Sweet Maple Tour Weekends for Couples

The maple trees that paint New England’s hillsides red and gold in the fall have another gift in the late winter for those embarking on family travel. As the days begin to lengthen in late February and March, sap begins to rise and it’s time to tap trees and collect it for syrup.

It’s a time-honored tradition in northern New England to visit a sugar house, watch the sap boil, inhale the sweet aromas and sample the product, maybe taking home a jug or two — or at least a box of maple creams. Maple sugaring season offers visitors the chance to get out in the fresh air and is a good excuse for couples to take a sweet weekend getaway.

Combine visiting maple sugar farms with a weekend at a cozy B&B or country inn — your host will certainly know where to find them nearby. If they are boiling sap, most sugar house owners welcome you to see how syrup is made and sample a little. Some farms have trails through the groves, some even offer horse-drawn rides to the sugar house, and many offer hot cider or cocoa on special weekends.

In southern Maine, you’ll find several sugar houses near Kennebunkport, where the Waldo Emerson Inn is a cozy art-filled hideaway with lots of history. Chase Farms in Wells and Maple House Farm in Waterboro are nearby and Kennebunkport’s cute village center is filled with shops and galleries to browse.

In New Hampshire’s White Mountains, the village of Intervale is just north of North Conway, and home to 100-Acre Wood Sugar Shack, where the whole month of March is Maple Month. After sampling warm, just-made syrup, you can learn more about the process on a self-guided tour of the trails next to the sugar shack.

In nearby Jackson, where you’ll find Black Mountain Sugar House (and Black Mountain ski area if you want to get in a little spring skiing), The Inn at Thorn Hill is a luxurious place to stay, with a restaurant and spa, as well.

As you’d expect, the Vermont hills are peppered with maple farms, and one of the biggest is Sugarbush Farm in Woodstock, with about 8,500 trees. You can taste and compare four grades of syrup, along with the farm’s cheese, and watch both being produced. The Jackson House Inn is a good choice for a weekend stay in Woodstock.

For more sugar houses to visit, and the dates of special maple weekends and events, see the maple producers’ websites for Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.