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Living in Canada/New England


camper49
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We mostly cruise during the winter..Caribbean . Having thoughts of doing a Canada/New England cruise. Would like to hear opinions from anyone that lives in Canada or New England and has done this.

THanks

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I don't live in New England, but have taken two Canadian Cruises and live in Pennsylvania. We really enjoyed our cruises - beautiful weather and seas in August, mostly good weather in October. Beautiful scenery and wonderful people - while you won't be as likely to lie on a beach there are other great opportunities the Caribbean doesn't offer.

 

We've also vacationed near where I grew up and taken two trips to Gettysburg (about 2 hours away). It's a different perspective on vacation vs. living there, but you do have the benefit of some inside knowledge/understanding that farther travelers might miss.

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We live in Portland, and did a NE cruise on NCL (fair game, it was almost free as an employee benefit). The Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce folks greeting passengers looked at us a little funny when we told them where we were from, but we enjoyed it. What is it you'd like to know?

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We live in Canada -further east up the St. Lawrence between Toronto and Montreal. We thought of a road trip to the east, but decided to cruise. It was amazing. 90% of the time we could see land. Coming into port in each of these ports was really great. I highly recommend it. In our area, we see the changing colours and seasons, so it wasn't important to us to see the fall colours (we see them plenty at home). We cruised during the second week of May on the Veendam and our family of four all really enjoyed it. Very different feel to it than Caribbean cruises - we had only gone on Caribbean cruises before this as well.

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We live in Portland, and did a NE cruise on NCL (fair game, it was almost free as an employee benefit). The Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce folks greeting passengers looked at us a little funny when we told them where we were from, but we enjoyed it. What is it you'd like to know?

We are trying to decide between a road trip or cruise.

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We are trying to decide between a road trip or cruise.

 

Road trip. The cruise would only give a superficial overview of the port cities. New England ranges from the mountains to the shore, with lakes in between.

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We live in Connecticut and this is our third NE/Canada cruise. Yes, you only get a taste of the ports, but we love cruising and would rather go north than south in summer. Plus, we often do weekend road trips to see places more in-depth. For example, we've been all over MA which has many, many wonderful historic sites (Sturbridge, Plymouth, Boston, Salem).

 

I am looking forward to exploring Acadia NP this time around and if we love it, we will likely come back and spend a few days in the area. Enjoy whatever you decide!

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Road trip. The cruise would only give a superficial overview of the port cities. New England ranges from the mountains to the shore, with lakes in between.

 

We rented a car at ports we wanted to see more of the countryside - worked out great. I thought cruising was a great alternative to driving - I think likely more economical too. I don't think you can beat the scenery of coming into the harbour at each port - something you wouldn't capture on a road trip.

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On a road trip you can choose where you go and how long you stay. And you can go to places not available by cruise. (Full Cabot Trail!) Of course you have to do a bit more planning and you have to drive.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Lived nearly 40 years in New England. Went to college in New Hampshire. Still go up to visit family and friends in RI/MA/ME/NH.. Canada / New England cruises are still my favorite - much more relaxing then Caribbean, slower pace, beautiful scenery.. Doing another one this October and planning for next October already.

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Born in Newport, lived my entire life in NYC, just recently moved to Connecticut, have always returned to New England but by car, probably because of the birth and proximity. New England is amazing for too many reasons unrelated to the question.

 

I think a cruise is great for people new to the area, wanting to get a taste of it all while enjoying something they already love, cruising. Visiting New England will of course be unlike the Caribbean but you can still tailor your port visits to themes that suit your interests with so much on offer, depending upon which itinerary you select. That’s where asking for thoughts, ideas is helpful for first time visitors - share a bit of what interests you, why you want to see New England, locals can help with ideas of what you might like.

 

History, nature, food are among the biggest attractions but there’s so much more of no less importance to discover. Lots of people tend to return often, a few even move here! A road trip tends to be the best way to get deeper into the best of whatever part of New England that beckons you, by the seaside or by some fine mountains and forests - even terrific little islands. Whatever you do, don’t rush. Actually, you can’t. Once off any interstate, it’s usually just small one or two lane roads to wherever. :cool:

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  • 2 weeks later...

We fell in love with the Maine coast after spending just a few hours in Bar Harbor on our 20th anniversary cruise. So for our 25th anniversary we booked a cottage in Camden, Maine and this time we spent a week traveling up and down the coast. It is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been and the people are even friendlier than they are here in Tennessee. It’s been 2 years and I’m still dreaming about lobster rolls and quaint harbors. Guess I need to plan another trip soon!

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