Don’t go via Mystic— it adds at least an hour of driving time and that stretch of 95 is perpetually under construction and miserable to drive. Plus whatever you want in Mystic you can probably find in Portsmouth.

If you want a kid/family friendly place near tree house you could check out Old Sturbridge Village

Anonymous wrote:We're stopping somewhere near Tree House Brewing in MA, since it's the best brewery in America and they don't distribute their beer.

+1

Regardless of how you do it, that is going to be a long and sometimes boring drive. A very early, 4 am start seems like the best option to get in some miles before everyone wakes up. Definitely avoid Boston. Not worth the hassle if you are just sleeping somewhere. Get as far as you can and then look for a spot to crash. If your carsick kiddos are really a concern, consider another vacation.

We're stopping somewhere near Tree House Brewing in MA, since it's the best brewery in America and they don't distribute their beer.

Somewhere near Mystic CT if you want to do any sightseeing--the aquarium and seaport are nice.

Hartford if you just want a chain hotel and to get back on the road. You could stop at a playground or something in the morning before hitting the road again. This one looks nice but has a sad story behind it: https://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-xpm-2014-04-04-hc-ana-grace-playground-0404-20140403-story.html Or maybe try to find a hotel with a pool so the kids can tire themselves out?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly if they hate driving just leaving really early (4am), get past NYC by 9am, and finish the drive in one day. They will sleep for a good chunk of it and why spread out the pain to two days.

OP here - not a bad idea. Would just be hard on my husband and I.

it’s it going to be hard no mated what time you leave. If you are leaving from DC on a weekday, you need to leave around 5:45 am or wait to 9 or 10am to avoid rush hours in DC, Baltimore and New York. There will be some as you cross Delaware if you leave at 545, but it is the least. Get to the first or second rest stop on the New Jersey turnpike- then get out run the kids around and everyone gets a potty break. Then you can take a break somewhere in CT for lunch. I agree that Portsmouth NH is a good target for the first night.

We just pick a random small town that we'll reach after about 8 hours of driving. I think last time it was around Hampton, NH. We're basically just eating dinner and sleeping there - we don't need much in the way of entertainment.

We go in one day with 3 kids and a dog. The final stretch beyond portland is monotonous and tough but we’ve done this trip many ways and one shot is the best for us.

If you must stop I’d stop anywhere with a pool and good restaurants nearby.

Worcester, MA? We had to stay there once when we had a tire blow out on the way back.

FYI, you should be avoiding Boston. From the MA Turnpike, you want 495 out around Lowell up to Andover to rejoin 95.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly if they hate driving just leaving really early (4am), get past NYC by 9am, and finish the drive in one day. They will sleep for a good chunk of it and why spread out the pain to two days.

OP here - not a bad idea. Would just be hard on my husband and I.

Yes, it’s tough but a quiet drive with sleeping kids and no traffic is worth it to us.

We’ve tried all different ways and this works best for us. Just get it done as quickly as possible.

Anonymous wrote:Honestly if they hate driving just leaving really early (4am), get past NYC by 9am, and finish the drive in one day. They will sleep for a good chunk of it and why spread out the pain to two days.

OP here - not a bad idea. Would just be hard on my husband and I.

Also, Dramamine might knock them out and audio books/podcasts are great for kids who get carsick.

We drive up to Acadia every year with two carsick kids who hate driving.

Honestly if they hate driving just leaving really early (4am), get past NYC by 9am, and finish the drive in one day. They will sleep for a good chunk of it and why spread out the pain to two days.

Portsmouth NH is more than halfway there — maybe 3/4– but maybe its not a bad thing to front load the drive?

My family is driving to Acadia National Park next summer. Flying isn’t an option because we want our bikes and the dog to come. My kids are 6 and 9 but they hate car travel. They really get antsy and aren’t able to read or watch anything in the car or they get sick. I’m trying to come up with ideas of places to stop overnight to break up the trip. We don’t have any friends or family north of NYC and we’d rather not stop there. I’d like to get north of NYC and then stop. I’ve never spent any time in New England and really don’t have any ideas. Boston is my best guess, but I feel like we’ll just be adding time by dealing with going in and out of Boston traffic. Other off the beaten path ideas?