New England Fall Getaway
In Fall, the New England region on the East Coast is extraordinarily beautiful from mid-to-late September to mid-October. Billions of leaves turn into every shade of orange and red from green. Especially, New Hampshire and Vermont are famous for their glorious Fall foliage. The New England region is best known for spectacular foliage drives, lakefront views for leaf-peeping, stunning photography spots, and cozy vacations. Use this helpful New Hampshire fall foliage tracker to learn about the peak weeks; you don’t want to be there past peak!
We visited New England during the 3rd week of October to pack in as many autumn-related experiences as possible. We planned it as a fall-getaway trip for my birthday, but we wished we were there 1-2 weeks earlier to experience a more voluminous range of Fall colors. However, we managed to get on some of the most scenic drives and had very autumny/wintery experiences we’ll never forget. Meeting Alpacas in Vermont was a cherry-on-top experience for us!! I’ve summed up our New England trip and added the must-visits that we couldn’t be at because of the road and weather conditions.
No post of New England is complete without mentioning the beauty of the iconic covered bridges. They are so simple to look at yet create stunning, romantic, and vintage-y backdrops for photoshoots, especially with the Fall scenery in the background.
New Hampshire
We stayed in Lincoln, and we started our day with pancakes at Flapjack’s Pancake House. There is usually a long wait here, but the interior has the cutest overhead toy train track, with a train running around the whole place all the time 🚂. After our brunch-turned-breakfast, we set off on a long day to explore New Hampshire.
Franconia Notch State Park
Amazing hikes/trails through the fall foliage. We took the one leading up to Flume Gorge.
The Kancamagus Highway
“The Kanc” for short, has breathtaking views of the White Mountains. We made one too many stops along the way. How could we not? From bright red and orange autumn colors to covered wooden bridges to stunning viewpoints.
Must Visits
- White Mountains region – from here, you basically stand on the top of New England
- Conway Scenic Railroad
Vermont
Stowe
On our first day in Vermont, we arrived in Stowe, an adorable, charming New England town, just in time to catch the sun setting over the Stowe community church. We were ready for an early dinner and had a perfect wood-fired pizza at The Bench.
The next day we grabbed breakfast at Black Cap Coffee and were ready to explore Stowe and its quaint streets filled with breakfast nooks, boutique stores amidst the fall foliage. Vermont is also home to many apple farms and maple sugar farms.
Now comes the highlight of our trip; Tucked away in Quechee city, is a quiet little Alpaca Farm – Living The Dream Alpaca Farm in Quechee, Vermont read all about it here!
Must Visits
- Groton state forest – Owls Head Trail 1.5 miles; this hike leads to a scenic visit of Lake Groton, Kettle Pond, and the Green Mountains.
- Smugglersʼ Notch State Park – a 3.5-mile long scenic highway filled with beautiful viewpoints.
- Route 100, also known as “Enticement Highway” runs north-south almost the entire length of the state and right through the Green Mountains. You will also enjoy the Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream factory on this route.
Woodstock
We further drove to reach the all-things-autumn town of Woodstock, while making several stops at cute towns and streets, wonderful old barns, farms, and lovely lakes. Woodstock is just picture perfect, every single house, every corner, every tree.
This little town has one of the bucket-list destinations; Sleepy Hollow Farm in Pomfret, Vermont. This spot is an Instagram icon. No album of New England fall photos is complete without this beautiful homestead in Vermont. The rainy road conditions that day dint allows us to get there.
Here’s some Woodstock must visits along with photography tips!
On our way south to Boston, which was our base, we explored the cutest pumpkin farms in Connecticut. Read all about it here – A day at the pumpkin patch.
If you’re looking for the classic, traditional Fall experiences, New England is the place to be. With so many fall events, rolling hills and meadows, hikes, gorgeous homes and churches, stunning viewpoints, and breathtaking lakefronts visiting New England in Fall is a must-have experience!
