A weekend in Salem, Friday to Sunday

This Salem NH weekend itinerary gets you from a Friday dinner to a Sunday drive home with almost no backtracking. Salem is 34 miles north of Boston at I-93 Exits 1 and 2, and most stops below sit within a few minutes of each other. The plan is built for fall. Summer and winter swaps follow. Hours change with the seasons, so confirm before you go.

Friday night: settle in

• 5 p.m. Check in. The Artisan, a 165-room Marriott Tribute Portfolio hotel at 17 Via Toscana, puts you inside Tuscan Village with dinner downstairs and an outdoor pool for summer. See our guide to hotels in Salem, NH for the other choices near Exit 2.
• 6:30 p.m. Dinner. Tuscan Kitchen, on The Artisan’s ground floor, serves until 11 p.m. on Fridays. Order a house pasta, or the Tagliatelle al Tartufo finished tableside with shaved black truffle. For something looser, take a short drive to Dreo Food & Drink on North Broadway for cocktails and shareable plates.
• 9 p.m. Nightcap. Head up to The Rooftop at The Artisan for a cocktail at its 24-seat bar and a view over the village.

Saturday: stones, shops and North Broadway

• 8 a.m. Breakfast. MaryAnn’s Diner, at 3 Veterans Memorial Pkwy., opens at 6 a.m. with big breakfasts in a 1950s room.
• 9:30 a.m. America’s Stonehenge. Drive to North Salem and walk the half-mile loop past stone chambers and standing stones. It takes about an hour. The site says its oldest work is about 4,000 years old; archaeologists dispute that. Adults $19. Open 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
• 12:30 p.m. Lunch at Tuscan Market. Neapolitan pizza, panini and fresh pasta, with seats on a heated, enclosed patio.
• 2 p.m. Shop. Walk Tuscan Village’s main street for L.L.Bean, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn and Arhaus, then cross to the Mall at Rockingham Park for about 140 more stores. New Hampshire has no sales tax.
• 5 p.m. Drinks outside. The Sun Cruiser Social Club, open until 10 p.m. Saturdays, has container bars, lawn games and fire pits. Then walk the pond at Lake Park, or play a round of cornhole at the Sam Adams Pavilion beer garden.
• 7 p.m. Dinner. The Colosseum, at 264 N. Broadway, has served Southern Italian food since 1987 and is open until 10 p.m. Saturdays. Reserve on OpenTable. Next door, Grand India is known for its biryani.
• 9 p.m. The evening. In October, Canobie Lake Park’s Screeemfest runs until 11 p.m. on Saturdays, through Oct. 31. Buy tickets online first. The rest of the year, catch a late show in the heated recliners at Cinemark Rockingham Park and XD, 15 Mall Road.

Sunday: brunch, the rail trail and the common

• 9 a.m. Brunch. The Friendly Toast at Tuscan Village does retro all-day breakfast with a full bar. Tuscan Market opens at 8 a.m. for coffee and pastry.
• 10:30 a.m. The rail trail. Walk or bike the Salem Bike-Ped Corridor, paved from North Broadway to Main Street. On Main Street, the restored Boston & Maine depot now houses the Salem Depot Transportation Museum. Our Salem rail trail guide has the details.
• 12:30 p.m. Salem Common. See the 1738 Old Town Hall and the common laid out around 1741, now a National Register historic district.
• 1:30 p.m. Lunch, then home. Sevmar Mediterranean Bistro, at 401 Main St., is open until 8 p.m. Sundays. Stop at Whole Foods or Market Basket at Tuscan Village for the drive home.

The summer version of a Salem NH weekend

• Friday: trade the nightcap for a free concert at Field of Dreams Park, 48 Geremonty Dr. The 2026 series ran late June to mid-August, with openers at 5:45 p.m. and headliners at 6:40 p.m.
• Saturday: give the whole day to Canobie Lake Park. In 2026 it opened weekends at 10:30 a.m. Castaway Island, the water park, is included with admission and ran 10:30 a.m.–6 p.m. from mid-June to Labor Day. Parking is free, outside food is not allowed and tickets are online only. Live music plays at Lake Park Thursday through Sunday in season.
• Sunday: swim at Hedgehog Park, 53 Lowell Rd. There are no lifeguards, and non-residents pay $20 to park. More ideas in summer in Salem.

The winter version

• Friday: the Holiday Shoppes at Tuscan Village, nearly 50 wooden booths of gifts and treats, open 3–8 p.m. on Fridays from Nov. 6 to Dec. 24, 2026.
• Saturday: after a fresh snow, snowshoe the trails at America’s Stonehenge. With rentals, adult admission is $29. Spend the afternoon at the Cooking School at Tuscan Market, which runs cooking and mixology classes with Williams Sonoma. The Shoppes stay open until 8 p.m.
• Big dates: the 50-foot tree at Tuscan Village lights up Saturday, Nov. 21, and the 55th Salem Holiday Parade is Sunday, Nov. 29, at 1 p.m. See winter in Salem for more.

Tips for any Salem NH weekend itinerary

• Buy Canobie tickets before you leave home. The park sells them online only, and prices change by date.
• Budget for the meals tax. Shopping is tax-free, but New Hampshire adds 8.5% to restaurant checks and hotel bills.
• Park once at Tuscan Village. Its lots are free, and the restaurants, shops, Lake Park and The Artisan are all walkable from one spot.
• Mind Monday closures. The Colosseum is closed Mondays, and Black Water Grill closes Sundays and Mondays, so stretch the weekend with care.
• Check the calendar. Tuscan Village posts its festivals, movie nights and live music at tuscanvillagesalem.com, and the Town posts parade and holiday news at salemnh.gov.

Want more options to swap in? Our list of 25 things to do in Salem, NH covers the rest, and our dining guide has more places for each meal.