The 9 Can't-Miss Towns In New England
In Concord, Massachusetts, the bridge where minutemen fired on British troops in 1775 still spans a quiet river at the edge of town. Small towns like it hold some of the richest history in New England. Colonial greens sit beside working harbors, and mountain trails start just outside town. Many are small enough to explore on foot in an afternoon. Each adds something found nowhere else, whether a Gilded Age mansion or the last wooden whaleship in the world.
Kennebunkport, Maine
Kennebunkport is a classic Maine harbor town, with Dock Square at its heart, packed with shops, galleries, and lobster shacks along the Kennebunk River. A drive along Ocean Avenue passes rocky coastline and the view of Walker's Point, the oceanfront summer home of the Bush family. Goose Rocks Beach, just north of town, has a long stretch of calm, sandy shoreline. Rail fans can ride vintage streetcars at the Seashore Trolley Museum, and in December, the town's Christmas Prelude fills the streets with lights, carolers, and holiday events.
Boothbay Harbor, Maine
Boothbay Harbor wraps around a busy, boat-filled harbor on the Midcoast, and a long wooden footbridge crosses the water between the two sides of town. Boat tours head out from the waterfront to spot puffins, seals, and whales. Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, just outside town, is one of the largest public gardens in New England, with themed gardens, waterfront trails, and giant wooden troll sculptures hidden in the woods. Each June, Windjammer Days fills the harbor with tall sailing ships.
Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Portsmouth, one of the oldest towns in the country, sits at the mouth of the Piscataqua River on New Hampshire's short coastline. Strawbery Banke Museum preserves an entire historic neighborhood, with restored homes spanning more than three centuries and costumed interpreters bringing them to life. Across the street, Prescott Park offers waterfront gardens and summer concerts. Downtown Market Square is lined with brick buildings, cafes, and shops, and boat cruises head out to the rocky Isles of Shoals, several miles offshore.
Stowe, Vermont
Stowe sits at the foot of Mount Mansfield, the highest peak in Vermont, and its white church steeple against the mountains is one of New England's classic views. In winter, Stowe Mountain Resort draws skiers from across the Northeast, while summer and fall bring hikers to trails across the mountain and through Smugglers' Notch, a narrow pass lined with towering cliffs. The paved Stowe Recreation Path winds for miles along the river through meadows and woods. The Trapp Family Lodge, founded by the family that inspired The Sound of Music, sits on a hillside above town.
Manchester, Vermont
Manchester sits in a valley between the Green Mountains and the Taconic Range in southern Vermont. Its top attraction is Hildene, the 1905 summer home of Robert Todd Lincoln, the only child of Abraham Lincoln to survive to adulthood, with formal gardens and walking trails. The road up Mount Equinox, called Skyline Drive, climbs to wide views over several states. Manchester is also the home of Orvis, the outdoor outfitter, and the American Museum of Fly Fishing, while the Southern Vermont Arts Center displays work by regional artists on a wooded hillside.
Concord, Massachusetts
Concord is one of the places where the American Revolution began. At the Old North Bridge, now part of Minute Man National Historical Park, local militia fired on British troops in April 1775, the "shot heard round the world." The town in Massachusetts also has a remarkable literary history. Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women at Orchard House, which is open for tours, and Henry David Thoreau lived for two years beside Walden Pond, now a state reservation with a swimming beach and walking trail. Many of these writers rest on Author's Ridge in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island, was the summer playground of America's wealthiest families during the Gilded Age, and their mansions still line Bellevue Avenue. The Breakers, built for Cornelius Vanderbilt II, is the grandest, and visitors can tour it along with several other estates. The Cliff Walk runs for about 3.5 miles along the rocky shoreline behind the mansions, and Ocean Drive winds past beaches and harbor views. In the historic downtown, Touro Synagogue, dedicated in 1763, is the oldest surviving synagogue building in the United States.
Mystic, Connecticut
Mystic was once a busy shipbuilding town in Connecticut, and its maritime past comes alive at Mystic Seaport Museum, where visitors can board the Charles W. Morgan, the last wooden whaleship in the world. Downtown, the Mystic River Bascule Bridge lifts on a regular schedule to let boats pass, drawing crowds to watch. Mystic Aquarium is home to beluga whales, African penguins, and sea lions, and the town's small downtown is lined with shops, ice cream parlors, and seafood restaurants along the river.
Litchfield, Connecticut
Litchfield is one of the best-preserved colonial towns in New England, with a village green ringed by white clapboard homes and the steepled First Congregational Church. The Tapping Reeve House and Law School, founded in 1784, was the first law school in the United States, and its alumni included two vice presidents. Just outside town, White Memorial Conservation Center protects thousands of acres of forest, wetlands, and lakeshore with miles of trails and boardwalks. Topsmead State Forest preserves an English-style cottage estate with meadows and woodland paths.
Small Towns, Big Stories
These nine towns capture the best of New England in miniature. Each pairs a walkable center with something that makes it unforgettable, whether that is a mansion, a mountain, a whaleship, or the bridge where a nation began. Visit in the fall for color, in summer for the coast, or in winter for snow-covered greens, and you will find a reason to come back in every season.
