Classic New England Fall Foliage Tour – featuring Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts & New York’s Hudson Valley

October 11^th This morning we’ll take drive on the Kancamagus Highway, a tour that includes breathtaking views.  Of course, we will stop for some scenic fall-foliage photos since many consider this to be the most scenic road in New England.   Midday we will embark on the Conway Scenic Railroad’s Mountaineer journey passing through the autumn colors of Crawford Notch while in the comfort of a 1950s-era streamlined passenger car.  Sit back and relax on this scenic two-hour, one-of-a-kind journey through the region’s dramatic colors found along the train’s route.

As one of the few remaining grand hotels in New England, the Omni Mountain Washington Hotel at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, is a true White Mountain treasure.  We get to escape here for a bit this afternoon and soak in the scenery and history of this majestic retreat that has hosted presidents, poets and celebrities.  While here we will take a brief tour and partake in the British tradition of high tea (or cider) and relax as we take in the stunning mountain views.   Late this afternoon we will continue our drive to our overnight lodging where we will have a fun pizza party as we recall the events of the day.  (breakfast, high tea, & pizza party included)

October 12^th   This morning you have the chance to sleep in or board the motorcoach for a 15-minute drive to Sharon, Vermont and visit the Joseph Smith birthplace memorial.  After the visit, we will return to the hotel to pick up any guests and make a lunch stop before traveling to the Magic Wings Butterfly Conservancy and Gardens where you’ll be amazed with this beautiful tropical oasis filled with colorful butterflies.

Tonight, you’ll be taken back in time as we travel along the mile-long Old Main Street through historic Deerfield, Massachusetts.  This most rural part of Massachusetts was the heart of colonial America, and its history is imbued in every flagstone, every brick, every clapboard building, and the 1774 liberty pole flying its flag of freedom.   Deerfield is the best-documented small town in America and we are honored to be dining here at the Deerfield Inn & Tavern.  Have your cameras ready!  (breakfast and dinner included)

October 13^th   Today we journey to the Berkshires and Norman Rockwell’s picturesque hometown of Stockbridge, Massachusetts.  Here, we’ll appreciate the work of this remarkable artist at the Norman Rockwell Museum.  The museum contains the world’s largest original Norman Rockwell art collect including his famous Saturday Post covers. 

This afternoon you get to enjoy the beauty of the Hudson Valley from the water as we set sail on a scenic Hudson River cruise.  Our experienced guide will point out millionaires’ sumptuous estates, picturesque Hudson River lighthouses and quaint, sleepy villages surrounded by the natural beauty of vineyards, orchards and scenic preservation sites.  After our cruise we will make a stop at the Kingston historic Stockade District.  This eight-block attraction is the original site of the mid-17^th century Dutch settlement and is the only one of three New York Dutch settlements surrounded by stockades where the outline of the stockade is still evident.  The area is filled with historic buildings, museums, restaurants and unique boutiques.  (breakfast and dinner included)

October 14^th Just down the road in Hyde Park, New York is the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum.  Here we will visit his estate that he loved dearly and the place he considered home.  The Presidential Library is fascinating and it’s here we will learn more about the only President elected to four terms.  You’ll also get to tour FDR’s home which is known as “Springwood” or “The Big House” and to have the chance to pay your respects at the final resting place of FDR and his beloved Eleanor as well as his faithful dogs.

A fun lunch stop is planned at the Everady Diner with its throwback 1950’s atmosphere in a true roadside diner with burgers, malts and a jukebox.  The Everady has been featured on the Food Network and also on Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives and we are happy to have this on our itinerary.  We will check into The Sleepy Hollow Hotel in the historic town of Tarrytown, New York.  Dinner is another treat as we get to visit the Eldorado Diner.  Be prepared to be amazed tonight as we visit the area’s biggest Halloween event!  The wildly popular Great Jack O’ Lantern Blaze features over 7,000 hand-carved, illuminated pumpkins set against the mysterious backdrop of Van Cortlandt Manor’s 18^th-century buildings and riverside landscape.  New for 2024 is the twirling pumpkin Ferris wheel along with a gord-eous circus sideshow!  (breakfast included)

October 15^th  Overlooking the Hudson River in Tarrytown, New York, is Lyndhurst, one of America’s finest Gothic Revival mansions.  Designed in 1838 by Alexander Jackson Davis, the mansion’s architectural brilliance is complemented by its comprehensive collection of original decorative arts and the estate’s park-like landscape. 

Next up we will visit a totally different but still marvelous home, this time the estate home of the author Washington Irving.   His characters from the Headless Horseman to Rip van Winkle are global icons and Irving’s legacy lives on at his whimsical estate known as Sunnyside.  It is here that we get to tour his meticulously restored home which is filled with his possessions including his writing desk and books.  Guides, costumed in formal dress of the period, explain how Irving designed the house and grounds himself to reflect his romantic views of art, nature and history.  Later this afternoon we will report to the airport for our nonstop flight back home, filled with vivid memories and experiences of our time in charming New England.  (breakfast included)