Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
New England Fall Colours and Acadia
6 days from Boston at peak foliage: the White Mountains and the Mount Washington Cog Railway, Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park, a lobster boat and Kennebunkport.
6 days · Round trip from Boston · up to 10 guests
Guests on Cadillac Mountain, Acadia National Park. From our day tours.
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 6 days, 5 nights
- Start and end
- Round trip from Boston
- Group size
- 7 to 10 guests
- Longest drive
- 5 h on day 3
- Where you sleep
- HotelsA real bed every night, no tents
- Activity level
Easy
Short walks most days: the Flume Gorge boardwalk loop of about 2 miles (3 km) with stairs, part of Acadia's Ocean Path over uneven granite and strolls in town, plus one drive of about 4.5 hours broken by stops.
- Meals included
- 5 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 4 dinners
- Room of your own
- + USD 1,270 (estimated price)
- Season
- Late September to mid-October
Highlights
Why this trip
- Ride the Mount Washington Cog Railway, running since 1869, to the summit of the Northeast's highest peak, weather permitting
- Walk the boardwalks through Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch
- Acadia's Ocean Path and Thunder Hole, then popovers at Jordan Pond House
- A horse-drawn carriage ride on Acadia's carriage roads and sunset from Cadillac Mountain
- Watch lobster traps hauled from a working lobster boat out of Bar Harbor
- Portland Head Light, and a last night by the river in Kennebunkport
What makes this trip different
Short drives, all published
Every drive is listed day by day. The longest is 5 h, on day 3.
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + USD 1,270 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
The longest drive is 5 h, on day 3.
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Boston to the White Mountains
Boston Logan airport to Whitefield, New Hampshire, about 3 hours
- Dinner
- Stay: Mountain View Grand Resort or similar
- Drive about 3 h
Fly into Boston Logan (BOS) by noon, where your See Sight Tours leader meets you at arrivals and loads your bags into our small van. We head north out of the city on Interstate 93, through the woods of southern New Hampshire and past the state capital at Concord, and the colour deepens as the land rises toward the White Mountains. The highway threads Franconia Notch, a narrow pass between Cannon Mountain and the Franconia Range, where Echo Lake and the cliffs above it are often at their brightest in early October. We stop on the way to stretch our legs and take photos.
Afternoon
By late afternoon we reach Whitefield, on the northern edge of the mountains, and check in to a grand old resort hotel that looks across the valley to the Presidential Range, your home for two nights.
Evening
Tonight the group gets to know each other over a welcome dinner.
Included
- Pick-up at Boston Logan airport (BOS)
- Drive through Franconia Notch
- Welcome dinner
Activity: Land at Boston Logan by noon.
The Cog Railway and Flume Gorge
Mount Washington and Franconia Notch, about 2 hours of driving in short legs
- Breakfast
- Stay: Mountain View Grand Resort or similar
- Drive about 2 h
Morning
After breakfast we drive about 35 minutes to the base station of the Mount Washington Cog Railway, the world's first mountain-climbing cog railway, which has carried passengers to the summit since 1869. The train pushes up three miles of track with grades as steep as 37 percent, over the curved wooden trestle called Jacob's Ladder and above the tree line onto the bare rock of the summit cone. At 6,288 feet (1,917 m), Mount Washington is the highest peak in the northeastern United States, and on a rare clear day the view reaches four states and Quebec. The round trip takes about three hours, with roughly an hour at the top. Summit trips run only when the mountain's famous weather allows.
Afternoon
In the afternoon we walk Flume Gorge in Franconia Notch, a granite chasm found in 1808, the story goes, by a 93-year-old woman out fishing. Boardwalks and stairs climb beside a rushing brook between walls 70 to 90 feet high. The late afternoon is free at the resort.
Included
- Mount Washington Cog Railway to the summit, weather permitting
- Flume Gorge boardwalk walk
Free time: Late afternoon free at the resort
Activity: Warm layers, a hat and gloves for the summit.
Across Maine to Bar Harbor
Whitefield to Bar Harbor, about 4 hours 30 minutes
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay: Bar Harbor Grand Hotel or similar
- Drive about 5 h
Today is the longest drive of the trip, about four and a half hours on the road, so we take it in easy stages. We leave the mountains east along the Androscoggin River through Gorham and cross into Maine near Bethel, where the river valley and the hills around it are among the most colourful stretches of the route, and stop there for photos.
Afternoon
Lunch together is in a Maine town on the way, then we carry on east through farmland and forest to Bangor and down to the coast at Ellsworth. A short bridge takes us onto Mount Desert Island, home to Bar Harbor and most of Acadia National Park. After check-in at our hotel, an easy walk from the centre, your leader takes you along the Shore Path, a public footpath beside Frenchman Bay that passes the summer 'cottages' of the Gilded Age, when wealthy families made Bar Harbor one of the grandest resorts in America.
Evening
Dinner together follows in town.
Included
- Scenic stop in the Androscoggin River valley
- Lunch on the drive
- Evening walk on the Shore Path along the Bar Harbor waterfront
Activity: The longest drive of the trip, broken by a scenic stop and lunch.
Acadia National Park
Ocean Path, Jordan Pond and Cadillac Mountain, about an hour of driving
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay: Bar Harbor Grand Hotel or similar
- Drive about 1 h
Acadia became the first national park east of the Mississippi in 1919, three years after it was set aside as a national monument, much of it on land given by summer residents of Mount Desert Island, and took its present name in 1929. We start on the Park Loop Road and walk part of the Ocean Path, a mostly level coastal trail over pink granite between Sand Beach and Otter Point. At Thunder Hole, when the tide and swell are right, waves rush into a narrow slot in the rock and boom as the trapped air bursts out.
Afternoon
Lunch is at Jordan Pond House, where hot popovers with strawberry jam have been served since the late 1800s, looking up the pond to the two rounded hills called the Bubbles. Then a horse-drawn carriage takes you for an hour along the broken-stone carriage roads that John D. Rockefeller Jr. built across the island. The afternoon is free.
Evening
Before dusk we drive up Cadillac Mountain, the tallest peak on the Atlantic coast of the United States at 1,530 feet, for sunset, then sit down to a lobster dinner.
Included
- Acadia National Park entry
- Ocean Path walk and Thunder Hole
- Lunch with popovers at Jordan Pond House
- 1-hour carriage ride with Wildwood Stables
- Sunset on Cadillac Mountain
- Lobster dinner
Easier option: Ride the van between the Ocean Path viewpoints instead of walking.
Free time: Free afternoon before sunset
Activity: Thunder Hole is loudest about 1 to 2 hours before high tide, so the morning order follows the tide. Bring a warm layer for sunset.
Lobster boat, Portland Head Light and Kennebunkport
Bar Harbor to Kennebunkport by way of Portland Head Light, about 3 hours 45 minutes
- Breakfast and dinner
- Stay: The Nonantum Resort or similar
- Drive about 4 h
Morning
This morning we board a traditional Maine lobster boat in Bar Harbor for a cruise of a little under two hours on Frenchman Bay. The captain hauls a few traps, shows you how each lobster is measured, and explains why the undersized ones and the egg-carrying females go back into the sea. Harbour seals often rest on the ledges, and seabirds work the water around the boat. Back on land we drive south, about three hours, to Cape Elizabeth and Portland Head Light, the oldest lighthouse in Maine, first lit in 1791, standing white above the surf in Fort Williams Park.
Afternoon
Lunch is on your own along the way. From the lighthouse it is under an hour to Kennebunkport, an old shipbuilding town that became a summer resort, on the Kennebunk River.
Evening
Our hotel for the last night sits beside the river, and tonight the group gathers for a farewell dinner.
Included
- Lobster boat cruise with Lulu Lobster Boat Rides
- Portland Head Light
- Farewell dinner
Activity: Lunch on your own on the drive south.
Kennebunkport to Boston
Kennebunkport to Boston Logan airport, about 1 hour 45 minutes
- Breakfast
- Drive about 2 h
Morning
The morning is yours in Kennebunkport. Walk into Dock Square, the small hub of shops, galleries and cafes by the bridge over the Kennebunk River, or follow Ocean Avenue past grand shingled houses toward Walker's Point, the Bush family's summer home, which you can see across the water from a roadside lookout. Early risers can watch the light come up over the river mouth with a coffee in hand. After breakfast and a last look at the harbour, we leave late in the morning and drive south on Interstate 95, past Portsmouth in New Hampshire and into Massachusetts, about an hour and three quarters, to Boston Logan airport.
Afternoon
We plan to reach the terminals in the early afternoon, so book a flight that leaves after 2 pm, or later for an international flight. If you would like more time in New England, ask us about extra nights in Boston before or after the trip.
Included
- Drop-off at Boston Logan airport (BOS)
Free time: Morning free in Kennebunkport
Activity: Book flights leaving after 2 pm, later for international flights.
- Bostonstart
- Whitefield2 nights
- Bar Harbor2 nights
- Kennebunkport1 night
- Bostonend
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: Late September and early October bring crisp days, with afternoon highs of roughly 13 to 18°C (55 to 65°F) in the valleys and on the coast, cold nights in the mountains, and ice or even snow possible on the summit of Mount Washington. Harbour seals and seabirds are likely from the lobster boat. Moose live in the White Mountains but are not often seen.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Travellers who want New England's fall colour without a 40-seat coach
- A first visit to Acadia and the Maine coast
- Anyone who likes their scenery with lobster, chowder and popovers
Not for you if you want
- Hikers who want long trail days
- A city break in Boston: add nights before or after the trip
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
5 nights
Where you'll stay
Named stays, or similar where we are still confirming.
2 nights · Days 1 and 2
Mountain View Grand Resortor similar
Whitefield · Hotel
Historic resort hotel looking across to the Presidential Range
2 nights · Days 3 and 4
Bar Harbor Grand Hotelor similar
Bar Harbor · Hotel
In town, a walk from the waterfront and the shops
1 night · Day 5
The Nonantum Resortor similar
Kennebunkport · Hotel
On the Kennebunk River
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 5 nights in hotels, twin share: 2 at the Mountain View Grand Resort in Whitefield, 2 at the Bar Harbor Grand Hotel and 1 at The Nonantum Resort in Kennebunkport, or similar
Transport
- Pick-up at Boston Logan airport (BOS) on day 1 and drop-off there on day 6
- A small van for the group throughout, with fuel, parking and tolls
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours leader who drives the van and stays with the group from Boston to Boston
Activities
- Mount Washington Cog Railway round trip to the summit, weather permitting
- Flume Gorge entry
- Acadia National Park entry
- A 1-hour horse-drawn carriage ride with Wildwood Stables
- Lobster boat cruise with Lulu Lobster Boat Rides
- Sunset on Cadillac Mountain, with the vehicle reservation
- Portland Head Light
Meals
- 5 breakfasts
- 2 lunches: on the drive to Bar Harbor, and popovers at Jordan Pond House
- 4 dinners: a welcome dinner, Bar Harbor, a lobster dinner and a farewell dinner in Kennebunkport
Not included
- Flights to and from Boston
- Travel insurance
- Lunches on days 1, 2, 5 and 6, and dinner on day 2
- Drinks
- Tips
- Personal spending in your free time
Extras
- Room of your own
- USD 1,270 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the trip include?
Five nights in historic resort and seaside hotels, a small van with your See Sight Tours leader-driver from Boston Logan and back, the Mount Washington Cog Railway, Flume Gorge, Acadia National Park entry, a 1-hour carriage ride, a lobster boat cruise, sunset on Cadillac Mountain, 5 breakfasts, 2 lunches (one with popovers at Jordan Pond House) and 4 dinners, one of them lobster.
When does the trip run, and will the leaves be at their peak?
Departures run from late September to about 12 October, the usual peak for northern New Hampshire, with the Maine coast turning a little later. The exact peak shifts from year to year, so no one can promise it, but visiting both the mountains and the coast gives you the best chance of bright colour somewhere every day.
Which airport do I fly into, and when should I book my flight home?
Fly into Boston Logan (BOS) and land by noon on day 1; your leader meets you there. On day 6 we reach Logan in the early afternoon, so book a flight leaving after 2 pm, or later for an international flight. Flights are not included.
How long are the drives?
Day 1 is about 3 hours, day 3 about 4 hours 30 minutes (the longest, broken by a scenic stop and lunch), day 5 about 3 hours 45 minutes including the stop at Portland Head Light, and day 6 about 1 hour 45 minutes. Days 2 and 4 are short hops of about an hour or two in all.
What happens if the weather closes the summit of Mount Washington?
Mount Washington's weather changes fast, and the cog railway runs to the summit only when conditions are safe. If the summit is closed, the railway may run a shorter trip or none at all that day, and your leader rearranges day 2 around the Flume Gorge and the notch.
Will we see wildlife?
Harbour seals and seabirds are likely from the lobster boat in Bar Harbor. Moose live in the White Mountains, but they are not often seen from the road.
How big is the group?
The small-group trip runs with 7 to 10 guests and one See Sight Tours leader who also drives the van.
Can we travel privately or on our own?
Yes. Besides the small group, the trip comes as a private trip for your party only, on a date you choose in the fall season. If you would rather travel on your own on your own dates, ask us from the dates section: we can book the same hotels, the cog railway, the carriage ride and the lobster boat for you.
How much does it cost?
Prices are per person sharing a room, with taxes, and differ by style: small group or private. The small group starts from USD 3,695 per person, and a room of your own is from USD 1,270 more. Pick your start date when you request to book, and we confirm your trip within 24 hours. Nothing is charged until then.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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