Summer Travel and the New England Coast

With the summer travel season fast approaching the response to many of Southern New England's Travel Associations are eagerly awaited. From Fairfield County in Connecticut to Acadia in Maine campaigns targeting new and return to visitors to the region have been in full force since the start of the new year and even before. Places such as Cape Cod, Boston and The Islands, the Southern Maine coast and of course Newport in Rhode Island are expected to be as busy as usual. With airfares not as "cheap" as wished, the dollar at a low against most foreign currencies and the tendency to travel locally within a "tank of gas" Southern New England has a lot to offer for the summer.

Although gas will likely be at all time highs, airfares will again be pushing upward as well not including those pesky "fuel surcharges" which can top 150.00 or more for international flights, it appears 2007 may be if not a banner year a solid year at the worst with modest growth of about 4%.

Bradley International Airport has joined the international flights club with a July 1st take off direct Amsterdam flights and of course direct return flights. I priced these tickets on various occassions within that first week and tickets average about 1100.00 USD for a round trip to Amsterdam. The key here is European visitors to the gateway to New England Hartford. With 2 hrs one can be in or damn near New York, Boston, the shoreline. With some proper marketing New England has never looked so attractive to European visitors.

Schipol Airport in Amsterdam is a hub for KLM, Northwest's partner in Europe as well as a stop over for many of the major european airlines. This offers 1 stop service to Hartford from places like the UK, Germany, Scandinavia and the rest of Europe.

The Casinos in Connecticut look to again surpass previous years activities and now with the weaker dollar it appears European and Asian visitors will again see an increase in visits.

Cruise Ships have made New England ports summer homes and become very popular. With Boston and Newport Rhode Island leading the way New London and Portland, Maine also join the fray again and both received critical acclaim from guests over the past two to three seasons.

Some places struggling to curb the loss of visitors include Mystic Seaport and Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts. The Seaport like most history parks is working on a concept to attract visitors to more comfortable envions as sitting in the hot and often humid summer New England heat is not very attractive or the idea to most families nor is sitting in long lines of traffic losing valuable summer freetime. It will be interesting to see what these history parks to attract new visitors in the years to come.

While those parks are losing visitors Mystic downtown has never been more popular even with the lack of progress in the key Central Hall block (no construction yet). Mystic has grown to become almost a year round attraction with its vast array of eateries, shops and parks. Westerly downtown has also blossomed into a 2nd tier travel spot. 2nd tier as a place where more experienced travelers will stop. Westerly with its shops and ever growing offer of "things to do and see" has become a destination and looks to capitalize on that. Narragansett while sleepy compared to Newport also looks to grab more tourist dollars with a more relaxed approach to having fun vs that of Newport. Block Island more of a Party Destination for teens and young 20s new is also looking to add visitors from out of the region and with beautiful beaches and bikeways why not!

Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard have fast priced themselves out of the average joe summer spot. With most weekly rentals approaching 2000 USD per week even with the weaker dollar new visitors will be hard pressed to stay over night there although the nightlife is wonderful and the landscape breathtaking.

Cape Cod still has some values...along the southern part one can find rental cottages in the area of 700-800 per week which is a nice value. Although traffic to and from are normally a minor deterent for those un-tested travelers Cape Cod still draws millions every year!

Along the main coast Ogunquit and York still have some values for the family traveler however they have fast become the vacation spots for the 50 plus crowd and the retired executive crowd with room rates approaching 200.00 per night and more. Portland offers a portside better value with some rates at about 80.00 per night and a great "old port" old town area. Farther north values can be found as the distance is great enough to scare away those unwilling to sit in a car for 3 or more hours from Boston. Stonington Harbor, Acadia and all the way to the Canadian border B&B's of high and inexpensive levels can be found.

For the experienced traveler stop overs along the Connecticut coast can be a great deal and save you some time from traveling the full gambit to the Cape and Islands while still giving you value and the feeling of "getting away".

• New Haven for those looking for an "urban" visit can really enjoy this thriving small Colonial City near the shore. While not offering easy and direct access to the shore New Haven is very New England with it's brownstones, churches and fine shops as well Yale and town Green.
  
• Madison has evolved into a mini- West Hartford with it's strip of shops and restaurants.- B&B's rule the day and some values can be had!
• Old Saybrook a quaint New England town on the Shore and CT River has both Inns & B&Bs as well as national chain motels and hotels. From Spa's to truck stop motels Saybrook with some nice shoreline, a handsome mainstreet and attractions also looks to become a solid 2nd tier summer destination.
  
• New London the historic Whaling City continues to move at a snails pace ahead however new developments and eateries have again attracted Cruise Lines and the experienced tourist. While heading to Long Island and Block Island one often goes via New London unknownst are great spots and attractions New London has to offer. National Hotel Chains and B&Bs are found within this small city limits.
  
• Stonington Borough a sleepy authors community, historic and charming has a better offer in 2007. Farmer's Market, Restaurants and cafes as well as boutiques and a small but useable beach are the rule in Stonington. History and boat lovers love Stonington.
  

Just off the coast

• Essex on the Connecticut River offers a handsome main street and historic buildings with a handful of eateries and shops.
  
• Chester also on the Connecticut River offers a small but lively mainstreet with great eateries and galleries. Check out the Wheat Market for sandwiches.
• Middletown offers a New London sized downtown with shops and restaurants of all price levels. Worth a stop for dinner and a night over.
• Norwich on the Thames River and opposite the Mohegan Sun Casino is a city that is going through a tremendous rebirth. Step into Norwich and step into History. Finely restored historic builds and some nice dining spots along the Thames River. Norwich is about to explode and become a solid tier 2 destination almost rivaling Mystic perhaps as a Tier 1.

(Stonington) (Essex) (Mystic)

(New London Tourist Info)
  (Clinton/Madison) (Hammonasset- Madison)

Stay tuned for more pictures of thenewenglandcoast.com

Thanks and good traveling!