Fall Hot Spots: East
Travel
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
VERMONT
Smuggler’s Notch, VT
Info & Lodging: 800-451-8752
Web address: http://www.smuggs.com/fall/
Smuggler’s annual family-oriented AutumnFest runs until October 15. Children (ages six weeks-five years) can spend the morning at Alice’s Wonderland Child Enrichment Center, filled with fun, games, and food (a snack and lunch are provided). Parents have the mornings free for anything from hikes to tennis. In the afternoon, families can partake in Family Ties by participating in activities together. Evening entertainment is included. Rates, which include all of the above and lodging, start at $269 for a two-night package.
Okemo Mountain Resort, VT
Info & Lodging: 800-78-OKEMO
Web address: http://www.okemo.com/events/foliageevents.html
On September 30-October 1, October 7-9 and October 14-15, visitors can ride to the top of Okemo Mountain and enjoy breathtaking views from Southern Vermont’s highest vertical drop. Scenic chair-lift rides to the summit are just $8 for adults (ages 13-64), $5 for juniors and seniors (ages 6-12 and 65+) and children (ages 5-) ride for free. Okemo’s Summit Lodge will be open serving refreshments.
If you’re lucky enough to get up on September 30, the Fall Foliage Antique Show will feature antique dealers from Maine to Michigan. The show will run from 10:00 A.M.-6:00 P.M. Admission is $4.50 per person. Rates at the Okemo Mountain Resort Condominiums begin at $85 per room, per night during the week and $105 on weekends.
Mount Snow Resort, VT
Info: 802-464-4191
Lodging: 800-245-7669
Web address: http://www.mountsnow.com
Mount Snow celebrates fall with a Golf Package. Packages begin at $79 per person per day and include 18 holes of golf, cart rental, lunch and lodging. Non-golfers might avail themselves of the Chair-lift Package, which provides a four-state view from the summit. Packages start at $25 per person per day and include a round-trip chair-lift ride and lodging. If you come on October 7-8, you can attend the 27th Annual Harvest Craft Show in the Main Base Lodge. Admission is Free.
Ascutney Mountain Resort, VT
Info & Lodging: 800-243-0011
Web address: http://www.ascutney.com
Ascutney’s Festive Fall Foliage Package is available Septe 22-October 21. It includes slope-side lodging and use of Ascutney’s Sports & Fitness Center. You also get a $40 dinner certificate to the rustic Skunk Hollow Tavern in nearby Hartland Four Corners, and a $50 gift certificate toward a purchase at the renowned Gallery On The Green in Woodstock. Guests at the resort can hike, mountain bike, canoe, horseback ride, or stroll through nearby Woodstock Village. Rates begin at $89 per night for a three night package.
WEST VIRGINIA
Snowshoe, WV
Info & Lodging: 304-572-1000
Web address: http://www.snowshoemtn.com
Insiders say that the first two weeks of October are the best leaf peeping times at Snowshoe. What makes the views even greater is the 5,000 foot altitude of the lodge, which enjoys spectacular Eastern (morning) and Western (evening) views. Rooms start at $49 per night.
The one exception is on Sept. 30, when the Colors of Fall Blues Festival takes to the Village of Snowshoe Stage. Entertainment features musicians Nat Reese and Jamal Millner. The program is mostly aimed at families, with a production by Theater West Virginia Marionette Company of “Sleeping Beauty.” Throughout the village, kids and their parents can also enjoy face painting, clowns, pumpkin carving, hay rides, pony rides and a candle light parade through the village. All the events are free and lodging starts at $59 per room that night.