Summer is winding down. At least that seems to be the way it feels when August comes. Days get shorter, crickets begin their nightly songs, and back-to-school sales are competing for attention. Before that last bit of summer slips through your fingers, give some thought to getting to know New Hampshire better, and having some fun at the same time!

New Hampshire has many interesting and exciting places to go and attractions to see. Some are free and some do charge. All can enjoyed as day trips. The state of New Hampshire maintains a website for visitors. Information found on this website can help you plan some fun family day trips. The family attractions page has a list of great places to visit which can be sorted by region, by attraction type or even alphabetically.

New Hampshire State Parks have their own website as well. Here you can find a list of closing dates for the parks as well as a chart which displays all of the parks and indicates what is available at each park - for example, swimming, biking, fishing, pet policy. Natural areas and wayside parks are also listed and described.

New Hampshire, Maine and Massachusetts are all noted for their agricultural fairs. These are great entertainment, and, at least one takes place every weekend in August and September. There is a webpage for these fairs which gives the dates for each fair and provides a link to it's webpage. Here you will find fair hours, directions, events, admission fees and a contact number for any other questions which you might have.

The library also has guidebooks to New Hampshire which will help you to plan family day trips.

Fun with the family - Vermont and New Hampshire
New Hampshire - Off the beaten path
New Hampshire Curiosities
Natural wonders of New Hampshire
and if your dog loves family travels : Best hikes with dogs: New Hampshire and Vermont

So go ahead, ignore those crickets and plan a family day trip or two. What do they know anyway? It's still summer - just ask your kids!