Northeast Family Travel Ideas: Your Ultimate Bucket List

Looking for some bucket-list worthy Northeast family travel ideas? This list is your answer. This exclusive guide is full of hand-picked trips your family will love.

You’ll find iconic cities and unique experiences, mixed in with a dash of nostalgia along with some classic New England attractions.

Your friends will ask, “How did you hear about that?”. Or, “I didn’t even know you could do that. So cool!”

While these Northeast getaways are geared toward families with school aged kids, they’re also great as multigenerational trips. So, ask grandma or your favorite great aunt to pull out her luggage for a fun family trip that’ll bring your whole family closer together!

And if you’re planning to be in and around New York for a bit, check out our exclusive guide to family attractions around New York State.

Let’s get started!

👉Jump to: 3 Top Bucket List Trips | NE City Trips | Amusement & Water Parks | Adventure & History Trips | NE Best Beach Trip

Bucket List Family Adventures in the Northeast

A multigenerational family of 5 at the White House in Washington DC in front of a door below the Presidential Seal with US flags on both sides.

White House Tour Magic in Washington DC

Our nation’s capital is a great place to sightsee any time of the year. And what better way to experience it than to take a tour of the White House all dressed up for the holidays!

That’s right, you can literally tour the White House as a guest, with a little planning and preparation ahead of time. (Shout out to all my “Type” A mom besties that love to plan – this is the trip for you!)

You’ll get to tour around the public rooms of the White House, including the China Room, the State Dining Room, and the Library.

And if you go in December, it’s like being on an HGTV special of the White House! You’ll see literally thousands of lights and decorations.

Walking through the White House feels so humbling and important. It’s an experience to remember forever.

A couple wearing brown waders, smiling, and reaching down into a water-filled cranberry bog full of floating cranberries.

Cranberry Bog Adventures in Massachusetts

Have you seen those Ocean Spray Cranberry commercials where the farmers have waders on and they’re standing chest-high in cranberries? Me too!

You can actually tour working cranberry bogs around the Northeast. Cool right? Not too many farms let you experience stepping into a flooded bog like the one pictured here, but for the ones that do it’s pure family fun.

A girl in a blue rain jacket poncho on the Maid of the Mist boat surrounded by water and the waterfalls of Niagara Falls.

Niagara Falls Boat Tour: Ride the Maid of the Mist

As the first US state park, and the park with the largest waterfalls in the North America, Niagara Falls is one of the most well-known historic sites in the country. It’s one of the natural wonders.

You can view the falls from afar, or ride right up to them on the deck of the Maid of the Mist boat. Your family will take a boat ride right up to multiple sets of giant waterfalls. It’s a can’t-miss attraction!

My kids thought it was a blast and giggled the whole time, especially when the grown-ups got wet alongside them! The colorful ponchos handed out help a lot, but they didn’t completely shield us.

Best City Travel Ideas for Families in the Northeast

A shadowed dark image of the New York City Statue of Liberty in front of a sunset orange and blue skey with clouds.

New York City – Iconic Sites Your Kids Will Love

What list would be complete without NYC? There’s so much to see and do in this town, it’s hard to recommend just a few sites.

Grab a NY bagel, see the Statue of Liberty, experience Times Square with its bright lights, go to the top of the Empire State Building…the list is endless.

Just like you, we keep adding new Northeast family travel ideas! The Color Factory NYC is our next stop. It looks like the perfect place for a photo op with their immersive (and majorly colorful) exhibits!

A woman and grandmother look at an interactive touch screen that is lit up and blue and use it to change the projection on a giant globe suspended in front of them showing the earth's weather patterns. The background shows lit up blue and green signs and exhibits at a Smithsonian museum.

Washington DC – Smithsonian Museums & More!

It’s not just the White House that’s an awesome visit in this city…The Smithsonian Museums are amazing too.

I originally was a little skeptical about these sites, thinking our family might get kind of bored. (I don’t love stuffy old-school museums very much, although I tolerate them for my history-loving husband.)

But the Smithsonians were anything but boring! They have amazing exhibits and tons of interactive spots for the kids to turn, touch, and move things.

The kids were literally skipping from spot to spot inside the museum and couldn’t get enough of all the touch-screens that explained cool facts!

Fan favorite exhibits included:

Star-Spangled Banner Flag
Giant exhibit about cell phones
Apollo spacecraft that traveled from the moon
Dresses worn by the First Ladies
Wright brothers’ first airplane

A mother and daughter sit on a red surrey two-person bike with a striped green and white awning on the Ocean City MD boardwalk.

Favorite Beach Getaway for Family Travel in the Northeast USA

One of the best things about the Northeast is how so many locations are near bodies of water. There’s a lot of beaches for families to explore!

You can’t miss the beaches at Ocean City Maryland. They’re just a short drive from NY and the vibe there is so family-friendly and chill.

Enjoy the boardwalk, mini golf courses galore, and of course the beach off the Atlantic coast.

In the mornings, rent a surrey (a multi-passenger bike with a sun cover) and tool around the boardwalk! Our kids loved being able to steer themselves (with help!) and were troopers when it came to pedaling.

It’s a wonderful spot for a summer vacation by the ocean. And don’t forget to fill your pockets with saltwater taffy for a sweet ending to your trip!

A family of 4 pose in front of a large display of Hershey's Chocolate World gift shop displays including colorful cartoon giant purple grapes and a large display of Twizzlers.

Top Amusement Parks and Water Parks: Try them on Your Next Northeast Family Vacation

If you’re searching for Northeast family travel ideas packed with thrills, there are tons of big scale amusement and water parks of every shape and size to visit.

While there’s almost an endless list, the Pennsylvania ones have our family’s heart. Their parks are super accessible and seem to always be the “talk of the lunch line” at our school whenever any friends visit.

Hershey Park in particular makes a great road trip destination for families. The town of Hershey, PA is really quaint and makes for a nice weekend getaway.

The park itself is really cool. It’s got a bunch of classic rides that work for all different ages. Plus, the large walkways make it feel less crowded even on the busiest days.

And the gift shop is amazing with floor to ceiling chocolate-themed souvenirs from clothing to stuffed animals, to the latest Hershey’s chocolate treats. (Is it just me, or do kiddos actually prefer the gift shop over the rides most of the time?)

Another great idea for fun east coast family vacations is going to an indoor water park. Especially in the winter months, when everyone is a little bit sick of snow.

Great Wolf Lodge, in PA is a massive indoor water park. It’s the go-to spot from central NY and it doesn’t disappoint! From a lazy river to water slides and water “forts”, there’s something for every level of swimmer. The resort area has themed accommodations that many families find fun, but a quick day trip can save time and money if you’re nearby.

Northeast Family Travel Ideas: Outdoor Adventure & History

Some of the best places to visit around the Northeast are the places that let you walk around and take physical tours in historic and outdoor spaces.

A man in a blue shirt and jeans walks toward a white stone mansion a large green lamp out front.

Visit Mansions in Rhode Island

The mansions located in Newport, Rhode Island offer just that type of experience. You can tour 5 different mansions built as “summer homes” by wealthy families like the Vanderbilts.

The large properties overlook the Atlantic Ocean with amazing cliffs and have expansive grounds to check out as well.

Pro tip: Bring along headphones and devices for each family member so they can listen to the app about how the mansions operated during the summer months.

A close-up of a couple standing in front of a white light house and blue sky.

Tour Lighthouses in Cape Cod

The mansions are only an hour and a half away from Cape Cod in Massachusetts too. It’s a really scenic drive that would be a nice second stop if you’re considering touring around.

One of the must-do activities in the Cape is climbing to the top of a lighthouse. Each one has its own unique history and your kids will get a kick out of the winding stairs.

Cape Cod’s also got beautiful views of the ocean and a ton of outdoor activities to try. The beach is always a huge draw or you can try:

Whale-watching boat rides
Fishing
Hiking
Golfing

A woman stands on top of a gray battleship top in front of a black large anchor and chains on the waterfront in front of a large gray bridge.

Explore a Real Battleship in Massachusetts

Not far from the Rhode Island border is the small town of Fall River, in Massachusetts.

Fall River hosts Battleship Cove, a huge military museum that lets you walk through a battleship, a destroyer, and a submarine.

While you might know these boats exist in theory, it’s really quite impressive when you get to see the size and scale they operate on. Tours are at your own pace, so busy kiddos can get out their energy and explore what interests them.

There are great views and photo ops from every angle!

A couple in blue smiles in front of a wooden VT covered bridge over a winding gravel path with greenery and woods at its edges.

See Original Covered Bridges in Vermont – The Perfect Family Road Trip

Vermont is just such a quaint state. When you think of it, you can’t help but think of the outdoors, maple syrup on pancakes, and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

Taking a short getaway to Vermont is a calmer, slower way to experience a weekend. The drive can often be the best part – stopping off to try one of the sweet treats and seeing the cool covered bridges along the way.

It’s the picture-perfect family drive and a great way to connect with the whole family.

A family of 4 huddles together at the top of Whiteface Mountain by large stone boulders with mountain peaks in the background on a gray cloudy day.

Reach New Heights in the Adirondack Mountains

The Adirondacks cover a good portion of New York and include areas from Lake George in the southern part of the state to Lake Placid in the northern part. Both small towns are packed with options for family fun.

But there is a cheat code for families that want to get to the top of a mountain without the hike. It’s visiting Whiteface Mountain in Lake Placid.

This giant mountain was home to the 1980 Olympics events and offers a built-in elevator inside a castle entrance at the mountain’s summit. Once you get to the top, views are spectacular!

Just make sure to bring jackets. It can be 20 degrees colder at the top of the mountain than at the base. (Ask me how I know – ha! Bit of a “mom fail” when we went without jackets.)

More Northeast Family Travel Ideas

The Northeastern United States is packed with family travel ideas for your next family vacation.

Planning a road trip in the Northeast soon? Plan ahead with some fun questions you can ask kids in the car. And make sure to pack plenty of snacks!

If you’re exploring New York, don’t miss our guide to family attractions across the state!

Head over to the Tiny Adventure Mom homepage for more tips and getaway ideas and to learn how Amanda reclaimed family time for day trips.

Happy Travels!

Amanda