A free night in Concord, NH

[v]

Don't worry -- I've already figured out how to get there

I'll have a free night there -- let's say 5pm onward.  Any good exploring to do at that hour, or should I just sit myself at a bar/restaurant for the evening?

Thanks!

[LoveTrains]

You could try posting on the boston board but I can't say that Concord is really known for anything. But some of the posters live in Southern NH.

[v]

Mar 29, 2015 10:37:26 GMT -5 LoveTrains said:

You could try posting on the boston board but I can't say that Concord is really known for anything. But some of the posters live in Southern NH.

That's *kind* of what I suspected.

It's funny, my husband heard I had to go there and I was kind of groaning and he's like "That sounds like a great place to go!"  Um...

Don't get me wrong -- New Hampshire is lovely.  But I figured there was a reason why I had never heard anything about Concord specifically!!!

[Lilac]

Yeah.... there's not really much in Concord. The only thing we ever do in Concord is stop by the LLBean outlet to look for cheap sporting gear. I'm guessing that's not what you are looking for

You're probably better off driving to Manchester, which is ~20 minutes south. There are a lot more restaurants and things to do there.

[cgpm]

Yeah, I'm with Lilac on this one. Most of the stuff on Main St. will likely be closed (not that there's much to do anyway). Manchester is more interesting. 

PM me if you want more specific info or recommendations in Manchester. 

[babsbunny]

If it's the first Friday of the month, you could go to the McAuliffe-Shepard Planetarium open 6:30 to 9. If it was a Saturday I would suggest looking into a Mount Washington Dinner Cruise on Lake Winnipesaukee from 7-10 (about a 45 minute drive north). You could check the schedule for the speedway (sometimes they have night events). I failed at finding a place to see the stars, but it should be pretty easy to just drive a bit north - the stars are beautiful at night. I second others that Manchester will have more nightlife. You could check Ticketmaster for any concerts or comedians in the area.

Unless you're not visiting for another 2 months, you will have cool weather and early sunsets.

[v]

It will be a weekday (this is a work trip) and so I won't be able to do weekend stuff and I think I'll be too pressed for time to do out of town stuff.  Thanks, though!

[babsbunny]

Mar 29, 2015 12:55:23 GMT -5 v said:

It will be a weekday (this is a work trip) and so I won't be able to do weekend stuff and I think I'll be too pressed for time to do out of town stuff.  Thanks, though!

Then I vote again for the LL Bean outlet.  While not huge, it is fun to browse, especially the returned/mangled personalized items.  You might find a bathroom travel bag with initials of someone you know!

Steeplegate Mall exists if you need an indoor place to walk around (though I think it's slowly dying). 

Margaritas Mexican Restaurant downtown is an old jail, still with the concrete walls and iron bars. 

Lastly, no joke, what I love most about visiting family in NH is watching the NH news (ABC channel 9, WMUR, 10 PM).  It's a huge contrast to the constantly depressing stories I see in DFW.

[Muddled]

Drink.

[hulley]

I was just in Concord yesterday (we live about 25 minutes south). The mall is, in fact, dying. There is an outlet mall a little further north (maybe 20 minutes?) if you want to do some tax-free shopping while you're here. I used to work in Concord and would sometimes head up after work, it's an easy drive.

Otherwise, I echo the recommendation to visit Manchester.

[Awkward]

Ditto everyone else. I live one town over from Concord and never go there on a weeknight, the cliche about rolling up the sidewalks definitely applies. My only suggestion is a visit to Casa Awkward.