One of our family’s favorite holiday traditions is donning pajamas (or matching shirts like this year) and sipping hot chocolate as we try out different Polar Express Christmas train rides with the kids. After all, what is Christmas without a golden ticket and a silver bell, complements of the train conductor! This year we ventured to North Conway, New Hampshire to try out this particular Polar Express called Journey to the North Pole that is put on by Believe in Books Literacy Foundation. We have previously enjoyed their sister event out of Lincoln, New Hampshire, and also an independent one in Bourne, MA at the Cape Cod Railway.
The big difference between these rides is the New Hampshire ones bring you to the “North Pole” where you exit the train and walk outdoors to a tented area where the book “Twas the Night Before Christmas” is read and a little show is put on. Santa makes an appearance and there is a photo op with him. The Cape Cod train does not stop at the North Pole, rather wonderful actors come through the train singing, dancing and mingling with families throughout the roundtrip ride. Santa also comes through the train and interacts with each family. They hold true to the theme of the movie. Some of the grandkids really prefer the seemingly magical adventure of walking through the wooded areas in NH with the trees lit up, elves greeting you along the way and getting to mail a letter to Santa at the post office, while others loved the theatrical rendition of the Polar Express movie that is provided on the Cape Cod adventure. Jim and I prefer the Cape Cod Polar Express because the actors and the production were so amazing.
These Polar Express events are very popular and sell out early, so we purchase our tickets as soon as they come available. We book both the train ride and accommodations around March for December. We tend to go early in December as it is such a busy month. The problem with going early in the month is there is no guarantee that any of the snow related attractions will be open – tubing, skiing, sleigh rides, outdoor ice skating.
This year adventure was in North Conway. We originally thought of renting a large home for the weekend to accommodate the 14 of us, 6 adults and 8 kids, but then decided to do a separate room for each family at a hotel with an indoor pool. Jim and I had stayed at Eastern Slope Inn over 40 years ago and loved the location, which is why we decided to stay here, though there are plenty of hotels along North Conway’s main road.
The historic Eastern Slope Inn is located right in the heart of North Conway within walking distance to the train, attractions and restaurants. The lobby is large with a warm fireplace and cozy seating areas, all decorated for the holidays. It also has an indoor pool, indoor and outdoor hot tub (over 14 yrs of age allowed), an arcade and an attached restaurant. The kids loved having time in the pool and arcade in between all of our other activities. The rooms at Eastern Slope are large enough suites to fit our families – they have one and two-bedroom suites and others are townhouses. We had three one-bedroom suites with kitchenettes and Murphy beds in the living room all on the same floor. The inn’s outside iconic appearance was enhanced by the Christmas décor and the newly fallen 6 inches of snow. The kids were able to play in the front as well as in the back patio area. They made snow angels, built snowmen and igloos.
Much to our surprise, Santa and Mrs. Claus made an appearance at the inn on our first night (Friday). The kids were so excited, and we got some great pictures of the family with them. Jax attached himself to Mrs. Claus which was priceless.
After our photo op with Santa, we had dinner at the Flatbread Company – an amazing wood-fired pizza restaurant that is attached to the lobby of the Eastern Slope Inn. We all loved everything about this restaurant. They accommodated out large group without batting an eye. Our server was fabulous, friendly and patient with us and the 8 kids. They had coloring supplies and kiddy drinks to keep them occupied. We ordered bread sticks, a large salad and three large pizzas which fed us all. The pizzas were exceptionally good as were the drinks. We ordered some desserts as well – ice cream, brownie sundaes and gingerbread sundaes – sooooo delicious.
For Saturday’s breakfast, one family decided to eat in with take-out from Bagel’s Plus, a cute little bagel shop just up the road from the hotel. Others of us had a sit-down breakfast at Peach’s Restaurant, just a short drive down the road set in a little house. We had a short wait for the 9 of us to be seated, but it was well worth it. The tables are adorned with napkin art done by previous patrons and guests are encouraged to leave their drawings behind for future decorations. The staff was very friendly, and the food was delicious. We had a variety of pancakes and omelets.
We stopped at Zeb’s General Store on the way back to the hotel. This is a must if in North Conway. There are two floors of fun here. They manage the crowds by only allowing so many in at a time, having others wait outside until someone leaves. This makes for a more pleasant shopping experience without feeling squished. The candy counter has the best fudge variety around.
We did a late lunch together at the Muddy Moose down the road. This experience was again, phenomenal. We did have a wait (40 minutes when they said 20), but to be expected with such a large group and no reservations accepted. The kids were provided some art supplies for drawing, and we ordered our meals immediately when we sat to keep our natives from getting restless. Everyone was happy with their meals, drinks and laid-back atmosphere.
Our train ride was at 4:00. We picked this early time for the little ones, but looking back, we will probably opt for the later time next time so we can just put the kids to bed when they get back. The baby (almost 2) let us know that this was a long day for him without getting in a good nap! Some of us walked down to the train and others parked their car their as tired little ones don’t always want to walk. I brought K-cup hot chocolate from home and utilized the Keurig in the lobby to make hot chocolate for the train. We ordered a light dinner from Cheese Louise from the train and picked it up on our way back to the hotel where everyone took their sandwiches back to their rooms. Some then went to bed, others ventured to the arcade and the pool after dinner, while Jim and I went to have a quiet cocktail at the bar at the Flatbread Company in the lobby.
The next morning, we each found our own breakfast, either at Bagels Plus or at the many coffee and pastry shops around. The kids enjoyed the pool again then we all said our goodbyes and headed home from our spectacular holiday weekend in North Conway, NH. I think this year we found our groove with having the three suites for the families. This gave us enough together time as well as some private time. The cousins love their time together and this is what this weekend is all about. I am not sure how many more seasons we will get out of our “believers”, but for now, it is absolutely the best!!
Until next time!
Patti and Jim
Leave a Reply