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Best spots at the height of the summer season.
New England
New England truly springs to life between the July 4 and Labor Day holidays, when a vibrant summer culture produces a mind-boggling array of special events in the region’s many maritime and mountain towns and historic cities. Out-of-towners snatch up beach houses on the Cape and cottages at inland lakes, and spend their vacations perusing antique shows, old-fashioned county fairs, arts-and-crafts festivals, and, of course, traditional New England lobster fests and clam bakes. Cultural types head off in search of top summer festivals, like the famed Tanglewood Music Festival in the Berkshires (July-Aug.), while outdoorsy folks soak up ocean scenery by hiking and biking the Outer Cape or by sailing windjammers in Camden and yachts in scenic Marblehead. Strolls through quaint towns like Stockbridge, immortalized in Norman Rockwell’s paintings, serve up quintessential Main Street U.S.A., while opportunities for scenic drives abound, like along Newport’s Ocean Drive. Or, if you’re looking to throw back a cold one or sip a martini at a beach bar, you can’t do better than P-Town (more formally known as Provincetown), the Cape's most happening summer nightlife scene.
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