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Cruise vs road trip to see New England


Jota62
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Hi everyone,

 

My boyfriend and I have been discussing a possible trip to New England this October. If we took the road trip route we would fly into Boston and spend 2 days there, then go to Portland for a day, then Acadia (bar harbor) for 3 nights and make our way back to Boston spending a night somewhere along the way. Looking at fall hotel prices, it seems like no matter what we will be spending a decent amount with New England in the fall.

 

Doing some research online, I became interested in the Norwegian, oct 20-27 cruise that has an itinerary of: NYC, Halifax, Saint John, Bar Harbor, Boston, Newport, and back to NYC.

 

Having to fly into NYC and spend the night, the cruise will probably be a couple hundred more, but doesn't seem drastically more. On a cruise we could see more places, but on a road trip would have more time in the select places.

 

I'm curious if anyone who has done this itinerary has found the time at each port (seems to be most 8-5) was sufficient and if the excursions you could really do on your own once there or need to do more cruise ship excursions for a better experience.

 

Basically, trying to weigh the perks of a cruise vs the perks of flexibility of a road trip and would appreciate some opinions.

 

Thank you in advance!

 

 

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I'm from Portland, have kids in Boston, taken the family to Halifax on a combined business/vacation trip, and visited Cape Cod many times. Believe it or not, I've also taken a Canada/New England cruise (though it cost me almost nothing as it was an NCL employee perk) to Martha's Vineyard, Boston, Bar Harbor, St. Johns NB, Halifax, and Newport RI. The cruise gets you some good days in port towns, but if you really want to see the other part of New England and the Canadian Maritimes, do a land tour.

 

We did some nice excursions, schooner cruises at both Bar Harbor, and Halifax. The Museum of the Atlantic in Halifax is great, both the Titanic and the Halifax Explosion exhibits.

 

The Northeast has mountains as well as shoreline, and little towns all over, and if you tour like we do, and not make reservations more than a day ahead, you can get lost in time finding one intriguing spot after another.

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^Couldn't agree more. The only way I'd cruise the NorthEast would be to see ports that are not easily seen by land or if I won a freebie cruise. You'll be unlikely to get more than a few miles inland on any port day, so even if you're not primarily there for leaf-peeping (which is hugely better with your own car as the best spots can differ day to day and nobody can predict exactly when or where the change is going to peak) you'll be able to see and do more.

 

And if you do choose to visit some of the port cities, you can do so on days without hordes of cruisers if you check the cruise timetables - so you'll see more, with less hassle, and likely get friendlier (at the very least less hurried) service across the board too.

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We did a Canada and New England cruise in September 2017. Unfortunately most of the New England ports were fogged in so we really didn't see a lot. Even with some of the excursions, the fog got in the way of the views. The Canadian ports were great. That is one problem with cruising - you are on a fixed timetable and if the weather isn't great you can miss the best parts - compared to a driving trip where you can amend your timetable.

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We have driven (in a camper) the northeast and cruised the same area twice. The cruises only wet our appetite for the road trip which followed cruising about 2 years later. We would recommend the road trip!

The advantage of the cruise is not having to unpack and repack between locations, but if you are using motels or hotels it makes no difference.

 

Have a Great trip, either way.

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Your profile says your are in Pittsburg...I would just drive there. It's only a day drive and you wouldn't have to buy airline ticket, do the whole airport dance, luggage deal, rent car at the other end. I used to take chemicals from Elwood City to the paper mills in Maine often and the drive isn't that bad. (turn north before NYC is the key)

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  • 3 weeks later...
Your profile says your are in Pittsburg...I would just drive there. It's only a day drive and you wouldn't have to buy airline ticket, do the whole airport dance, luggage deal, rent car at the other end. I used to take chemicals from Elwood City to the paper mills in Maine often and the drive isn't that bad. (turn north before NYC is the key)

 

 

 

Thanks for the info, definitely something we will consider. We wanted to go to Boston though, if going out to New England, and then work our way up, but maybe we will change our itinerary and just head to Maine. Still haven't decided what we want our vacation to be at this point, but I appreciate all the feedback!

 

 

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Thanks for the info, definitely something we will consider. We wanted to go to Boston though, if going out to New England, and then work our way up, but maybe we will change our itinerary and just head to Maine. Still haven't decided what we want our vacation to be at this point, but I appreciate all the feedback!

 

 

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Even with turning north before NYC as Dave suggests, you will still be led into Boston. There are no SW to NE interstates in the area. Most everything either goes through NYC (I-95) or you swing north and pick up the Mass Pike (I-90), which goes east/west. If you don't want to go to Boston, swing around it on I-495 and pick up I-95 heading to NH and Maine. Or take the Pike right into Boston, see the sights, and then go I-93/I-95 to NH and Maine. If you've never been there, I heartily recommend Boston.

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I am Boston born & raised ... and I highly recommend driving through the cities and states. Especially in October as leaf peeping should be gorgeous that time of year. Also, as you are discovering, leaf peeping is a HUGE industry along the eastern coast. Rates for everything jumps.

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pick up I80 east to I81, north to I84 east to I90 (Mass Pike)

 

There are lots of ways you can do this and still avoid NYC from PA; I have family in eastern PA but I have driven through PA via 76 & through the us, New England, etc. Although I was a lifelong NYC’er, my first two years were in Newport, RI on account of my fathers first job from college.

 

NYC gets all the attention but New York State is gorgeous, likewise in the autumn. You can get up there via scenic parkways and then the thruway from various routes through PA and very briefly into NJ before crossing into NY. From the NYS Thruway you can pick up I90 east as mentioned and go through Massachusetts all the way to Boston or....you can opt to drive into Vermont from NY via route 7 from the Northway which is completely SPECTACULAR then east through New Hampshire into Maine via 135. It’s slow but unbelievably scenic although it misses Massachusetts. Of course the Boston proud are going to pull for that route and I’m shouting out my native State. OK for 18 months now I like everyone near I95 in lower New England w/easy access to Manhattan cause I’m NYC forever ;)

 

I do love much about Massachusetts so you can’t go wrong and myself yearn to explore Boston more because I’ve onky ever done a quick visit.

But, true New England is in the small towns and hamlets and villages full of history, charm and great people.

 

I guess no matter which plan you eventually map out, allow for the possibility of deviating and rerouting if you feel inspired. Whether you’re into nature, the arts, food, history, indigenous Americans, antiques, geology, lakes, farms, or boats or whatever...it’s here. Under lots of snow ️ today but otherwise waiting for you to discover.

 

As you plan if you have more questions, come back and we’ll help!

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  • 4 weeks later...

I know this post is a bit old, but we always grapple with this question as well, and we are pretty experienced travelers, having been traveling for maybe 25+ years. So 25 years ago cruises were great, but over the years things have deteriorated. So we looked at other alternatives, like land trips. In fact we looked at a Japan cruise but ultimately decided on a Japan land tour.

 

Sp prices really aren't that different no matter how you go, give or take. But here is the trade off as we see it. A cruise is easier to plan and less stressful on your body, BUT it comes down to this, will you be happy with just being at a port for 5 to 6 hours and that's it, OR do you need to spend more time and immerse yourself there? No right or wrong answer. But if your younger, and want to see MORE, go with your own exploration. If your older and can live with shorter stops, then cruise, its easier.

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We plan to do a bit of both. We are trying to decide whether or not to fly into Boston and drive through Vermont or New Hampshire to Quebec City for our 2019 Snowbird Migration Cruise or to fly into Montreal and spend extra time there. Either way, we plan to spend about a week pre-cruise on land. We have done that in Europe before a TA the last couple of years (and again this year from Amsterdam) and found that we love the combination. So, if you can spare the time, I would say do both!

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I happened to book a cruise to Canada on QM2 but that was because I wanted to see what that ship was like.

 

Having been to Boston and Acadia and done the drive from NJ/NY I would ABSOLUTELY recommend the drive over cruise.

 

Personally I would spend a day or two in Boston and at least one or two full days in Acadia National Park.

 

Driving also lets you go a little inland if there is something you want to see.

 

I haven't done this trip in October. It might be getting a little toward the cold side. Would look at the average weather for the period. Also, the peak leaf season average for the period.

 

I have also done a lot of driving in the Northeast, eg from NJ/NY out to the Pittsburgh area. As mentioned above you might want to skip flying altogether.

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