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Visit Salem, New Hampshire: Your Gateway to Canobie Park and Tax-Free Shopping and Entertainment

Aerial view of an amusement park with roller coasters, rides, trees, and a nearby lake in the background.
Canobie Lake Park, one of New Hampshire's top five attractions, on a busy summer afternoon

Located in Rockingham County along the Massachusetts border, the town of Salem serves as the southern gateway to New Hampshire. Situated directly off Interstate 93, this busy suburban hub of roughly 30,000 residents is well-suited for shoppers taking advantage of the state’s tax-free retail, families seeking entertainment, and couples looking for a convenient weekend trip.

Places to Stay in Salem, New Hampshire

The entrance of The Artisan Hotel is lit with marquee lights and surrounded by brick and glass exterior walls, with potted plants by the doors.
The Artisan Hotel at Tuscan Village
Exterior view of a Holiday Inn hotel with a white entrance canopy, green signage, landscaping, and a clear blue sky in the background.
Holiday Inn, Salem
Exterior view of a Red Roof Inn building with a red sign and accessible parking spaces in front.
Red Roof Inn, Salem

Travelers can choose from several practical lodging options located close to the major attractions. Visitors looking for an upscale, trendy experience can stay at The Artisan at Tuscan Village, pictured at left above, a boutique, Marriott Autograph Collection  hotel featuring refined modern rooms, an outdoor pool, and direct access to the shopping district. For a moderately-priced stay, Holiday Inn Salem, center, provides comfortable rooms, an indoor pool, and an on-site business center, and the Red Roof Inn Salem, above right, offers basic, budget-priced rooms with straightforward amenities near the highway.  

Salem offers an array of tourist-friendly dining choices, most notably, the Tuscan Kitchen which provides an expansive indoor and outdoor setting focused on scratch-made, regional Italian cuisine. For a casual family meal, Margaritas Mexican Restaurant serves classic Tex-Mex dishes in a lively environment, while The Black Water Grill offers American comfort foods and seafood along the water.

Things To Do in Salem, New Hampshire

People float in a lazy river at a water park, with waterslides, palm tree decorations, and wooden buildings in the background. Some visitors walk along the poolside.
The Lazy River, Canobie Lake Park
Modern commercial building with large windows, outdoor lighting, and a small fountain in front, photographed at dusk.
Tuscan Village
Stone ruins in a forested area, featuring stacked rocks and a large flat stone slab, surrounded by trees and greenery.
Americas Stonehenge

Tuscan Village, a massive open-air lifestyle destination featuring shopping, dining, and public gathering spaces (Map), is a major draw for visitors to Salem.   Families can also spend the day at Canobie Lake Park (Map) pictured at center, above, or at America’s Stonehenge (Map), a captivating outdoor history museum and archaeological site spanning over 105 acres of peaceful, tree-lined hills, centered around a sprawling maze of stone chambers, walls, and intriguing rock inscriptions. America’s Stonehenge is estimated by some researchers to be over 4,000 years old.

Getting to Salem couln’t be easier.  See interactive maps below.

43 minutes from Boston
1:36 from Keene
1:44 from Hanover
29 minutes from Manchester
42 minutes from Portsmouth
1:45 from Providence