Spectacular New England In The Fall

Tour Date: 29 September to 8 October
Location: USA

We are pleased to join up with “Trains and Travel” in the USA for another fabulous autumn colours tour

The Autumn colours in New England, there is nothing like it anyplace else in the United States. Join us for a spectacular week of sightseeing and train journeys in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont during the height of the fall colors. This tour will present to you some of the most awesome scenery in New England. The mountains are covered in blazing color that signals winter is again approaching. This tour features a number of spectacular train rides in all four states. The tour begins and ends in Boston.

Tour Manager: Chris Skow

From: Heathrow, Birmingham (via Dublin), Manchester (via Dublin) or Edinburgh (out direct, back via JFK)

Tour Highlights

Wonderful autumn/fall colours·
13 train rides·
6 dinners/lunches·
Escort throughout from/to Boston·
Boothbay Railway Museum·
Café Lafayette dinner train·
Mount Washington cog railway·
Good tourist class hotels

Tour Itinerary

DAY 1 Thursday 29 September, 2022

Direct flights from Heathrow (11:15 with BA), Birmingham (08:05 via Dublin), Manchester (14:25 via Dublin) and Edinburgh (11:00 direct with Delta) to Boston and hotel check-in at the Comfort Inn Boston. The Comfort Inn offers free Hotel shuttle service from Logan airport and the AMTRAK Depot. AMTRAK also offers good rail service to Boston from points all over the United States and Canada. We recommend, if you can, flying out a day early (Friday 1 October) for a pre-tour night in the hotel in Boston.

DAY 2 Friday 30 September (B)

Morning departure with our charter coach for transfer to explore historic downtown Salem, the famous Witch Trial history and waterfront. From there we will transfer to the MBTA and board train #2109 for a ride to the end of the line in historic Cape Ann region of the New England coast at Rockport. From the depot our coach will transfer us to downtown the Rockport area for sightseeing, shopping and independent lunches. This small New England Village is full of charm and beauty and is considered a Crown Jewel of the Massachusetts Coastline. Steeped in rich seafaring and art history Rockport is a fishing town, the area was first colonized in 1690 and it is pure New England. The famous movie “The Perfect Storm” was filmed here. Over a hundred and fifty unique and interesting shops in the area, plus many wonderful restaurants. You have a wide variety of restaurants to choose from to have your lunch while taking in views of the harbour & beaches. Later in the afternoon our coach will transfer us to our Portsmouth , New Hampshire hotel and independent dinners.

DAY 3 Saturday 1 October (B,D)

Today our coach will take us for a short tour of downtown Portsmouth and the bay, then deliver us to the Dover New Hampshire AMTRAK Depot, where we’ll board AMTRAK #681 the “DOWNEASTER” to Freeport Maine. From the Freeport depot our coach will transfer us to the Freeport outlet store shopping district where you’ll find the legendary LL Bean Headquarters and their specialty stores, as well as many other well known major outlet stores, and have independent lunches.

Next, we travel to Boothbay Railway Village for sightseeing and steam train rides. Here you’ll find a vintage auto collection considered one of largest in New England, model trains, real trains including six narrow gauge locomotives, 28 historic buildings with period contents, farm and fire fighting equipment and many more exhibits of New England’s rich heritage. Situated on 30 acres, this is also the home of the State of Maine’s World War I gift from France of a 40 & 8 railroad “Merci Car” and other historic rolling stock. From the Village we’ll continue on to our waterfront Boothbay Harbour Hotel. After settling in we have arranged for a very special fabulous New England Lobster Bake and seafood dinner at 7pm in the hotel restaurant.

DAY 4 Sunday 2 October (B,L)

Morning coach ride through the Maine countryside on our way to Alna, Maine and our train rides at the Wiscasset , Waterville & Farmington Railway Museum. This is one of the original Maine 2 foot narrow gauge railroads, and closed in 1943. Then 25 years later the museum was formed by an all volunteer group that is restoring the actual original right of way, every year adding a bit more trackage and improvements. Photo run-byes, switching, steam, museum exhibits, original freight and passenger rolling stock, scenic farm lands and absolutely a fun experience. Some describe it as being like a really big model train set! We have also arranged for delicious homemade style box lunches from the Dragonfly Cove Farm to be waiting for us at the WW&F, which you can eatthere or on the road while our coach travels to our next location: the Maine Narrow Gauge Museum in downtown Portland. Here you’ll have an opportunity to explore many historical displays, restored and unrestored narrow gauge rolling stock, both freight and passenger. Then we’ll take a 3- mile ride along scenic Casco Bay on a Maine 2 foot gauge train with a photo stop. On return our coach will take us to our North Conway, New Hampshire hotel and independent dinners.

DAY 5 Monday 3 October (B,L)

In the morning our coach will take us into downtown North Conway and the historic Conway Scenic Railway Depot. This is a part of the former Boston & Maine Railroad built over 135 years ago. Shopping, sightseeing and depending on time and staff availability a possible roundhouse and shop tour. The model railroad club layout will be open as well. From here we’ll board the scenic “Notch Train” and enjoy a specially prepared box lunch while our train winds it’s way up Crawford Notch to the summit depot for more photo ops. As the train travels up the White Mountains it will pass along sheer cliff bluffs, steep revines, cascading brooks, streams, panoramic mountain vistas, crossing the famed Frankenstein Trestle and the Willey Brook Bridge. From the Notch Depot we transfer back to our coach and follow the Conway Scenic tracks to Fabiens, hopefully railfanning our former train along part of the way, until we divert to the entrance of the Mt Washington Cog Railway to arrive at Base or Marshfield Station. After boarding as a group we’ll take a breathtaking gravity defying ride on one the only two daily steam-hauled trips up the mountain, all the others are diesel. This the world’s first mountain cog railroad built in 1869; climbing 6,288 feet from Base Station, on a 37% grade, at 4 mph, consuming a ton of coal and 1000 gallons of water to the summit of the tallest point in New England! Mt Washington is also recognised for having the worlds worst weather records . You’ll have about 45 minutes to explore before our train begins its return to Base Station. Then our coach will return us to our North Conway hotel and independent dinners.

DAY 6 Tuesday 4 October (B,D)

Today will be a day dedicated to enjoyable sightseeing and photo ops, including at least two classic covered bridges, the scenic Kangamangus Highway and fall colors photo stops as we work our way to our Lincoln, New Hampshire hotel. We have dinner at Brittany’s Cafe in Lincoln.

DAY 7 Wednesday 5 October (B,L)

We will start our day with sightseeing photo stops of three covered bridges including visiting the historic town of Bath. Incorporated in 1761, named after English statesman William Pulteney, the first Earl of Bath and Secretary of War. The church restoration is quite interesting, and the Old Country Store is a must visit. This is also one of our covered bridge locations, there are three here, the oldest from 1829. Independent lunches. We return to our Lincoln hotel in the early afternoon. At 3:40pm we depart the hotel on our coach to the Cafe Lafayette Dinner Train. This is a 20 mile train journey along the banks of the scenic Pemigewasset River, following the former B&M Railroad right of way which was constructed in the late 1800’s. Now operated by the HOBO Railroad, they also provide the power for our dinner train. Riding in classic restored Pullman cars you will enjoy five fabulous courses of fine dining and spirits served in the Grand European manner! As darkness descends on our journey our trains auxiliary lighting comes alive eliminating the passing countryside as we continue our ride through the evening. Our coach returns us to our Lincoln hotel after dinner.

DAY 8 Thursday 6 October (B)

Our coach takes us to Compton New Hampshire where we’ll visit the Blair Covered Bridge and cemetery. Spanning the Pemigewasset River, the first bridge was built in 1829, and then burned by Lem Parker who confessed “God told me to do it.” He wasn’t convicted because no one saw him do it! The second bridge was then built in 1869, and then rebuilt in 1977. The original bridge was built after a doctor unsuccessfully tried to Ford the river. His horse drowned, but the doctor rescued, and the town quickly raised the funds to build the bridge. We next travel to Merideth, New Hampshire to the Winnipesaukee Railroad Depot where we board the Winnipesaukee Fall Foliage Special. This is a rare milage special trip that does not follow their usually used trackage. Including a real sit down meal, the train leaves the depot at 11am and returns at 3pm. We then return to our hotel in Lincoln. Independent dinners.

DAY 9 Friday 7 October (B)

This morning our coach will deliver us at the White River Junction AMTRAK Depot, where we will board the Southbound AMTRAK Vermonter train departing at 11am and arriving at Bellows Falls at noon. Here we’ll spend a couple hours for independent lunches and sightseeing, before we gather and ride to Chester, Vermont. We then board the Green Mountain Railroad’s Green Mountain Fall Foliage Train for a one hour tour. We then board our coach for one last time and head back to Boston and hotel check-in at the Comfort Inn Boston.

DAY 10 Saturday 8 October (B)

Day for you own exploration. Hotel check-out and road transfer to Boston Airport for flights back to Heathrow (21:40), Birmingham and Manchester (21:25 via Dublin) and Edinburgh (13:40 via JFK). Or why not stay visit another US city via Amtrak. Direct trains to New York, Philadelphia, and Washington to name just three.

Option to stay on for our Colorado in the Fall tour by flying at 11:46 from Boston to Denver.