The annual summer vacation is something my parents gifted to my sister and I growing up. Now that I have a family of my own, I am excited to share the joy of travel with my daughter Annika.
My little girl, 3 years old, has been on an airplane half a dozen times or so but for our next summer family trip, I wanted to take a road trip with our toddler. North Conway with a toddler seemed like the perfect choice!
Choosing a vacation spot is always fun but a bit stressful. I combed through websites and posts to learn about the best places to travel with a toddler and while I had never heard of it, I overwhelmingly found people recommend North Conway in the White Mountains area of New Hampshire. Pencils were put down and then the planning began!
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Getting to North Conway, NH
North Conway is located just two and a half hours north of Boston, MA, two hours from Manchester, NH, and ninety minutes from Portland, ME. We got to New Hampshire via my husband’s pick-up truck we lovingly call “Taco” and on the way decided to stop by Portsmouth, NH for lunch and to stretch our legs. Having a car when visiting North Conway with a toddler is a must!
Where to Stay in North Conway with a Toddler
When traveling with small children, I find having a hotel room with a balcony helpful as it gives my husband and I a place to go during naps or an early night in.
I found a lot of beautiful hotels and resorts in the North Conway area but only the White Mountain Hotel and Resort appeared to offer a room with a balcony. We booked one of their suites which was a decent size room with two Queen beds, living room area, and a balcony looking over the well-manicured property.
What I really loved about the White Mountain Hotel and Resort was its central location; just a quick 10 minute drive from the town of North Conway and a short drive away from on the best places to visit near North Conway, NH. I felt like there were a variety of restaurant options in the area plus I liked the cushion of there being a restaurant on site too. This is always a good option when traveling with a baby or toddler!
Other amenities at the White Mountain Hotel and Resort included free breakfast at their restaurant, pool, small game room, and selection of DVDs to borrow on rainy days.
In addition to the White Mountain Resort, there are many family-friendly North Conway hotels and vacation home rentals.
Getting Around North Conway with a Toddler
As mentioned earlier, having a car in North Conway, NH is a must. If you are renting a car, you’ll need travel with your own car seat as well.
Since we drove our own vehicle to North Conway, we already had our daughter’s car seat and we were able to bring along our large all-terrain stroller. For our daily adventures, we drove to each place and kept our daughter’s stroller on hand.
Depending on how old your child is, a baby or toddler carrier may be the easiest way to explore all the nature trails around North Conway. If your kid is older, either let them walk or use a good jogging/all-terrain stroller.
Things to in North Conway with a Toddler
There are a lot of great things to do in North Conway with toddlers, including driving up Mt. Washington via the Mt. Washington Auto Road, walking around downtown North Conway and taking the Conway Scenic Railway.
Here are our three favorite North Conway attractions for kids:
1. Story Land, North Conway
We actually drove by Story Land on our way to the Mt. Washington Auto Road and my daughter laser beamed on the theme park and repeatedly asked to go. This New Hampshire theme park has been around since 1954 and I now understand why it is still open and drawing crowds.
Story Land is the perfect size theme park for a toddler as we were able to walk around without the stroller and enjoy majority of the Story Land rides (except the water rides– it was too cold!). There are roller-coaster type rides for older kids and then more “laid back” attractions for toddlers like a pirate ship ride along a pond or a ride in Cinderella’s pumpkin coach.
Story Land also has various theatre shows to watch (we saw Farm Follies) and a section with animals which we always enjoy. If your kid loves cars or pretending to drive, definitely come here as they have 2 rides where the kids themselves are “driving” either a tractor or antique car.
Even months after our family vacation to North Conway, our daughter still talks about our visit to Story Land – she fondly remembers the dinosaurs we saw while on the train ride that goes around the park.
2. Echo Lake
In my research I learned there are two Echo Lakes in New Hampshire but the one we visited was a stone’s throw away from our hotel (White Mountains Hotel and Resort). We arrived at Echo Lake later in the afternoon and while the parking lot was full, it didn’t feel crowded. There is an entrance fee to the Echo Lake State Park and it offers a child friendly beach, lake to play in, and amenities (bathrooms/changing rooms).
My husband took one for the team and went into the water with our daughter while I sat on the beach and watched them. You have a direct view of Cathedral Ledge State Park, which we stopped at since it’s so close to Echo Lake.
There is also a walking path that goes entirely around Echo Lake. All 3 of us walked but take caution – there were roots on the path so I was a bit worried about my toddler tripping.
You can also take a hiking trail from here to the top of Cathedral Ledge, one of the best White Mountains hikes with a toddler. If you chose to go to Cathedral Ledge – note you are pretty high up and need to keep a close eye on your kids! You may even get lucky and see people rock climbing there.
If you decide to visit Echo Lake with your toddler, consider packing a picnic since there are tables and the scenery is beautiful! The picnic tables are well shaded by trees so if you want to stay out of the sun, you don’t have to go far.
Amazing family memories are made when you spend time on a beach with a toddler. Make your beach day the best it can be with these beach essentials for toddlers.
3. Kancamagus Highway
Kancamagus Highway, aka “the Kanc”, is recognized as a National Scenic Byway. You don’t want to miss this 34.5 mile scenic drive along Route 112 between Conway, NH and Lincoln, NH. We dedicated an entire day to the Kancamagus Highway drive since it’s been called one of New England’s most scenic drives.
You can enjoy the Kanc by leaving from Lincoln or Conway but since our home-base was in North Conway, our journey started by first stopping at the Saco Ranger Station, which is just west of Conway. (I’ve read there is another visitor center in Lincoln should you decide to drive the route in reverse). There we were able to get a Kancamagus scenic byway map so we could figure out which Kancamagus Highway attractions we wanted to stop at.
Note: there is a $5 day pass fee you can pay at the various parking areas/trailheads along the Kancamagus Highway but if you only choose to drive through it, it’s free.
There are a ton of places to stop along the Kanc and we chose to explore only a few but take our time. Our first stop, the Albany Covered Bridge, was a brief one to snap a couple pictures and enjoy the beauty of this old bridge.
We spent a decent amount of time at Rocky Gorge and Falls Pond. From the parking lot it’s a short walk on a paved path to a bridge that brings you over the gorge and rapids. There were a lot of people who were sunbathing on the rocks and putting their feet in the water – no swimming is allowed here though.
We walked across the bridge and took the path to Falls Pond where there was a nice viewing platform. We attempted to take the loop around the pond, but I felt the path had too many obstacles (aka roots!) for hiking with our toddler safely so we eventually turned around.
Bringing a toddler hiking backpack carrier or a toddler carrier would be a better option for this walk with a toddler.
Our other stops along the Kancamagus Highway were quick ‘drive-bys’ but honestly, just the National Scenic Byway drive itself is spectacular.
Our adventure eventually ended with us getting food in Lincoln, NH but if we were to visit the Kanc again, I’d pack food that can be enjoyed at one of the stops.
We also considered driving further towards Franconia Notch State Park but instead wandered and relied on our GPS to bring us back to our hotel.
North Conway Playgrounds
When traveling with a toddler it’s important to make time in your schedule to simply let them play and be a toddler. If you need a playground to give your toddler more time to play, there is one located in North Conway Village by the Community Center and Conway Scenic Railroad called Schouler Park. There are bathroom facilities, a splash pad, and it offers lovely views in every direction.
Where to Eat in North Conway with Kids
Stairway Café: Located in downtown North Conway, this little family-friendly restaurant serves breakfast and lunch. If I remember correctly, they don’t have a kids menu but the waitress was very accommodating for us.
Note you have to keep your stroller outside since space upstairs in the restaurant is small (we tucked our behind a small fence to the left of the entrance). Seating is available both inside and outside on a deck.
Thompson House Eatery: This beautiful farm-to-table restaurant is located in Jackson, NH (~15 minutes north of North Conway). This isn’t a typical restaurant where I’d suggest taking a toddler but we took a chance since our daughter is pretty well behaved.
They definitely didn’t have a kids menu but they made her a giant bowl of pasta with butter and cheese and she loved it! The owners also host a farmers market on the property on Tuesday afternoons (seasonal). On the drive here, check out some of NH’s famous “covered bridges”.
Wicked Fresh Craft Burgers: This place was a very family-friendly restaurant with their menu options plus offered both indoor and outdoor seating. Near Settlers Green Outlets if you want to do some shopping!
What to Pack for North Conway with a Toddler
Specific to a family vacation in North Conway, don’t forget to pack hiking shoes for everyone in the family. Bathing suits and travel towels will be useful if you plan on spending any time at the lakes.
For the rest, I’ve got a great post on my favorite toddler travel essentials. This post covers all the toddler travel gear I couldn’t live without on family holidays.
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Erica Dankiewicz
Erica Dankiewicz lives in Northern New Jersey, close to her childhood home. She strives to be the best mom to her two girls Annika and Vera while working full time as a pharmacist at a pharmaceutical company. Her parents instilled the love for travel and exploration and she can’t wait to pass the travel bug on to her daughters. Erica plans at least one unique family vacation a year with her husband and girls and annually visits both Rhode Island and South Carolina.
Celine Brewer is the owner of Baby Can Travel. Not only does she have years of experience traveling with babies & toddlers, but she’s helped millions of new parents travel with their babies and toddlers for over a decade. In addition to writing on her baby travel blog, she has shared her expertise on traveling with a baby or toddler by contributing to articles about traveling with a baby with the Washington Post, USA Today, the Lonely Planet magazine and Pregnancy & Newborn magazine.
Celine also writes about family travel on the site FamilyCanTravel.com, which she co-owns with her husband. Being from the Canadian Rockies, she shares her passion about her home and travel to Banff National Park and area on their site TravelBanffCanada.com.
