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This 7 day road trip from New York City will take you to some of the most beautiful spots in the Northeast USA. And there is plenty of time to explore the destinations along the way, with stops in Connecticut and Rhode Island on the way to Boston.
If you asked me how I like to travel when with family and friends, I’d say by car. Whenever we can, we rent a car and take off exploring. It almost forces us to talk and share stuff that we normally don’t.
I have spent a lot of time traveling is the northeast region of the United States. I could spend weeks exploring the area by car.
There are so many options for a 7 day road trip from New York. You can drive through New York State, following the Hudson Valley from NYC with a stop to explore Albany, the state capital. Then head to the Finger Lakes for outdoor fun and, of course the wineries, ultimately ending up at Niagara Falls State Park. Or you could make it an American history trip, heading south through to New Jersey to Philadelphia to visit the Liberty Bell and a stop in Lancaster Pennsylvania to learn about Amish culture. Give the kids a fun break with a day trip to the charming Hersheypark theme park before your final destination for the ultimate American history lesson: Washington DC.
My family thinks the best road trip is this 7 day road trip from New York north to Boston.
TravelingMom Tip: If you are doing this trip with kids, plan “drive only” days when you do just that. This will give you time to stop along the way as often as you want. You can also get settled in your hotel and get familiarized with your surroundings instead of just being stressed to get to your next tour.
Then, after a day of driving, take a day or two to explore each city. This will keep the kids from getting bored in one place.
7 Day Itinerary
It all begins in New York City. Just exploring the Big Apple can take two weeks or more. But when time is limited, there are a few things you shouldn’t miss. On the morning of the first day, take the Circle Line Boat tour to visit to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Or, if you have less time, take the free — that’s right, free — Staten Island ferry which sails past the statue and gives you a great photo opp with the gorgeous NYC skyline in the background.
For dinner, check out one of the many New York restaurants. We visited the Jekyll and Hyde Club. A truly cool experience for all ages.
On the second day you might want to visit Central Park Zoo and take a Pedicab tour of Central Park. To finish off your visit to New York, take a walk along Times Square or check out one of its many museums.
Here’s TravelingMom’s recommended 2-day itinerary for New York City with kids. If you can spare an extra day, try this 3-day itinerary for NYC.
Now it is time to move on to Newport, Rhode Island. It’s about a 3.5 hour drive by interstate. Or take the more scenic route closer to the Atlantic seashore and stop for lunch in Old Saybrook, a classic New England resort town, with a one of the best beaches along the East Coast. While you’re in the neighborhood, take a ride on the Essex steam train. Buy tickets in advance.
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New York City to Newport, RI
In my opinion Newport, a town on the Atlantic Ocean in Rhode Island, is one everyone should visit while in the area. It is a tiny, quaint town that will definitely make you feel in another world, especially after your visit to the bustling metropolis of NYC.
For the first day in Newport, I would recommend taking a sailboat tour. It is a fun and relaxing morning activity that I my whole family loved. Afterwards, you can take a short walk along Fort Adams, which was once an incredibly important spot for protecting the region. To finish up your day, take the afternoon trip on theIce Cream Train.
On the second day, take your time walking around the town and visit some of its museums. There are at least 10 beachfront mansions that were turned into museums. One of the most popular and well known, The Breakers, once belonged to the Vanderbilt Family.
Time to move on! The next day, eat a hearty breakfast, get everything packed and point your car towards Boston. The drive will take a little over two hours if you head straight there. Or you could meander and include a stop for lunch at one of these kid-friendly restaurants in Cape Cod.
Read More: 5 More Fun Northeast USA Road Trip Ideas
Newport to Boston, Massachusetts
Boston is such an important place for the history of the US that most of the activities involve some kind of history lesson. The first thing I will recommend is going on a trolley bus tour. It will give you a good overview of the city. You can do the hop on and off options, deciding where to spend more time and where to eat. It will basically allow you to hop off, enjoy a visit to whatever landmark that you like, and continue later with the bus tour. Take full advantage of this tour and visit as many places as possible.
For the second day, take a guided tour of the Freedom Trail. You will visit lots of historic places and the guide (often an actor in costume) will tell you everything about the sites. Then you can tour Fenway Park, the oldest baseball stadium in the US. Other options include visiting Quincy Market or touring a local brewery.
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Hi, I came across your post and found it super informative but I noticed a pretty big error. You mention that the drive from Boston to Burlington, VT is only 45 minutes. It’s actually closer to 3.5-4 hours. The link you listed shows Burlington, MA which is in fact 45 minutes but obviously not where University of Vermont so you might want to correct this.
Thank you! You’re right that would be a drive in time warp. We’ve corrected it.
We are a planning a road trip from NYC to Montreal or vice versa.
Our initial thoughts are to fly up to NYC and spend a day or two in NYC and then start our road trip to Montreal. One of our main stops is Thomasland for our 5 year old, do you have any suggestions on how to navigate this trip?
One of the biggest considerations for you is going to be ensuring that you rent a car that allows international border crossings. Some are restricted in states you can go to. We’ve seen a lot of car rentals out of NYC that are only ok’d for NJ, MA, and VT. Off airport locations may be your best bet. There can be different rules between different locations even for the SAME companies so make sure you verify with the specific location. US licenses and US insurance are accepted in Canada (be sure to bring proof of insurance). Are you looking at Thomasland in Carver, MA? That’s going to be a 4 1/2 hour drive without traffic. You may want to also check flights into Boston or Providence, RI. There could be fun kid stops in either NH’s White Mountains or in Vermont (Stowe & Burlington) on your drive to Montreal! If NYC isn’t on your must see list your trip could be easier with a different starting point.
How is it 45 mins from Boston to Burlington? Google says 3.5 hours
This is a great post. Definitely gonna hit up the Family fun ziplining at Arbortrek. Family road trips can be fun, but my family tends to go a bit crazy after only an hour so of driving. I would love to hear if you have any trips for keeping things fun for kids in between stops. We’ve tried the alphabet letters on billboards spotting game and they like that, but it gets old after a while, so if you know anything similar that would be awesome.
Hey Sean,
Hahaha, if I had that answer, I’ll be telling you, trust me my kids (and I) go a bit bonkers on long trips. But we can manage around 3 hours, first just chilling and always have a movie with us and some games on their phones/tablets.
we don’t do super long rides at a time,