Things to do in Portsmouth and the New Hampshire seacoast

Portsmouth sits on the Piscataqua River, about 60 miles (an hour or so by car or bus) north of Boston on I-95. It is the anchor of New Hampshire's short coastline, barely 15 miles of shorefront squeezed between Maine and Massachusetts.

The waterfront pairs a compact downtown of restaurants and local breweries with Strawbery Banke Museum, an outdoor collection of restored historic houses spanning several centuries. Amtrak's Downeaster stops nearby at Durham/UNH, but the connection is less direct than the train's run to Portland, so driving or a long-distance bus is usually the simpler option.

Strawbery Banke runs reduced hours or closes outright in deep winter, so spring through autumn is the better window, with a livelier, more festive atmosphere in summer.