9 Best Fall Things to Do in New England
Fall in New England lasts about five weeks, and for those five weeks it’s probably the most photographed landscape in the country. The maples turn, the white churches look like they were placed there by a film crew, and every farm stand piles up pumpkins.
In this guide
The trick is that colour moves. It starts in northern Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine in late September and works its way south to the Connecticut coast by early November. Chase it a bit and you can have a great trip almost any week. Here are nine things worth planning around.
1. Drive the Kancamagus Highway
Route 112 across the White Mountains of New Hampshire runs 34 miles between Lincoln and Conway with no gas stations, no shops and hardly any phone signal. What it has instead is wall-to-wall forest climbing to nearly 3,000 feet at the pass.
Stop at Sabbaday Falls, a short walk off the road, and at the Pemigewasset overlook near the top. Go on a weekday. On a peak-colour Saturday the “Kanc” becomes a slow parade of cars, and nobody enjoys that.
2. Hunt down covered bridges
Vermont has around 100 covered bridges, more per square mile than anywhere in the country, and New Hampshire isn’t far behind. They’re mostly red, mostly from the 1800s, and they look right at home under orange maples.
Woodstock, Vermont has a pretty one in the middle of town. Cornish-Windsor, crossing the Connecticut River between the two states, is one of the longest wooden covered bridges in the US. Honestly, half the fun is just finding one at the end of a back road.
3. Ride the Mount Washington Cog Railway
Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeast at 6,288 feet, and the cog railway has been grinding up its western side since 1869. It’s steep, slow and noisy in the best way.
From the summit, on a clear day, you can see four states and the Atlantic. In October the colour is far below you and the top is often frosted or in cloud, so dress for winter even if it’s mild at the base. Check the forecast before you book, because a whiteout summit is a long ride for no view.
4. Watch the sunrise in Acadia
Acadia National Park on Maine’s Mount Desert Island turns early, usually peaking around mid-October. Cadillac Mountain is famous for being one of the first places in the US to see the sunrise for part of the year.
FYI, you’ll need a vehicle reservation to drive up Cadillac during the season, and they go fast. If you miss one, walk the Ocean Path instead or cycle the carriage roads, which are car-free and lined with birch and maple. Bar Harbor is the base, and it’s much calmer after Labor Day.
5. Tour the Newport mansions
If you’d rather look at chandeliers than trees, Newport, Rhode Island is the move. The Gilded Age “summer cottages” along Bellevue Avenue, The Breakers above all, are absurd and wonderful in equal measure.
Walk the Cliff Walk behind them for 3.5 miles of ocean on one side and mansion lawns on the other. The southern end gets rocky, so wear real shoes. Fall is ideal here: the summer crowds are gone and the sea air is crisp rather than muggy.
6. Eat a cider donut (or six)
Every orchard in New England sells them in the fall and they’re all slightly different. Warm, cakey, rolled in cinnamon sugar. Pair one with a cup of hot cider and you’ve understood the region.
Pick your own apples while you’re there. Most orchards run from early September to mid-October, and you pay per bag. Weekends are busy, especially near Boston, so earlier in the day is better.
7. Go to a small-town fall festival
Almost every town in New England throws some kind of autumn fair: craft markets, pumpkin carving, chili cook-offs, apple pie contests. They’re homemade, a little chaotic and genuinely fun.
Keene, New Hampshire and plenty of towns across Vermont host big harvest weekends. Check local listings for the weeks you’re travelling. The small ones on a village green are often better than the big headline events.
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8. Stay at a country inn
Part of the point of fall here is the evenings. A creaky old inn with a fireplace, a proper dinner and a porch to drink your coffee on in the morning is very much the experience.
Stowe and Woodstock in Vermont and the area around North Conway in New Hampshire have plenty. Here’s the honest bit: the good ones book up months ahead for the first two weeks of October. If you’re late, look a town or two off the main routes and you’ll find space.
9. Hit the coast after summer
The Maine and Massachusetts coasts empty out after Labor Day, but most places stay open through Columbus Day weekend. That makes early October a sweet spot: lobster shacks still serving, rooms cheaper, beaches empty.
Ogunquit, Kennebunkport and Camden in Maine are all lovely in the fall. Portland is worth a night for the food scene alone.
The coast also makes a good backup plan. If a cold snap or a windstorm strips the leaves early inland, which does happen, the harbour towns are just as pretty without peak colour. Build one coastal night into your trip and you’re covered either way.
Common questions
When is peak foliage in New England?
Late September to mid-October in the north and in the mountains, mid to late October in central areas, and late October to early November near the southern coast.
Which state has the best fall colour?
Vermont gets the reputation, but the White Mountains of New Hampshire are every bit as good. Pick based on what else you want to do.
Do you need a car?
For most of this list, yes. Public transport doesn’t reach the mountain roads or the small towns.
How long should a New England fall trip be?
Five to seven days lets you cover two or three states without spending the whole trip in the car.
Is it expensive?
Peak weeks are the priciest of the year for lodging. Book early, or go in the last week of September.
