A love of music and the arts has dominated New England’s cultural scene for centuries, and thanks to the legacy of the Boston Brahmins (those blue-blooded families who ruled the city’s society and industry in the 19th century) there are plenty of places to appreciate all of them—from large institutions like the Peabody-Essex Museum, Boston Symphony Orchestra in Massachusetts, and the Portland Museum of Art in Maine, to the small theatres of North Conway, New Hampshire, and independent art galleries of Burlington, Vermont.

Literature is also a big part of New England’s abundant arts community—historically and in the present day. Writers Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edith Wharton, and Henry David Thoreau helped define the American character as they saw it from New England, and scribes such as Arthur Miller and John Updike have continued the tradition.

But much of the culture found in this area of the country is just as easily found in its streets, pubs, and parks. In and around Boston, Providence, and Portland, a thriving rock and folk music scene dominates the nightclubs and bars. (Boston in particular is the birthplace of bands ranging from The Pixies to Aerosmith.) Further afield, in rural areas, you’ll find plenty of folk-inspired performances—perhaps most notably distinct are the Acadian and Quebecois dance and folk music in northern areas of Maine.