East Coast Driving Tour

[Jennifer Drees]

We are thinking about doing an East Coast driving tour this summer. Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, up to Maine, etc.

Can anyone suggest places not to miss? We have about 10 days to do this trip. We are starting in Dayton, OH.

 

[luvnwdwgal]

We drove and did coastal Maine a few years ago. We loved Ogunquit! Then we went north to Boothbay Harbor which was also really nice. Then went further north to Bar Harbor. Would definitely do it again someday.

 

[HeatherC]

I would suggest stopping in Mystic, CT and Newport, RI then head east towards the Cape. As far as Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, we love both but getting a car there and back is virtually impossible in the summer. Almost all the ferries are probably close to being booked for autos. You can, however, just take the ferry over for the day without your car.

MV is the closest and a quick 45 minute ferry ride. Nantucket, however, is very expensive to get to since it is 30 miles out to sea. Both are gorgeous. As an alternative to both of these, you could also consider Block Island. Same vibes and you can walk around the downtown and see the whole island in a couple hours. You can take the ferry (one hour ride) from either Galilee or Newport in the summer. In Newport you can walk the Cliff Walk and tour all the summer mansions.

From Newport…if you decide not to do the Vineyard and Nantucket, I would suggest heading to Boston for a night or two. Great city and so charming and very walkable. From there I would to Maine….with a short stop in Portsmouth, NH. Ogunquit, ME is awesome and would fit the bill nicely. Downtown Portland is also fun and a foodies delight.

There are sooo many places you can go and stop at. This itinerary is just one I suggested to give a quick a overview of New England and all it has to offer. On the way home, I would suggest North Conway, NH in the White Mountains for a night or two.

I’m sure you will get some other awesome ideas too! Have fun planning!

 

[leebee]

Here are some places I'd suggest you consider. Not all are "day stops," some are quaint little stops along the way:
Salem, MA- This is very touristy now, with all the witch-hype, but there are some lovely old buildings along Derby St, there's a great shopping area (with tourist prices), a breakwater you can walk out on, House of Seven Gables, and Ye Olde Candy Comapanie, which is the oldest, continuously operating candy shop in the country (be prepared- great chocolates!).
Gloucester and Rockport, MA- Basically loop through Cape Ann. I always love driving the back streets in Gloucester, going out to Bear Neck, etc.
Newburyport, MA
Portsmouth, NH (definitely poke around Strawbery Banke, it was a great experience)
York, ME. If the Village area is open you can tour some old buildings- schoolhouse, jail (gaol), cemetery. Otherwise drive up along the coast from Portsmouth through Kittery and along 1A- goes right along the beach- and out to Nubble Light, then back into downtown York Beach for some great salt water taffy at The Goldenrod. Then follow Shore Road up to Ogunquit.
Ogunquit, ME
Portland, ME- Very fun up-and-coming city with great food, drink, shops. Old Port area has pretty pricey hotels, stay in S.Portland or out near the airport, and NOT on the weekends in the summer!
Boothbay Harbor, ME
Camden, ME- Lovely seaside town, with a pretty nice state park (Camden Hills, Mt. Battie) with non-challenging hiking trails.
Bar Harbor, ME- Not always my favorite (VERY busy and touristy) but Acadia National Park is here if you want to hike or just drive park loop road and see some amazing views and stopping points. Downtown Bar Harbor is touristy but fun, and you can do whale watches, puffin watches, sail on a schooner, go lobstering, etc. This was all pre-covid, I'm not sure how they are handling tours now.

SO that's just an idea. Length of time depends on how long you want to be in each place, how tired you get poking through shops, how you want to spend your time, and other places you want to see. I'd avoid Cape Cod in the summertime like the plague (ok, maybe that's not a funny reference anymore, but you know what I mean!)

 

[SueInBoston]

I second the PP about bringing a car to Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket. Last week, I was playing around with dates to bring a car to Nantucket in early June, it was around $680!! Last year we took a car to MV in early June and that was close to $280.

 

[HeatherC]

I second the PP about bringing a car to Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket. Last week, I was playing around with dates to bring a car to Nantucket in early June, it was around $680!! Last year we took a car to MV in early June and that was close to $280.

Crazy expensive. And, unfortunately, you then have to pay for passenger tickets on top of that.

 

[Jennifer Drees]

Does anyone have a hotel recommendation for Boothbay? I am struggling there!

 

[BLTtinkerbell]

Does anyone have a hotel recommendation for Boothbay? I am struggling there!

Did you end up staying in Boothbay?

 

[LuvOrlando]

Just a heads up, if you are looking to be anywhere near the NE coastline get to where you are going via roads that do not move along the coast midweek, so 84 to 90 not rush hour and definitely before Friday, trying to go anywhere on a summer Friday can triple the drive time or worse. There is no good time to drive over the weekend so pick some general spot with a few mini day excursions for the weekend and move itsy bitsy bits Fri- Sun to keep aggravation to a minimum. For the Cape area, maybe get to the top of the Cape early in week and use Uber to get from where you are staying to the ferry area for the islands you mentioned, parking there is awful even when paying a boatload and then it is usually a hike to walk to the ferry. The rest of the Cape is lovely but again driving in the summer is a beast so drive to your town destination early in the day and try to stay put, try to find a hotel near restaurants so you can walk.

If you don't have kids where school is an issue I'd suggest after Labor day when the water and air is still nice and warm but the swarms are gone.

If you have your heart set on real summer try to travel as early as possible and not near weekends.