The Thousand Islands area of NY/Canada is great in July, or you could consider the Canadian Maritimes (Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick). We enjoyed a summer there some years back - Bay of Fundy (highest tides in the world), and more.
Halifax (NS) can be good for a city if you happened to choose the Canadian Maritime option.
Ottawa isn’t far at all from the 1000 Islands. If you wanted a little bit of a road trip while seeing things you could do the 1000 Islands to Montreal sticking close to the St Lawrence River (instead of their interstate) and have some superb views along the way. You could also start at the 1000 Islands, go around Lake Ontario to Niagara Falls, then up to Toronto and more if desired - pending length of trip and how much you wanted to see. If you do travel along the St Lawrence, pick the Canadian side for better views of the river.
This was from this past summer at Boldt Castle in the 1000 Islands. Singer Castle is neat to see too.
Re: Canada….If you want something that feels remote, you can trek up to Lake of The Woods. You can find lodging that varies from rustic cabin to a hotel with amenities. Great to canoe, paddle board, fish, hike….
In June, you might try Niagara On The Lake (Canada). Charming town. The Shaw Festival is back on and you will be able to see some good shows this summer. Many beautiful places to stay. Great dining and GREAT wines….we had an event at one of the vineyards that is famous for ice wine - Innniskillin. There are several wineries up there !! We tried a different one every day. Great bike trails and (of course) golf in the area! We stayed at the Prince of Wales hotel for the location. We drove over from Buffalo,
On the west coast of Canada: I LOVE Vancouver Island - you can find a variety of places to stay. It is one of the most beautiful places in North America.
Another vote to look into Michigan… Traverse City, Charlevoix, Petoskey, Mackinac, Sault St Marie (in U.P.). I spend a couple weeks in Charlevoix every July. Lake activities, searching for Petoskey stones, so many outdoor activities, great shopping and dining.
Maine, Vermont, Montreal sound nice too! I may look into those myself as my time in those places has been fall/winter.
If anyone decides to visit Maine, feel free to contact me. We’ve explored a good bit of the southern half of the state over the last 36 years. Now we need to get to the northern half!
Echoing @Creekland about the Thousand Islands. We did a vacation once where we flew into Buffalo, did the Thosand Islands (whose winery makes a great raspberry wine), Toronto, and Niagara Falls. It was a great trip and lovely during the summer.
Thanks everyone for the fabulous suggestions! I can add them to my bucket list for sure. So many places I’d love to visit. We have a niece in Montreal, so that’s an added incentive to go visit there.
Our road trip in early June is in CO - doing some river rafting, hiking, biking, visiting the Great Sand Dunes - so we’re looking forward to that for sure. I looked into going to Mesa Verde too, but the Cliff Palace road is closed this summer unfortunately, for construction, so that will have to be another time.
I like anything that’s exploring new areas!
This is an aspirational destination for me. I couldn’t swing it for this summer, but maybe next summer.
My favorite place in July is the Adirondacks. Several different lakes regions there. The place is loaded with history, great restaurants, and lots to do.
I’ve had beautiful weather in Scotland too. Spent 2 weeks in July one year and 2 weeks in September another year. Only maybe one day of rain each time. The only place I thought the midges were bad was on Skye near the Fairy Pools. No issues anywhere else.
We loved both Santa Fe and Taos, but we decided to do them as 2 separate trips. Each place had enough for us to do for an entire week.
(The balloon festival in Albuquerque was the highlight of Santa Fe trip, but that’s in October, not July).
Someone may have mentioned this upthread, but the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is not hot and muggy in the summer. Plus, it’s not crowded and has some beautiful areas. If you’re into camping/hiking Isle Royale National Park is amazing. We spent a week there 20 years ago–it’s still on my list of best trips. If you want a more resort type place–Mackinac Island is perfect. I spent two summers working there while in college. There are no cars on the island. Only travel is by bicycle, horse, or horse carriage. If you want to splurge, stay at the Grand Hotel.
Valley of the 10 peaks! Awesome place. We stayed at both Emerald Lake Lodge and Moraine Lake Lodge on a trip to the Canadian Rockies. It was an awesome trip.
