Travel
Plan a fall weekend full of foliage, apple picking, cider doughnuts, and cozy accommodations.
New England is bursting with color and festivities during the fall season, an excellent time for a couples’ getaway.
Ahead, check out three romantic trips available this fall, where couples can enjoy the region’s iconic foliage as well as cozy accommodations, champagne, and, of course, apple orchards and cider doughnuts.
A White Mountains getaway in N.H.
Couples can escape to the White Mountains, recently named among the 10 best places to see fall colors in America by USA Today readers, and stay in a rustic room at the base of Black Mountain Ski Resort in Jackson, N.H.
Mountain lovers can take advantage of an overnight dinner package at The Inn at Whitney’s Farm, which includes a three-course meal for two at the hotel’s Shovel Handle Pub inside a post-and-beam barn built in 1842, as well as chocolate-covered strawberries and a bottle of champagne in the room upon arrival. Guests can relax by the fireplace in their rooms or at the indoor pool and hot tub at nearby sister property Christmas Farm Inn after a day picking apples at nearby Windy Ridge Orchard, which offers 18 varieties of apples against a spectacular backdrop of White Mountains foliage. The farm’s Cider House Cafe serves cider doughnuts, apple pie and apple crisp with ice cream, and sandwiches named after apples on the farm.
The year-round package is available on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday (when Shovel Handle Pub is open). Rates start at $119, depending on the day and time of year, and the package starts at $279.
A colorful Vermont escape
Travelers seeking a colorful escape this fall near Burlington, recently named one of the best places to visit in America this fall by USA Today readers, can book a romantic getaway package at The Essex Resort & Spa.
The package includes up to 20% off a two-night stay, which includes a bottle of champagne, homemade chocolate treat, dinner for two at the resort’s farm-to-table restaurant Junction, daily breakfast for two at the Lazy Goat Tavern, and a late checkout. As part of the package, guests also get a 50-minute couples’ massage (a $410 value), a great way to relax after a day of picking apples right down the road at Chapin Orchard. The Essex orchard, named among the top orchards by Hello Burlington, grows more than 20 varieties of apples and offers hay rides and freshly made cider, doughnuts, and other goodies.
The year-round package at The Essex Resort & Spa is available Thursday through Sunday (when Junction is open). Rates vary depending on the day and time of year. October rates start at $777 and the package starts at $1,613.
A foliage and festivities retreat in Connecticut
Connecticut is bursting with fall fun and the Stanton House Inn, a historic bed and breakfast full of “old world charm” in downtown Greenwich, is helping travelers see it all with a two-night foliage and festivities retreat.
Guests stay inside an 1843 mansion a short walk away from Greenwich Avenue full of boutique stores, art galleries, and restaurants. Guests begin their day with a complimentary breakfast of avocado toast, quiche, fresh pastries, and more. The retreat includes an in-room autumn tea service comprised of freshly brewed tea alongside shortbread and warm pastries and a “personal fall adventure guide” full of trail maps, scenic drives, corn mazes, apple orchards and “can’t miss” events such as the 44th Annual Bruce Museum Outdoor Arts Festival, taking place Oct. 11-12. The hotel calls Blue Jay Orchards in Bethel “a must” for fall activities. The orchard has pick your own fruit, a pumpkin patch, farm market, and a bakery where its biggest selling items are apple pies and what the farm calls its “famous” apple cider doughnuts.
The foliage and festivities retreat runs through November and rates vary depending on the day and time of year but start at $279.
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