New york to Boston

[Sid]

Hi everyone,
My parents and I are going to be driving from New York to Boston in mid-late August. We are not American and have never been to Connecticut/Rhode Island/Massachusetts so although i have been madly trying to look up information online and in books, we are still fairly clueless.

What would you suggest as the best places in CT. ? I am interested in experiencing the 'small towns', as well as pretty sights. Just a general New England experience i suppose.

Does this sound like a good idea:

Day 1) Drive from New York on the I-95 till it becomes the 395 then drive up to meet the 169? Is that even possible, and if so where do you suggest we spend the night on the way.

Day 2) the 169 to pomfret (or somewhere around there) and drive on to Providence.

Day 3) Providence to Newport

Day 4) Newport to Provincetown

Day 5) Provincetown to Boston

I can add an extra night in somewhere. Have i missed anything amazing or should i swap any destinations? I also don’t want to stay anywhere exceedingly expensive.

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

[AZBuck]

Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America forum.

I-95 between New York and New Haven is a very heavily travelled road. For a drive that is slightly more unique to New England, I would suggest that you instead head up the Merritt Parkway, CT-15. Then at North Haven, use CT-22 and CT-80 to continue east. This will give you a chance to experience some of the countryside and smaller towns. When CT-80 ends in Deep River, use CT-154 and CT-148 north for a short drive up to the Chester-Hadlyme Ferry for a scenic crossing of the Connecticut River on a service that has been operating since 1769, and will cost all of $3.75 for the car and the 3 of you. Once across the river, CT-148, CT-82 and CT-85 will bring you back to I-95 for a short drive to Mystic. This is a great town to see a current, but quaint, New England seacoast town, as well as a bit of its history. While there, be sure to get some home made ice cream at the small shop just at the west side of the bridge across the Mystic River. Also, ask for directions to Abbott's in Noank. This is nothing fancy, but its a great place to have a lobster at a picnic table overlooking the harbor.

It probably makes more sense to then go on into Newport before continuing your trip up to Providence, Cape Cod and Boston. Be sure to visit some of the 'cottages' in Newport. If you are a movie buff, the Elms was the location for the opening sequences of "True Lies". The International Tennis Hall of Fame is in the center of town, and shares a building with a pub/restaurant making a great place to have a quiet courtside lunch. I'm not as familiar with your other destinations, but I think you might have to work a bit to find low cost lodging on Cape Cod in high season. Also, while in Boston, be sure to walk the Freedom Trail. Even if our history does not appeal to you, the walk will take you through some of the more picturesque sections of Boston.

AZBuck

[Sid]

Thanks so much for your response!

So you think we should give the 169 a miss?

It looked pretty in pictures but i suppose if the routes you mentioned to get to mystic go through similar towns and scenery then it makes sense to miss the 169.

[AZBuck]

CT-169 is a very pretty road, with a bit of history along it. The problem is that it's a north-south road where you really want to be going east-west. Most roads in New England, in fact, exude a certain amount of charm, and there are plenty of other scenic roads that are closer to your line of travel. For example, MA-3A would make a good alternative to the freeway (MA-3) from Cape Cod up to Boston, and the roads I've suggested across southern Connecticut are quite nice, as is the drive into Newport, especially the bridges from the west. You will not lack for scenery on this trip!

AZBuck

[Sid]

Ok, sounds great. Thanks for your help!