Apologies if this is an old question---Leaves in NE/Canada

[Ships R Great]

When is the best time to sail NE/Canada for the leaves? Mid-Sept. early or mid October? Thanks to all. I have been out of the loop for months. Just now starting to think (maybe) about a fall cruise.

[Ships R Great]

When is the best time to sail NE/Canada for the leaves? Mid-Sept. early October or mid October? Thanks to all. I have been out of the loop for months. Just now starting to think (maybe) about a fall cruise.

[spearmint]

When is the best time to sail NE/Canada for the leaves? Mid-Sept. early October or mid October? Thanks to all. I have been out of the loop for months. Just now starting to think (maybe) about a fall cruise.

 

Probably about the first 2 to 3 weeks of October for the best show, I would say.

[zogrand]

In the Boston area we think of Columbus Day weekend as the height of the foliage season but the further north you go, the earlier the best color. Since many of the cruises seem to go to Maine and Canada, I'd go late September or early October. Of course this all changes depending on rain fall and temperature so it's always a gamble. Right now the leaves are still quite beautiful in Southern NE.

Whenever you go, NE is lovely and you should have a great time!

Carol

[BUCCANEER65]

Just returned from 12 day Celebrity Constellation Canada/NE cruise,October 5 thru 17. We were in Portland on October 7 and there was good color,but still a lot of green left on the trees. As we moved north to Canada and stopped at P.E.I.,Quebec City and Halifax the foliage was just about peak. Our last stop on the cruise was Bar Harbor on October 15 and it too was at about 100%. Quebec City and Bar Harbor were especially beautiful. I would say first two weeks of October were the best if you want the colors.

[drumleggagh]

We live in Central Maine. In Portland, Maine the leaves are at peak color round mid-October. In Bar Harbor, Maine the timing is probably a little earlier and even earlier still for Canada. As another poster indicated though these timing are all dependent on rainfall and temperature.

 

Here's a link to a website that shows a current fall foliage map for Maine:

 

http://www.maine.gov/doc/foliage/

[raymac46]

This is how it looked near Ottawa Canada on Oct 9, 2008.

 

[Casino Player]

When is the best time to sail NE/Canada for the leaves? Mid-Sept. early October or mid October? Thanks to all. I have been out of the loop for months. Just now starting to think (maybe) about a fall cruise.

 

Hello Ships R Great: If you want to see really good fall foliage with bright color go in mid October. If you go in September or early October the leaves haven't quite changed yet and if you go later October then it will be too cold, and the color will have passed you by. To get there for mid October you may have to leave in early October.

I just finished a great cruise to New England/Canada. We left Bayonne on October 5. We got to Quebec City about the 11/12 of this month. The colors were really good and it was still warm enough to walk around comfortably. People up there now on the next cruise will probably find it chilly. Our tour guide told us when we were in Quebec City they were expecting snow in another few weeks.

[sandrac213]

Ships,

 

The peak foliage this year came in around Oct. 10 to around oct. 20th. It's just passing us by here in Maine now so it's a little bit behind us now. So I would definitely go with early in the second week of October being the best time for leaf peeping.

 

Happy Sailing

Sandy

[leoandhugh]

While it is good to plan a cruise up there in late Sept or early October, you can't count on that being the best time for leaf color. As others have said, so much depends on rainfall and low temperatures in the area. We did one cruise from Montreal in early October and it had been a year with excessive rainfall all through Quebec and northern New England. The result was virtually no color at all. So plan your cruise and hope it turns out to be peak leaf time:)

[Luv4dacruise]

You said a NE/Canada cruise right?.....Well, there is no right or wrong time in that case. The further north you go, the earlier the leaves turn. In the Boston area right now, we are just about 50% i'd say. Up in Canada though, they are past there peak, Maine, probably at peak. So if you take a NE/Canada cruise, anytime late September to Mid October, you will see peak color somewhere along the coast.

 

You want to keep in mind though that there are FAR better ports for viewing the colors of the leaves in though.

 

I'd say the further North you go, the prettier the views get for viewing.

[Marytutor]

We enter Canada at Winsdor on Oct 1 and drove to Quebec. The colors from Windsor to Toronto were very nice. Oct 2 we drove to Montreal and the colors were a little better. Montreal to Quebec were not as colorful. We stayed in Quebec area from 3-10. The colors by the mountains were probably at 75%. We had a mixture of temps and some wind. The colors right in Quebec City were not as colorful, maybe 60%.

 

In reference to the City, the ships dock right in the city so it is easy to walk around the main part of the old city.

[Napi's Mom]

ISn't it strange that a double post ...seems to be agathering answers, on both of them????

Wisconsin is about level with much of NE and nearby Canadian Provinces, and OUR peak in Northern was early in OCT this year, but depending on the weather, can be even earlier. If near large bodies of water (guess the ocean counts as that) it stays warmer longer so might have a later color change. Where we live on Lake MICH. we have maples that haven't started to change now in the last WEEK of Oct.

[british betty]

There is a two week Connie cruise next year leaving on September 19. Do you think that it will be too early for the "colours" ?

 

We have never been to New England / Canada before and this is a "special" cruise for us, so we were hoping that the views and colours would be equally as special.

[MichaelandGeri]

Me and hubby were on the same cruise as Bucaneer. IMO while it was beautiful and the color may have well been peak, I have travelled the interior parts of New Hampshire and Vermont during "peak" and those areas left me breathless. I am only talking about foliage color. I mean PEI, Quebec, Bar Harbor are all beeeeautiful in their own right -- gosh Quebec is one of the most beautiful cities I have ever been to.

 

But from somebody who has seen peak in both areas, I would say foliage on the coast is kind of a let down if you have seen interior already. To me that cruise was sooo not about the foliage, but more about the beauty and character of each port (which you can get anytime in September or October). Again, JMO :)

[Peregrina651]

Another (Southern) New Englander speaks...

 

Every year is different. Some years the colors are really vibrant and other years they are muted. Some years the leaves turn and drop more quickly than other years. The only constant is that the further north you go, the earlier the leaves turn.

 

There is just no way of predicting what the leaves are going to be from year to year other than that from mid-September to mid-October there will be leaves reaching their peak of color somewhere in New England. So, if you take any cruise that has at least some time mid-September to mid-October, you are bound to see some color.

 

My other suggestion is to plan a few days before or after your cruise to rent a car and just chase the color. It is probably a long four to five hours from Bayonne NJ into Vermont and about 4 hours from Boston (depending on where you go in the state). You can figure out exactly where you want to go once you get here and make hotel reservations as you go depending on what you learn about where the color is.

[Ships R Great]

ISn't it strange that a double post ...seems to be agathering answers' date=' on both of them????

Wisconsin is about level with much of NE and nearby Canadian Provinces, and OUR peak in Northern was [u']early[/u] in OCT this year, but depending on the weather, can be even earlier. If near large bodies of water (guess the ocean counts as that) it stays warmer longer so might have a later color change. Where we live on Lake MICH. we have maples that haven't started to change now in the last WEEK of Oct.

 

I did not realize I had double posted until you said it. I haven't even looked at another post. My bad. Sorry, everyone. I guess it has been so long since I have been on CC that I mis-stepped. (And thanks, hosts, for catching it.)

 

But thanks, all, for the help. Looks like we will try for Oct. 3rd. We will celebrate 50 years a year late!

[BarbJ52]

When is the best time to sail NE/Canada for the leaves? Mid-Sept. early or mid October? Thanks to all. I have been out of the loop for months. Just now starting to think (maybe) about a fall cruise.

It's great to see you posting again. :)

 

Mid-Sept. is too early. You might see the beginnings of color but I would recommend early to mid-Oct. Peak foliage here is southern NH is usually around Columbus Day Weekend - give or take a few days. Further north usually peaks earlier. As others have said, it depends on the conditions. This year was a little later and we do still have some color but the trees with brilliant colors are now bare.

 

Hope to see you on the seas again. We have great memories of the Zenith cruise we shared. My mom had a great fun and talks about it all the time.

 

Barb