Mountain Trains of New England

Take a trip full of scenic views! This tour has it all: mountains, rivers, flowers, villages, historic lodges, a quarry, a mansion, and two scenic train rides. Visit anytime from the spring to the fall and see the most spectacular foliage. Nature awaits!

Duration
8 Days /7 Nights

Group size
Customizable

Customization
Available!
Tour Inclusions: 7 nights’ accommodation; 7 breakfasts; 3 lunches; 5 dinners; admissions, entrance, and guide fees as stated in the itinerary, including taxes, and gratuity. Except gratuity for guide fees is not included on adult tours unless otherwise requested.
Highlights:
  • Norman Rockwell Museum
  • Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad
  • Quechee Gorge Visitor Center
  • Quechee Gorge Village
  • Billings Farm and Museum
  • Lucknow Mansion
  • North Conway Village
  • Zeb's Famous New England Country Store
  • Conway Scenic Railroad
  • Covered Bridge Farm Table
  • Contoocook Railroad Museum and Visitor Center
  • Ludlow, VT
  • New England Maple Museum
  • Rock of Ages Quarry Museum
  • Vermont Granite Museum
  • Trapp Family Lodge
  • Vermont Country Store

Sample Itinerary:
Day 1 - Arrive
  • Arrive in Stockbridge, MA.
  • Check-in to your hotel.
  • Enjoy an included dinner.
Day 2 - Normal Rockwell Museum & Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad
  • Enjoy breakfast at your hotel before checking out.
  • Visit the Normal Rockwell Museum. A visit to the Norman Rockwell Museum is an enriching and memorable experience for groups. Enjoy 10 large galleries, a gift shop, and a beautiful 36-acre campus featuring Rockwell’s original studio, as well as sculptures by his son Peter Rockwell.
  • Depart with a boxed lunch.
  • Board a train at the Winnipesaukee Scenic Railroad and ride along the western shore of New Hampshire. You will travel in a restored vintage coach along a railroad that dates back to the late 1800s. While traveling, enjoy an included dinner.
  • Check in to your local hotel.
Day 3 - Quechee Gorge & Billings Farm and Museum
  • Enjoy breakfast at your hotel.
  • Depart for Woodstock, Vermont.
  • Stop at the Quechee Gorge Visitor Center where a local guide will meet the bus and describe the area. From the Visitor Center, take a short walk to the Quechee Gorge and enjoy a picture stop at Vermont's Little Grand Canyon, Quechee Gorge, for spectacular foliage views.
  • Explore the Quechee Gorge Village. Quechee Gorge, known as "Vermont's Little Grand Canyon", is one of New England's most popular natural wonders. Over 200,000 yearly visitors enjoy the Vermont Institute of Natural Science, fishing and canoeing the river, hiking trails, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing. Established in 1985, and located in the heart of the Quechee Gorge, Quechee Gorge Village has evolved into one of the best shopping attractions in the state of Vermont.
  • Enjoy lunch on your own in Woodstock, Vermont
  • Visit Billings Farm and Museum. The Farm & Museum engages visitors in interactive experiences that encourage an appreciation for conservation, sustainable land use, and history, as well as respect for life.
  • Enjoy dinner included  at a local restaurant.
  • Return to your hotel.
Day 4 - Lucknow Estate, North Conway Village, & Conway Scenic Railroad
  • Enjoy breakfast at your hotel.
  • Visit Castle in the Clouds - Lucknow Estate. Ride trolley up to the mansion and take self-guided tour of the Lucknow estate, explore the mansion and surrounding grounds. Make sure to stop by the exhibit gallery and gift shop! The mansion—an architectural gem in the Arts and Crafts style—sits atop a mountain in the Ossipee Range, to the north of Lake Winnipesaukee. The original estate of 1914 included over 6500 acres of mountain forest. Today, the house is surrounded by 4200 protected acres of forest. Two gate lodges, and a carriage house with stable serve the estate.
  • Explore North Conway Village. This is the quintessential New England village with quaint shops, cafes, a beautiful park and Cranmore Mountain is right up the street. Enjoy lunch on your own and free time to explore while visiting. Make sure to stop by Zeb’s famous New England Country Store.
  • Board a train at the Conway Scenic Railroad. Take a step back in time and enjoy a leisurely ride through the Conway Valley. Take the opportunity to watch locomotive run around the train in preparation for the return trip – 11 miles, 55 min round trip.
  • Enjoy dinner included at a local restaurant.
  • Return to your hotel.
    Day 5 - Contoocook Railroad Museum, Ludlow, & New England Maple Museum
  • Prior to checking out, enjoy breakfast at your hotel.
  • Visit Contoocook Railroad Museum and Visitor's Center. The world’s oldest surviving covered railroad bridge, a 1907 vintage passenger coach, late 1800’s section house, and the Lewellen Bandstand. The Depot, Coach, Maintenance shop and covered bridge are available to tour.
  • Enjoy free time and lunch on your own in Ludlow, Vermont, a little town on the slopes of Okemo Mountain, at the heart of the popular Okemo Mountain ski resort.
  • Discover the New England Maple Museum. Come and check out the world's largest maple syrup jug and have your picture taken next to this gigantic roadside attraction that channels the iconic roadside displays of Route 66 but with a Vermont flavor. Learn about the history of maple sugaring from Native American time to present day, sample our delicious maple syrup along with other Vermont specialty foods, browse our Vermont handcrafted artisan gift shop and yes, purchase the official flavor of Vermont to take home with you!
  • Check in to your hotel.
  • Enjoy dinner on your own.
 
Day 6 - Rock of Ages Quarry Museum, Vermont Granite Museum, & Trapp Family Lodge
  • Enjoy breakfast at the lodge.
  • Visit the Rock of Ages Quarry Museum. Tour the world's largest deep-hole dimension granite quarry. The tour begins at the modern Visitor Center, and a step on guide will board Executive Coach for a guided tour of the Quarry. The tour culminates in an overlook of the quarry. Then, you will return to the Visitor Center and enjoy a video about the quarrying and manufacturing process in the unique round theatre, browse historic photos and exhibits, shop for natural stone gifts, and enjoy warm Vermont hospitality. Be sure to look through the free rock pile for a souvenir.
  • Tour the Vermont Granite Museum. Located within an authentic turn-of-the-century granite manufacturing plant, the museum’s mission is to create stimulating, interactive environments for learning about the geology, technology, history, and art of Vermont’s unique granite heritage art, industry, capabilities and cultural heritage.
  • Arrive at the Trapp Family Lodge, a 2500-acre mountain resort in the European tradition by the family that inspired "The Sound of Music." Enjoy lunch included and free time to explore.
  • Take a tour of the lodge which is more than just a hotel. It is a family home with years and years of history in its walls. Explore the property, learn about our family’s extensive history, and go behind the scenes of our day-to-day operations on one of our many tours. Learn how what was once a modest farm grew into a world-renowned resort, now overseen by Johannes, the youngest of the singing von Trapp children, and his family.
  • Return to your hotel and enjoy dinner on your own.
Day 7 - Vermont Country Store & Worrall and Bartonsville Covered Bridge Tour
  • Enjoy leisurely breakfast at your hotel prior to checking out.
  • Arrive at the Vermont Country Store and enjoy lunch on your own at the Mildred’s Market.
  • Stop for a photo opportunity at the Worrall and Bartonsville Covered Bridge locations.
  • Continue to Albany, NY.
  • Check-in to your hotel.
  • Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.
  • Return to your hotel.
  Day 8 - Depart for Home
  • Enjoy breakfast prior to checking out.
  • Depart for home and enjoy lunch along the way.
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