The draw of both trying a Segway for the first time and doing a tour of historic Manchester NH took my husband, Dave, and I to the new Segway office on Hanover Street. We parked around the corner on Amherst Street and for $3 total, it wasn't bad, plus our car wasn't in the hot sun.
What a fabulous experience we had! The office was very pleasant and the folks we met were welcoming and competent. They were also pleased to hear I was a Granite State Ambassador (GSA) and had a positive opinion about our group.
There was an option of 2 tours (90 minutes or 150 minutes).We opted for the shorter one and had made reservations for the one at 10am. I was glad we did the shorter one, as there was 45 minutes of training first, so it was quite a while on our feet. The training included a short video and then hands on.
When I first got on the machine, it felt awkward, but I was amazed at how quickly it began to feel comfortable. Our instructors/guides, Aaron and Kathleen, were excellent at guiding us through the training. We also had to do some drills to make sure we could maneuver the Segway easily and stop when we needed to. By the time we headed out, we both felt quite comfortable.
The tour itself was very well done. Aaron has a masters in history, and obviously has done a lot of studying of the Manchester area. We had little sound boxes we wore with earbuds, so we could easily hear all of Aarons commentary. And before we started he did ask what we were interested in so he could tailor his talk to us. We were interested in all of it, history and the current sites, and he accomodated us quite nicely. We also stopped along the way for pictures and to view specific areas more closely.
In the 90 minutes we passed City Hall, the Amoskeag Falls, UNH of Manchester, the Verizon Center, and much more. Afterwards they mentioned they are putting together a special evening tour in October which will have a focus on the haunted areas of Manchester. That sounds intriguing as well.
By the time we returned, we were pretty tired and hungry. Dave and I decided to walk back to one of the places that was pointed out on the tour, a restaurant called "XO on Elm". We enjoyed a delicious lunch while sitting under an umbrella on the sidewalk. It was the perfect way to end such an enjoyable morning.
Whether you just want an opportunity to try a Segway, or you want to learn more about Manchester, or both, this is a great way to spend a few hours. Just be prepared to spend a over 2 hours on your feet, have your camera, and you should be good to go. They do take walk-ins, but its best to make a reservation ahead of time.
