The sweet sweet taste of victory
As a self proclaimed pancake connoisseur, I love a good maple syrup. New England takes it to a different level. NH Maple Days, coordinated by their governing body, is this weekend (March 21-22) with over 100 farms participating - everything from big operations to some dude in his backyard boiling syrup. A fun time for the whole family with events from learning the process, watching them boil it down, riding horse drawn wagons, obviously eating pancakes, tasting, and bringing your favorite one home.
The official weekend is March 21–22, but many sugarhouses have been welcoming visitors all month and will continue through the end of March.
Below you'll find our curated picks organized by drive time from Boston — from a 45-minute pancake run to a full day in the White Mountains. Every listing has been checked against the sugarhouse's own info so you know what you're walking into.
The short version: If you only have time for one stop, Morningstar Farm in Plaistow is 45 minutes away, has a pancake breakfast, farm animals, and free entry. If you want the full experience and don't mind an hour-plus drive, Ben's Sugar Shack in Temple gives you a free tour, a maple-themed restaurant, and maple cotton candy made in front of you. And for all in maple vibes, Woodstock, NH has a festival which looks to be fun.
You might want to know that….
A few things that'll save you headaches on Saturday morning:
Wear boots. These are working farms. Mud is guaranteed, snow is possible.
Bring cash. Many small sugarhouses don't take cards. Some do, but don't count on it.
Call ahead if weather is weird. If it hasn't been cold enough at night, sap won't be running and some operations may not be actively boiling. A quick call avoids disappointment.
Saturday will be busier. If you can go Sunday, you'll have a calmer experience.
Plan to spend 1–2 hours per stop. Most sugarhouses have enough to fill that window. The bigger operations (Charmingfare, The Rocks) could fill more time.
Dogs: Many small farms are dog-friendly, but always check first.
Table of Contents
Under an hour from Boston
Morningstar Farm — Plaistow, NH {#morningstar-farm}
📍 30 Crane Crossing Rd, Plaistow, NH (~45 min from Boston) 📅 March 21–22 | ⏰ 9:30 AM – 5:00 PM | 💲 Free entry
This is the closest full maple experience to Boston, and it's a good one. Morningstar runs a pancake breakfast both days, makes fresh cider donuts, and has maple hot dogs (trust us — your kids will be into it). You can watch the whole sugaring process while the kids say hi to the farm animals. They also sell a full line of maple products including maple cream, maple BBQ sauce, and bourbon maple syrup.
Four thousand people visited in a typical pre-COVID Maple Weekend. Get there early.
📞 603-479-0804
Kimstead Farm — Pepperell, MA {#kimstead-farm}
📍 169 Hollis Street, Pepperell, MA (~50 min from Boston) 📅 March 21–22 | ⏰ 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM | 💲 Free
Technically in Massachusetts, right on the NH border, and listed in the NH Maple Producers directory. Kimstead has been running open houses every weekend this month. You'll get demonstrations, syrup samples, and maple products for purchase. It's smaller and simpler than some of the bigger operations, but it's the closest thing to a maple experience without leaving the state.
📞 978-580-6711 | kimsteadfarm.com
Blueberry Hill Sugarworks ("Wicked Sappy") — Raymond, NH
📍 31 Blueberry Hill Road, Raymond, NH (~60 min from Boston) 📅 Every Saturday & Sunday in March | ⏰ 9 AM – 4 PM | 💲 Free tours
If your family is into food and flavors, this is your stop. Blueberry Hill is known for creative wood-fired syrups you won't find anywhere else: spruce tip syrup, black trumpet mushroom syrup, vanilla bean syrup, and a cinnamon-infused syrup that's become a local cult favorite. Free tours, and you can watch the whole wood-fired process. They're also sometimes open weekday evenings when they're boiling — call or text to check.
📞 603-300-6837 | wickedsappy.com
1–1.5 Hours from Boston
Ben's Sugar Shack — Temple, NH {#bens-sugar-shack}
📍 8 Webster Highway, Temple, NH (~1.5 hrs from Boston) 📅 Every Saturday & Sunday in March | ⏰ 10 AM – 4 PM | 💲 Free tours
This is arguably the best free maple experience in southern NH. Ben started making award-winning syrup as a teenager, and his operation has grown into a full destination. You get a guided tour of the sugar shack, maple syrup grade tastings, maple cotton candy made right in front of you, and maple ice cream. The Maple Station Market next door serves full breakfast and lunch with a maple-themed menu — think maple coffee, maple cream cookies, and meals built around the stuff.
Combine this with Connolly's Sugar House (also in Temple — they do dairy farm tours AND sugarhouse tours) for a two-stop morning.
Sunnyside Maples — Loudon, NH
📍 1089 Route 106N, Loudon, NH (~1.5 hrs from Boston) 📅 March 21–22 | ⏰ 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM | 💲 Free admission
If you want a festival vibe, Sunnyside is the spot. Sugarhouse tours, free maple samples, a food truck, live music, maple cotton candy, and maple frappes. It's one of the bigger Maple Weekend celebrations in the Concord-area and feels like an actual event rather than just a farm visit.
Prescott Farm — Laconia, NH
📍 928 White Oaks Road, Laconia, NH (~1.5 hrs from Boston) 📅 Every Saturday in March | ⏰ 90-min programs on the hour, 10 AM – 2 PM | 💲 $15/person (free for members)
This is the most educational option on the list, and it's specifically designed as a hands-on STEM learning experience. Your kids will learn tree ID, tap a tree themselves, use historical and modern tapping tools, and learn the chemistry and physics behind boiling sap into syrup. There's a 20-minute walk to the sugar house (wear boots!), and they provide snowshoes and traction cleats if needed.
There's also an accessible indoor-only program at 10 AM each Saturday for families who need it.
Bonus: They're running a maple candy-making workshop on April 4 ($15 members / $30 non-members).
Gould Hill Farm — Contoocook, NH
📍 656 Gould Hill Road, Contoocook, NH (~1.5 hrs from Boston) 📅 March 21–22 | ⏰ Sugarhouse 11 AM – 3 PM; Live music 1 – 4 PM | 💲 Free
Gould Hill is a working apple orchard that also does maple, which means you get the sugarhouse plus their bakery (apple cider donuts), a hard cider tasting room, and 80-mile views to the White Mountains. They're releasing their 2026 "Fireside Maple" cider this weekend. This is a great option for parents who want something a little more grown-up — bring the kids for the donuts and the sugarhouse, stay for the cider and the views.
The Full Day Trip (2+ Hours)
The Rocks / NH Forest Society — Bethlehem, NH
📍 113 Glessner Road, Bethlehem, NH (~2.5 hrs from Boston) 📅 March 21–22 and March 28 | ⏰ Tours on the hour, 10 AM – 2 PM | 💲 $20/person (kids 5 and under free)
If your family is going to do one serious maple experience this year, this is it. The NH Maple Experience at The Rocks is the deepest educational program in the state. You'll learn maple tree identification, the full history of sugaring from Native American techniques through modern methods, tap a tree yourself, take a horse-drawn carriage ride through the maple lines, ride a tractor to the Maple Museum, and finish with maple tasting with donuts and sour pickles.
Tours are limited to 16 people. Reserve online — walk-ins are accommodated if there's space, but don't risk it for a 2.5-hour drive.
Make a weekend out of it?: Stay at the historic Gardener's Cottage on-property and get free tickets for up to 4 adults plus a quart of syrup.
Woodstock Maple Fest — Woodstock, NH
📍 Downtown Woodstock, NH (~2 hrs from Boston) 📅 March 21 (Sunday events March 22) | 💲 Free
If you're making the drive to the White Mountains anyway, Woodstock runs a town-wide maple festival anchored by Fadden's General Store & Sugarhouse (family-owned since 1896). On Saturday, you'll find maple boiling demonstrations, sugar on snow, maple ice cream, and maple cotton candy. Fadden's itself is a destination — taxidermy moose, kettle corn coated in maple syrup, and sugarhouse tours.
On Sunday, the Woodstock Inn Brewery does a pancake breakfast (reservations required). All month, they're pouring the Kanc Country Maple Porter — brewed with Fadden's maple syrup.
Suggested Routes
Quick Morning Trip (~1 hr from Boston): Morningstar Farm (Plaistow) for pancake breakfast → swing by Kimstead Farm (Pepperell) on the way home
Focused on eating Loop (~1.5 hrs): Ben's Sugar Shack (Temple) for free tour + lunch at the Maple Station → Connolly's Sugar House (Temple) for dairy farm + sugarhouse combo
Central NH with a View (~1.5 hrs): Sunnyside Maples (Loudon) for live music and food truck → Gould Hill Farm (Contoocook) for cider donuts, hard cider, and mountain views
Full White Mountains Day (~2+ hrs): Fadden's + Woodstock Maple Fest → Woodstock Inn Brewery → The Rocks Maple Experience (Bethlehem)
Don't Forget Closer to Home
MA Maple Weekend was March 7–8 this year, but several local spots still have maple programs running through mid-to-late March:
Mass Audubon sanctuaries (Drumlin Farm in Lincoln, Moose Hill in Sharon, Ipswich River in Topsfield) have been running guided maple sugaring programs throughout March — check massaudubon.org for remaining dates and availability.
Blue Hills Reservation in Canton and Breakheart Reservation in Saugus both hosted maple sugaring events in mid-March — these may be done for the season but worth checking DCR's site.
The Full NH Maple Producers Directory
The sugarhouses above are our curated picks, but there are 100+ participating across the state. The NH Maple Producers Association directory lets you search by region, and NHMapleMap.com has an interactive map for planning your route.
A Final Note
Thanks for checking this out.
“life is better with pancakes and syrup”
-somebody, probably.
Until next time,
T from Boston Family Calendar
