Autumn in New England - Fall Colors

Day 1: October 3      Arrive in Boston, Massachusetts

Boston is the epicenter of Liberty, where your tour begins.  Transfer from Logan Airport via the hotel shuttle to your included hotel.  Room check-in begins at 3:00 PM.  Your tour manager will be available to brief you on the ensuing days. 

Day 2: October 4      Boston, Massachusetts
Enjoy a city tour of Boston with your local guide. See many important aspects of the Freedom Trail. Learn about Paul Revere and his famous midnight ride, traveling from Lexington to Concord. Enjoy free time for lunch at Quincy Market, where a wide variety of meals are at your fingertips.  Walk into the North End, best known as Boston’s Little Italy, where a maze of narrow streets showcase some of the city’s oldest buildings.  Visit the Granary Burying Ground, where famous patriots such as John Hancock, Paul Revere, and Samuel Adams are laid to rest.  Stop outside of Fenway Park to see “The Teammates” statue honoring Red Sox greats, and drive by the oldest public park in the U.S. - Boston Common, dating back to 1634, and climb aboard the USS Constitution, AKA Old Ironsides, the world’s oldest ship still afloat. Enjoy a photo stop at the place where “Everybody knows your name,” Cheers Bar.  Maybe you can buy Norm a beer!  (B, D) 

Day 3: October 5      Boston / Newport, Rhode Island / Middletown, RI
Depart Boston traveling south along the coast, and land at Plymouth Rock. See the “Rock” commemorating the Mayflower Ship landing in the United States in 1620. Climb aboard the Mayflower II, a beautiful recreation of the Mayflower ship.  Built in the 1950s and fully restored in 2020, this full-size replica shows you what it was like traveling for months across the ocean.  Many are surprised by its size!  Nearby, we can also see the large granite National Monument to the Forefathers, which was created to honor the ideals on which Plymouth Colony was founded: faith, education, law, morality, and freedom.  Next we learn about one of New England’s most famous fruits – the cranberry.  Visit a cranberry farm, also known as a bog, and learn how this vibrant crop is produced. It is quite unique!  Our visit is during their harvest period, so if weather permits, we hope to witness them extracting this vibrant fruit from the water-filled bogs.  This is always a favorite visit! Journey west into Rhode Island and cross the Sakonnet River Bridge to Aquidneck Island, a posh piece of real estate that is home to many historic mansions, such as the summer White House of President Eisenhower and the 70-room Vanderbilt “cottage.”  Tour the Vanderbilt’s famous property called The Breakers, the grandest of Newport’s summer cottages and a symbol of the Vanderbilt family’s social and financial preeminence during the Gilded Age in turn-of-the-century America.  (B, L, D)

Day 4: October 6       Middletown, RI / Concord, MA / West Lebanon, New Hampshire
Begin with a 5-minute drive to see Boyd’s Windmill, built in 1810 and one of the few surviving eight-vane smock mills in the United States. The harnessed wind energy was used to grind feed for 135 years. Newport’s famous Ten-Mile-Drive combines the history of a wealthy summer community with fabulous recreational areas including public parks and miles of public access shoreline, to rank as one of the most popular “drives” in the country. Relax as we cruise along this famous route, taking in the opulent architecture and the vast Atlantic Ocean.  Enjoy free time to stroll the quaint Thames Street in Newport, filled with restaurants and shops, best visited on foot.  Return to mainland Massachusetts as we make our way north to the Concord Museum in Massachusetts.  Opened in 1886, it is one of the oldest museums in the country, housing one of the USA’s most treasured collections of Americana.  Learn about the literary history surrounding the Revolutionary War with collections from Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. History comes to life as you see one of the Lanterns that signaled Paul Revere to begin his famous ride.  Check in to our hotel in West Lebanon, New Hampshire before enjoying dinner.  (B, D) 

Day 5: October 7      West Lebanon, NH / Montpelier, VT
This morning we make a stop at the Quechee Gorge State Park, Vermont’s deepest gorge, formed by glacial activity approximately 13,000 years ago.  Visit the Billings Farm & Museum, which offers diverse, interactive programs that focus on rural life, work, and land stewardship as reflected in the traditions and values of 19th century farm families. Their working dairy has about 70 Jersey cattle onsite, perfect for making the famous Vermont cheddar. As we travel north, the fall colors really begin to explode with vibrancy. Enjoy a stop at a 400-acre maple sugar farm to learn how Vermont’s sweet nectar is produced. This 3rd generation farm will provide information regarding their special crop, as well as an opportunity to bring home some of their local goodies. Continue north to Montpelier, Vermont.  With a population of roughly 8,000 inhabitants, Montpelier is considered the smallest state capital in the USA.  Due to the capital, the population balloons during working hours to 21,000 people.  (B, D) 

Day 6: October 8      Montpelier, VT / York, Maine / Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Today will be a kaleidoscope of colors as we cross the northern section of Vermont and into New Hampshire.  Make our way east through this scenic area, traveling along the Kancamagus Highway (Route 112). Renowned for its stunning fall foliage, this 34.5-mile byway cuts through the White Mountain National Forest and features scenic mountain views without any gas stations or commercial businesses.  Continue into Maine, where we stop to see the Cape Neddick Lighthouse, AKA Nubble Lighthouse – one of the most photographed lighthouses in the world.  What could be more indicative of the region than a lighthouse?  Being treated to Maine’s local delicacy - a lobster dinner!  Enjoy your farewell dinner while overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Other menu options are available for those who prefer. (B, D) 

Day 7: October 9      Portsmouth, NH / Boston Logan Airport
Dropoff at Boston Logan Airport for your return flight home.  (B)

Rupiper Tours reserves the right to make minor adjustments to the itinerary if necessary.