.fdr.net/home (Campobello--FDR home)

Those are what come to mind right now of neat things we saw.
Have a great trip!

We've all (except DD) have been to NYC, so we're going to skirt around it. That is a destination vacation that could take up the entire two weeks! We'll send her there another time.

OOhhh Salem .....witches. Sounds interesting.

Thanks, I'll check on the stairs. My mom probably won't be able to do that.

I KNEW you would come up with some great ideas. I'm thinking this will need to be a two month vacation rather than two and 1/2 weeks.

THanks for the ideas and keep them coming!

Come up to the north shore of Boston. Marblehead is beautiful, lots to see and do (4th of July weekend in the Marblehead Festival of Arts) and lots of history. Only 16 miles north of Boston.

Really depends on where you cross over into NH. If coming across 89 into NH there's an awesome quilt store in Henniker, Quilted Threads.

If you go to the NH state website, you can look by region there and there is tons of stuff to see here. :-D

Not many folks mentioned Maine.The coast line is lovely.Food is good in many places,try haddock chowder,lobster,crab,oh and scallops are the best.Of course I have never had them anywhere but Maine.Clams are geat too.Just have to get the correct chef in order to get the best anything. MHO is that the plainer they are the better they are.

I have to say I agree with Qbeth, unless you are like a MEGA ben and jerry fan. and they only give you a tiny sample at the end. I think they should have an ice cream buffet :-)

A MUST is Ipswich for the famous Ipswich clams.
Or Revere Beach for Kelleys lobster roll.
Oh how i envy you- i am originally from Mass. and would love to be going with you. Have a great trip- and stay safe.

Ditto on the Boston traffic. It can be hairy! even for a seasoned driver. We live near Boston and would strongly advise using the "T" which can take you around Boston with many stops along the way. You could also do the Trolley or the "Duck Tour" which stop at many great spots. You can get on and off as many times as you want. You can then gauge how long it might take to walk to the next stop of just do a short walk and return to the spot where you got off. PM me with questions.
Also: Fourth of July is going to be very crowded so get in town early. Most of all enjoy the area.
Keepsake Quilting in NH has to be one of your stops and there are great chairs outside the shop for DH :)

The Kutztown Folk Festival is the week of July 2-10. A must see for beautiful Quilts!