New York and New England

[billseal]

I'm a Southerner traveling to the northeast for first time. Have class A, 40 ft; need suggestions for routes and sights. Want to see historical and scenery not big cities except Boston. Leaving late August.

[Dick_B]

You MUST take the bus tour of Boston, one of the great cities in the US both past and present. But do NOT, under any circumstance, try to drive around Boston to see the sights on your own. Search this Forum for Boston.
Also, do a Google search for `_______ tourism' and put the town, state or area in the blank space.

[dahkota]

Wompatuck State Park is between Boston and Plymouth - easy drive to both. There is also a ferry in Hingham that will take you to Boston - cheaper and easier than trying to park. We were there last week. Nice enough campground with very separate sites. 20A electric with water scattered around the loops. We would have enjoyed it more had it not been for the caterpillar invasion. If you sat in one spot too long they decided you were a tree. We were there last week; the caterpillars should be gone soon.

Scusset Beach State Reservation is very nice. We stayed two weeks and enjoyed it a lot. E/W hook ups. Only bad thing - the dump station has limited hours (closes at 3:30PM) and so you must plan to hit it during open hours. The campground is right on the cape cod canal and bay. Easy drive to Plymouth and Cape Cod towns.

I would recommend Fishermen's Memorial State Park in Rhode Island. They have full hook up site in a lovely location not far from the beach. Narragansett is a pretty town. Not too far a drive is Mystic, CT; Providence, RI; and our favorite, Newport, RI.

Right now, we are in Salisbury Beach State Reservation. E/W, open sites next to the beach and river. We are driving distance from Boston, Salem, Gloucester, and Concord, MA (lots of history) and Kennebunkport, ME and Portsmouth, NH. Lots of history in the area...

[jplante4]

Be prepared for some really bad roads....

This and

Plymouth Mass! Do the "pilgrim thing", check out Plimouth Village and the Mayflower II (fully functioning replica of the original Mayflower). The ship is usually taken out for a sail one or more times a year, so try to make sure you visit when the ship is in dock.

Although the actual "rock" has been called the world's most disappointing tourist attraction.

On the route, Mr MAC has it correct, although to miss the worse part of I-81 (north of Harrisburg) there are 2 alternatives.

1. Take I-78 to I-287 around NYC metro area to the Tappan Zee Bridge, then I-684 to I-84.

2. Take I-80 to US209 up the Deleware Water Gap (pretty ride) to I-84.

For seeing Boston (don't even try to take the motor home in), you can base at Normandy Farms or Boston Minuteman in Littleton. For Plymouth, there's Miles Standish SP, but no hookups. Plymouth is 45 mins from Normandy Farms. The closest is Scusset Beach at the eastern end of the Cape Cod Canal.

[Busskipper]

billseal wrote:
I'm a Southerner traveling to the northeast for first time. Have class A, 40 ft; need suggestions for routes and sights. Want to see historical and scenery not big cities except Boston. Leaving late August.

First how did the trip out west go last year? This is not the same, and the plan will need to be really different.

A little more info would also help - how far north? - will this be a Loop? - have you thought about driving up through the Mountains and back along the Coast? - you understand it is still Hot and Muggy in August?

Give us a little more guidance and you can get a Lot More Help/advice.

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[Tvov]

Plymouth Mass! Do the "pilgrim thing", check out Plimouth Village and the Mayflower II (fully functioning replica of the original Mayflower). The ship is usually taken out for a sail one or more times a year, so try to make sure you visit when the ship is in dock.

In Connecticut, Gillette's Castle is neat to see. A bunch of campgrounds in that area.

Try to avoid traveling on I95, especially through city areas.

[MR_MAC]

Billseal, When I come up from the beautiful South yearly, from I95 North of Richmond, take rt. 17 to rt. 66 over to I81 all the way to Scranton PA. then 84 to Danbury Conn. and on all the way to 90 (Mass pike) then on to I495. I495 North will take you to I95 in New Hampshire. I495 South will take you around Boston to Cape Cod. On 495 South in Foxboro you can camp in Normondy Farms, (about 25 to 30 mi.south of Boston) I think they have trans to Boston. Or on RT 44 off I495 in Middleboro a KOA near Plymouth MA. (25 to 30 mi to Bos.) I don't rec. driving to the City a Bus or train is the way to go. Also there is a State Park, Scusset Beach on the Cape Cod canal right at the bridge. (about 45 mi to Boston. If you head north from there take Rt. 3 N. towards Bos. then
Rt. 128 around Bos. to 95 North. Boston has a lot of History, a good aquarium, the ship (Old Iron sides) Duct Tours, (good way to see things) In Maine Acadia Nat Park is a great as is all along the coast esp North of Portland. At Freeport LL Bean Open 356 days & 24 Hrs. Then You can go all the way to Banger then RT 1A to Acadia, If you stay into October NH & VT the foliage is beautiful.

In PA on Rt 81 there is some road work * some long one lane traffic north of Harrisburg.

[Roadpilot]

Mystic Seaport, Fort Ticonderoga, Concord, MA, Boston, Salem, MA, and Portsmouth, NH all come to mind for history. For scenery try the lakes region of NH, White Mountains, Portland, ME and Bar Harbor. Lake Champlain is very scenic

[1ofmany]

Be prepared for some really bad roads....

[NoVa_RT]

If you're a baseball fan, the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY is well worth a visit.

[Gonzo42]

National Mall in D.C. 9/11 Museum. Ellis Island. Statue of Liberty. Smithsonian Museums. Independence hall.

[Tom_Barb]

billseal wrote:
I'm a Southerner traveling to the northeast for first time. Have class A, 40 ft; need suggestions for routes and sights. Want to see historical and scenery not big cities except Boston. Leaving late August.

Things we always see when we are back seeing the folks, Baseball hall of fame, The Farmers museum just north of Cooperstown on route 8, then there is fort Ticonderoga way up north. the Remington fire arms museum in Illion. Plus the thousands islands.

Lots of stuff to see in a history rich area.