Where to go for New England Fall Foliage
The days get shorter and the New England fall foliage begins its change from green to crimson, orange, and gold. Hot coffee takes on new meaning when crisp mornings herald the approaching autumn. A morning walk by nearby ponds and lakes takes on a mysterious feeling with wisps of fog rising from the water. The best part is seeing the fog give way to the morning sun and you see a stand of red maples begin to appear, just over there…
This website is all about helping you decide where to go to find the best New England fall foliage. You will find archived articles in the menu to help in your research. And to make it easier, I have broken the articles into topics. You can look at specific states, scenic drives, covered bridges, or festivals. All of this is in the menu above!!!
When is the best time to visit New England for fall colors
I can honestly say that anywhere between late September and the middle of November are some of the best times to visit New England for fall colors. You have to remember that the dates for the fall colors of New England are a constantly moving target. Also, the when is directly connected to the where.
The earlier in September that you come here, the further North you need to travel. The earliest color arrives late in August but NO meaningful fall color occurs before mid to late September. I wrote a Fall Foliage Primer for Leaf-Peeping and this will help you navigate the where and when of New England fall colors.
Are you looking for the Map to gauge the Fall Colors?
I will never create a map that visually captures “when” the best colors will show up. The reason is that I don’t feel maps can capture what is really going on in the current year. People want a map that will tell them where they need to be on a day-to-day basis. I wrote an article on finding “peak” fall foliage which is very helpful in deciding when and where to be here in New England. If you have to look at a map, check this article about good versus bad maps.
Discover the best Destinations to Visit in New England during the Fall Season
When to come is usually the first question people ask me, they SHOULD also ask WHERE should I go. Sometimes they know they want to do Vermont but where in Vermont will be the BEST fall colors? This is when I ask them what their dates are. You see, the “when” equals the “where” and the inverse is true as well.
To help you research where to go I have created lists of articles that I think will help you narrow your search. In the website menu above, you will see the following subjects under Articles or Planning your trip:
- Recent articles to see current material
- Archives to see past articles by year
- Scenic drives, these are any articles that detail routes that I’ve taken
- Covered bridges to help you locate some of the most scenic covered bridges
- The art of getting lost
- Inn’s and B&Bs where we have stayed (the list is always growing)
- General Stores and how we rate them
- Locations by State which are articles about specific states
- The Things to-do page has touring ideas from biking to trains to farm stands and more.
All of these articles are meant for you to use in researching your fall foliage vacations. I try to answer where people should go in New England in the fall so they can have the best autumn vacations. I also have fall foliage forecasts and foliage reports on my forecast and reports page so you have all of my 20 years of experience to help you plan where to go.
Where can I find Peak Fall Foliage?
To start off with, this subject occupies most of my waking hours and apparently some of yours as well. This is the most asked question of me from leaf peepers the world over. Where can I find it, How can I guarantee I find it?
When is the Peak fall color in New England?
Some people say finding peak fall foliage is a science, but I say it’s more of a mystical art. The truth is simple, it’s impossible to forecast where and when it will happen, or IF it will happen. There are some years I have gone through all of October and never really found Peak fall colors. (2005, 2011, and 2017 were terrible)
It does happen infrequently, but with my help, you can increase your chances of finding it.
First, I wrote this article on Fall Foliage 101, a Fall foliage primer for leaf-peeping to help you get started. I have many articles on different aspects of finding the peak fall colors. I talk about the search for Peak fall foliage and what if you miss the peak foliage. If that isn’t enough this article on taking the mystery out of finding peak fall foliage will also help in your search. This way you can start to narrow and refine your search. or just figure out what you don’t know and need to know… Next,
You can go to the top of this page and click the Articles. The pull-down menu will allow you to choose pages that have lists of articles for planning your trip.
