New Hampshire Planning & Tips

The Art of Smart Timing
New Hampshire is terrific three seasons out of the year. Summer is prime travel season, with all of the attractions, restaurants and inns open and in full swing, and lots of outdoor recreation offerings in the lakes, mountains and seacoast. Fall is when the state really comes into its own, with the famed New England foliage, farm stands and harvest fairs in abundance on backcountry roads. Winter holds its own charms, with picture book villages covered in snow and Christmas lights, and visitors seeking out skiing and other winter sports. Only in spring does the state's tourism industry lag -- especially during the doldrums of March and April, a time commonly called "mud season" in Northern New England, when the snow melts but the ground is still frozen and natives put their L.L. Bean boots to good use.

New Hampshire has many kid-friendly events year-round. Highlights include the annual Master Sand Sculpturing Competition each June in Hampton Beach each June; the Hillsborough Balloon Fest, featuring dozens of colorful hot air balloons in mid-July; and the Keene Pumpkin Festival, which has set the Guinness world record for most illuminated jack-o-lanterns in one place, and continues to fill the streets with more than 30,000 pumpkins every October.

Getting There
New Hampshire is easily accessible, with several major highways entering the state, including I-93 from Boston and I-91 from Connecticut and Western Massachusetts. The major airport is Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, served by Delta, USAir, United, Continental, Southwest, and Air Canada. From Manchester, the Seacoast is a 40-minute drive, the Lakes Region an hour, and the heart of the White Mountains two hours. Despite the name, however, the airport is more than an hour from Boston. It's often possible to find better deals by flying into Logan International Airport in Boston proper, which is served by all major airlines; from Boston, the Seacoast is an hour away; the Lakes Region two hours, and the northern White Mountains 3.5 hours.

Getting Around
Driving within New Hampshire is a relative ease; several major highways connect all attractions you might reasonably be interested in seeing. Only in the far north of the state would you need to consider 4WD on some of the logging roads; even then, most of the roads are in good repair. One word of caution, however: addresses are sometimes more of an art than a science, with small villages foregoing street numbers altogether and strange addresses such as "3 miles off Rte. X" sufficing for some rural attractions. Use GPS with caution; whenever possible, secure an exact address for GPS systems from your destination before you start -- it may be dramatically different than the "official" street address.

In general, a car is essential for traveling in New Hampshire. Amtrak is nearly non-existent outside the Seacoast and even Greyhound has few stations, especially in the northern half of the state. Unless you are going to base yourself in one location, such as Portsmouth or Hampton, for the entire length of your stay, do yourself a favor and rent a car. You can scrimp on other areas of your vacation if necessary.

Visitor Bureaus
State of New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism Development
White Mountains Attractions
Lakes Region Association
Greater Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce