Boston to Cape Cod: a Family Adventure in New England

The capital of Massachusetts, which the English founded in the 17th century, is one of the continent's oldest cities and the cradle of American history: the theatre of the American revolution in the late 18th century, the first port in the United States and a major industrial centre in the late 19th century. It feels like a city that is part Europe, part USA.
Included in your itinerary - A walk with a local guide through the grid of avenues in the chic Back Bay neighbourhood to the cobblestone alleyways, brown brick buildings and carefully trimmed Beacon Hill gardens that would not be out of place in any English city.
Included - Hybrid bike rental to roam the city from North End, the Little Italy of Boston, where the aromas of pizza can be smelt all the way to Beacon Hill.
Things to see and do - Have drinks on the patio on Newbury Street. Visit the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, which houses major works by Botticelli, Rubens, Delacroix and Matisse.

In your itinerary - Visit the campuses of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, a suburb of Boston, accompanied by a local guide.
In the afternoon, pick up your rental car and drive to the Cape Cod Peninsula, an hour's drive, where America's most beautiful beaches are tucked away.
Spend three nights in a hotel with around 20 bleached-wood, listed buildings built in 1925, at the height of the roaring twenties, on an almost 20-acre protected site overlooking the ocean, providing a summer resort for high society. Today, the establishment is a member of Preferred Hotels and is just as chic.

On the itinerary - A private whale-watching cruise. Embark in Provincetown, at the north end of the Cape. The first settlers stayed there for only three months, as they had grown discouraged by lands that were too wild and difficult to farm. By the 19th century, the city was flourishing thanks to whaling. Whaling is now banned. As of 1986, whales have been stopping here for months on their journey to the Caribbean and South America. Off the coast of Cape Cod, pass dozens of whales, including humpbacks and right whales, all on one voyage.
What to see and experience - Cycle along the Cape Cod Rail Trail, an old railway line transformed into a bike path. Visit the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History. Tour the Cape Code Potato Crisp factory in Hyannis (yum). Go bird watching and see blue herons, peregrine falcons and bald eagles. Savour its famous sea salt caramels and salt water taffy (chewy sweets). Be 'papped' in Hyannis, where the Kennedys had their holiday home and, today, many stars have holiday homes.

Included in the itinerary - Ferry to Nantucket , a Native American word meaning 'the far island'. It's so wild and well preserved it almost seems uninhabited. Here, the tiny village houses stand alongside the vast, magnificent homes with grey-cedar shingle tiled roofs, a testimony to the wealth of the whaling-era captains; the rich Bostonian middle class have now restored them and transformed them into holiday homes. The ocean offers a precious gift to swimmers on its windswept beaches, with seals to swim alongside.

Head to Kennebunkport, a charming resort town in Maine, with houses on stilts and antique shops.
We love - Strolling the one-mile walk along the coast known as the Marginal Way, which offers stunning views of the shoreline.
Spend the night in a hotel in Kennebunkport just a stone's throw away from the sea with its chic, vintage, family-friendly motel vibe. The establishment ensures that its younger guests have an unforgettable stay and provides bikes, beach equipment and the essential bucket and spade. In the evening, choose from a campfire or board games.

Head to the charming Bar Harbor marina on Mount Desert Island .
We love - Walk or bike around Jordan Lake or hire a kayak and see the park from the ocean and fjords. You'll discover a very jagged coastline, with pink granite and majestic coniferous forests.
Spend two nights in a B&B in one of the downtown residential areas close to the sea, restaurants and shops.
Things to see and experience - Walk down Cottage Street. Have a lobster lunch at Geddy's, with generous sized portions, childrens' menus and a festive atmosphere.

To see and do - Bar Harbour is the gateway to Acadia National Park. Drive the Loop Road (27 miles long), with stunning views of lakes, wave beaten shores and pink granite mountains. It's one of New England's most biodiverse regions, with 500 species of plants and 300 varieties of birds calling its 39,500 acres home. Then leave the car and hike along some of the 124 miles of hiking trails through forests of maritime pine, birch and maple.

Drive to Jackson (186 miles) and accommodation for two nights in a beautiful historic inn with ten buildings spread across a twelve-acre estate. The main structure used to be a church and now offers cosy little sitting rooms heated by real fires.

In the itinerary - explore the white mountains and ascend Mount Washington in a special little train - the mountain-huggingcog railway, in operation since 1869. This area of forests and waterfalls is home to moose, which can be seen at dusk. Discover Bretton Woods, at the base of Mt. Washington. It was here, in 1944, that it was decided the dollar would replace gold as the reference currency in international trading.

Head for Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire's largest lake withover 60 miles of shoreline and hundreds of wooded islands. In summer people canoe, sail and swim in this extremely relaxing spot.
Spend two nights in an old church, renovated into a hotel with natural stone and wood. It's a very friendly location along the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee.
Included in the itinerary - A kayak ride on Lake Winnipesaukee.