Fall Foliage Lodging in the Northeast: Which Regions Peak When

The Catskills usually peak between late September and mid-October, with the higher ground around Hunter and Windham turning first. Trails in the Catskill Forest Preserve with ridge views are busy on peak weekends. The region has dozens of inns and boutique hotels within a few hours of New York City, but demand is heavy too, and the Columbus Day weekend fills months ahead.

The Hudson Valley usually peaks a little later, in mid to late October, and suits travelers who want river towns and autumn color more than mountain hiking. Cold Spring and other river towns are on Metro-North from New York City, so a foliage trip there needs no car.

The Berkshires usually peak in mid-October, around the second and third weeks of the month, as the summer arts season winds down. Inns near Lenox and Stockbridge book out early for peak foliage weekends, when late-season concertgoers and foliage visitors arrive at the same time.

The northern Berkshires, around Williamstown and North Adams, turn a little earlier than the southern towns and often have more open rooms. MASS MoCA and the Clark Art Institute draw visitors there through the fall.

The Adirondacks and Vermont's Green Mountains turn first. On the higher ground, in the High Peaks around Keene Valley and Lake Placid and on the mountains above Stowe and the Mad River Valley, color starts in mid-September and peaks by late September. In the Adirondack Park, the state Department of Environmental Conservation publishes trail conditions and seasonal closures.

Peak foliage weekends in the Adirondacks and Vermont are hard to book. Lodging in Lake Placid and Stowe often fills months ahead for late September and early October weekends. Midweek trips, Monday through Thursday, have more open rooms and avoid the crowds that gather on the predicted peak weekends.

Foliage timing is hard to predict, since temperatures, rainfall and the summer's weather all affect when the color turns and how bright it is. A non-refundable booking for a peak weekend carries the risk that color peaks a week earlier or later. Where flexible rates are offered, they reduce that risk.

A practical approach is to aim for the week before or after the predicted peak. Midweek visits in early to mid-October usually catch good color in most regions, with more open rooms and lower rates than the Columbus Day weekend, which is the hardest weekend of the foliage season to book.

Foliage season is busy in every Northeast region, but less so in places with more lodging. The Catskills and the Hudson Valley have more rooms within a few hours of New York City than the Adirondacks or Vermont's mountain towns, where visitors outnumber rooms on peak weekends. Late October through Thanksgiving is quieter: rates drop after the foliage crowds leave, and the hiking is good before the snow arrives.