Hey there, fellow travelers! Today, we visit New England! It’s a beautiful region of the United States that is well worth coming to. As you know, here at Wolters World, we like to prepare travelers with the good, and the bad, of visiting a new travel destination. So these are the five things you’ll love, and the five things you’ll hate when you visit New England.
Love #1: New England Towns
New England has so many historic towns and villages, from seaside harbors to mountain towns and everything in between. Each town has fun summer festivals, history tours, colonial architecture, and museums. It’s not just the small towns; Boston is a pretty amazing city to visit as well. With everything so close and compact, it’s easy to pick a home base and explore many quaint towns on day trips in New England.
Hate #1: Driving in New England
I-95 is the main highway running through New England, and it’s always packed with traffic. Even if you go off the interstate and start exploring the side roads, there is almost always a lot of traffic everywhere in New England, especially in the summer. If you are trying to arrive at a certain time, always give yourself a bit more time than what GPS forecasts, so that you can account for any traffic delays en route. It also helps to avoid the major cities at rush hour, where you can easily add a couple of hours. A New England road trip is the best way to explore the area, but you just have to be prepared for traffic.
Love #2: New England History
From Boston Harbor made famous by the tea party to several battlefields, New England is the most historic area of the United States. Also, much of the history in New England is remarkably well-preserved. Touring New England is like walking through a history book. All the things you learned about in school are still on display in New England, which makes it a really cool place to explore and an educational trip for your family.
Hate #2: Prices in New England
New England can be expensive compared to other areas of the U.S. Accommodation and restaurants in New England cost a bit more than any other region in the US that we’ve visited. However, you can get deals by booking your hotel early or staying in a bed & breakfast. Prices also jump up in the summer because that is when the majority of travelers take their New England vacations.
Love #3: New England Food & Drink
New England has some of the best seafood in the United States. If you like lobster, you’ll be in heaven when you visit Maine. Lobster is everywhere; even at McDonald’s. Then there are the clams, clam chowder, crab cakes, and soft-shell blue crabs. Surprisingly, seafood is less expensive here than what you are used to paying back home. It’s still not cheap, but if you live in the Midwest, you are paying more for seafood at home than you will in New England. New England also has a lot of microbreweries, so between the seafood and the interesting beer options, a New England road trip is perfect for foodies.
Hate #3: New England Attitudes
Sometimes this is called the “New England Shield.” The people in New England can seem pretty cold at first. If you think about the size of some of these New England towns, and how many tourists flood in throughout the summer, it’s understandable that the locals might be a bit wary of tourists. But the tourist infrastructure in New England is very well done, and the residents are generally helpful when you need them to be. It can be hard to get to know New Englanders beyond a surface level, but once you do, they are fantastic.
Love #4: Natural Beauty of New England
There are so many beautiful things to see in New England. From the mountains of Stowe, Vermont to the seaside cliffs of Acadia National Park, New England is gorgeous! There’s a reason so many tourists visit New England. It’s such a great place to explore the outdoors; from hiking to kayaking to deep-sea fishing to sailing, there are tons of fun things to do outdoors in New England.
Hate #4: Seasonality of New England
Summer in New England is perfect weather-wise. It’s not too hot, but it’s just perfect summer weather to enjoy. The problem is, everyone knows this and the tourist crowds converge in New England in the summer. Then fall arrives, bursting with color and attracts even more tourists by the busload. The other six months of the year, you have winter in New England, which is some serious winter weather. If you don’t know how to drive on snow and ice, do not come to New England in the winter!
Love #5: New Englanders
I know I said you might not like them at first, but once you get to know New Englanders, they can be really great. We spent a couple of weeks on our New England road trip and everyone we met was really fantastic. They were all very helpful and friendly. The people are really what makes New England special.
Hate #5: Spotty Cell Coverage
You would think that being in such a densely populated region of the United States, you would not have cell phone issues, but there are a lot of dead zones in New England. There are a lot of dense woods, forests and back roads to explore in New England and many of these spots are out of cell tower range. This can affect your ability to navigate if you are relying solely on your cell phone apps. It’s a good idea to have an actual road atlas or paper map handy for your New England road trip.
Top Ten Family Road Trip Essentials
Overall, New England is a really fantastic place, and we even extended our visit an extra day because we were enjoying it so much. The “hates” are really just things to have a heads up on rather than a reason to avoid New England travel. Want more tips for planning a US vacation? Check out these other blog posts: