To call Portsmouth N.H. “historic” feels woefully inadequate. Situated in the southeastern tip of New Hampshire, just over the state line, this small city drips charm and oozes history out of every bit of its bustling little downtown.
Located about two and a half hours from here, Portsmouth is a great day trip destination at just about anytime of year. With its beaches and the proximity Maine just a stone’s throw across the Piscataqua River, summer is the most popular time of year to visit the seaport city. But the siren call of changing foliage in fall lures thousands of visitors at that time of year too, and Portsmouth’s downtown puts on a pretty show of holiday delights at Christmas as well.
Settled in the early 1600s Portsmouth was once one of the nation’s busiest shipbuilding communities and port of call for ships of trade. It boasts one of the oldest working ports still operating in this country, one that sees 5 million tons of cargo unload annually from U.S. trading partners worldwide.
It’s also home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, which was established in 1800 on the Piscataqua River as the country’s first naval shipyard.
“Long before the Boston Tea Party, Portsmouth citizens provided the gunpowder and stores that fueled the American Revolution and stoked the fires of liberty,” the city’s online resources guide states. “If it had not been for the first Portsmouth area settlers, there would have never been a first Thanksgiving for the Pilgrims.”
That rich past is evident the minute you get off Interstate 95 and enter the city’s charming downtown.
Historic homes line the city’s narrow streets. Boutiques, shops, museums, tap rooms and restaurants occupy many of the original homes and buildings in the city.
Along the river, colorful houses, some dating back more than two centuries, crowd narrow lanes and lend an air of historic authenticity to the coastal community.
Portsmouth’s walkable downtown is a vibrant mix of locally-owned shops and restaurants ranging from traditional women’s clothing stores to more quirky and unique shops, like Hempshire, which sells CBD oil and hemp products and Ten Thousand Villages, purveyors of handmade goods from around the world.
There are some national brands in the downtown, though they also have deep local connections. Seabags, the popular handbags and totes made from old sailcloth by a Portland, Maine company, has a store in Portsmouth, as does Stonewall Kitchens, also a Maine-based company.
There are dozens of restaurants in Portsmouth, both casual and fine dining, and many of them have outdoor decks overlooking the water.
Getting there: You can take interstate highways all the way to Portsmouth, though some have tolls. The most direct route is I-84 East in Hartford to I-90 East in Massachusetts and then I-290 East to I-495 North and then I-95 North to Exit 7 in Portsmouth.