New England Fall Foliage Guide and Itinerary
Seeing and experiencing the fall colors of New England was something I’d wanted to see my whole life. It was a bit daunting to figure out a good strategy to see them, but have no fear - we’ve done all the research and spent 10 days on a big road trip all over New England during peak fall foliage season.
Here is our guide to the best way to see fall foliage in New England:
When To Go
People like to try to predict if the leaves will be early or late due to various weather conditions, but for fall foliage it’s best to stick to when they normally peak, which is usually between late September and mid October.
To help pick when to go, check out the next section for links to leaf color reports.
We booked tickets to Boston from September 28 through October 10 and arrived right at the start of the fall foliage season. Since it was the start of the season, we spent the first week up north and the second week in the central part of New England. Both areas were at full peak colors and quite spectacular!
How To Plan
Since the fall foliage colors tend to sweep down from north to south, it’s best to be flexible if your main focus is to see peak colors.
We used these fall foliage sites for live updates to help plan which parts to drive to every day.
New England Peak Fall Foliage Map
Visit New Hampshire Foliage Tracker
We also used Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok to do research on where the peak colors were, but half the time the photos and videos were from years ago so our results varied here.
Booking your hotel ahead of time is recommended since rooms begin to sell out as it gets closer to the normal fall foliage dates.
For the first week of the trip, we didn’t want to book a hotel too far north or south, so we picked one in the center and near a highway. For us that meant something in Hartford, Vermont or Lincoln, New Hampshire.
For the second week of the trip, we booked cancelable rooms in the same area with plans to possibly book rooms in a different part of New England if the colors were in a different part of the area.
During our trip, we canceled our second set of hotel rooms and booked hotel rooms in Stowe, Vermont, and Woodstock, Vermont since we knew there would be beautiful colors there.
You’ll definitely need a car to get around and explore. Some of our best discoveries were on those long drives between towns and on random streets on the sides of the highway. In the end, we drove over 2,000 miles as we crisscrossed New England in search of the fall colors!
Tips
New England is extremely popular during the Fall Foliage season, so for the best prices and availability, book your hotel or AirBnb ahead of time.
The Fall Colors work their way down from North to South, so depending on when you arrive - you should consult the fall color reports (I’ve linked to them in the above section) to see what part of New England is peaking.
Fall season means that you might get caught in rain showers, so be prepared with waterproof jackets, boots, and pants. For more info, check out the Gear section below.
Carry lots of water, snacks, and food in the car - most of your exploration will be done far away from major towns.
Use the offline maps feature of Google Maps as you’ll routinely encounter lack of phone tower service.
Bring a portable battery pack to keep your devices fully charged for all the photos and videos you’ll be taking. Alternatively, if you have a drone, laptop, and multiple phones & cameras like us, we used a car inverter to keep everything charged while on the road.
Use AllTrails to discover and navigate the trails. We loved AllTrails because it also works offline.
Gear
Men’s REI Rain Jacket - Everyone needs a good waterproof, breathable rain shell at an affordable price. I definitely had to use this jacket on a couple of rainy days.
Women’s REI Rain Jacket - This waterproof, stylish jacket will keep you dry in a downpour and is quite affordable compared to other high end outdoor brands.
Men’s Merrell Moab Waterproof Boots - It’s hard to beat how comfortable Merrell boots are right when you put them on. Plus they look good, are very durable, and are completely waterproof.
Women’s Merrell Ontario Waterproof Boots - super comfortable, waterproof, and stylish - they will last you a good five years or more depending on how much you use them.
Darn Tough Socks - these socks are guaranteed for a lifetime - if you ever get a hole or tear in them, they will replace them no questions asked!
Women’s Ultra Light Down ‘Puffy’ Jacket - Zory loves her Uniqlo puffy jacket and wears it all the time in San Francisco and her travels worldwide. It’s perfect for those chilly New England days.
Men’s Ultra Light Down Parka - Probably one of my most used jackets for everyday purposes and on my travels - I love them so much that I own several different colors.
Portable Battery Pack - Keep all your devices charged with this handy portable battery pack with built in wall charger. In fact, we bring this one with us during our travels around the world.
Car Inverter - One of our most important pieces of gear, this inverter kept our drone batteries, laptop, and phones constantly charged on the road.
Hydro Flask Insulated Water Bottle - Simple and reliable, this bottle never leaked and kept our drinks warm or cold all day.
Nikon Zfc Vintage Mirrorless Camera with 16-50mm Lens - this is our pick for best value camera. It produces excellent images, has a beautiful vintage look, and has the super dependable build that Nikon is known for.
Nikon Z6II with 24-70mm Lens - we actually use this camera for our travels and professional shots. It creates excellent images and is part of the professional Z line of Nikon cameras. We will be using this camera for a long time!
Drone DJI Mavic Air - This is the drone that we use - it’s an excellent and reliable drone that we’ve never had problems with. We like it because it’s very lightweight and the DJI Mavic Pro is just too bulky.
Kancamagus Highway
This is one of the most famous fall foliage drives in all of New England. When the leaves are changing colors, it’ll seem like you’re surrounded on all sides as the highway winds and curves.
You’ll want to stop at Hancock Overlook, which has been included in countless Instagram shots. It helps to have a drone to see the overhead view. The views from the ground are impressive as well!
Other great stops:
Sabbaday Falls - A very peaceful and easy hike which is a mix of fall foliage and culminating in a lovely waterfall.
Albany Covered Bridge - One of best preserved covered bridges in the area, this is worth a quick walk around!
Conway, NH - this is an adorable town worth stopping at for a bite to eat or ride one of the vintage trains at the Conway Scenic Railroad.
Woodstock
If I had to pick a quaint New England town to stay for a couple days, Woodstock would be my top choice!
Compared to some other popular towns, Woodstock never felt overly congested and the locals seemed more laid back as well.
There were many more cafes, shops, and restaurants to pick from as well.
Here are some of our favorite things to do in Woodstock:
Covered Bridges - Woodstock is home to three historic covered bridges. All three are spectacular and worth a visit. They are the Taftsville Covered Bridge, Lincoln Covered Bridge, and Middle Bridge.
Woodstock Inn - If you don’t stay here, definitely swing by for a warm latte or an afternoon cocktail.
Central St - plenty of interesting bookstores, antique shops, restaurants, and clothing boutiques to check out!
Sugarbush Farm - A 500 acre working maple and dairy farm, this is a great place to sample delicious cheese and maple syrup made on site. You can also take a tour of the farm.
White Mountain National Forest
We stayed a couple nights at the famous Omni Mount Washington Resort, located in the White Mountain National Forest.
On top of it being a beautiful resort, there is plenty of important history here such as it being the location of the Bretton Woods International Monetary Conference in 1944. At this conference, the US dollar was set as the currency peg to the price of gold, which laid the framework for the US economy to become a global superpower.
You can visit the property and take a stroll around the grounds even if you’re not staying there.
Surrounding the area are rolling hills of stunning maple trees with several excellent hiking trails.
Points of Interest:
Mount Willard Trail
Silver Cascade
Arethusa Falls
Where to stay:
Artists Bluff
One of the easiest hikes up offering the max reward - Artists Bluff offers sweeping views of Franconia Notch State Park. We ended up staying at the rock outcropping for several hours to soak in the views.
We parked at the Cannon Mountain RV Park lot. Sometimes there is a parking fee there, but not the morning we went, it was free.
Where to stay:
Stowe, Vermont
One of the most popular towns for Fall Foliage Leaf Peepers to visit - Stowe is full of New England charm and an iconic spot for photography.
As there is only one main street, the town does get a bit crowded during peak fall season, so be prepared for traffic jams and long lines at most cafes and restaurants.
There is one coffee shop in town called Black Cap Coffee. Try to get there early since it tends to get quite busy once the tour buses roll into town.
But overall, it was a nice place to stay for a night or two while exploring the area.
Tip:
There is a parking lot with a beautiful view of the whole town here. It’s also a perfect spot to launch a drone to get that Insta-famous shot of Stowe.
Where to stay:
Trapp Family Lodge (run by the family from the Sound of Music movie)
Smugglers Notch
Perfectly paired with a trip to the adorable town of Stowe - this iconic drive up and through Smugglers Notch is super magical when the leaves are in full color.
There are some especially beautiful parts of the drive that slowly wind up the mountain - you’ll know when you’re there as there will a bit of a slowdown in traffic by all the people gawking at the colors.
We started by driving north from Stowe and once we found the magical, winding stretch - we drove slowly through it three or four times. You can even park and walk around, which we totally recommend!
It’s also a great spot to get some unforgettable drone footage - especially of the winding road!
Dixville Notch
When the trees are in peak color here, hiking to the top of Tabletop Rock is a must do for its jaw dropping views of the whole area.
There are some parking spots which leads to a very easy hike to the top. You can enjoy the view from the back parts of the summit, but for the adventurous and ultimate views - the best is to scamper out to the ledge area. You’ll know when you get there what I’m talking about.
From the top you’ll see Lake Gloriette and Highway 26 curving through all the gorgeous orange and red maple trees.
Tip:
There are two ways up to the top - the easy way (which we recommend) or the hard way. We accidentally did the hard way up, which is a very hard hike up.
Lake Willoughby
A bit of a hidden gem up in North Vermont, we were doing some research on Instagram and saw some incredible drone shots of the lake surrounded by stunning fall colors. We took a chance and drove a couple hours to get there and wow was it worth it!
We started driving at the southern tip of the lake and went up to the north side. The views were more impressive at the north end since you could see all of the lake and both side of the mountain walls surrounding the lake.
There is parking and a nice sandy beach to see it all from.
Elm Grove Farm
Previously known as Sleepy Hollow Farm, this Instagram famous house is one of the most photogenic scenes in New England, especially when the leaves are in peak colors.
Note: There isn’t much parking and the front driveway area tends to get overrun with tourists, so please be considerate of the owners and cars on the road.
Highway 100
We saw some spectacular fall foliage along Vermont Route 100 while we drove through the Green Mountain National Forest. We also saw some really beautiful colors when we drove west on Vermont Route 125, which is about halfway through the park.
We started driving north from here, but if you’re coming from the north just start at the northern corner and go south.
We turned west here onto Route 125 for some really great fall colors.
Beware:
We were definitely threatened by locals living in the Green Mountain National Forest when we accidentally drove onto private land to see some fall foliage. So, just be very mindful of which places you drive into!
Waterbury
Just south of Stowe, the quaint area of Waterbury has several popular spots that you might want to check out:
Cold Hollow Cider Mill - Pretty much everyone stops by here for some delicious apple cider donuts, Vermont maple syrup, and of course hot apple cider! They give out free samples of the apple cider to help you decide if you want a big cup or jug!
Ben & Jerry’s - this is the factory where the famous ice cream is made! You can take a tour and try out flavors that you can’t find anywhere else!
Lake Champlain Chocolates - this popular chocolate maker is actually based in Vermont and these are one of their larger stores where you can try out all different kinds of their chocolate.
Where to stay:
Portsmouth
We made a quick stop in this cute town on our way to Vermont. A great idea would be to park in Market Square and spend an hour or two walking around the area and soaking in all the charm.
If you can’t find street parking, there are many parking garages in the area. We parked at the Hanover Garage
The North Church is a great place to being your exploration of Market Square with its many shops, cafes, and bookstores.
Kennebunkport
An iconic coastal town - we didn’t have much time to explore as we just did a quick drive through but we loved these spots:
Seacraft - this picture perfect antique store is made for those perfect Instagram shots
Walker’s Point - this area is famous for being home to the Bush Family when they’re vacationing, but really the highlight is walking or driving along the picturesque Maine coastline.
Dock Square - old time streets and buildings lost in time showcasing the quintessential Maine experience
Where to stay:
Portland
The largest city in Maine - Portland is a great place to explore if you’re looking for big city things like delicious ethnic restaurants, big store chain brands, and more modern architecture.
We didn’t get to explore Portland much, but if we had more time we would have definitely tried out some of their famous restaurants or sampled their craft beer scene.
Where to stay: