14 days trip from NYC to NYC via Niagara falls

[shpirer]

Hi,
We are two families with kids and would like to get some help with planning a trip:
NYC departure at 19-Jul-2012.
NYC arrival at 3-Aug-2012.

We wish the following to be included in the trip:
- Entry level mountain hike.
- Entry level river rafting
- New London ferry
- Corning glass museum + 1 more museum
- Washington mountain
- Indian head
- 1 afternoon outlet shopping
- Boston freedom trail
- Toronto park
- Finger lakes
- wine tasting
- 1 day Washington DC
- Outdoor self BBQ party
- River swimming
- 1 amusement park

Thank you,
Shpirer.

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America Forums!

You can easily hit all your targets in a two week RoadTrip, but you are going to have to be a bit selective and get everything literally 'lined up' in the proper order to make it all work. That line up would go generally like this (described as a clockwise trip, although it could just as easily be done in the opposite direction if that suits you)...

From New York, head down to Washington. Six Flags Great Adventure Amusement Park is easily on the way, as are the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Chesapeake Bay, and the United States Naval Academy. After your day in Washington head north via I-270/U-15 to Harrisburg (and a possible stop at Gettysburg), Williamsport and Corning. Head up to Watkins Glen and hike the gorges, wander through the Finger Lakes, check out a winery or two. then head over to Letchworth State Park before crossing into Canada at Niagara Falls. Circle around lake Ontario to Toronto and then continue around the lake and down the St Lawrence River through the Thousand Islands region to Montrêal. (It comes 'free' with your other destinations.) QC-35/QC-133 will than take you back to the US at Highgate VT. Using VT-104 down through Smugglers Notch to Stowe will afford you several great opportunities for easy mountain hikes. A couple of my favorites in this general area are the hills behind the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, and the Flume in Franconia Notch NH. Generally follow US-2 across northern Vt and NH to Gorham where NH-16 will take you south to the Mount Washington Auto Road. A little father south is North Conway, an outlet mall heaven. At Portsmouth NH pick up I-95 down into Boston and the Freedom Trail. Sticking with I=95 will also bring you to New London. I'm not quite sure what you mean by the 'New London Ferry'. There are three ferries from New London to three separate offshore islands:, Block, Fisher, and Long. Taking the ferry over to Orient Point on Long Island will give you a nice 'voyage' and let you return to New York in a fairly unique way.

So, all of the above driving will only take four of your fourteen days, leaving plenty of time for sightseeing.

AZBuck