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Top 10 Ideas For Field Trips In Massachusetts

by Local Motion of Boston | Dec 3, 2021 | Blog

People of all ages get a plethora of information during field trips and outings. Certainly, these tours enhance their view of the world and their learning skills. When we go on a field trip, we can better recall factual information with accuracy and detail and critical thinking and tolerance for different points of view.

Are you planning to go on a field trip in Massachusetts ?

Let us explore the top 10 field trip ideas that both you and your loved ones would enjoy while touring Massachusetts. Without further ado, let’s get started!

#1 Paul Revere House

No field trip to Massachusetts is complete without paying a visit to the home of Paul Revere, the famed patriot, artisan, merchant, and entrepreneur. In 1770, Paul Revere purchased the building and moved his family here from their Clark’s Wharf home. He held the house from 1770 to 1800. Albeit, he and his family may not have resided here for the majority of the 1780s, if not all of them.

 The mansion quickly became a sailor’s boarding house after Revere sold it in 1800. The home had become an immigrant tenement by the second half of the nineteenth century. Further, the ground level had been rebuilt for use as shops.

The house housed various stores. For instance, it included a fruit and a vegetable business at various times, an Italian bank, a tobacco factory, and a confectionery store. John P. Reynolds Jr., Paul Revere’s great-grandson, acquired the building in the early 20th-century to ensure that it would not be demolished.

Funds were raised over the next few years. Then, the Paul Revere Memorial Association was created to maintain and renovate the structure. The Paul Revere Home became one of the nation’s first historic house museums. It opened its doors to the people in April 1908. The house was restored in 1907-1908 to match its late-17th-century design. 90% of the mansion is original. It includes two doors, three window frames, and flooring elements, inner wall material, foundation, and raftering.

Tour Revere’s mansion and learn about the family life of the 18th century. Enjoy displays of silver and evocative items linked to Revere’s numerous business operations in the new education and visitor center. You will learn the true tale of his midnight ride narrated in his own words. Plan a visit while on your field trip in Massachusetts.

#2 John F. Kennedy: Presidential Library and Museum

Dedicated to making and maintaining the 35th President of the United States’ legacy, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum will grab the interest of people who wish to know more about the art of politics.

The library aims to bring President Kennedy’s 1000 days in office to life. The Museum uses large-screen, high-definition projections, remastered videos, interactive displays, and original mementos from his life and times. JFK library proves to be a very historically enriching idea for a field trip to Massachusetts.

Visitors have hailed the Museum as an incredible voyage through American history. Moreover, it showcases the life of an extraordinary man.

We encourage you to travel back in time to the early 1960s to relive President John F. Kennedy’s words, beliefs, and deeds, which inspired Americans to wonder what they might do for their country.

The Library, which lies on a ten-acre park overlooking the sea he admired and the city that propelled him to glory, is a vivid homage to John F. Kennedy’s life and times.

You should definitely go and witness the museum, which depicts President John F. Kennedy’s life, leadership, and legacy, as well as his love for politics and public service and the nature of the presidency if you are planning a field trip to Massachusetts.

Apart from the field trip and visitation, students and academics can also use the compilation of available historical materials to research mid-20th-century politics and the 35th President’s life and administration.

The JFK Library and Museum are open to the public on the weekends (Saturdays and Sundays), 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

#3 Battleship Cove: Fleet Museum

Battleship Cove, which opened on August 14, 1965, is the world’s greatest collection of US Naval ships. Various PT boats, a submarine, a destroyer, battleships, and as well as many other sorts of naval displays, may be found at this museum.

The USS Massachusetts is one of Battleship Cove’s most popular attractions. This ship was the first in the United States to fire a 16″ projectile. The ships on display here tell the tale of America’s past and allow tourists to travel back in time. The Cove’s marine museum offers educational activities, community programs, and various events, making it a perfect choice for a field trip in Massachusetts.

Battleship Cove is more than just an old battleship cemetery. The boats that moor here continue to play an essential role in educating visitors about American history while also providing opportunities for them to travel back in time.

Many diverse exhibitions, including the primary attraction of the USS Massachusetts, acquaint us with linkages between the various ships and their histories. Often known as “Big Mamie,” the USS Massachusetts took part in numerous wars. The USS Fall River, a warship primarily engaged for nuclear weapons testing, and the Hiddensee, a battleship first commissioned by the East German Navy, are among the other displays in Cove, in addition to the USS Lionfish, the USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., and the USS Massachusetts.

The museum was visited by millions of people from all across the country when it initially debuted in the 1960s. The Cove has a variety of educational activities for children and teenagers. The Battleship Cove Community Boating Program is the major program they use. A Junior Sailor Program and overnight sleepovers aboard the ships are among the other programs available. Thus, the Battleship Cove is a very popular spot for field trips in Massachusetts for Local school children.

#4 Massachusetts Science Center

The Massachusetts Science Center Corporation, a 501(c) (3) educational nonprofit organization, was founded in 1995. They are part of GuideStar.org , a national web-database of charity organizations in the United States. They used the term “Weird Science” to promote the institution as a unique and exciting educational science center from 1995 to 1999. The science center was renamed Weird Science to Top Secret Science & Math in 1999 and has been a very popular place for field trips in Massachusetts.

Their goal for field trips in Massachusetts at this educational site is to foster a high level of curiosity and excitement for science and high technology. This will motivate youngsters to learn at a young age by broadening their horizons and piquing their interest in future learning.

Top Secret Science & Math provides an excellent setting for your child to develop a science foundation that will lead to a lifetime of learning. They have introduced hands-on science to more youngsters than any other institution in America over the last 20 years. Their programs are well above National Science standards, and this field trip in Massachusetts will provide you with an environment that is safe, comfortable, and enriching.

#5 iRobot Stem

Want to enjoy your time getting inspired by the next generation of scientists and engineers? Whether you are planning to visit this destination with an educational group, your robotics team, or simply your class, the time spent is truly going to be exceptional. The tour around the place includes a visit to a robot demo and a walk through their museum.

Started in the year 1990, iRobot Stem was founded by MIT roboticists Rodney Brooks, Helen Greiner, and Colin Angle. Sold more than 20 million robots worldwide, this organization has made practical robots a reality. For instance, these robots saved thousands of lives from crisis and conflict by finding Gulf of Mexico’s subsea oil that was dangerous to humanity. Also, the robots helped in revealing the Great Pyramid of Giza mysteries.

A company with a smart vision, a quick ride through iRobots will surely be a great memory to cherish. Don’t forget to wear the tech-savvy hat to find out more about it.

#6 Plimoth Patuxet Museums

A young archaeologist’s youthful ambition of telling the legendary tale of Plymouth Colony. Henry Hornblower II founded a fort on the historic waterfront of the Plymouth and the Museum as two English houses in 1947, with the love and assistance of friends, family, and professional colleagues. Since then, the Museum has developed significantly and has become a popular destination as a field trip in Massachusetts for history and culture enthusiasts.

Plimoth Patuxet offers compelling personal interactions with history based on deep research into the Wampanoag People and the Colonial English culture of the 1600s. On its main grounds, at the Plimoth Grist Mill on Town Brook and the State Pier on the waterfront of Plymouth, Plimoth Patuxet provides an immersive and interactive outdoor and indoor learning experience. Their permanent exhibitions tell the intertwined stories of two cultures: English and Native Americans.

The primary displays are supplemented by a broad program of special events, public programs, and workshops that provide a rich and varied understanding of the seventeenth century.

Many generations of families, countless school children, and millions of others from across the state and country have come to Plimoth Patuxet as a destination for a field trip in Massachusetts to partake in educational experiences that sparked their imaginations, delighted their senses, touched their hearts, and enriched their minds. The Plimoth Grist Mill (1994), The Craft Center (1992), The English Village (1959), The Hornblower Visitor Center (1987), The Wampanoag Homesite (1973), The Mayflower II (1957), and the Maxwell and Nye Barns (1994) are among the other significant attractions in Plimoth Estate.

#7 Museum of Science- Boston

The Boston Museum of Science, nestled on the Cambridge-Boston boundary, has much to offer children of all ages. It’s well worth a visit whether you live in New England or organize a field trip in Massachusetts with your children. It is one of the state’s largest scientific centers, featuring something for everyone.

As you enter the museum, you will notice that it’s divided into three sections. The café, gift shop, Planetarium, and IMAX theatre are all housed in the red wing, which runs along the front of the museum. A coat closet and space for moving displays are also available.

As you enter, the green wing is to your left. It houses animal and biology exhibitions, as well as a small space where you can see live animal shows. If you can squeeze one of those shows in, the younger kids will love it. The Green Wing’s centerpiece is the Hall of Human Life, where you’ll undoubtedly spend a lot of time.

The largest wing is the blue one on the right. It houses some of the museum’s most popular interactive exhibits, such as the Theater of Electricity. Also, it has Science in the Campground, Mathworks, and The Lighthouse. There is a regular performer at the Theater of Electricity. It is home to the world’s largest air-insulated Van de Graaff generator.

Other than this, there are many other amenities in the museum of Science Boston. You can book tickets for it both online and on the counter if you plan to visit this destination as a field trip in Massachusetts.

#8 The Freedom Trail

The “Freedom Trail” is unarguably one of the most famous spots for a field trip in Massachusetts. Running down through Boston, it is a long 4.0-kilometer (2.5-mile) walkway. In addition, it passes 16 official sites that have played key roles in American history.

The trail begins at Boston Common and finishes at the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown. Stones and other signposts mark it. A naval frigate, houses, churches, graveyards, and historic structures are among the trail’s highlights. There are several more significant monuments and locations along the walk. For example, you will see the Boston Irish Famine Memorial, in addition to the formal 16 stations.

The Freedom Trail was first proposed in 1951, and within a few years, tens of thousands of people were walking it every year. Internal visits are available at most locations, with some being free and others charging admission.

The Freedom Trail does not contain all of Boston’s heritage places, such as the Boston Tea Party sites and the Liberty Tree. At Faneuil Hall, a visitor’s center provides guided tours and maps of the Freedom Trail. The stops among the famous Freedom Trail comprise:

•       The Bunker Hill Monument
•       Old North Church,
•       USS Constitution,
•       Copp’s Hill Burying Ground,
•       Paul Revere House,
•       Faneuil Hall,
•       Site of the Boston Massacre,
•       Latin School,
•       Old State House,
•       Meeting House,
•       Old South,
•       Old Corner Bookstore,
•       Benjamin Franklin statue,
•       King’s Chapel and Burying Ground,
•       Massachusetts State House,
•       Park Street Church,
•       Boston Common,
•       and finally Granary Burying Ground,

are among the stops on the Famous Freedom Trail.

It is by far one of the most immersive field trips in Massachusetts for adults.

#9 New England Aquarium

Starting with the Atlantic harbor seals who lounge out just next to the admission counter, your kids will find plenty to enjoy at the New England Aquarium if you plan to visit it for your family field trip in Massachusetts.

Here, you’ll find tens of thousands of marine animals to observe, as well as the Giant Ocean Tank in the center. More than 1,000 underwater species, including green sea turtles, eels, and barracuda, dwell in this four-story tank, which features a coral reef ecosystem.

You will find displays dedicated to penguins, sea jellies, and seadragons in various portions of the aquarium, as well as a 6-storey high projection cinema screen with a digital sound system where you can watch documentaries about sea creatures and more. Additionally, don’t miss out on the Shark and Ray Touch Tank, where visitors can gaze at sharks and rays from the glass as they swim by.

The hours of operation at the New England Aquarium vary depending on the season and day of the week. But, in a broad sense, the aquarium is open from 9 a.m. to 5 or 6 p.m. The price of the tickets is also very inexpensive. The aquarium’s main displays, toilets, gift shop, and cafe are all included in all tickets. You may have to pay a nominal fee to participate in a whale viewing trip or see a film. 

#10 MASM: Massachusetts Air and Space Museum

Massachusetts houses many internationally recognized museums, such as the American Heritage Museum in Hudson. Also, it has several such museums which you may not have heard of.

The Massachusetts Air and Space Museum tucked away in a Hyannis commercial plaza is a true treasure you should add to your list of museums to visit while planning a field trip in Massachusetts. You will love your time at The Massachusetts Air and Space Museum if you have an interest in learning about aviation and space exploration. 

When you visit, you’ll delve into the fascinating world of air and space explorations, history, and technology, as well as its connections to the state of Massachusetts and its inhabitants. You will find the “spacesuit” displayed as soon as you come through the door. It had once belonged to astronaut Jack Schmitt who wore it during his mission to the moon on Apollo 17. Children and grownups alike will enjoy learning, thanks to the numerous interactive displays. The flight simulator, which allows visitors to experience what it is like to fly a plane, is one of the most popular attractions of this museum. Throughout the exhibitions, you’ll learn about Massachusetts’ contributions to both the aviation and aerospace fields.

The Massachusetts Air and Space Museum is a new addition to the state’s museum system. It launched in February 2020 and continues to grow its display collection. When you visit this location for your field trip in Massachusetts, see what it has to offer. And, don’t forget to browse the gift store for interesting products.

Any field trip you take with your family, students, or loved ones, without a doubt, will be memorable. We can often connect with the world in ways we haven’t previously during field trips. Hopefully, this collection of places to visit for a field trip in Massachusetts will help you plan some fun trips! Good luck with your journey around Massachusetts. You can always make it more secure with our transportation services !

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Massachusetts Field Trips

Field trips are a great way to reboot a bad homeschooling week, get out of the house when everyone has cabin fever, and learn about your local area. Before heading out, check out Jeanne's tips for improving homeschool field trips .

Our listing of Massachusetts field trips for homeschoolers is ordered alphabetically by city. If you would like to submit a Massachusetts field trip destination, you may do so using the red button above.

Ames Nowell is a year-round day use area with recreational activity centered around Cleveland Pond which is popular with boaters and fisherman. Development includes a picnic area, ball field and several miles of trails along the pond edge and the surrounding woods.

Ames Nowell State Park website

( Update this listing )

A 120-year old Victorian house with rooms, corridors, and closets creatively transformed into ten hands-on exhibit areas especially for toddlers and pre-school children and their families.

Children's Discovery Museum website

The Acushnet Historical Society now operates the Long Plain Museum in the building during the summer months. The Museum includes a "Whaling Wall", a Blacksmith Shop Diorama, an 1875 classroom an exhibit of 19th C. apparel and a 4-room, fully furnished 19th C. home.

Long Plain Museum website

Robinson State Park serves as a major day-use area for the Springfield region. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Accessible Hiking, Trails, Bicycling Paths, Canoeing, Fishing, Group Day Use, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Robinson State Park website

Welcome to the Mead Art Museum, which holds the art collection of Amherst College, among the most selective and most diverse liberal arts institutions in the United States, founded in 1821 and committed to the education of its 1,600 students. The Mead serves Amherst's educational mission by helping to make its 16,000-object collection relevant to teaching and research across the disciplines through special exhibitions, events, publications, and class visits. The Museum serves a wider public by bringing any curious visitor into contact with original works of art and with leading thinkers drawn from the Amherst campus and beyond, always free of charge and in a facility that is fully accessible.

Mead Art Museum website

The Amherst History Museum opened in 1916 and is governed by the Amherst Historical Society, which was founded in 1899. Housed in the 1750-era Strong House, the Amherst History Museum takes visitors on a journey from the town's colonial past, through its industrial age and into the computer-driven present.

Amherst History Museum website

The Emily Dickinson Museum contains biographical information about Emily Dickinson and offers a multitude of lesson plans and learning resources to accompany her writing. The lessons encourage students to explore language, environment, and a writer's history when examining poetry.

The Emily Dickinson Museum website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country), Visitor's Center and Walking Trails.

Mount Holyoke Range State Park website

Intended by its founder Thomas Cochran "to cultivate and foster a love for the beautiful," the Addison Gallery of American Art is an academic museum that serves as a resource for the students of Phillips Academy and is recognized as a world-class center of American art. Our collection includes more than 16,000 works of art and we offer a variety of changing exhibitions that travel to venues around the globe.

Addison Gallery of American Art website

Features: Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting, Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Skiing (Cross-Country), Snowmobiling, Swimming and Walking Trails.

Willard Brook State Forest website

Ashland State Park has 470 acres including the 157 acre Ashland Reservoir. The park is operated seasonally and provides opportunities for swimming, picnicking, boating, fishing, bicycling and hiking. Beach improvements at the park include facilities for wheelchair access to the boathouse and by ramp into the pond.

Ashland State Park website

Features; Accessible Restrooms, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Off-Road Vehicles, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Freetown-Fall River State Forest website

The Attleboro Arts Museum involves audiences of all ages and backgrounds in the visual arts through diverse educational programs and engaging arts experiences. We work to support the creative and artistic development of both promising and professional artists. The Museum is a privately supported, non-profit arts institution whose core commitment to Arts for Everyone guides the Museum's programs and operations.

Attleboro Arts Museum website

Capron Park Zoo strives to prove that big things do come in small packages. Situated in the heart of Attleboro and surrounded by beautiful grounds, Capron Park Zoo has been one of the area's premiere recreational facilities for more than 70 years. Combined with an award-winning playground and exciting educational programs, the Zoo is sure to delight the young and young at heart. Whether it's watching the Lions wrestle, coming face-to-face with a Snow Monkey, staring at a snake or relaxing in our Rainforest, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

Capron Park Zoo website

It is the mission of the Attleboro Area Industrial Museum, Inc. (AAIM) to collect and preserve the artifacts, photographs, documents, publications, tools, and machinery that relate to the industrial history of the Attleboro area; to make these materials readily available for both research and enjoyment; and to act as a resource center for the education of the public about the industrial history of the Attleboro area, so that knowledge of the past may contribute to a fuller understanding of the present and inspiration for the future.

Attleboro Area Industrial Museum website

Otter River State Forest is a popular camping and day-use facility in a beautiful area of north central Massachusetts. Features: Universal Access, Camping, Fishing, Group Day Use, Hiking, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Pavilion (50 maximum), Picknicking, Restrooms, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Otter River State Forest website

The Deacon Job Lane House is a memorial to the character of the American Colonists of Bedford, Massachusetts. Built around 1715 on land which was part of an original land grant from King Charles II in the seventeenth century, this salt box-style house was enlarged and the interior remodeled in the Federal style around 1827 and lived in continuously until the 1960's. The house was purchased by the Town of Bedford in the early 1970s, and was restored by members of various town groups: The Rotary Club, the Bedford Minuteman Company, the Woman's Club, the Bedford Historical Society, Friends of Job Lane House, Inc., the Brown Family of Bedford, and the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. The house was opened to the public in 1981 and is now opened to visitors on the second and fourth Sunday of each month, May through October.

Job Lane House website

The Belchertown Historical Association is one of the oldest not-for-profit organizations in the Pioneer Valley. The Stone House Museum has preserved and protected the history of Belchertown and its neighbors for over 75 years. In addition to its impressive collection of over 30,000 artifacts, the Museum boasts one of the most extensive newspaper and public document archives in the area. The largely volunteer staff is devoted to providing historically accurate tours and provides a lively interpretation of 19th century living to hundreds of visitors annually, ranging from schoolchildren to lifelong learners

The Stone House Museum website

An 11-foot-high "glacial erratic" boulder known as Dighton Rock once rested on the shore of the Taunton River adjacent to this park. Covered with petroglyphs, carved designs of ancient and uncertain origin, the rock is now installed in a small museum. The museum (open by appointment) exhibits several explanations of the carvings, which range from Portuguese explorers to Native Americans. Features: Nonmotorized Boating, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Dighton Rock State Park website

The Beverly Historical Society and Museum has been preserving and caring for Beverly's past since 1891. Tour one of our historic sites, learn about your family history, visit the Walker Transportation Collection or explore two floors of exhibits at the Cabot House Museum.

Beverly Historical Society & Museum website

Founded in 1969, the New England Aquarium is a global leader in ocean exploration and marine conservation. The Aquarium is one of the premier visitor attractions in Boston, with over 1.3 million visitors a year, and a major public education resource.

New England Aquarium website

The Museum Of Bad Art (MOBA) is the world's only museum dedicated to the collection, preservation, exhibition and celebration of bad art in all its forms. It is only through the efforts of the worldwide Friends of MOBA that we have been able to carry out our mission: to bring the worst of art to the widest of audiences.

Museum Of Bad Art website

The primary activities of the ICA are threefold: To present outstanding contemporary art in all media, including visual art exhibitions, music, film, video and performance, that is deserving of public attention and has not been presented in depth to Boston audiences. To provide innovative experiential learning opportunities for people of all ages through direct encounters with artists and art making. To design interpretative programs that provide context, develop appreciation, and add meaning to contemporary art and culture.

Institute of Contemporary Art website

The Museum of Fine Arts houses and preserves preeminent collections and aspires to serve a wide variety of people through direct encounters with works of art. The Museum aims for the highest standards of quality in all its endeavors. It serves as a resource for both those who are already familiar with art and those for whom art is a new experience. Through exhibitions, programs, research and publications, the Museum documents and interprets its own collections. It provides information and perspective on art through time and throughout the world.

Museum of Fine Arts website

Dedicated to serving the public of New England as well as the University community the Boston University Art Gallery (BUAG) is a non-profit art gallery geared toward an interdisciplinary interpretation of art and culture. BUAG presents four to five exhibitions annually. Exhibitions are curated internally, often incorporating the rich talent and resources found on campus and in the Boston area, or are borrowed from other institutions. Through its exhibitions and educational programs, BUAG seeks to present the cultural and historical context of art and to acknowledge the artistic contributions of under-recognized sectors of the population. Each spring our season closes by highlighting the achievements of School of Visual Art students with the MFA Graphic Design and Senior Thesis exhibitions.

Boston University Art Gallery website

Founded in 1913 by a group of teachers in Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood, Boston Children's Museum began a "hands-on" tradition long before that phrase became commonplace. Today, after 90 years, Boston Children's Museum exists to help children understand and enjoy the world in which they live. As an early museum experience for children, our environment is informal, but our purpose is serious. We want children to grow up feeling secure and self-confident with respect for others and the natural world. We encourage imagination, curiosity, questioning, and realism. We provide opportunities for new insights, involvement with the world and understanding of human differences with world-class exhibits and programs.

Boston Children's Museum website

The African Meeting House was built in 1806 to house the first African Baptist Church of Boston. It was the first African American Baptist church created north of the Mason Dixon Line and is now the oldest surviving black church building in America. In 1863, it served as a recruitment post for the Massachusetts 54th Volunteer Regiment, which was the first official African American military regiment to fight for the Union in the Civil War. The website offers historical information about the church for those who cannot visit in person.

Boston African American National Historic Site website

"Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!" This legendary order has come to symbolize the conviction and determination of the ill-equipped American colonists facing powerful British forces during the famous battle fought on this site on June 17, 1775. The battle is popularly known as "The Battle of Bunker Hill" although most of the fighting actually took place on Breed's Hill, the site of the existing monument and exhibit lodge. Today, a 221-foot granite obelisk marks the site of the first major battle of the American Revolution.

Bunker Hill Monument website

The mission of the Museum of Science, Boston is to stimulate interest in and further understanding of science and technology and their importance for individuals and for society. To accomplish this educational mission, the staff, volunteers, overseers, and trustees of the Museum are dedicated to attracting the broadest possible spectrum of participants and involving them in activities, exhibits, and programs which will:Encourage curiosity, questioning and exploration, Inform and educate, Enhance a sense of personal achievement in learning, Respect individual interests, backgrounds and abilities, and promote life-long learning and informed and active citizenship. All this is offered in the spirit that learning is exciting and fun at the Museum of Science.

Museum of Science, Boston website

Massachusetts Historical Society is an independent research library that collects, preserves, makes accessible, and communicates manuscripts and other materials in order to promote the study of the history of Massachusetts and the nation-a mission it has pursued since 1791.

Massachusetts Historical Society website

Built in 1859-60, the Gibson House stands as the historic house museum of the Back Bay. In 2001, the National Park Service declared the Gibson House a National Historic Landmark. It is unique as an unspoiled single-family residence that retains its kitchen, scullery, butler's pantry and water closets, as well as formal rooms and private family quarters, filled with the Gibsons' original furniture and personal possessions. Visitors enjoy a glimpse of the lives of a well-to-do Boston family and their domestic staff.

Gibson House Museum website

On the night of April 18, 1775, silversmith Paul Revere left his small wooden home in Boston's North End and set out on a journey that would make him into a legend. Today that home is still standing at 19 North Square and has become a national historic landmark. It is downtown Boston's oldest building and one of the few remaining from an early era in the history of colonial America. The courtyard features a 900 pound bell, a small mortar and a bolt from the USS Constitution, all made by Paul Revere & Sons.

Paul Revere House website

The Pierce/Hichborn House, built about 1711, is one of the earliest remaining brick structures in Boston. The house is an excellent example of early Georgian architecture. Its elegant symmetrical style was a radical change from the wood-framed Tudor dwellings, such as the Revere House, common in 17th-century Boston. The home was built for Moses Pierce, a glazier, and was later owned by Nathaniel Hichborn, a boatbuilder and a cousin of Paul Revere.

The Pierce/Hichborn House website

The enduring fame of the Old North began on the evening of April 18, 1775, when the church sexton, Robert Newman, climbed the steeple and held high two lanterns as a signal from Paul Revere that the British were marching to Lexington and Concord by sea and not by land. This fateful event ignited the American Revolution. Officially known as Christ Church in the City of Boston. It was built in 1723, and is the oldest standing church building in Boston. In 1775, on the eve of Revolution, the majority of the congregation were loyal to the British King and many held official positions in the royal government, including the Royal Governor of Massachusetts, making Robert Newman's loyalty to the Patriot cause even more extraordinary. The King gave the Old North its silver that was used at services and a bible.

Old North Church website

Get pumped for an in-person or virtual Field Trip with the Waterworks Museum! We offer a variety of hands-on curriculum-based programs for students of all ages, engaging curious young minds with STEM concepts, Urban and Industrial History, Public Health issues and Water Conservation strategies. Check out our full program listings for Preschool all the way through High School here: https://waterworksmuseum.org/education/

Waterworks Museum website

Isabella Stewart Gardner first welcomed visitors to her museum on New Year's Day, 1903. On that evening guests listened to the music of Bach, Mozart, and Schumann, gazed in wonder at the courtyard full of flowers, and viewed one of the nation's finest collections of art. Today, visitors experience much the same thing. The Gardner Museum has remained essentially unchanged since its founder's death in 1924. Unchanged but certainly not stagnant. Three floors of galleries surround a garden courtyard blooming with life in all seasons. The galleries are filled with paintings, sculpture, tapestries, furniture, and decorative arts from cultures spanning thirty centuries.

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum website

Relive the adventures of Captains Kidd and Blackbeard, who roamed freely offshore plundering merchant ships. Participate in an educational, historically accurate and entertaining, live walking tour with a qualified guide who encourages student participation and questions. The tour starts in our artifacts room with authentic pirate treasures. Then you'll stroll through a colonial seaport, board a pirate ship, and explore an eighty foot cave, where you are sure to encounter some of those 17th century rascals face to face. Join us at the Pirate Museum to learn more about New England's adventurous sea-robbers. Curriculum packets are available. Inquire about our educational pirate visiting your school. Seasonal - May through November.

New England Pirate Museum website

The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum offers a fully immersive experience that combines live performance and state-of-the-art technology to take you through the historical events of December 16th, 1773. Join Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty in a town meeting before storming on board one of our replica tea ships to toss the King's tea into the sea, then travel through the 16 months after the Boston Tea Party to see how your actions impacted the course of American history. All ages welcome; Group Rates available for groups of 15 or more, and Virtual Tours available for those out-of-state.

Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum website

Known today as the Old State House, this building was the center of Boston's civic life in the 18th century and the scene of some of the most dramatic chapters in the lead-up to the American Revolution. Within these walls, Samuel Adams, James Otis, John Hancock, and John Adams debated the future of the British colonies. Just outside the building, five men were among the first casualties of the battle for independence, in what would later be known as the Boston Massacre. The Declaration of Independence was proclaimed from the balcony to the citizens of Boston in 1776. History happened here. As you explore the Old State House Museum you will discover wonderful stories about the people and events that shaped the history of the city, colony, state, and nation. Two floors of exhibitions tell the story of the role the building--and Boston--played in the American Revolution. Other exhibitions highlight the collections of The Bostonian Society. See tea from the Boston Tea Party and John Hancock's coat; listen to testimony from the Boston Massacre trial; view paintings of Boston harbor and other Boston treasures. Hands-on History galleries on the second floor provide interactive exhibitions for families with children.

Old State House Museum website

The Nichols House Museum offers a unique glimpse into late 19th and early 20th century domestic life on Boston's historic Beacon Hill. The four-story row house was built in 1804 during the early development of Beacon Hill. The original Federal design is attribute to Charles Bulfinch. The interiors are decorated with original furnishings of the Nichols' family. The museum offers an active schedule of lectures, events, and educational programs throughout the year.

Nichols House Museum website

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum is dedicated to the memory of our nation's thirty-fifth president and to all those who through the art of politics seek a new and better world. Located on a ten-acre park, overlooking the sea that he loved and the city that launched him to greatness, the Library stands as a vibrant tribute to the life and times of John F. Kennedy. Come tour our Museum which portrays the life, leadership, and legacy of President Kennedy, conveys his enthusiasm for politics and public service, and illustrates the nature of the office of the President.

John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum website

The USS Constitution Museum ensures that the stories of USS CONSTITUTION and those who shaped her history are never forgotten, always remain relevant, and inspire as many people as possible.

USS Constitution Museum website

Boston College's McMullen Museum of Art serves as a dynamic educational resource for all of New England as well as the national and the international community. The Museum displays its notable permanent collection and mounts exhibitions of scholarly importance from all periods and cultures of the history of art. The Museum is free and open to the public and free parking is available.

McMullen Museum website

Since the 1773 mass protest meetings that led to the Boston Tea Party, Old South Meeting House has served as a gathering place for discussion and celebration and a haven for free speech. Today you can visit this beautiful National Historic Landmark and museum to experience events that shaped the United States or attend a program that helps keep the democratic ideals of freedom of speech and assembly alive.

Old South Meeting House website

The Sports Museum is a non-profit educational institution that has served Boston and New England for the past 40 years. Housed on Levels 5 and 6 of the TD Garden, we have more than a half-mile of exhibits celebrating sports in Boston (and beyond). We also represent the very best in community outreach, providing character=building, transformative educational programs that help and positively impact at-risk kids throughout our city and our region.

The Sports Museum website

This is the third oldest chartered military organization in the World, and the oldest in the Western Hemisphere! The rich tradition of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company can be seen in its Museum Headquartered in Faneuil Hall , Boston, the Company boasts one of the finest military museum in the United States.

Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts website

The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is the oldest public arboretum in North America and one of the world's leading centers for the study of plants. Administered by the Office of the Provost of Harvard University and a link in Boston's Emerald Necklace of park, the Arnold Arboretum is a unique blend of respected research institution and beloved public landscape. We provide and support world-class research, horticulture, and education programs that foster the understanding, appreciation, and preservation of trees.

Arnold Arboretum website

Boston is called the "Cradle of Liberty". This park offers visitors a look throughout American History in the part that Boston has played in liberty for all Americans. The website offers historical information about the park for those who cannot visit in person.

Boston National Historical Park website

Discover Boston on a history and photography walking tour with PhotoWalks! Capture amazing pictures of the cityscape, iconic landmarks and must-see attractions. Learn how to see creatively using your camera or smartphone, whether you're a newbie, amateur or advanced photographer. All ages and skill levels are welcome.

PhotoWalks website

The Museum of African American History is New England's largest museum dedicated to preserving, conserving and interpreting the contributions of African Americans. In Boston and Nantucket, the Museum has preserved four historic sites and two Black Heritage Trails® that tell the story of organized black communities from the Colonial Period through the 19th century.

Museum of African American History website

Aptucxet Trading Post may have the earliest remains of a Pilgrim building. The known facts present a fascinating story, not only of an antique building but also of Bourne's participation in 17th-century events. The structure existing today is a replica erected on the original foundation which was archaeologically excavated in the 1920's, and is surrounded by 12 acres of recreational land.

Aptucxet Trading Post Museum website

The Worcester County Horticultural Society was incorporated in 1842 as a nonprofit "Educational organization for the purpose of advancing the science and encouraging and improving the practice of horticulture." The Worcester County Horticultural Society (WCHS), the third oldest horticultural society in the U.S.A., is the governing nonprofit organization that owns and operates Tower Hill Botanic Garden.

Tower Hill Botanic Garden website

The Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster, Massachusetts, on Cape Cod, was founded in 1954. Our mission is to encourage and advance understanding of our natural environment through discovery and learning. There are two floors of exhibits about the flora and fauna of Cape Cod, including exhibits on whales, indigenous birds, and coastal change, and several aquaria holding different species of crustaceans, mollusks, fish, frogs, turtles and snakes. Several displays are interactive and geared to children. Special, temporary exhibits enhance the permanent collection.

Cape Cod Museum of Natural History website

Features "kettle ponds," formed as glaciers retreated from the Cape over 10,000 years ago. Completely dependent on groundwater and precipitation, the water level in the ponds fluctuates from season to season and year to year. Accessible Beaches, Accessible Camping, Accessible Fishing, Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Bike Paths, Nonmotorized Boating, Boat Ramp, Yurt Camping, Canoeing, Group Day Use, Hiking, Historic Site, Horseback Riding Trails, Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming, Trailer / R.V. Dumping and Walking Trails.

Nickerson State Park website

This rolling, heavily forested property has over 20 miles of roads and trails and is used primarily for hiking, walking, horseback riding and fishing. Dean Pond Recreation Area, located in the western portion of Brimfield State Forest, has a pavilion, comfort station, 100 linear feet of beach and picnic facilities. The roads are popular for equestrian use and related special events.

Brimfield State Forest website

Opened in May of 1992, the Brockton Fire Museum was constructed for the purpose of preserving the proud history of fire fighting in the Brockton area. The artfully designed building, with wide pumpkin pine floors and subdued lighting, effectively conveys the atmosphere of a classic Brockton fire station during Victorian times. Literally thousands of fascinating fire fighting artifacts are preserved within the 2000 square-foot structure. The largest object on display is the beautifully restored 1850s Hand-Tub Pumper called "The Protector." There is also a touching memorial dedicated to the memory of the 13 Brockton firemen who were killed in the Strand Theater disaster in 1941 - the most firemen killed in a building fire in the nation's history.

Brockton Fire Museum website

Fuller Craft Museum Mission: Fuller Craft Museum will become an international forum for the recognition and exploration of craft. Our museum will be known as a familiar destination inspiring visitors from New England and beyond. People of all ages and artistic ability will come and come again to enhance their lives through an intimacy with craft.

Fuller Craft Museum website

Preserving the birthplace of America's 35th president. In 1967, the president's mother returned here, where Kennedy spent his boyhood, and restored the house to her recollection of its 1917 appearance. Each year, thousands of visitors join NPS staff to share Mrs. Kennedy's memories in a tour of the house and neighborhood that, in her words, hold "many happy memories." Lesson plans are available.

John F. Kennedy National Historic Site website

Frederick Law Olmsted (1822-1903) is recognized as the founder of American landscape architecture and the nation's foremost parkmaker.

Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site website

The Larz Anderson Auto Museum is home to "Americas oldest car collection". For over 75 years, the Larz Anderson Auto Museum has been supporting the collector car community through a variety of educational programs, exhibits, and lectures. Today, the museum's primary goal is it's continued support of the collector car community through educational outreach and the preservation of our permanent collection of early automobiles. The Larz Anderson Auto Museum hopes to serve as a resource for your collector car interests.

Larz Anderson Auto Museum website

The mission of the Harvard Art Museum is to preserve, document, present, interpret, and strengthen the collections and resources in its care, and in keeping with the larger purposes of Harvard University, to advance the knowledge and appreciation of art and art museum through research, teaching, professional training, and public education.

Harvard Art Museum website

Longfellow National Historic Site is the home of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, one of the world's foremost 19th century poets. The house also served as headquarters for General George Washington during the Siege of Boston, July 1775 - April 1776.The website offers historical information about the park for those who cannot visit in person.

Longfellow National Historic Site website

Founded in 1866, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology is one of the oldest museum in the world devoted to anthropology and houses one of the most comprehensive records of human cultural history in the Western Hemisphere.

Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology website

The Harvard University Herbaria, with more than 5 million specimens, are one of the 10 largest Herbaria in the world in number of specimens, and along with the library, form the world's largest university owned herbarium.

Harvard University Herbaria website

A center for research and education focused on the comparative relationships of animal life.

Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ) at Harvard University website

The Harvard Museum of Natural History was established in 1998 as the public face of three research museum: the Museum of Comparative Zoology, the Harvard University Herbaria, and the Mineralogical and Geological Museum. Presenting the incomparable collections of these parent museum and the research of scientists across the University, it has a mission to enhance public understanding and appreciation of the natural world and the human place in it, sparking curiosity and a spirit of discovery in people of all ages.

Harvard Museum of Natural History website

The MIT Museum invites you to explore invention, ideas, and innovation. Through interactive exhibitions, public programs, experimental projects and its renown collections, the MIT Museum showcases the fascinating world of MIT, and inspires people of all ages about the possibilities and opportunities offered by science and technology.

MIT Museum website

The Harvard mineral collection ranks among the world's finest due to its very broad representation, wealth of rare species, large number of specimens described in the scientific literature, and the quality of its display specimens. A rich systematic mineral collection and displays of gemstones are the principal exhibits in the mineral gallery.

Mineralogical Museum at Harvard University website

The Museum has an active public outreach program featuring tours for school groups and teacher training workshops. The Museum also sponsors, either alone or in conjunction with other institutions, a number of public lectures each year. Through these educational efforts, the Museum seeks to promote a wider understanding of the civilizations of the Near East and their great cultural legacies.

Semitic Museum website

Chosen by Yankee Magazine's Travel Guide to New England as Editor's Pick 2000, Great Brook Farm State Park stands as a jewel in northern Massachusetts! Barn tours run daily by appointment and public tours are available on Saturdays and Sunday from Memorial Day to Labor Day. There are over 20 miles of trails available for walkers, hikers, mountain bikers, and horseback riders. During the winter months, cross-country skiing is available and one trail is lantern lit for a "mooon light" experience! The ice cream stand is open through the month of October.

Great Brook Farm State Park website

Myles Standish State Forest is the largest publicly owned recreation area in southeastern Massachusetts. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Bike Paths, Non-motorized boating, Boat Ramp, Camping, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Picnicking, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming, Trailer / R.V. Dumping and Walking Trails.

Myles Standish State Forest website

Features: Accessible Camping, Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Scenic Viewing Area, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Mohawk Trail State Forest website

One of the leading Central Massachusetts nature sanctuaries.

Capen Hill Nature Sanctuary website

To further the interest and appreciation of the history of the Town of Charlton, including but not limited to preserving, restoring, and maintaining the Rider Tavern as the home of the Charlton Historical Society, and the grounds thereto and its environs. And to acquire appropriate furnishings of the period of the Tavern and to provide public access to the building on a regular basis, and to encourage the preservation of other historic structures and sites.

Charlton Historical Society - Rider Tavern website

The Chatham Historical Society was organized in 1923. Three years later, the society acquired the Atwood House -- a gambrel-roofed house built in 1752. Except for the addition of essential electricity, the old Atwood House is unchanged from when it was built and is furnished throughout as it was during the 18th and 19th centuries.

Chatham Historical Society website

The "Old Chelmsford" Garrison House was one of 19 British garrisons in Chelmsford in 1691. The house has been designated as a National Historical Place and is a practically unspoiled museum piece. It is a rare example of where and how the common man and his family lived in the early days. Inside, the house is furnished with beautiful antique furniture and dishes, clothes, cooking equipment, and many other items which a family would have used in their everyday life. The buttery inside the house contains a very interesting display of early dairy equipment. In addition to the house, we have a barn with a fascinating collection of old farm tools and vehicles, a Summer Kitchen, a working Blacksmith Shop, an herb garden, the Craft House, the Hill Jock House, the Fiske House barn, and someday, the McLaughlin house.

"Old Chelmsford" Garrison House website

At the Barrett-Byam Homestead-home of the Chelmsford Historical Society-visitors of all ages learn about Chelmsford's rich history and culture by touring period rooms and exhibits, delving into family or local history, and participating in educational programs and social activities. Both the society and the museum are of particular interest to anyone wanting to learn how more than 350 years of Chelmsford's history have produced this fine town in which to live.

Barrett-Byam Homestead website

Features: Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Chester-Blandford State Forest website

Chicopee State Park, formerly the Cooley Brook Reservoir and Watershed has been developed as a high use active recreation area. The total acreage is 575 acres including a 25 acre pond. Activities include swimming, fishing and picnicking.

Chicopee State Park website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Non-motorized boating, Camping, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Clarksburg State Park website

Experience the site of two American revolutions: the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired nearby -- and, less than a century later, Emerson, Hawthorne, and Thoreau spawned a revolution in American philosophy from here.

Old Manse website

The Concord Museum collection began around 1850 and was exhibited before the Civil War; only a handful of Americana collections can claim to be as old or as remarkably well-documented. The Concord Museum collection is a distinguished one containing numerous examples of 17th, 18th, and 19th-century decorative arts -- case furniture, tables, seating furniture, clocks, looking glasses, textiles, ceramics, and metalware -- all with histories linking them to first owners in Concord. The collection has been recognized for its national significance by curators, historians and educators for more than a century.

Concord Museum website

Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House, home of Little Women, is a historic house museum owned and operated by the Louisa May Alcott Memorial Association.

Louisa May Alcott Memorial - Orchard House website

A Revolution begins - A Nation is born. On April 19, 1775, the American Revolution began at Lexington and Concord with a clash of arms known to history as "the shot heard round the world." At Minute Man National Historical Park the opening battle of the Revolution is brought to life as visitors explore the battlefields and witness the American revolutionary spirit through the writings of the Concord authors.

Minute Man National Historical Park website

Ebenezer Crocker erected the stately colonial building forming the original part of the Museum in 1775. By 1821, Crocker's grandson operated the building as a tavern along the stagecoach line between Hyannis and Sandwich, Massachusetts. The building continued under Crocker ownership for five generations until the 1920s. In 1945, the structure Ralph and Martha Cahoon purchased the structure for use as a spacious art studio and home. Here Cape Cod's most famous native folk artists created much of their painted furniture and Ralph and Martha executed many of their well-known paintings. Upon Ralph's death in 1982, Cotuit art collector Rosemary Rapp purchased the farmhouse with a vision of opening a museum, a dream that bore fruit in 1984 with the founding of the Cahoon Museum of American Art. Today, the Cahoon Museum of American Art is a showcase for a stellar collection of the folk painting of Ralph and Martha Cahoon, as well as a choice collection of 19th, 20th and 21st century American art.

Cahoon Museum of American Art website

From its iconic red barn to elegant allee of maples leading to the main house, this lovely property is testament to a celebrated poet's ideal of living mindfully on the land. The Homestead's pastoral landscape, largely unchanged for more than 150 years, includes pastures, fields, maple sugar bush (that has been tapped for more than 200 years), and woodlands. A self-guided map highlights the Rivulet Trail, where old growth, including ancient specimens of hemlock and a magnificent cherry tree, rise near the Rivulet, a trickling stream immortalized by Bryant's 1823 poem of the same name.

William Cullen Bryant Homestead website

Wahconah Falls offers visitors spectacular scenic views anytime of year. Features: Fishing, Hiking, Picnicking and Walking Trails.

Wahconah Falls State Park website

This park is one of the best kept secrets in the Massachusetts forest and park system. Here, an 1800-foot saltwater beach is backed by rambling hills of beach grass and shaded, grassy picnic sites. A broad, scenic marsh lines the Slocum River on the park's eastern edge. Features: Fishing, Canoe/Kayaking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Showers, Swimming and Walking Trails.

Demarest Lloyd State Park website

The Fairbanks House in Dedham, MA is thought to be the oldest standing timber frame building in North America. Built circa 1637-1641 for Jonathan and Grace Fairebanke and their six children, it was home to eight generations of the Fairbanks family. The Fairbanks House is now a historic house museum, open annually May 1 -- October 31.

Fairbanks House website

This quintessential New England village is surrounded by working farms and rolling cornfields along the Deerfield River. Here in western Massachusetts, Historic Deerfield's museum houses range in date from the 1730s to the 1840s. Inside you will find one of the best public collections of art and antiques in America while you explore the lifestyle of early New England in a working village of endless beauty.

Historic Deerfield website

The Region's Premier Art Museum. The Cape Cod Museum of Art's mission is to collect, conserve, study, interpret and exhibit works by outstanding artists associated with Cape Cod and the Islands. Through its programs, the museum seeks to preserve the artistic heritage of the area and to foster artistic and cultural growth within the individual and the community.

Cape Cod Museum of Art website

Franklin Park Zoo is a 72-acre site nestled in Boston's historic Franklin Park, long considered the "crown jewel" of Frederick Law Olmsted's Emerald Necklace Park System. Franklin Park Zoo's homeschool programs allows students to participate in hands-on activities that are age appropriate, have animal encounters, and more. Classes are for children ages 6 to 12 years old.

Franklin Park Zoo website

Bordering both Connecticut and Rhode Island, this popular 5,730-acre state forest offers a variety of recreational opportunities. Visitors can enjoy swimming, boating and fishing at Wallum Lake and hiking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing and snowmobiling onmiles of woodland trails. Facilities include two boat ramps, a pavilion, bathhouses, swimming beach, interpretive center, picnic area and restrooms. The Midstate Trail, a long-distance hiking trail that extends through central Massachusetts to Mt. Watatic in the north, runs through the forest.

Douglas State Forest website

Carl A. Weyerhaeuser, grandson of the founder of the lumber business, chose a Rembrandt print, The Descent from the Cross by Torchlight as a graduation gift when he completed his studies at Harvard University. He was drawn to works of art on paper, particularly European and American prints. The museum has strong holdings of prints, including those by Albrecht Durer, Jacques Callot, J.M.W. Turner, Camile Corot, Kaethe Kolwitz and Rembrandt van Rijn. The museum offers a year-round schedule of exhibitions, lectures, concerts, classes, education programs, demonstrations, and tea ceremonies fulfilling the founders' vision that their family's many interests be shared with the community as the Weyerhaeuser family envisioned.

The Art Complex Museum website

Visit Alden House Historic Site and step into the into one of America's founding stories. Explore explore colonial history at the family homestead of Mayflower Pilgrims John and Priscilla Mullins Alden in Duxbury and "First Site" foundation. Experience history that comes alive through interactive tours of authentic historic sites and hands-on adventures. Engage in one of America's founding stories in the place where history happened.

Alden House Historic Site website

High atop Captain's Hill, 200 feet above sea level, stands the Myles Standish Monument, a 116-foot granite shaft crowned by a 14-foot statue of Captain Myles Standish, military leader of Plymouth Colony. Begun in 1872, completed in 1898, and refurbished in 1988, the monument offers a panoramic view of the South Shore-church spires, several 19th-century lighthouses, the five-mile-long Duxbury Beach, Plymouth Harbor, and the Blue Hills off to the northwest. Features: Historic Site, Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Picnicking and Scenic Viewing Area.

Myles Standish Monument State Reservation website

A unique and popular destination. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Boat Ramp, Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Hunting, Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Off-Road Vehicles, Picnicking, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming, Trailer / R.V. Dumping and Walking Trails.

Tolland State Forest website

At the Green Briar Nature Center, you will find a quiet corner of Cape Cod - a sanctuary of peace and beauty in all seasons. Located on the shores of Smiling Pool and adjacent to the famous Briar Patch of Thornton Burgess's stories, Green Briar offers interpreted nature trails and a spectacular wild flower garden. Natural history programs for children and adults are offered year-round and include classes, field trips, guided walks, and workshops on the natural sciences. We also have our very popular nature-related birthday parties. Outreach programs to area schools and other institutions are also an important part of Green Briar's services to the community. Members of the education staff visit schools, nursing homes and clubs offering slide presentations, lectures and classes.

Green Briar Nature Center website

The beautiful natural setting of the Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum surrounded by several other 18th century colonial homes makes it unique. The house was built by Benjamin Nye, one of the first fifty men to settle in Sandwich. Given permission by the town to erect a mill by the stream from his pond, Benjamin Nye built one of the first grist mills in the country in 1669. Later he also built a fulling mill nearby, and his home by 1681. Although the mills are no longer there, the house remains as an excellent example of early living. Now visitors who travel the ancient way once used by stage coaches and farmers can see time turned back as they view the Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum in its peaceful surroundings.

Benjamin Nye Homestead & Museum website

This heavily wooded park, minutes from Interstate Route 495, offers abundant beauty and many opportunities for recreation. Four lakes provide excellent fishing. Swimming for camping patrons only is available at the beach on Middle Pond. Biking, canoeing, walking, hiking, horseback riding and cross-country skiing are popular activities. In the fall the contrast of scarlet cranberry bogs against the pines is breathtaking.

Massasoit State Park website

Housed in a charming Old Fire Station in historic North Easton, Massachusetts, the Children's Museum in Easton offers a warm and friendly environment for children and families to explore together!

The Children's Museum in Easton website

The MVM is the Island's largest repository of cultural artifacts, historic photographs, archival records, and genealogical records. We strive to broaden awareness and access to the Island's history and shared memory. Come join us and discover our past and present.

Martha's Vineyard Museum website

Jug End offers one of the most scenic areas in the Berkshires. Features: Hiking and Hunting (Restrictions).

Jug End State Reservation & Wildlife Management Area website

This forest provides a wide variety of recreational pursuits including, boating, swimming and fishing at Laurel Lake with its beautiful, brick-lined lakeshore, camping, picnicking, hunting, horseback riding and winter sports. The woodlands are interlaced by 8 miles of forest roads, and numerous trails lead to points of scenic interest.

Erving State Forest website

The Essex Shipbuilding Museum tells the extraordinary story of a small New England village that built more two-masted wooden fishing schooners than any other place in the world. The Museum was established in 1976 as part of the town's observation of the American Revolutionary Bicentennial. Preserving the history of the wooden shipbuilding industry, an integral part of the economy and culture in New England and the United States since the 1630s, the Museum maintains one of the best maritime collections in the region.

Essex Shipbuilding Museum website

One of the smaller park in Massachusetts, Fort Phoenix State Reservation combines historic features, scenic views and a variety of recreational facilities. Features: Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Hiking, Historic Site, Scenic Viewing Area, Showers and Swimming.

Fort Phoenix State Reservation website

Battleship Cove, established in 1965, is a non-profit war memorial and historic military museum located in Fall River, Massachusetts comprising of seven historic naval vessels, a Maritime Museum, and home to the Commonwealth's official war memorials to World War II and the Korean, Vietnam, and Persian Gulf wars. Cherishing its reputation for innovative, quality programming with an emphasis on education, Battleship Cove has been offering numerous programs to help keeping our states and nations history alive. Programming includes youth overnights, girl scout workshops, and homeschool workshops. But streaking from America is one of the most powerful fighting vessels in the world. USS Massachusetts, a sleek, new breed of battleship, races to attack North Africa.

Battleship Cove website

Overlooking Battleship Cove, home of the World War II battleship, U.S.S. Massachusetts, the park hugs the shore of the Taunton River (Mt. Hope Bay) and offers a boardwalk, benches, groves of trees, an antique carousel, public sailing programs, and a three-acre meadow perfect for summer concerts, craft festivals and family picnics.

Fall River Heritage State Park website

Falmouth museum on the Green contain a treasure trove of stories and artifacts that, taken together, tell the story of the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts. The museum overlook the Village Green where members of the Colonial militia practiced in the 1700s and sea captains built their homes. Two 18th-century houses display furniture and fine art, textiles and "curiosities" that provide a window on days gone by. Exhibits tell of Falmouth's 19th-century whaling industry, pre-Civil War medicine (you'll be happy you live today!) and the life of Katharine Lee Bates, Falmouth-born author of "America the Beautiful". The 2009 special exhibit celebrates Katharine Lee Bates' 150th birthday through objects, photographs and her writings. The Falmouth Garden Club maintains three delightful gardens on the Museum grounds -- a Colonial-style flower garden, an herb garden and a Memorial Park. Visitors are welcome to picnic in the gazebo or stroll the gardens during daylight hours year-round.

Falmouth museum on the Green website

Savoy Mountain State Forest makes it easy to leave the everyday world behind. Features: Accessible Camping, Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Accessible Hiking Trails, Nonmotorized boating, Boat Ramp, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Nature & Birding Trails, Scenic Viewing Area, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Savoy Mountain State Forest website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Off-Road Vehicles, Picnicking Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

F. Gilbert Hills State Forest website

Focusing on American art from the 18th century to present day, the Danforth Museum of Art is dedicated to showing the very best examples of contemporary art by both emerging and established artists, as well as an exploration of the School of Boston Expressionism. Our compelling exhibitions and permanent collection of over 3,500 works of art offer countless opportunities for all ages to explore a range of media and artistic forms of expression from the traditional to installation and new media. Our mission strongly supports education, and the 400 yearly studio art courses offered in our Museum School, our family workshops and artist lectures offer our members and visitors numerous opportunities to learn and create.

Danforth Museum of Art website

Bring your students on a field trip to experience our 150-acre outdoor classroom at Pilgrim Day Camp. Explore the outdoor classroom with full of hands-on activities. All of the field trips are custom-tailored to your group, and the center can provide an unparalleled outdoor learning experience for students in all grade levels. Pair environmental education lessons and interpersonal games for the ultimate field trip experience!

Adventures at Pilgrim Day Camp website

Travel back in time with a tour of Framingham's former Academy building built in 1837. March to fife and drum music, practice straw braiding, string a Dennison Mfg Co tag, and much more while exploring 4 centuries of Framingham's expansive history. Interested in the Civil War? The permanent Civil War exhibit highlights the life of General George H. Gordon of the 2nd Mass.Regiment and other soldier stories, as well as how life was like in Framingham while the men were away.

Framingham History Center website

The New England Wild Flower Society is recognized as one of the nation's leading plant conservation organizations. The Society owns and operates Garden in the Woods, the largest landscaped collection of wildflowers in the Northeast, as its headquarters and as a public botanic garden. This ever-changing living museum--New England's premier wildflower garden--has more than 1,000 native plant species, with many rare and endangered native specimens throughout the gardens, as well as the unique "New England Garden of Rare and Endangered Plants."

Garden in the Woods website

Space mission simulations in the Challenger Learning Center offer totally immersive, hands-on STEM education experiences to learners in middle school and up that activate teamwork, communication, problem-solving, and decision-making skills. During interactive planetarium programs, learners in elementary school and up can enjoy full-dome films and engage in presentations on a wide range of earth and space science topics. Interested groups can schedule mission simulations and planetarium programs individually, or combine a mission simulation and planetarium program at a discounted rate.

Christa McAuliffe Center and Framingham State University Planetarium website

Callahan State Park is a 820-acre day use area located in Northwest Framingham. Callahan has seven miles of marked trails and is used for activities including fishing, hiking, horseback riding and cross-country skiing.

Callahan State Park website

This 119 acre park features a 20 acre pond, walking trails, swimming, fishing, picnicking, public programs, and play equipment. Private canoes and non-motorized boats are allowed on the pond. In the winter the trails are open for cross country skiing, ice skating is allowed on the pond and often there is a fire blazing in the visitors centers fireplace. All activities offered by the park are accessible to people with disabilities.

Dunn State Park website

This 1,112 acre forest offers a variety of year-round activities including horseback riding, hiking, walking, hunting (some restrictions), cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling.

Georgetown-Rowley State Forest website

The schooner Adventure was designed by Thomas J. McManus and built in 1926 - Subsequently refitted as a windjammer, Adventure carried passengers along the coast of Maine until 1987. Her grace, beauty, and prowess as a sailing vessel earned her the nickname .. Queen of the Windjammers .. In 1988 Adventure was given to the people of Gloucester to be preserved as Gloucester's historic tall ship and to be used to inform and educate the public about the important role of fishing in American history.

Schooner Adventure website

For over 100 years, the Sargent House Museum was the home of sea merchants, patriots and community leaders. A fine example of high-style Georgian domestic architecture, the house was built in 1782 for Judith Sargent Murray (1751-1820), a philosopher, writer and an early advocate of women's equality. Visitors to the Sargent House Museum learn about the early history of Gloucester from its beginnings as a farming and lumbering outpost to its evolution into the country's premier seaport. Visitors will also see a collection of original works by the great portrait painter John Singer Sargent (1856-1925) descendant of the Sargent family, who loved the house and its ties to Colonial Gloucester.

Sargent House Museum website

John Hays Hammond Jr., known as "The Father of Radio Control," was one of America's most prolific inventors and a protege of Guglielmo Marconi, Nikola Tesla, Thomas Edison, and Alexander Graham Bell. Built from 1926 through 1929, and incorporated as a museum in 1930, the castle's architectural style is a mix of a medieval castle, medieval French village, and a Gothic cathedral. It was custom built to encompass Hammond's private residence, laboratory, and museum quality collection of architectural elements from his travels throughout Europe. Also on display is Hammond's extensive list of patents, his work with radio control and his work on guided torpedoes for the military. Hammond Castle Museum is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Museum offers guided tours and numerous educational and cultural events throughout its season. At nearly a century old, Hammond Castle Museum is not handicapped accessible. Advanced ticket reservations are encouraged.

Hammond Castle Museum website

America's oldest fishing port. Cape Ann - which includes the city of Gloucester as well as the towns of Rockport, Manchester and Essex - has also been a leading center for artists since the 19th century and the source of granite for building projects up and down the East coast. The Museum maintains and exhibits material relating to these major themes.

Cape Ann Museum website

The Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) donated 1,020 acres to the Commonwealth for a state forest in 1929. Since then more than 750 additional acres have been acquired to include Upper and Lower Highland Lakes, which offer a popular swimming beach, shady picnic area and a group picnic pavilion. Located in the eastern foothills of the Berkshires, discover 15 miles of mixed-use trails through northern hardwood-conifer forest. Climb the Goshen fire tower for spectacular views of the Connecticut River Valley and into five states.

DAR State Forest website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Granville State Forest website

J.A. Skinner State Park is more than 400 acres of forest on Mount Holyoke, at the western end of the Holyoke Range. It offers breathtaking views of the Connecticut River Valley. The park's Friends group offers hikes throughout the year and hosts a sunset concert series inside the Summit House each summer.

Skinner State Park website

Discover our heritage at three renowned galleries of Native American, Shaker and American Art, and an original site of the Transcendentalist Movement. Stroll nature trails and enjoy Fruitlands Museum's spectacular views of the breathtaking central Massachusetts landscape. Browse the Museum Store, have a delicious lunch at the Tea Room Restaurant and enjoy a diverse schedule of special events, outdoor concerts and lectures, all intended to enhance your family's enjoyment.

Fruitlands Museum website

"The Buttonwoods", an historic site overlooking the Merrimack River. From Native American settlement to the present, the Buttonwoods Museum tells the story of life in the Merrimack Valley. Visit the John Ward House, the Duncan House and the Daniel Hunkins Shoe Shop. Experience our hands-on education and outreach programs that make this unique history come alive for people of all ages.

Buttonwoods Museum website

Features: Camping/Wilderness, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Fishing, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Kenneth Dubuque Memorial State Forest website

Wompatuck State Park offers 262 wooded campsites , 12 miles of paved bicycle trails, and many miles of wooded bridle paths and hiking trails. The park is very popular with trailer campers: electrical and water hookups are available. Fishing is allowed in the Cohasset Reservoir. A boat ramp is provided for car-top boats, but no boat trailers, please.

Wompatuck State Park website

The Children's Museum at Holyoke provides a unique setting in which children and adults learn together about art, science and the world around them. Through hands-on exhibits, children challenge themselves, discover how the world works, explore new roles for themselves, and learn by doing.

Children's Museum at Holyoke website

Wistariahurst Museum, originally the home of prominent silk manufacturer, William Skinner and his family, has stood as an example of elegance and fine architecture since 1874. The museum features original leather wall coverings, columns, elaborate woodwork and an interesting tale of how two generations perceived and used the house very differently. The museum's permanent collection includes decorative arts; paintings and prints, textiles and a rich manuscript collection of family and local papers. Wistariahurst Museum offers a wide variety of programs and events including: workshops, concerts, lectures and demonstrations.

Wistariahurst Museum website

Dedicated to the sport and play of volleyball, and its players. - In 1895 in Holyoke, Massachusetts, William G. Morgan, a YMCA physical education director, created a new game called .. Mintonette .. as a pastime to be played preferably indoors and by any number of players. - The game took some of its characteristics from tennis and handball. It was not as rough as basketball, but still required quite a bit of athletic effort.

International Volleyball Hall of Fame website

Mt. Tom boasts an unparalleled view of the Connecticut Valley north and south, the Berkshire mountains to the west and the Pelham hills to the east. Features: Accessible Fishing, Accessible Hiking Trails, Accessible Vista, Accessible Restrooms, Canoeing, Group Day Use, Picnicking, Skiing (Cross-Country), Visitors Center and Walking Trails.

Mount Tom State Reservation website

The park's Visitors' Center features exhibits about paper manufacturing and Holyoke's industrial history. A slide show celebrates the city's rich blend of cultures and people. Special programs are offered year-round. The Children's Museum, the restored antique Holyoke Merry-Go-Round and the Volleyball Hall of Fame are also located within the park.

Holyoke Heritage State Park website

Hopkinton State Park offers a variety of year round recreational activities including 2 life guarded swimming beaches, stocked fishing, 1 reservable group picnic site, 12 tree shaded, first come first served, picnic areas, 10 miles of marked trails, open field space and a concrete boat launching ramp for non-motorized watercraft. Environmental Educational programming is offered during the summer. Public restrooms are available during the spring, summer and fall months.

Hopkinton State Park website

This park consists almost entirely of water: the 592 acre Whitehall Reservoir was once used as a source of drinking water. The area offers boating, fishing, a public boat ramp, and hiking trails.

Whitehall State Park website

The American Heritage Museum features one of the world's largest collection of armored vehicles and tanks. All displayed in unique dioramas and exhibits. There are over twenty captivating exhibits from the Revolutionary War up to current times including the WWI Trench Experience and Clash of Steel exhibitions. The museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from 10:00am to 5:00pm.

American Heritage Museum website

C. M. Gardner State Park is located in the rolling Berkshire foothills along a scenic section of the Westfield River East Branch. In summer the sunlit mountain river here is a delightful spot to relax. A wooded picnic area is available on the banks of the river.

C. M. Gardner State Park website

Come learn about the history of aviation in Massachusetts plus our contribution to human space flight. Come learn how an airplane works and maybe even try your hand at flying.

Massachusetts Air and Space Museum website

The Ipswich Historical Society preserves an extensive collection of objects, books, papers and ephemera that have an Ipswich provenance or a connection to Ipswich history. Includes furniture collected from the 17th to 20th centuries, Fine and Decorative Arts, Textiles, 8th century Lace, Domestic and Military Objects, 19th century carriages, Photographs, Historic Books, and a large collection of journals, wills, deeds, and letters dating from 1636.

Ipswich Historical Society & museum website

Willowdale offers trail-use opportunities on 40 miles of trails and fishing and boating on 100 acre Hood Pond. Features: Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Willowdale State Forest website

Mount Greylock rewards the visitor exploring this special place of scenic and natural beauty. Deer Hill Falls, for example, is a feathering cascade to be found deep in the heart of Greylock.

Mount Greylock State Reservation website

Features: Accessible Boating, Accessible Restrooms, Bicycling Paths, Boating, Boat Ramp, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Walking Trails and Visitor's Center.

Lawrence Heritage State Park website

October Mountain is the largest state forest in Massachusetts. Features: Accessible Camping, Accessible Restrooms, Non-motorized boating, Boat Ramp & Public Landing, Fishing, Hiking, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Off-Road Vehicles, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Trailer / R.V. Dumping and Walking Trails.

October Mountain State Forest website

An operating museum dedicated to preserving the history of railroading in the Berkshire Hills of Western Massachusetts. Whether you choose the 90-minute round trip to Stockbridge, or the 45-minute round trip to Lee, you'll experience the excitement of rail travel in restored 1920's passenger cars staffed by our friendly volunteer train crew. Your trip begins at the historic Lenox Station, a restored landmark housing exhibits about trains, trolleys and the mansions of the Gilded Age. Listen for the conductor's call of "All Aboard!" while you sit back and relax in our vintage coaches. Watch for wildlife as we roll along the banks of the Housatonic River and learn about our region's rich industrial origins. Experience the Berkshires in a way you won't see from your car. Combine your trip with a visit to historic Lee or the world-renowned Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge. A ride on the Berkshire Scenic Railway is an entertaining and educational experience for the whole family. All aboard!

Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum website

Edith Wharton designed and built The Mount in 1902, based on the principles outlined in her influential book, The Decoration of Houses (1897), co-authored with architect Ogden Codman, Jr. This classical revival house represents the only full expression we have of Wharton's architectural interests. The Mount is the only U.S. monument to Edith Wharton. It is also one of the mere 5% of National Historic Landmarks dedicated to women.

The Mount Estate & Gardens website

The National Heritage Museum is located in historic Lexington, the birthplace of the American Revolution. We present history by telling stories that are rich in content, use compelling narrative, and are supported by dynamic displays and interactive hands-on activities.

National Heritage Museum website

The only extant residence associated with John Hancock, this was his boyhood home. In 1744, upon the death of his father at Quincy, the 7-year-old boy came to live at this house with his grandfather, Rev. John Hancock. In 1750 the lad joined his childless uncle, Thomas Hancock, a wealthy Boston merchant who adopted him. By the time of the Revolution, Rev. Jonas Clarke, a relative by marriage of the Hancocks, occupied the house, which had been built as a parsonage by Rev. John Hancock. Clarke encouraged Revolutionaries to use his home as a meetingplace and refuge. On the evening of April 18, 1775, patriot leaders Hancock and Samuel Adams were visiting there. Around midnight, after everyone had gone to bed, Paul Revere and later William Dawes, warning the countryside of the approach of British troops, galloped up and in formed the household.

Hancock-Clarke House website

The DeCordova Museum and Sculpture Park is a public museum of art established to educate as broad and diverse a public as possible about modern and contemporary American art. The Museum accomplishes this mission by focusing primarily, though not exclusively, on the art of the New England region. DeCordova educates through exhibitions, collections, classes, outreach programs, and a full schedule of activities designed to enhance our public's engagement with art and artists.

Decordova Sculpture Park and Museum website

Walter Gropius, founder of the German design school known as the Bauhaus, was one of the most influential architects of the 20th century. He designed this house as his family home in 1937, when he came to teach at Harvard's Graduate School of Design. Modest in scale, the house was revolutionary in impact. It combined the traditional elements of New England architecture -- wood, brick, and fieldstone -- with innovative materials rarely used in domestic settings at that time -- glass block, acoustical plaster, and chrome banisters, along with the latest technology in fixtures. In keeping with Bauhaus philosophy, every aspect of the house and its surrounding landscape was planned for maximum efficiency and simplicity of design. The house contains an important collection of furniture designed by Marcel Breuer and made for the Gropiuses in the Bauhaus workshops. With all the family possessions still in place, the house has an immediacy rarely found in house museum.

Gropius House website

Walden Pond has been designated a National Historic Landmark and is considered the birthplace of the conservation movement. Park Interpreters provide tours and ongoing educational programs. In summer the Reservation is a popular swimming destination. In the spring and fall, many people hike the trails that ring the pond and visit the replica of Thoreau's one-room cabin. Year round interpretive programs and guided walks are offered as well as a gift shop, bookstore and the Tsongas gallery.

Walden Pond State Reservation website

Visitors to the Storrs House are impressed with this colonial home. Its large rooms with its many fine pieces of early furniture, choice items of tableware, and paintings and portraits on view never fail to delight. The wide central staircase leading to the second floor provides an entry to four rooms, three of which are bedrooms. The closets of each are crowded with gowns, coats, and hats made of natural fibers that are rarely used in their manufacture in our world of synthetics.

Longmeadow Historical Society - Storrs House website

The Whistler House Museum of Art, birthplace of artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler, was established in 1908 as the permanent home of the Lowell Art Association. Founded in 1878, the Lowell Art Association owns and operates the Museum as a historic site. Built in 1823, the Whistler House presents the richness of the history and the art of Lowell. The Museum maintains its permanent collection and organizes contemporary and historical fine arts exhibitions. It also sponsors varied educational and community oriented cultural programs. - Come see where Whistler first met his mother!

Whistler House Museum of Art website

The Tsongas Industrial History Center is a hands-on education center where students learn about the American Industrial Revolution through activities and tours of the sites where history and science happened. Students "do history" by weaving, working on an assembly line, role-playing immigrants, voting in a town meeting, or becoming inventors. Students can also "do science" as they use the engineering design process, manipulate simple machines, create canal systems and test water wheels, measure water quality, trace the flow of groundwater pollution, or discover river cleanup techniques.

Tsongas Industrial History Center at Lowell National Historical Park website

Since its establishment in 1994, the Massachusetts Quilt Documentation Project has documented over 6,000 quilts originating or currently owned in this state. This summer, many historically significant or esthetically appealing quilts documented by MassQuilts will be on display at the New England Quilt Museum in Massachusetts Quilts.

New England Quilt Museum website

The Park educates visitors about the 19th century textile industry and use of waterpower. The website offers historical information about the park for those who cannot visit in person.

Lowell National Historical Park website

Visitors can participate in activities, including canal rides, and explore exhibits about Lowell's role in America's industrial history presented in conjunction with the Lowell National Historical Park. A Victorian garden in the heart of the downtown area, and over two miles of landscaped esplanade, summer concerts, and swimming and boating in the Merrimack River are additional attractions at this popular park.

Lowell Heritage State Park website

The forest has six miles of trails offering hiking, bicycling, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling. Hunting is permitted in season.

Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest website

Lynn Museum & Historical Society is the only organization in the city devoted to collecting, preserving, and fostering an appreciation of Lynn's rich history. Did you know that Lynn is the home of Marshmallow Fluff, or that a sea serpent was once sighted in Lynn Harbor? A membership organization open to the public, LMHS fulfills its mission by offering youth and adult programs, maintaining a research library and archives, and mounting several changing exhibitions each year. We invite you to visit and find out what you have been missing!

Lynn Museum website

Features; Bike Paths, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Manuel F. Correllus State Forest website

The Cape Cod Children's Museum offers educational programs that enhance the teachings of preschools, elementary schools, and other children's organizations with fun and engaging hands-on learning.

Cape Cod Children's Museum website

Contains a wide variety of coastal environments, including barrier beach and dunes, salt marsh, scrub oak/pitch pine woodland and "kettle" ponds. Features: Accessible Beaches, Accessible Restrooms, Boating (all types), Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Scenic Viewing Area, Swimming and Walking Trails.

South Cape Beach State Park website

The Museum of the Mattapoisett Historical Society is an adventure in 19th Century living. Housed in a charming Meeting House dating from 1821 and now beautifully restored, the ancient pews, graceful galleries, and its replica of the old high pulpit with sounding board above, carry one back to an age when life in this quiet New England village revolved around the Church and Town Meeting. The Meeting House is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Attached to the Meeting House is a replica of a two hundred year old barn (known as the Carriage House). Its huge timbers of native white pine remind one of construction techniques practiced by the same sturdy artisans who used the ancient tools making up the exhibits housed in the barn. Life in the 19th century comes alive for those who visit here.

Mattapoisett Historical Society Museum & Carriage House website

Nasketucket Bay State Reservation in Mattapoisett offers 209 acres of wooded trails, open field and rocky shoreline for the public to enjoy. Features: Walking Trails.

Nasketucket Bay State Reservation website

The Tufts University Art Gallery animates the intellectual life of the greater university community through exhibitions and programs exploring new, global perspectives on art and on art discourse. The Gallery fosters critical dialogue through exhibitions and programs that explore fresh interpretations and scholarship on art, that provide a forum for art produced internationally by emerging and mid-career artists, and that feature new work of established artists

Tufts University Art Gallery website

Captain Robert Bennet Forbes (1804 ~ 1889) was a member of the network of prominent families who helped shape maritime and trading history during the Golden Era of sailing ships. He and his Perkins uncles spearheaded the expansion of U.S trade with China, contributing to Boston's status as the second busiest port in America during the mid 1830's. Captain Forbes was a China Trade merchant, ship owner, designer, writer, and philanthropist of international stature. The Forbes House Charitable Trust was established in 1984 to ensure the preservation of the house, collections, and grounds at 215 Adams Street. These treasures are interpreted through tours, lectures, programs, and special exhibitions and events.

Forbes House Museum website

The Blue Hills Trailside Museum is the interpretive center for Blue Hills Reservation and is managed by Mass Audubon. Indoor exhibits feature wildlife you may see while exploring the reservation's 150 miles of trails. Outside the museum, stroll through exhibits featuring native wildlife such as wild turkeys, red-tailed hawks, and a snowy owl.

Blue Hills Trailside Museum website

Wild and rugged Monroe State Forest has deep valleys, steep mountains and tall trees reaching for the sky. To view this forested landscape with valley-filled fog is an unforgettable experience. Features: Wilderness Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Monroe State Forest website

The museum, set in the Berkshire hills, is an elegant Georgian saltbox originally built circa 1750 as a parsonage. Authentically restored, filled with antiques and surrounded by beautiful grounds and hiking trails, the museum is open Thursday through Monday between 11 am and 4 pm from May 27th to mid October.

Bidwell House Museum website

Beartown State Forest has two distinctly different worlds between the summer and winter. During the warm months the pristine 35-acre Benedict Pond attracts swimmers, boaters and fishermen. The other half of the year the forest becomes a winter wonderland, where visitors on cross-country skis, snowshoes or snowmobiles can explore a snow-covered wildernes

Beartown State Forest website

In the extreme southwest corner of Massachusetts is a cluster of park noted for their spectacular scenery and stunning views. Features; Canoeing, Hiking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Mount Everett State Reservation website

In the extreme southwest corner of Massachusetts is a cluster of state park noted for their spectacular scenery and breathtaking views. Features: Wilderness Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Mount Washington State Forest website

Bash Bish Falls, one of Massachusetts' most dramatic and its highest single-drop waterfall. Cascading water tumbles through a series of gorges and a hemlock-hardwood ravine forest, and then drops about 60 feet into a sparkling pool below.

Bash Bish Falls State Park website

The People's Path and America's First National Scenic Trail. The Appalachian Trail (A.T.) is more than 2,175-mile long footpath stretching through 14 eastern states from Maine to Georgia. Conceived in 1921 and first completed in 1937, it traverses the wild, scenic, wooded, pastoral, and culturally significant lands of the Appalachian Mountains.

Appalachian National Scenic Trail website

Harold Parker State Forest, which lies in Andover, North Andover, North Reading and Middleton, comprises just over 3,000 acres of Central Hardwood-Hemlock-White Pine type of forest. The forest is twenty miles north of Boston and within one hour's drive of three million people. Recreational opportunities include hiking, mountain biking, fishing, hunting, horseback riding, swimming, camping and picnicking. The forest has over 35 miles of logging roads and trails and offers quiet seclusion to off-road hikers and bikers.

Harold Parker State Forest website

The Nantucket Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum preserves the memory of those Islanders who risked their lives to save shipwrecked mariners. These men served in organizations devoted to maritime rescue, such as the Massachusetts Humane Society, United States Life-Saving Service and the United States Coast Guard.

Nantucket Shipwreck & Lifesaving Museum website

The Nantucket Whaling Museum features a restored 1847 candle factory, expanded top-quality exhibition space, a fully accessible rooftop observation deck overlooking Nantucket harbor, and the sperm whale skeleton.

Whaling Museum website

The "Old Mill" is the oldest functioning mill in the country. It is the only surviving mill of the four "smock mills" that once stood overlooking Nantucket town. Smock mills have a fixed body containing machinery and a cap that turns to face the sails into the wind.

The Old Mill website

In 1701 Mary Coffin Starbuck became interested in the faith of the Quakers after hearing itinerant Quaker preacher John Richardson speak before a crowd of Nantucketers. It was in her house, situated now at 10 Pine Street, that early Quaker meetings took place. In the years after 1708, the Nantucket Meeting outgrew a series of meetinghouses, the largest being the Great Meeting House on the site of the Quaker Burial Ground at the end of Main Street.

The Quaker Meetinghouse website

The Hadwen House is a Greek Revival mansion built in 1845 by whaling merchant and silver retailer William Hadwen. The building and its twin Greek Revival mansion at 94 Main Street were the most ostentatious private dwellings the island had ever seen, and a symbol of the wealth and prosperity of the island's leading citizens. Visitors are also invited to enjoy the ground's Victorian gardens, which are carefully maintained by the Nantucket Garden Club.

Hadwen House website

Welcome to the Nantucket Historical Association's educational program, dedicated to celebrating and reviving Nantucket's rich tradition in historic decorative arts and crafts. Immerse yourself in history at 1800 House, the NHA's restored nineteenth-century dwelling located at 4 Mill Street. Indulge your artistic side and learn centuries-old techniques taught by artisans from Nantucket and throughout New England.

1800 House website

Also called the Jethro Coffin House, this is the oldest residence on Nantucket.

The Oldest House & the Historic Garden website

Explore the Farm through an interactive tours and see what farming is all about. Learn about different farm animals, and the plants grown in the garden, greenhouses, compost piles, and the maple sugar shack and honey bee hives. Tours are 60 mins., $7 per child, with a 6 child minimum. Tours are scheduled Mon-Sat, 9am-5pm, and times are subject to teacher availability.

Natick Community Organic Farm website

Housed on the lower level of the Bacon Free Library building in South Natick, the Historical Society's museum features among its collections the Indian Bible of the 17th century missionary, John Eliot, founder of the Natick Indian Community. The museum collection also includes artifacts of Archaic and Woodland as well as Christian Indian cultures. Students of literature and history will be interested in the museum's collection of memorabilia of many of Natick's most distinguished citizen's including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Horatio Alger Jr., and Henry Wilson, the 20th Vice-President of the United States. The Wilson Memorial Shoe Shop stands on West Central Street. Early maps, photographs, furnishings, tools, and costumes are displayed to illustrate the community's daily life in earlier periods. Of particular interest to students of ornithology is the museum's natural history collection that features an outstanding array of birds of North and South America.

Natick Historical Society and Museum website

Cochituate State Park is a popular regional day use park featuring water based recreational opportunities including boating, swimming, windsurfing, and fishing on its three large lakes. Picnicking, swimming, and boat launching are limited to the main area of the park on the middle lake and boaters can gain access to the other lakes through channels under roadways.

Cochituate State Park website

Open dawn to dusk. Hemlock Gorge in Needham and Newton is a small 23-acre wild area along the banks of the Charles River. The park is dominated by the steep gorge, the river, its surrounding stands of Hemlock trees and Echo Bridge, a huge granite and brick structure that spans the river and gorge. Features: Hiking and Picnics.

Hemlock Gorge Reservation website

Open year-round, dawn to dusk. Formerly used as a landfill and a drive-in theatre, the site of Pope John Paul II Park was once a barrier between the people of Dorchester and the Neponset River waterfront. Features: Soccer, Running, Fishing, Bird Watching, Hiking, Playground, Restrooms and Picnicking.

Pope John Paul II Park Reservation website

The park commemorates New Bedford as a world famous whaling port during the 19th century. The website offers historical information about the park for those who cannot visit in person.

New Bedford Whaling NHP website

The New Bedford Whaling Museum is the largest museum in America devoted to the history of the American whaling industry and its greatest port. Through exhibits, publications, and programs, the Museum brings to life the whaling era and the history of the local area. It houses the most extensive collection of art, artifacts, and manuscripts pertaining to American whaling in the age of sail - late eighteenth century to the early twentieth, when sailing ships dominated merchant trade and whaling.

New Bedford Whaling Museum website

The Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum is so named for the three prominent families who resided at 396 County Street. The house and gardens chronicle 150 years (1834-1981) of economic and social life in the city, as reflected in the lives and stories of those who lived and worked at the property. Furnished period rooms display the decorative arts, furniture and belongings of the families and time frame. The Museum offers permanent and changing exhibits, lecture series, community and educational programs.

Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum website

The Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm is a family-friendly site with activities for visitors of all ages. It features an imposing architectural jewel, a late seventeenth-century major house built as the country seat of wealthy Newburyport merchants. It is also a foster farm in partnership with the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, with farm animals that may be visited year round. Learn about life on a farm over the centuries through hands-on activities. Pump water from the well outside the kitchen or sit in a horsehair-covered rocking chair and look through a stereo-viewer in the nineteenth-century parlor. Become an archaeologist as you piece "artifacts" together. Explore nature trails, and enjoy a picnic under the ancient maple trees. The farm is open on a drop-in basis. Architectural tours are available at all five Newbury region properties.

Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm website

The Newburyport Custom House Maritime Museum was designed by architect Robert Mills, who also designed such historical buildings as the Washington Monument. Built in 1835, this building was originally used as a Custom house in which the federal government collected taxes on imported goods brought home to Newburyport by ship captains from far away ports. The Museum maintains original artifacts from the prosperous trade era, maritime art, models of Newburyport-built vessels, trades routs and journals, and old maps showing the city's birth. Exhibitions focus on Newburyport's role on privateering, and fame - and fortune - it brought to local captains such as Moses Brown. Tours for students, programs for families and kids, and lectures fro the maritime enthusiast, all feature Newburyport's connection to the sea and rich maritime heritage.

Custom House, Maritime Museum website

The Caleb Cushing House Museum houses the collection of the Historical Society of Old Newbury. The society dates back to 1877 and was organized for the purpose of the study and remembrance of Newbury's history. Today the Cushing House offers visitors a trip into Newburyport's past. A fine collection of local furnishings graces its rooms. Unique pieces are featured throughout. The Oriental Room boasts fine early China trade decorative arts including four magnificent Chinese coastal Hong paintings. In the canopy bedroom stands a carved 17th century Dutch cradle and a three-sided crib. Collections abound in the Cushing House. Among them are silver, needlework, antique fans, hatboxes and 19th century toys. An extensive clock collection includes examples made by local master clockmakers David Wood and Daniel Balch. A Cecelia Beaux portrait of Margaret Cushing and paintings done in 1801 by John Brewster, Jr., of Newburyport's Prince family are a sampling of the scores of the notable portraits on display. The Cushing House also maintains a collection of area maps, photographs and genealogical references representative of the area's past.

Cushing House Museum and Garden website

The former Moseley family estate on the Merrimack River, this park features 19th century gardens and plantings, rolling meadows, towering pines, and one of the largest naturally-occurring stands of mountain laurel in Massachusetts. Most breathtaking are the ornamental trees and masses of azaleas and rhododendrons that bloom in May and June. An exquisite place for walking, biking, horseback riding and informal picnics.

Maudslay State Park website

Exxcel is the perfect place to have your next Fit Trip. Opportunities are available for 1 to 2 hours for any organization looking for fun & fitness to challenge any child's strength and creativity. Our 15,000 square foot gym is fully equipped with state of the art Olympic apparatus, foam pit, bungee, trapeze, zip line and includes a 20'x60' rock wall. Exxcel provides a vast array of activities for children to exercise in fun and safety.

Exxcel Gymnastics and Climbing website

The Newton History Museum presents permanent and changing exhibits on a variety of historic topics. Discover what life was like for New England's earliest settlers. Learn about the abolition movement in Newton and how the Jackson family used their home as a stop on the Underground Railroad. The museum houses the Newton Historical Society and holds an extensive library and research collection.

Newton History Museum website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Hiking, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Visitors Center and Walking Trails

Bristol Blake State Reservation website

Since opening in 1999, MASS MoCA has become one of the world's premier centers for making and showing the best art of our time. With annual attendance of 120,000, it ranks among the most visited institutions in the United States dedicated to new art. More than 80 major new works of art and more than 50 performances have been created through fabrication and rehearsal residencies in North Adams, making MASS MoCA perhaps the most fertile site in the country for new art. The museum thrives on making and presenting work that is fresh, surprising, and challenging.

Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art website

A former railroad yard, this urban park uses historical artifacts and exhibits to bring to life the controversial and danger-filled construction of the Hoosac Tunnel, one of the greatest engineering feats of the 19th century. Features: Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Historic Site, Picnicking and Visitor's Center.

Western Gateway Heritage State Park website

Discover a geologic wonder at this 48 acre park. Examine the only naturally formed white marble arch and man-made white marble dam in North America, and tour an abandoned marble quarry. Features: Fishing, Historic Site, Interpretive Program, Picnicking, Restrooms (Accessible), Scenic Viewing Area and Walking Trails.

Natural Bridge State Park website

The Museum of Printing is dedicated to preserving the history of the graphic arts, printing equipment and printing craftsmanship. In addition to many special collections and small exhibits, the Museum contains hundreds of antique printing, typesetting and bindery machines, as well as a library of books and printing related documents. A knowledgeable tour guide takes visitors around.

Museum of Printing website

The Society was founded in 1913 by Samuel Dale Stevens, Jr. to preserve the history and traditions of his community. - The Society maintains two sites that feature museum galleries .. 1715 Parson Barnard House .. 1789 Johnson Cottage - Permanent and changing exhibits featuring North Andover in the 17th through the 20th centuries.

North Andover Historical Society website

Enter a world of early 20th-century country elegance at a former farm-turned-estate, where refined interiors are complemented by an array of lovely gardens.

Stevens-Coolidge Place website

First in the country glow-in-the-dark science laboratory for groups (up to 20) PreK to 6th grade students with a state of the art high tech laboratory filled with wild and wacky special effects, laser light systems, digital sound processors and so much more. They have over 600 hands-on STEM experiments and projects.

Top Secret Science website

Borderland is one of the most historically significant tracts of publicly owned land in the Commonwealth. Created in the early 1900s by artist and suffragist Blanche Ames and her botanist husband Oakes, Borderland offers many of the same pleasures that the Ames family enjoyed: walking and horseback riding on woodland trails, fishing and canoeing in the ponds, or, in winter, ice-skating and sledding.

Borderland State Park website

Benjamin Willard began making clocks in his small, rural Massachusetts workshop in 1766. His three younger brothers, Simon, Ephraim and Aaron, quickly learned the trade and began a three-generation clockmaking legacy in the Grafton workshop. Today, over 80 Willard clocks are exhibited in the birthplace and original workshop of the Willard clockmakers, along with family portraits, furnishings and other Willard family heirlooms. Works of brothers Franklin and Zabdiel are also documented.

Willard House and Clock Museum website

Visit the childhood home of American Red Cross Founder Clara Barton.

Clara Barton Homestead website

The Clara Barton Birthplace Museum teaches the timeless lessons of compassion and service through Clara Barton's life story. Throughout her long life she sought to improve people's lives by, in her own words, "offering a hand up, not a handout." Clara Barton has inspired countless teachers, medical professionals and social workers. Almost two centuries after her birth, the incredible stories of this great humanitarian continue to draw students and families to her childhood home to learn about her boundless mercy and commitment.

Clara Barton Birthplace Museum website

The Smith College Museum of Art is a teaching museum devoted to providing visitors of all ages with lively educational experiences that instill an appreciation of art and the enjoyment to be found in museum. SCMA offers a number of special events for children ages 4--10, accompanied by an adult, such as Family Days. These events feature art projects and hands-on activities throughout the museum. The Smith College Museum of Art welcomes everyone! You do not have to be affiliated with Smith to visit the museum or to participate in the museum's programs. Children, adults, families, students, non-students--all are welcome!

Smith College Museum of Art website

The mission of the Botanic Garden of Smith College is to foster education about the science, beauty, and importance of the plant kingdom through the use of outdoor and conservatory plant collections, gardens, displays, and exhibitions, and to preserve and maintain the historic Olmsted campus landscape.

The Botanic Garden of Smith College website

Historic Northampton is a museum of local history in the heart of the Connecticut River Valley of western Massachusetts. Its collection of approximately 50,000 objects and three historic buildings is the repository of Northampton and Connecticut Valley history from the Pre-Contact era to the present. The museum maintains a permanent exhibit chronicling the rich history of Northampton in its main gallery and features changing exhibitions in its rotating exhibit space. Historic Northampton constitutes a campus of three contiguous historic houses, all on their original sites. The grounds themselves are part of an original Northampton homelot, laid out in 1654.

Historic Northampton website

The Connecticut River Greenway, is one of Massachusetts' newest State park. It connects open spaces, park, scenic vistas, and archaeological and historic sites along the length of the Connecticut River as it passes through the state. Features: Accessible Boating, Accessible Restrooms, Nonmotorized Boating, Motorized Boating, Canoeing, Fishing and Picnicking.

Connecticut River Greenway State Park website

Surrounded by gentle meadows and wooded hills, the 300 year old village of Deerfield speaks with quiet eloquence of New England's rural past. The village museum, Memorial Hall, is one of New England's oldest museum. When Deerfield Academy's original 1798 school building became available, antiquarian George Sheldon organized the collection of artifacts he was assembling and in 1880, Memorial Hall opened. The museum's extraordinary collection of furnishings, paintings, textiles and Indian artifacts is "the finest collection of local antiquities in New England and one of America's oldest museum."

Memorial Hall Museum website

Located in Osterville village, the museum complex includes three historic buildings set on two acres of beautiful grounds, providing a lovely setting for a picnic lunch prior to touring the museum. The Captain Jonathan Parker House, circa 1824, the Cammett House, circa 1730, and the Herbert F. Crosby Boat Shop, circa 1855 present different views of the village that spans three centuries of Osterville and Cape Cod history.

Osterville village website

A peaceful 400-acre retreat in the heart of central Massachusetts, Moore was the site of grist and saw mills from 1747 through the early part of this century. Features: Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Hunting, Interpretive Program, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Moore State Park website

North Shore Children's Museum is located in Peabody, Massachusetts and serves children ages 2-8. Within our 15 exhibits, the NSCM encourages children and families to learn through play and exploration. We are closed to the public to accommodate field trips on Mondays & Tuesdays from 9-11 & 12-2. For more information on booking a field trip, please contact Susie at [email protected]

North Shore Children's Museum website

The Peabody Historical Society's extensive collections, gathered over the course of the past century, document over 300 years of the region's history. The collections include: Paintings, Prints & Drawings, Furniture & Decorative Arts, Costumes & Textiles, Ceramics, Glass & Metalwork and Historical Artifacts.

Peabody Historical Society and Museum website

Visitors come to this museum to check out the dioramas portraying the history, conservation and management of central New England forests. Two self-guided nature trails, starting from the museum, provide an excellent way to enjoy a hike in the woods while learning more about the history, environment and beauty of the Harvard Forest. Note trail maps and guides are available at the kiosk in front of the museum.

Fisher Museum Harvard Forest website

Features: Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Hunting, Leashed Pets Allowed, Scenic Viewing Area and Skiing (Cross-Country).

Federated Women's Club State Forest website

Hancock Shaker Village, Inc., is a private, not-for-profit educational organization. Our mission is to bring the Shaker story to life and preserve it for future generations. The Shaker Central Ministry closed the Hancock community in 1960 and sold the buildings and surrounding acreage to a group of Shaker enthusiasts, collectors and scholars who formed the not-for-profit corporation that eventually became Hancock Shaker Village. The museum opened to the public on July 1, 1961.

Hancock Shaker Village website

At the Berkshire Museum, there's something for everyone. We offer a unique blend of exhibitions, galleries, and attractions for families of all ages. See exhibitions, fine art, and sculpture from around the world. Explore our touch tank and aquarium. Be amazed at our collection of artifacts from Native American cultures and ancient cultures of Egypt, China, and more. Marvel at the technology that awaits in the new Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation.

Berkshire Museum website

Join us as we celebrate the 225th anniversary of the building of Arrowhead. In the barn, explore life in the 18th century through an exhibit of tools and furniture, placed in the context of a period room (from the Timothy Childs House, Pittsfield, recently donated to us by the Berkshire Museum).Friday, Saturday and Sunday, we will have family-friendly programming around a cooking fire, talk about the early settlers, Native American inhabitants and life in thewilderness of Western Massacusetts.

Berkshire Historical Society - Arrowhead website

Thirty miles of trails encourage visitors to escape into the quiet of the state forest which follows the crest of the Taconic Mountain Range separating Massachusetts and New York. Features; Accessible Hiking Trails, Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Accessible Scenic Vista, Non-motorized boating, Fishing, Group Day Use, Historic Sites, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Nature & Birding Trails, Off-Road Vehicles, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Pittsfield State Forest website

Richard Sparrow, his wife Pandora, and son Jonathan, left their home in England, and arrived in New Plimoth by 1633. As a freeman, Richard was granted a house tract of six acres in 1636, which required him to construct a house within four years. The original two-story house contained one room on each level and utilized cross summer beam construction. With its large rooms, leaded glass windows and paneled walls, it was a grand home on the banks of what is now known as Town Brook. Today it is an Historic House Museum and Art Gallery.

Sparrow House Pottery website

The Pilgrim Story -- the hazardous voyage, the 1620 landing, the fearful first winter, the First Thanksgiving at Plymouth -- is the treasured heritage of all Americans. Pilgrim Hall, built in 1824, is a gallery museum in the center of historic Plymouth, Massachusetts. The nation's oldest continuously--operating public museum, Pilgrim Hall houses an unmatched collection of Pilgrim possessions. Among its irreplaceable treasures are William Bradford's Bible, Myles Standish's sword, the only portrait of a Pilgrim (Edward Winslow) painted from life, the cradle of New England's first--born, Peregrine White, the great chair of William Brewster, and the earliest sampler made in America, embroidered by the teenage daughter of Myles Standish. The possessions and artifacts of the Pilgrims tell the story of brave and determined men and women, and their attempts to build lives and homes for themselves and their children in a new world.

Pilgrim Hall Museum website

The Plymouth Antiquarian Society, founded in 1919, is Plymouth's largest organization dedicated to preserving historic houses and landmarks. The Society owns and maintains three historic houses from different centuries: the 1677 Harlow House, the 1749 Spooner House, and the 1809 Hedge House, and an ancient Native American site, Sacrifice Rock. Since 1920, PAS has welcomed the public to its historic properties for tours, exhibits, and programs. The historic houses tell the story of everyday life in Plymouth from the mid-1600s to the present, with period rooms featuring early American furnishings and domestic artifacts. The Society also offers a seasonal calendar of special events and a children's summer series on local history.

Plymouth Antiquarian Society website

Ellisville Harbor is a unique coastal property, including an 18th century farmstead, beachfront, salt marsh, rolling meadows, and red pine forest. It's also one of the most scenic spots on the South Shore coastline, where you can see small fishing boats, a barrier beach, sphagnum bog, forested upland and open meadows. Recreation activities include walking, bird watching, beach combing and sightseeing. In fall and winter, harbor seals can often be seen just off-shore.

Ellisville Harbor State Park website

Features: Historic Site, Interpretive Programs, restrooms and Scenic Viewing Area.

Pilgrim Memorial State Park website

Mount Wachusett stands as a unique landmark within the central New England landscape. Features: Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Scenic Vistas, Accessible Restrooms, Hiking, Historic Site, Hunting (Restrictions), Skiing (Cross-Country), Visitors Center and Walking Trails.

Wachusett Mountain State Reservation website

Pilgrim Monument stands high on a hill, overlooking the town center. It is the symbol of Provincetown built to commemorate the "first landing" of the Mayflower Pilgrims in Provincetown on November 21, 1620, and their signing of the Mayflower Compact here. Each year at Thanksgiving townsfolk celebrate that historic event with the Lighting of the Monument.

Pilgrim Monument & Provincetown Museum website

Welcome to the United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum Online. Located in historic Quincy, Massachusetts. The USNSM is home to the USS Salem CA 139, the world's only preserved Heavy Cruiser. This 716.5 foot long Cold War veteran served proudly as the Flag Ship of the 6th Fleet and now serves as a memorial to the proud shipbuilding heritage of this country and specifically this area. We are located in the former Fore River Shipyard, Quincy, once one of the Nation's largest Shipbuilding Enterprises.

United States Naval Shipbuilding Museum website

Adams National Historical Park was the home of two American presidents their families from 1720 to 1927. The website offers historical information about the park for those who cannot visit in person.

Adams National Historical Park website

This is a special kind of park. It embraces numerous towns, villages and a total population of about 300,000. Quinebaug & Shetucket is not a traditional park. Instead, citizens, businesses, nonprofit cultural and environmental organizations, local and state governments, and the National Park Service work together to preserve and celebrate the region's cultural, historical and natural heritage.

Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor website

In 1884 a young Rehoboth minister, George H. Tilton, decided that something should be done to preserve the remnants of the town's colonial past. Thus inspired he founded the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society in March of that year. The Society was established for several purposes: to preserve artifacts relating to Rehoboth's history, to maintain a meeting hall, and to run a consolidated school. Modeled after a local 1760 gambrel-roofed house, the Museum contains exhibit rooms, artifact storage area, and social room with kitchen facilities. Also on the grounds is a reproduction of a 1746 post-and-beam barn. It was constructed in 1993 with a community barn raising, one of the events that celebrated Rehoboth's 350th anniversary.

Carpenter Museum website

Fort Revere Park is an 8+ acre historic site located atop Telegraph Hill in Hull Village. The Park contains the remains of two seacoast fortifications, a water tower with an observation deck, a military history museum and picnic facilities. Fort Revere Park is open daily, sunrise to sunset, year round. Tower and Museum will be open 10 am to 5pm, weekends and holidays, May 24 through September 1. The tower and Museum may also be open at other times by arrangement with the park staff.

Fort Revere website

Mission: To have the general supervision of the little stone building about midway between Gloucester and Rockport, built by James Babson as cooperage shop about 1658. To provide for the opening of the building to the public on such days as the trustees permit and to perform any services which will perpetuate and/or care for the history, writings, pictures, furniture and any other articles of interest pertaining to the descendants of James Babson which the trustees may deem worthy of preservation To have the general supervision of the little stone building about midway between Gloucester and Rockport, built by James Babson as cooperage shop about 1658. To provide for the opening of the building to the public on such days as the trustees permit and to perform any services which will perpetuate and/or care for the history, writings, pictures, furniture and any other articles of interest pertaining to the descendants of James Babson which the trustees may deem worthy of preservation.

James Babson Cooperage Museum website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Fishing, Historic Site, Interpretive Program, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Halibut Point State Park website

The National Center of Afro-American Artists fosters and presents the finest in contemporary, visual and performing arts from the global Black world. Through its teaching, visual and performing arts divisions, the NCAAA brings the best of the Black world to you.

National Center of Afro-American Artists website

Royal Governor William Shirley's Georgian mansion is the only remaining country house in America built by a British Royal Colonial Governor. This imposing design is attributed to Peter Harrison, "America's first architect."

Shirley-Eustis House website

The Dillaway-Thomas House at Roxbury Heritage State Park was built in 1750 and served as headquarters for General John Thomas and the Continental Army during the siege of Boston in 1775. The house has been restored to show how it changed over two centuries and now offers exhibits which interpret both the past and present history of Roxbury and its people and cultures. A new park adjacent to the Dillaway-Thomas House provides a scenic overlook of downtown Boston.

Roxbury Heritage State Park website

Rutland State Park is a 300 acre recreation area with developed facilities for fresh water swimming, picnicking and boating. At Whitehall Pond, there is a swimming beach and adjacent picnic area. Features: Non-motorized boating, Canoeing, Fishing, Group Day Use, Hiking, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Rutland State Park website

Mt. Sugarloaf offers a commanding view of the Connecticut River, the Pioneer Valley, and the Pelham and Berkshire Hills. Features: Accessible Scenic Vista, Hiking, Picnicking, Restrooms and Scenic Viewing Area.

Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation website

Scusset Beach is located on Cape Cod Bay at the east end of the Cape Cod Canal. It is a popular swimming and camping area. Features: Accessible Beaches, Accessible Camping, Accessible Fishing, Accessible Restrooms, Accessible Hiking Trails, Historic Site, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Showers, Swimming, Trailer / R.V. Dumping, Trailer / R.V. Hookup and Walking Trails.

Scusset Beach State Reservation website

Immerse yourself in the stories of Real Pirates! The family-friendly pirate experience features the true tale of "Black Sam" Bellamy - the richest and one of the youngest pirates of all time - and Maria Hallett, the love of his life and so--called "Witch of Wellfleet." During the early 1700s, Bellamy captured the infamous slave ship Whydah, as well as more than 50 other ships, earning him the nickname the "Prince of Pirates."

Real Pirates Salem website

Salem Massachusetts was once one of the most important ports in the nation. The historic buildings, wharves, and reconstructed tall ship at Salem Maritime tell the stories of the sailors, Revolutionary War Privateers, and merchants who brought the riches of the Far East to America.

Salem Maritime National Historic Site website

She afflicts me! She comes to me at night and torments me! She's a witch! Words such as these struck terror into the hearts of Salem townspeople in the early spring of 1692 as hysterical young girls called out names. By summer, 180 people had been accused and imprisoned - defenseless against accusations of witchcraft in a society driven by superstition and fear. The court, formed to try the victims, acted quickly. Bridget Bishop was tried on June 2 and hanged on June 10 thereby setting the precedent for a summer of executions. The Salem Witch Museum brings you there, back to Salem 1692. Visitors are given a dramatic history lesson using stage sets with life-size figures, lighting and a narration - an overview of the Witch Trials of 1692. Salem's Most Visited Museum!

Salem Witch Museum website

This compelling museum is composed of eerily life-like London made wax figures that depict Salem's vivid history from its founding in 1626 through the terrifying Hysteria of 1692. Come face to face with such notable Salem figures as the famed author of The Scarlet Letter and The House of Seven Gables - Nathaniel Hawthorne, the pirates of New England, the merciless Witch Trials judge Colonel John Hawthorne, and Tituba the accused " witch " who helped fuel the hysteria of 1692 - just to name a few!

Salem Wax Museum website

Discover 330 years of Salem's history as you experience this museum and collection of historic buildings. Professional guides will warmly greet you for an unforgettable historical experience. Outside, spectacular seaside gardens await you. Inside of The House of the Seven Gables, also known as the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, you will discover a mysterious secret staircase where you least expect it! Built in 1668, this is the oldest surviving 17th century wooden mansion in New England. The House of the Seven Gables inspired author Nathaniel Hawthorne to write his legendary novel of the same name. As a matter of fact, the very home where Hawthorne was born, was moved to The House of the Seven Gables and now lies just feet away from the mysterious mansion made famous in fiction. The House of the Seven Gables also has an 18th century granite sea wall, and two seaside Colonial Revival Gardens. The museum houses more than 2,000 artifacts and objects, more than 40 framed works, 500 photographs and glass plate negatives, and more than 650 volumes in our research and rare book library.

House of the Seven Gables website

The Peabody Essex Museum's student programs motivate student learning by providing opportunities to discover and explore unique works of art and culture from around the world. Hands-on art-making programs focus on the creative process, exploration of art materials and self-expression.

Peabody Essex Museum website

Colonial Settlements, Maritime Adventures and Centuries of American Growth - The Essex National Heritage Area begins just 10 miles north of Boston and covers 500 square miles of eastern Massachusetts to the New Hampshire border. The Area includes hundreds of historical sites, miles of intact landscapes, glistening coastal regions and lifetimes of rich experiences that chronicle the history of our region and of our nation.

Essex National Heritage Area website

Salisbury Beach is one of the state's most popular ocean beaches stretching for 3.8 miles along the Atlantic Ocean. This 521-acre park offers swimming, boating, fishing and camping, and is very popular with trailer campers. Facilities include a 484-site campground with renovated bathhouses, an extensive day-use parking lot, three new comfort stations for the beach going public with over the dune boardwalks, and a new playground and pavilion area. The facility also has two boat ramps that are located on the Merrimack River at the campground's southern edge.

Salisbury Beach State Reservation website

The Sandwich Glass Museum combines classic exhibits of its extensive collection with state-of-the-art technology used to bring many of the new installations to life.

Sandwich Glass Museum website

The Thornton Burgess Museum is housed in the Deacon Eldred house on historic Shawme Pond. The Museum features a variety of memorabilia relating to the life and times of Thornton Burgess - the famed children's author and native son of Sandwich, MA. Visitors can browse a variety of books, toys, games, and household goods that feature some of Burgess' most famous characters including Peter Rabbit, Reddy Fox, and Jimmy Skunk. Currently on display is a red work quilt made by a 10 year old girl with Ruby Short McKim's patterns based on the Burgess Bedtime Stories. The highlight of the museum exhibit is a display of several recently acquired Harrison Cady illustrations. Also housed in the museum are a gift shop, featuring Green Briar Jam Kitchen products, educational toys and games, storybooks, and Cape Cod goodies, plus the Sandwich Chamber of Commerce Visitor Information Center.

Thornton W. Burgess Museum website

The Museum is famous for its Dexter Rhododendrons that bloom late May into early June. The beautifully landscaped grounds are a naturalized woodland park on the edge of upper Shawme Pond. A Shaker round barn houses the J. K. Lilly III Antique Automobile Collection with its stunning display of antique automobiles. The American History Museum will be opening this summer with several New Exhibits. An operating hand-carved carousel and many of America's most distinguished artists' works are on exhibit in the Art Museum.

Heritage museum & Gardens website

This quiet year-round campground at the beginning of Cape Cod has over 285 sites in a wooded setting (camping site 1; camping site 2). Yurt camping is now available. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Accessible Camping, Hiking, Historic Site, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Picnicking, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming, Trailer / R.V. Dumping and Walking Trails.

Shawme-Crowell State Forest website

"A Worthy Prototype of American Heavy Industry" - Explore this place where European iron makers brought their special skills to a young Massachusetts colony. Three hundred year old artifacts, working waterwheels, and mill machinery help to tell the story of a business failure destined to be a National Park.

Saugus Iron Works website

The Ashley House tells the intertwined stories of the Ashleys and the enslaved African Americans who lived here in the 18th century. Col. John Ashley built the house in 1735, and spent the next decades accumulating wealth and land. By the time of his death in 1802, Ashley owned more than 3,000 acres -- including the land that is now The Trustees' Bartholomew's Cobble. Ashley supported the American Revolution, heading a committee that wrote the fiery Sheffield Resolves, a petition against British tyranny and manifesto for individual rights, in 1773. His financial success was based in part on the labor of five enslaved African Americans. Inspired by Revolutionary-era rhetoric and her own desire for freedom, Mum Bett, who was enslaved in the Ashley House, helped end slavery in Massachusetts. In 1781, she sued Col. Ashley for her freedom -- and won. Mum Bett was and remains an inspiration to all who learn her story.

Ashley House website

The Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum is dedicated to preserving and operating Shelburne Falls & Colrain Street Railway trolley car No. 10. Visit our operating museum, located near the Historic Bridge of Flowers, glacial potholes and village of Shelburne Falls. You can take a ride on Trolley No. 10 and our old fashioned pump car, browse historical photos from the time of trolleys in our Visitors Center, climb into our big red Caboose, and afterwards stroll among the artisan shops, galleries and restaurants in Shelburne Falls.

Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum website

Features: Accessible Restrooms, Accessible Swimming, Accessible Parking, Non-motorized boating, Boat Ramp/ Public, Landing, Fishing, Hiking, Picnicking and Walking Trails.

Lake Wyola State Park website

The Lepidoptera source in Western Massachusetts, featuring an 8,000-square foot indoor conservatory home to nearly 4,000 exotic and domestic butterflies in a tropical environment, Magic Wings focuses on butterfly-related education, recreation, entertainment and gardening needs.

Magic Wings website

Founded in 1876, the Mount Holyoke College Art Museum was one of the first collegiate museum in the United States. The Museum has acquired more than 15,000 objects ranging from ancient Egypt, China, and Peru to contemporary America.

Mount Holyoke College Art Museum website

Spencer State Forest, a 965-acres area provides swimming and picnicking facilities on Howe Pond. Features: Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Picnicking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Spencer State Forest website

The George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum is one of the two Springfield museum dedicated to fine and decorative arts. It represents the personal taste and Victorian aesthetic of the collector whose name it bears. The museum was built in 1895 in the style of an elegant Italian villa and opened to the public in 1896 as the "Art Museum." Smith made his fortune as a carriage manufacturer in New York City and retired when he was just 35 years old. He and his Springfield-born wife, Belle Townsley Smith, moved to Springfield in 1871 and devoted their lives to collecting art. Although Smith never visited Asia, by buying from dealers in New York and Europe he became a leading 19th-century collector of Chinese, Japanese and Middle Eastern art, and also amassed an outstanding selection of 19th-century American paintings.

George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum website

The Michele & Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts is one of the two Springfield museum dedicated to fine and decorative arts. The Art Deco-style museum was erected in response to a bequest from Mr. & Mrs. James Philip Gray, who left their entire estate for the "selection, purchase, preservation, and exhibition of the most valuable, meritorious, artistic, and high class oil paintings obtainable," and for the construction of a museum to house them. The museum opened in 1934.

Michele & Donald D'Amour Museum of Fine Arts website

Springfield Armory National Historic Site showcases the critical role of the nation's first armory. It contains the world's largest historic US military small arms collection, along with historic archives, buildings, and landscapes. The website offers historical information about the Armory for those who cannot visit in person.

Springfield Armory National Historic Site website

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has honored and celebrated the game's greatest moments and brightest stars. The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is home to nearly three hundred inductees and more than 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Located on the picturesque banks of the Connecticut River, the new museum is a fitting shrine to the game Dr. Naismith invented more than a century ago. The landmark structure is one of the world's most distinctive monuments punctuating the Springfield skyline and stirring the spirits of basketball fans everywhere. Hundreds of interactive exhibits share the spotlight with skills challenges, live clinics, and shooting contests. And of course there is enough basketball history to impress the world's most avid sports fans!

Basketball Hall of Fame website

The new Museum of Springfield History will open to the public in the fall of 2009. Exhibits will describe Springfield's development as a manufacturing center, the city's role in transportation history, the many inventions and "firsts" that were generated here, the growth of downtown as the region's commercial center, the effects of urbanization and suburbanization, and the stories of Springfield's diverse populations. A highlight of the museum will be the Indian Motocycle collection which has been donated to the Springfield museum by Esta Manthos, the owner and director of the former Indian Motorcycle Museum on Hendee Street in Springfield.

Museum of Springfield History website

The Museum was established as the Springfield Ethnological and Natural History Museum, "a collection of specimens of natural history and a repository of arts and curiosities, a Museum, in fact, of curious or instructive objects."

Springfield Science Museum website

An exhibition that tells the story of Theodor Geisel's (Dr. Seuss's) childhood in Springfield with family photographs and genealogical information about the Seuss-Geisel family history. The exhibit features comparisons of Dr. Seuss's fanciful illustrations with actual places in Springfield that he would have known.

Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden website

Chesterwood is the country home, studio and gardens of Daniel Chester French (1850-1931) sculptor of the statue of Abraham Lincoln in the Memorial in Washington, DC, and The Minute Man, Concord, MA. The buildings are furnished with American and European decorative arts and paintings collected by the sculptor. Woodland walks featuring mountain vistas and perennial gardens are French's own design. The Studio has a standard-gauge railroad track used to roll large sculpture outdoors for viewing in natural light. The museum holds what is probably the largest single collection of work by any American sculptor.

Chesterwood website

Gilded Age 44-room summer estate of Joseph Choate. Built in 1885 and designed by Stanford White, Naumkeag also includes eight acres of formal landscaped gardens designed by Fletcher Steele.

Naumkeag website

Norman Rockwell Museum is dedicated to education and art appreciation inspired by the legacy of Norman Rockwell. The museum preserves, studies and communicates with a worldwide audience the life, art and spirit of Norman Rockwell in the field of illustration. The museum is a gathering place for reflection, involvement, and discovery through the enjoyment of the artist's work. Norman Rockwell's unique contributions to art and society, popular culture and social commentary influence the museum's programs and interpretations.

Norman Rockwell Museum website

Renowned for its inspiring gardens, educational programs and exquisite setting, the Berkshire Botanical Garden is one of New England's oldest and most treasured public gardens. Established in 1934, its mission was to inspire and educate the community in responsible horticulture and home grown food. Today, with a year-round schedule of gardening classes, prestigious guest lecturers and a horticulture certification program in addition to our special events, we honor these founding values that are timelier than ever. Come roam the Garden's 15 lush acres where 3,000 regionally appropriate plant species, significant trees, unique shrubs and exotic botanical collections take center stage in an ever-changing theater of the senses.

Berkshire Botanical Garden website

Stone Zoo is located on a 26-acre site near the sparkling Spot Pond reservoir in Stoneham, MA. The Zoo is open year round.

Stone Zoo website

Come ride our stagecoach, meet our farm animals, talk with costumed historians, and watch the blacksmith, cooper, potter, and farmers at work. Experience life in the 1830s -- visit our 40 antique homes, buildings and water-powered mills. We offer hands-on crafts year-round, free parking and a free second-day visit within 10 days.

Old Sturbridge Village website

Wells State Park is a popular 1,400-acre woodland park. Features: Boating (all types), Boat Ramp, Camping, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Historic Site, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Restrooms, Scenic Viewing Area, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming, Trailer / R.V. Dumping and Walking Trails.

Wells State Park website

A unique natural landmark, Purgatory Chasm is popular with picnickers and rock-climbers alike. Trails lead to a wide variety of rock formations, with such romantic names as The Corn Crib, The Coffin, The Pulpit, Lovers' Leap and Fat Man's Misery. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Hiking, Hunting (Restrictions), Interpretive Program, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country), Visitors Center and Walking Trails.

Purgatory Chasm State Reservation website

Housed in the 1852 Bristol Academy building designed by Richard Upjohn, the museum contains extensive collections representing the history of the Taunton region of Massachusetts. Special collections include portraits, silver, military artifacts, fire fighting equipment, Rogers Groups, stoves, toys and dolls, furniture, and Native American artifacts. Important items include early silver, portraits, a 1790s fire wagon, a 1630-50 fowling gun, a Revolutionary War drum, and the 1729 Crossman Chest. Guided tours are offered daily.

Old Colony History Museum website

Watson Pond State Park is a beautiful 10 acre park in Taunton. Features: Accessible Beach, Accessible Restrooms, Nonmotorized boating, Canoeing, Fishing, Picnicking, Swimming, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails.

Watson Pond State Park website

Features: Accessible Beaches, Accessible Restrooms, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Skiing (Cross-Country) and Walking Trails

Bradley Palmer State Park website

Highland House Museum is one of North Truro's best known landmarks and it is a classic example of a turn of the century summer hotel. A visit to the museum affords a fascinating insight into the everyday life of the past, from the time of the Pamet Native Americans to the early days of this century, when electricity and paved roads were unknown in Truro. The Museum contains 17th century firearms, shipwreck mementos, early fishing and whaling gear, household tools, farming implements, furniture, Sandwich glass, a pirate's chest and much, much more!

Cape Cod Highland Light & Highland House Museum website

This 2,600 acre forest offers multiple trail uses including hiking, bicycling, and horseback riding. Hunting is permitted in season.

Upton State Forest website

The Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park recalls the role of canals in transporting raw materials and manufactured goods between emerging industrial centers. Walk along restored sections of the Blackstone River Canal and Towpath from the River Bend Farm Visitors Center.

Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park website

Founded in 1961, The Rose Art Museum of Brandeis University is an educational and cultural institution dedicated to collecting, preserving and exhibiting the finest of modern and contemporary art. The programs of the Rose adhere to the overall mission of the University, embracing its values of academic excellence, social justice, and freedom of expression.

Rose Art Museum website

The Federal period, historic house and estate of Massachusetts Governor Christopher Gore includes a small farm with sheep, goats and poultry. The elegantly furnished mansion has been called "the Monticello of the North" and architectural historians consider it to be the most significant Federal period mansion in New England.

Gore Place website

Power up your imagination! Get your inventiveness in gear! For an industrial strength museum experience, come visit the Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation. Explore the inventions that powered America into the modern age -- steam engines, generators, timepieces, machine tools, bicycles, automobiles, and hundreds of other gizmos - plus the geniuses who perfected them.

Charles River Museum of Industry & Innovation website

Take experiential education to the next level on and around Onset Bay with year-round, hands-on activities aligned with MA curriculum standards! Onset Bay Center offers on-and-around-the-water field trips on Onset Beach to all groups and schools, augmenting existing science, STEM, and social-emotional curriculum at little to no cost! Through activities like crabbing, shellfishing, sailing and paddling adventures, ecological observations and experiments, learn and discover for yourself all that Onset Bay has to offer.

Onset Bay Center website

Mount Grace is the third highest elevation in Massachusetts, east of the Connecticut River. Recreation activities at the 1,458-acre State Forest include hiking, walking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, and hunting (in season).

Mount Grace State Forest website

The main exhibit gallery in Bedoukian Hall focuses on the art and achievement of the Armenian people. ALMA's museum holdings, now totaling approximately 6,000 objects, comprise a diverse collection of textiles, rugs, ceramics, religious art, coins, metalware, stamps, Uration architecture models, costumes, geological and botanical specimens, utensils and other artifacts. A vital part of the Armenian community, ALMA is truly a living library and museum, and a valuable resource to the community at large. Above all, ALMA is trying to fulfill its role as a surrogate grandparent, a guardian who can honor, protect and pass on the traditional values of Armenian culture to future generations, so that all our children, both Armenian and non-Armenian, may be inspired by the history and culture of Armenia.

Armenian Library and Museum of America website

The Samuel Slater Experience is not a museum in the traditional sense, with visitors simply looking at artifacts and static displays. Rather, the Samuel Slater story is told with high-tech media: video, audio, motion, wind, and scents, to create an immersive experience. The Samuel Slater Experience is designed to be toured in small groups of 6-8 people, with a new group entering every 10-15 minutes. Each guided tour lasts about an hour and a half. We recommend ages 8 and above, but all ages are welcome.

Samuel Slater Experience website

Welcome to one of the oldest and most acclaimed academic fine arts museum in the United States. Founded more than 120 years ago by the first President of Wellesley College, the Davis Museum and Cultural Center is characterized by collections that span global history from Ancient times to yesterday. With masterpieces from almost every continent, with collections installed in one of this country's most significant examples of museum architecture, and with a rotating series of temporary exhibitions that challenge our understanding of history and the role of the arts in society, the museum provides an exciting environment to see, hear, experience and learn about the visual arts.

Davis Museum and Cultural Center website

The great Outer Beach described by Thoreau in the 1800s is protected within the national seashore. Forty miles of pristine sandy beach, marshes, ponds, and uplands support diverse species. Lighthouses, cultural landscapes, and wild cranberry bogs offer a glimpse of Cape Cod's past and continuing ways of life. Swimming beaches and walking and biking trails beckon today's visitors.

Cape Cod National Seashore website

Ruggles Pond is the main day-use area. This 10 acre pond offers crystal clear water for swimming and fishing. Picnic sites and a ball field with a pavilion are located nearby. There is a small boat launching ramp located at the Northern end of Wickett Pond. The Metacomet-Monadnock Trail traverses the forest boundaries and offers a small Adirondack shelter for trail users.

Wendell State Forest website

The Mission of the Wenham Museum is to protect, preserve and interpret the history and culture of Boston's North Shore, domestic life and the artifacts of childhood.

Wenham Museum website

Storrowton Village Museum is an authentic recreation of a 19th century village, consisting of nine historical buildings assembled around a traditional Green. Storrowton's antique buildings were purchased from various Massachusetts and New Hampshire locations, dismantled and reconstructed to create a village such as our forefathers built on hills, crossroads and along rivers.

Storrowton Village Museum website

This 1,000 acre park is open on a seasonal basis from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Camping, Fishing, Group Day Use, Hiking, Interpretive Program, Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Showers, Skiing (Cross-Country), Snowmobiling, Swimming and Walking Trails.

Pearl Hill State Park website

Located in the City of Westfield, Hampton Pond State Park offers water based recreation activities and picnicking. Features: Accessible Beaches, Accessible Restrooms, Boating (All Types), Boat Ramp, Canoeing, Fishing, Picnicking and Swimming.

Hampton Ponds State Park website

The forest offers recreational opportunities year round, ranging from mountain biking and swimming in the summer to cross country skiing and snowmobiling in the winter. Nature lovers will enjoy the numerous hiking trails, the prolific mountain laurel bloom in late June, early July and the opportunity to observe all kinds of wildlife.

Leominster State Forest website

The Spellman Museum engages diverse audiences of all ages in the opportunities to learn from stamps and postal history. It welcomes stamp collectors and philatelic students from around the world. Enjoy our website and plan a visit!

Spellman Museum of Stamps & Postal History website

Built in 1768, the Golden Ball Tavern was the home of prominent 18th century Westonian Isaac Jones. The tavern "at the sign of the golden ball" operated as an inn from 1770 to 1793 for travellers on the Boston Post Road. From then on, for six generations-200 years-it was occupied by the same family until it was acquired by the Golden Ball Tavern Trust in the 1960's. Here, history still lives and breathes, telling the story of change. Visit this unique Revolutionary era tavern and learn of the spies who went out in the cold, the "other" tea party and Paul Revere's men's eventful visit.

Golden Ball Tavern website

Features; Accessible Beaches, Accessible Camping, Accessible Picnicking, Accessible Restrooms, Boating (all types), Boat Ramp, Fishing, Historic Site, Picnicking, Showers, Swimming and Trailer / R.V. Dumping.

Horseneck Beach State Reservation website

Opened to public in 1955, the Institute has built upon this extraordinary group of works to become one of the most beloved and respected art museum in the world, known for its intimate galleries and stunning natural environment.

Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute website

Welcome to the Griffin Museum of Photography, a nonprofit organization dedicated solely to the art of photography. Through our many exhibitions, programs and lectures, we strive to encourage a broader understanding and appreciation of the visual, emotional and social impact of photographic art. At the Griffin Museum, you will find exhibitions from well-known photographers to those emerging on the scene that explore important themes and thought-provoking ideas. All of our exhibitions and programs are designed to encourage the passionate exploration of the art of photography.

Griffin Museum of Photography website

Kidstock! Creative Theater is open for field trip opportunities which expose students to workshops in acting, movement, and art. Every student has a chance to watch a lived staged show and explore with being onstage in an interactive, pressure free environment. Suitable for both children and adults, homeschool families are encouraged to contact us to explore custom opportunities that best meet the needs of each group.

Kidstock! Creative Theater website

Windsor State Forest's cascading waterfall at Windsor Jambs stands out for its spectacular beauty. Features: Accessible Restrooms, Camping, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding Trails, Hunting (Restrictions), Mountain Biking, Picnicking, Scenic Viewing Area, Skiing (Cross-Country), Swimming and Walking Trails.

Windsor State Forest website

Here is a place where you can walk a Civil War-era fort, visit historic lighthouses, explore tide pools, hike lush trails, camp under the stars, or relax while fishing, picnicking or swimming--all within reach of downtown Boston. Youth programs, visitor services, research, wildlife management, and more are coordinated on the park's 34 islands and peninsulas by the Boston Harbor Islands Partnership.

Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area website

Birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution - The Blackstone River runs from Worcester, MA to Providence, RI. Its waters powered the Slater Mill in Pawtucket, RI, America's first successful textile mill. This creative spark began the nation's transformation from Farm to Factory. Today, the Blackstone River Valley is a special type of National Park - a living landscape containing thousands of natural, cultural and historic treasures.

John H Chafee Blackstone River Valley NHC website

Considered a "classic American museum," the Worcester Art Museum has built a 35,000-piece collection that spans over fifty centuries. The Museum was founded in 1896 by Stephen Salisbury III and 50 prominent citizens of Worcester and opened to the public in 1898. The original collection consisted mainly of works on loan, along with plaster casts of famous ancient and Renaissance sculpture.

Worcester Art Museum website

Founded in 1875, Worcester Historical Museum is a unique organization dedicated to collecting, preserving, and interpreting Worcester's history in all time periods and subject areas. The holdings of WHM encompass thousands of unique documents and artifacts vital to the study of Worcester history.

Worcester Historical Museum website

The EcoTarium is a unique indoor-outdoor museum in Worcester, MA. Set in an urban oasis, the EcoTarium offers a chance to walk through the treetops, take a thrilling multimedia journey through the galaxy at a digital planetarium, meet wildlife, stroll nature trails, ride a narrow-gauge railroad, and get hands-on with family-friendly exhibits.

EcoTarium website

Quinsigamond State Park consists of two sites located on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester: Regatta Point and Lake Park. The 25 acre Regatta Point area offers facilities for swimming, sailing, picnicking and fishing. The area is used extensively for sailing and rowing crew regattas.

Quinsigamond State Park website

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Massachusetts Field Trip Guide

Field Trip Ideas , New England

The Bay State is well-rounded for school groups of any age or interest

Made famous by events of the American Revolution—such as the Boston Tea Party, Paul Revere’s ride and the battles of Lexington and Concord—Massachusetts has left a heavy stamp on American history. The most populous state in New England, the Bay State is home to premier sports teams, world-class universities and cutting-edge medical research. Few other states can boast Massachusetts’ combination of history , culture and recreational opportunities, making it a must for any school group from near or far.

A Few Massachusetts Field Trip Ideas:

• Freedom Trail in Downtown Boston
• Hancock Shaker Village
• Boston Symphony Orchestra
• Hanover Theatre & Conservatory
• Harvard Art Museums
• Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
• Museum of Fine Arts
• New England Aquarium

Massachusetts History & Heritage Field Trip Ideas

No trip to Massachusetts would be complete without walking the Freedom Trail in downtown Boston. Stretching 2.5 miles long from Boston Common to the USS Constitution, the trail connects 16 significant sites in American history. Following the red cobblestones that conveniently demarcate the route, groups can walk the trail on their own or join a guided tour (abridged or full-length) featuring costumed actors. Sites include the Paul Revere House, Old North Church, Bunker Hill Monument and Massachusetts State House .

Hancock Shaker Village in Pittsfield, a two-hour drive from Boston, covers 750 acres in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. One of New England’s premier living history museums, it consists of more than 20 buildings on the National Register of Historic Places and also is the state’s oldest functioning farm. With seasonal, ongoing and special exhibitions taking place year round, Hancock Village offers students a chance to step back in time.

Arts & Culture Field Trip Activities in Massachusetts

Comprised of three separate museums—the Fogg Museum, Busch-Reisginer Museum and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum— Harvard Art Museums are located steps away from Harvard Square in Cambridge. Students can explore drawings, sculptures, paintings and more at these museums, which house more than 250,000 pieces of art. Visits to the expansive Art Study Center, which offers a behind-the-scenes look into objects not currently on display, are available by appointment, as well as tours of museums with student guides.

A patron of the arts, Isabella Stewart Gardner traveled the world to amass a collection of master and decorative arts .  Her Boston home, where she displayed her collection, is now the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and celebrates European, Asian and American art, including paintings, sculptures and tapestries from world-renowned artists such as Manet, Degas and Rembrandt. Groups can choose between many themed tours.

The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, one of the largest museums in the United States, features more than 450,000 works of art. The museum takes groups on  interactive, object-based tours through renowned collections  that contain works of art ranging from contemporary to classical.

Performing Arts Locations to Visit

The Boston area is home to dozens of performing arts centers, and the state of Massachusetts claims many more . The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) offers a number of experiences for school groups. BSO Youth Concerts afford students the opportunity to attend concerts featuring live conductor commentary between pieces on musical themes and engagement. Educators may contact the BSO for tips on how to optimize the experience for students. BSO also hosts High School Open Rehearsals, giving students in grades 8-12 an opportunity to sit in on a real orchestra rehearsal, providing a glimpse into the daily life of professional musicians.

The Hanover Theatre & Conservatory in Worcester not only puts on special matinees for students – there are series designated for elementary, middle and high school levels – but also offers hands-on experiences through their STEAM Workshops program. STEAM aims to mix school curricula and the arts, featuring sessions such as “Math Through Choreography” and “Analyzing the Human Experience Through Process Drama.” Workshops accommodate up to 30 students.

Educational Field Trips in Massachusetts through STEM

Packed with museums, university exhibitions and other institutions on the cutting edge of science, technology and medicine, Boston is a must for STEM groups . World-renowned universities like Harvard and MIT host museums that provide tours and hands-on workshops for school groups. At the MIT Museum , workshops for school groups include activities in physics, engineering, aerospace and other subjects.  

The Museum of Science , Boston is an ideal catch-all for school groups . With exhibits on natural and climate sciences, electricity, zoology, mathematics, artificial intelligence and tech, there’s something for everyone. In addition, the museum offers an abundance of film and live programming. Shows featuring live animals, scientists, and experiments can be seen at the Shapiro Family Science Live! Stage. The Mugar Omni Theater, a five-story domed IMAX screen, runs regular, 50-minute features on science and culture. Across the hall is the Charles Hayden Planetarium , showing live and recorded presentations on the solar system, universe and space exploration. The Museum of Science also hosts career sessions for high school students to meet with local STEM professionals (available to Massachusetts schools only).

Marine & Aquatic Activities 

Home to thousands of aquatic animals—ranging from giant Pacific octopuses and California sea lions to African penguins—Boston’s New England Aquarium features exhibits and educational experiences and offers a step-by-step field trip planning guide for educators. The Giant Ocean Tank, a coral reef community that contains sharks, turtles, moray eels and hundreds of tropical fish, is a popular attraction here.

At the mouth of the Massachusetts Bay, in an 842-square-mile, marine-protected area, the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary  is a diverse ocean area that can teach students about local marine sources and research being conducted. Students can go on a whale watching trip to view some of the largest animals on the planet.

The  Nantucket Whaling Museum  discusses the fascinating history of whaling on the small island of Nantucket. An interactive exhibit discusses the sinking of the whale ship  Essex  and its retelling in different forms, including Herman Melville’s  Moby Dic,  and the upcoming Hollywood film  In the Heart of the Sea .

A small public aquarium in Woods Hole, the Woods Hole Science Aquarium was established in 1875, making it the country’s oldest public aquarium. Some 80 species of marine animals found in Northeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S. waters are on display. The aquarium is designed for self-guided tours of the main exhibits and a behind-the-scenes look at aquarium operations. Aquarium staffers have created materials to help parents, teachers, kids and visitors learn more about sea life.

Main photo: Arboretum in Spring

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Guided Educational Field Trip Opportunities in West-Central Massachusetts

For school and other educational groups, scouts, and summer camps. We create a dynamic, hands-on, minds-on experience where each student is an active participant. Adult learning groups welcome! Programs are offered free of charge (Parking fees may apply). Donations are gratefully accepted but not expected.

Table of Contents

Mt. sugarloaf state reservation.

Mt. Sugarloaf State Reservation 300 Sugarloaf Street, South Deerfield  

Introduction - A View from the Top

Description, format and location  - The view from the summit of Mt. Sugarloaf is perhaps the most iconic in all the Connecticut River Valley.  See evidence of ancient geological history, human settlement, agricultural, industrial, recreational, and "knowledge economy" land use as well as examples of conserved land.  The mountain itself has strong connections with cultural history and was once the site of a vacation-style hotel.  Discussion-style format.  Done on the lawn or in the pavilion at the summit of Mt. Sugarloaf.

• Ages - Grades K through adult
• Available -  Mid-May through mid-October
• Group size - Up to two classroom size groups (up to  50 students).
• Length -10 to 20 minutes
• Curriculum connections - Geologic processes.  Local history.  Resource management

  Local History, Long Ago  

Description, format and location - This series of short informational programs and hands-on activities highlight various features of the mountain's history.  Select the segments that you want.  Done at the summit. 

  Available -  Mid-May through mid-October

• Recommended for preK-1.  Up to two classroom size groups (50 students) .  Approximately ten minutes.  
• Recommended for K-5. Up to two classroom size groups (50 students).  Approximately 15 minutes. 
• Recommended for upper elementary.  One classroom-size group (up to 25 students).  Approximately 20 minutes. 
• Recommended for K-5.  One classroom-size group (up to 25 students).  Approximately 20 minutes. 

Other guided program options include   Guided hike to the summit with a few featured nature stops;  Guided springtime hike to the summit featuring bird-specific adaptations to three habitats.

• Recommended for K-5.  One classroom-size group (up to 25 students) for best learning outcomes.  Approximately 45 - 60 minutes.

Teacher-Led Options   Sum of the Parts  

  Description, format and location - The summit of Mt. Sugarloaf makes a perfect backdrop for this hands-on land-use planning activity.  Students work in small teams or "families" and decide how they want to use a piece of riverfront property.  They present their plans to the other teams.  A subsequent discussion helps everyone understand that we all live downstream.   The Regional Educator can supply materials.  Adapted from Project WET (Watershed Education for Teachers). 

• Ages - Recommended for upper elementary and middle school
• Available - Mid-May through mid-October
• Group size - One classroom-size group
• Length - Approximately 45 minutes 

  Journaling, poetry, or sketching 

Description, format and location -  New England's landscapes have inspired writers, poets and painters from the early 1800's onward.  The same is true for school groups that visit Mt. Sugarloaf’s summit today.  Use a writing prompt, suggest a poem structure, frame a scene, or just let your students' imaginations fly. Done at the summit.

  Logistics and Amenities

For information or to schedule your group, please contact Gini Traub, Regional Educator, 617/699-2387; [email protected]   

  Vehicle entrance fee.  Large vans OK.  Full-size buses park at the base of the mountain because of the steep, curving road.  Pavilion rental with advance reservation (wheelchair accessible).  Small picnic grove.  Very small indoor restroom and bubbler(wheelchair accessible).  Viewing tower.

  Auto road to summit is paved with steep sections; approximately 1 mile each way.

  Trail to summit has some steep rocky and heavily eroded section.  One section is not recommended for school groups; we switch to the paved road instead.  Approximately 1 mile each way.

Additional Resources   for Mt. Sugarloaf State Reservation

Mt. tom state reservation.

Mt. Tom State Reservation   125 Reservation  Road, Holyoke

This Valley Rocks - Geological History and Landforms of the Connecticut River Valley and Hilltowns

Description, format and location - Take a field walk looking for examples of geological processes, rock types, and land forms.   An extra segment can connect field walk observations with a hands-on demonstration of Valley geohistory.   Guided hike with featured stops on the Nature Trail near the pavilion.  The hands-on demonstration is done outdoors in classroom-size groups, sub-divided into small-group learning stations.

•   Ages - Grades 3-8 
• Available – Spring through fall
• Group size – One classroom size group (up to 25 students) for safety on the trail and for better learning outcomes.  The hands-on demonstration is done outdoors in classroom-size groups, sub-divided into small-group learning stations.
• Length – One-half to three-quarters mile, depending on the route taken.  At least 45 minutes for the walk.  Up to 1.5 hours if the full hands-on demonstration is included
• Curriculum connections - Geological processes, rock cycle, rock types, landforms.  Can include maps, land use, civics
• Other  - The w alk can be done as a shorter loop (1/2 mile) or a longer one (3/4 mile).  The longer loop has a short, very steep, section, reasonably well graded and has more content (i.e., walking on the top of the lava flow, noticing its massive form, stopping at a west-facing vista to take in the valley and hilltowns, observing the ridge's forest type, and examining talus that could be used as pre-historic tools.) Both trail options are rooty and rocky with uneven footing.

Forest in the Park - Ecology at Bray Lake

Description,   format and location - The forest at Mt. Tom's Bray Lake is ever-changing.  See those changes, discover the reasons why, and examine interactions among the components of a forest ecosystem. Notice what it takes to maintain a park environment within this ecosystem.  This short-distance guided hike has featured stops at Bray Lake, traveling out to a former beaver dam and back on easy terrain, approximately 1/2 mile. 

• Ages - Grades 3-5, adaptable for older and younger students  
• Available - Early spring - late fall
• Group size – One classroom size group (up to 25 students) is strongly recommended for best learning outcomes
• Length  - One-half to three-quarters mile depending on the route taken.  45 minutes minimum.  Up to 1.5 hours for a more in-depth exploration or the full walk around Bray Lake
• Curriculum connections - Biotic factors - plants and animals; Abiotic factors - soils, water, weather.  Ecology.  Adaptations.  Decomposition.  Succession.  Resource management.
•  - If a wheelchair-accessible program is required, the walk can be done entirely on the accessible trail.
•  - If time permits a longer walk, students can make a loop around Bray Lake. The trail beyond the former beaver dam is a bit more difficult because of roots, rocks, cross slope, and mud; but it is not particularly steep.    

Eyrie House "Tour"   

Description,   format and location - Mountaintop family vacations became popular in the second half of 1800's.  This guided "tour" of featured stops at the Eyrie House Hotel ruins, supplemented with historic photos and maps, shows what the hotel offered its guests and tells the story of the proprietor's entrepreneurial spirit.  The Eyrie House is reached by walking along the northern stretch of Christopher Clark road, now closed to vehicles, an out-and-back of 3 miles round trip.  The tour is on a combination of well-graded footpath, rock outcrop, and loose rocks.

•   Ages  - Grades 6 - adult  
• Available - Spring - fall 
• Group size – One classroom size group (up to 25 students) is recommended for safety and for best learning outcomes.
• Length – Three miles round trip.  Two hours includes both the tour and the out-and-back walk. 
• Curriculum connections - Local history. Historic context and social customs. Technological changes. 
• Other – Can be a teacher-led tour as part of a round-robin.  The Regional Educator can supply information and materials. 

History of Land Use Along Little Tom Mountain

Description, format and location  - The forest's appearance changes along this walk because of the various ways the land has been used over the past 100+ years. We see highly-managed parklands, less managed forest trails, former pasture, areas overtaken by invasive plants, and a carefully-managed landscape with invasive plants removed.  An expansive vista at the turn-around gives participants the opportunity to see and discuss land use decision making. Guided hike with featured stops, beginning at Bray Lake, along the Little Tom ridge, to the Route 91 overlook and back.

• Ages  - Grades 6-adult
• Available - Spring through fall
• Group Size – One classroom size group (up to 25 students) for safety and for best learning outcomes
• Length – Two miles.   Approximately two hours
• Curriculum connections - History.  Resource management.  Ecology.  Invasive plants.
•  - An out-and-back of one mile each way. One short but extremely steep section. The rest is relatively flat to rolling. Expansive east-facing vista at the turn-around point is a highlight of the walk. 

 - Can be lengthened by additional 1.5 mile and one+ hour to include other land use examples (former ski slope and quarry now preserved to protect endangered species; see old-growth trees.) Requires three very shallow stream crossings with no bridges.   

Teacher-Led Round Robin Options

Regional Educator can suggest activities from Project Learning Tree®  to support Forest in the Park at Bray Lake.

If the bus can stay with the group  - Teachers can lead one of the core programs, including Dinosaur Detective at Dinosaur Footprints, while the Regional Educator leads the other. The Regional Educator can supply information and materials.

Other round robin options - Self guided hikes near the nature trail and pavilion.  The Regional Educator can make suggestions.

Additional Resources   for Mt. Tom State Reservation

Dinosaur footprints reservation.

Dinosaur Footprints (a Trustees of Reservations property, two miles south of the Route 5 entrance road to Mt. Tom State Reservation)

Dinosaur Detective

Description, format and location -    Paleontologists carefully recorded and shared their observations of dinosaur footprints, contributing to our ever-changing understanding of these animals.  Students work in small groups and use the current footprints map to locate different dinosaur species and trails.  They measure track size, stride length, and use comparative anatomy to calculate hip height.  They examine ripple marks to infer environmental conditions 200 million years ago.  At the dinosaur footprints.

•   Ages - Grades 3-8 (can be adapted for younger children) 
• Available - April through November
• Group size -  One classroom size group (up to 25 students) for safety and for best learning outcomes
• Length - 30 - 45 minutes
• Curriculum connections - Observation.  Inference.  Measurement.  Comparative anatomy. Constructing explanations.  Using maps.  Historic context. Resource management. 
• Other  - Can be teacher-led as part of a round-robin with other activities at nearby Mt. Tom State Reservation.  The Regional Educator can supply information and materials.

Logistics and Amenities

For information or to schedule your group, please contact Gini Traub, Regional Educator, 617/699-2387;  [email protected]

The site is on State Route 5, approximately two miles south of Mount Tom State Reservation's Route 5 entrance. 

Parking is in a small pull-off on the east (northbound) side of Route 5. The trackway is reached from parking lot via a short, graded path and boardwalk downhill to the rock slabs.  It is not wheelchair accessible.  No facilities.

Trackways are on sloping rock slabs, slippery when wet.  Keep groups away from the culvert at the far (north) end of the trackway.  Please do not cross railroad tracks or go to the rock outcrops on the Connecticut River.  To better preserve the footprints, plaster casting is not permitted.

This site is owned and managed by the Trustees of Reservations with assistance from the Department of Conservation and Recreation.  An agreement between TToR and DCR permits DCR to lead programs at the site.

Skinner State Park

Skinner State Park    10 Skinner State Park Road, Hadley

A Meaningful (Over)view at Mt. Holyoke's Summit

• Description, format and location - Proclaimed as "The finest cultivated view in New England," the vista from the summit of Mt. Holyoke at Skinner State Park made it one of the most popular tourist destinations in the United States in the early 1800’s. What did the view mean to visitors back then?  What does it mean to us today?  Welcome and introduction on the Summit House deck or in the picnic grove.  
•   Ages  - Elementary grades through adult
• Available - Mid-May through mid-October
• Group size  - One classroom size group (up to 25 students) is recommended for better learning outcomes and space limitations. 
• Length - Ten minutes.  Can be lengthened to introduce other topics such as geology or the history of tourism and vacations.
• Curriculum connections  - Local and national history.

  This Valley Rocks: Geological History and Landforms of the Connecticut River Valley and Hilltowns

Description, format and location - Take a field walk, looking for examples of geological processes, rock types, and land forms.  Put observations together in an optional hands-on demonstration of Valley geohistory.  Guided hike with featured stops between the Halfway Area and the summit of Mt. Holyoke, typically along the auto road and with two short side trails to significant geological features.  An optional hands-on demonstration at the summit connects examples seen on the walk with geological history and processes.

• Ages - Grades 3-8  
• Group size  - One classroom size group is strongly recommended for safety concerns and for best learning outcomes.  The guided hike portion can accommodate two classroom size groups when teachers and chaperones actively participate and help facilitate learning.  The hands-on demonstration is done at the summit in classroom-size groups, sub-divided into small-group learning stations.
• Length  - Guided hike to the summit with featured stops is approximately 2.3 miles round trip and takes one to 1.5 hour.  Hands-on demonstration is approximately 30-40 minutes per group.  
• Curriculum connections -  Geological processes, rock cycle, rock types, landforms.  Optional: Maps, land use, civics.
•  - The walk to the summit is typically along the paved auto road, steep in places.  Side trails to two significant geologic features are on short and somewhat graded trails.  Moderate pace with stops.

The House on the Hill

Description, format and location - Mountain top hotels were popular vacation destinations during the second half of the 1800's and into the early 1900's. John and Fannie French built the Summit House Hotel in 1850 and ran it until they died in the 1890’s. This tour touches on John's entrepreneurial spirit and the changes he made to keep the hotel a popular destination. We look at the context for its decline, the period of conservation efforts, the hotel's subsequent restoration, and on-going issues of land protection.  Guided tour is conducted in a question and answer format inside the summit house on the first and second floors

• Grades  - 3 - 8  
• Available  - Memorial Day through mid-October
• Group size - One classroom size group (up to 25 students) for best learning outcomes.  For larger groups, please see "Summit Scholar" below, or select a round robin option.
• Length - 30-45 minutes   
• Curriculum connections  - Local history, social customs, technology, entrepreneurship, civics.
• Other  - The deck and first floor are wheelchair accessible; second floor is not.  

Semi-Guided Field Trip Programs Summit Scholar

Description format and location  - Students become anthropologists looking at objects and displays inside the Summit House.  They find answers and make inferences about the building and about family vacations at the Summit House during its years as a hotel. Semi-guided program; students work in small groups on the Summit House’s first and second floors. The Regional Educator can help with questions during the program. Time permitting, we debrief answers at the end.

• Ages - Grades 4-8 
• Available - Memorial Day through mid-October
• Group size   Up to two classroom size groups, with students working in small teams with a teacher or chaperone. 
• Length  - 30-45 minutes.  For best learning outcomes, include several minutes debriefing the activity. Can be done in less time with fewer questions.
• Curriculum connections    Observation and inference.  Reading for information.  Technology.  Social customs/popular culture.  
• Other  - The deck and first floor are wheelchair accessible; second floor is not. 

“Three Things” Summit House Tour

Description, format and location - Students look through the first and second floor of the Summit House.  They find three “interesting” items, sketch the items and describe them in as much detail as they can in their notebook.  Next, they think of three questions, or three things that they are curious about and write them down.  They hypothesize answers and list how they would find the answer to these questions. If time permits, the Regional Educator is available to answer questions.  Otherwise, debriefing is a post field trip activity back at the classroom.

•   Ages – Grades 4 and up
• Group size – Up to two classroom size groups if chaperones and teachers help facilitate the experience.
• Available – Memorial Day through mid-October  
• Length – Approximately 30 minutes.  More for a deeper discussion about conducting historic research
• Curriculum connections – Local history.  Making and recording observations.  Using observations to make inferences.  Asking questions. Conducting research.
• Other - The deck and first floor are wheelchair accessible; second floor is not. 

  Teacher led Options   also suitable for round-robin activities   Journaling, Poetry, or Sketching

Description, format and location -  From the early 1800's onward, writers, poets, and painters found inspiration for their work on the summit of Mt. Holyoke.  The same is true for students who visit the summit today.  Use a writing prompt, give a poem structure, frame a scene, or just let your students' imaginations fly.  On the Summit House deck or in the picnic grove

• Ages - All 
• Available - Mid-May through mid-October  
• Length -  Variable, as time permits.

What Do I See?  

Description, format and location - Use the view to point out different towns, cities, infrastructure, landforms and land use.  Do this as a discussion or as a “fill-in-the-map” activity.  Please speak with the Regional Educator for examples.  On the Summit House deck or in the picnic grove.

• Ages -  Grades K and up
• Available - mid-May through mid-October
• Length - v ariable, as time permit s

Map and Compass

Description, format and location - Use the view to reinforce map and compass skills or to illustrate the concept of magnetic declination. On the Summit House deck

• Grades - 4 and up
• Group size -   One classroom-size group (up to 25 students) because of space limitations
• Length - variable, as time permits
• - Requires prior learning of map and compass basics; please bring your own compasses. Laminated color copies of U.S.G.S. maps can be borrowed from the park.

The year-round contact is Gini Traub, Regional Educator, 617/699-2387; [email protected]  

From mid-April through mid-October, you can also contact the Skinner State Park Interpreter, 413/586-0350, [email protected]

Vehicle entrance fee (varies by days and season).  Cars and vans can drive to the summit.  Full-size buses can drop off and pick up groups at the Halfway Area and park outside of the park's main gate.  Because of the road's narrow width and steep pitch, they cannot drive to the summit.

Students arriving by bus access the summit via the paved auto road or trails.  Steep sections; most are reasonably well graded.  One-half to one mile each way, depending on route selected.

The deck, first floor of Summit House  and restrooms/bubbler are wheelchair accessible.  Small picnic grove. 

Additional Resources   for Skinner State Park

Related guides.

• Guide to Recreation in State Parks 
• Visiting Massachusetts State Parks Guide 

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Field Trips

Educating people of all ages is central to RTB’s mission. The farm is a living laboratory- where the potential for hands-on learning and experiential discovery is limitless. We provide school field trips with additional on-site workshops.

RTB’s educational programs are aligned to Massachusetts state science standards and support classroom learning. We welcome public, private, vocational and charter schools, as well as homeschooled students. We serve all grades through post secondary. We will work with educators to customize a relevant and engaging experience for youth.

Explore the list of RTB’s educational offerings or work with us to create your own unique field trip!

Field trip structure and price break down:

Field trips are half-day experiences (4 hours) from 10:00am-2:00pm (timeframe is flexible) and include:

• 1.5 hours tour of the farm
• 30 minutes lunch
• Your choice of 2 or 4 of RTB’s educational offerings (each session lasts 30 minutes or an hour, depending on the age of students and desire of depth of content). Note: programs are season dependent and not always available. (click here for offerings)

$15 per student ( sliding scale of $5-$20 per student)

Equitable access to education is important. Our educational programming is based on a sliding scale to ensure that all youth can experience the farm. On average we charge $15 per student- if you need to pay less (or can’t pay at all) that’s fine. Pay what you can and any amount above $15 will be applied to scholarships for other youth! Thanks for your generosity.

A brown bag lunch needs to be provided by the student or school. And don’t forget to bring a reusable water bottle. At RTB, we strive to eliminate waste as much as possible. This means minimizing trash- please take your trash with you when you leave. We can recycle or compost food scraps. In addition, if it is within the budget, and scheduling allows, we could serve a farm-fresh, organic lunch or snacks. Please inquire if interested.

List of things to bring:

Brown bag lunch Reusable water bottle Appropriate footwear and clothing for the season Sunscreen

Contact info: [email protected]

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Round the Bend Farm (RTB), a Center for Restorative Community, located in Dartmouth, Massachusetts is a working farm and educational non-profit. We are a living laboratory that cultivates, educates, and empowers people of all ages. We are devoted to the global paradigm shift toward hope and abundance by valuing diversity, modeling nature, and redefining wealth.

92 Allens Neck Road, South Dartmouth, MA 02748

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School Field Trips

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School Field Trip in MA | Aerial Park | Boundless Adventures :: Boundless Adventures

A school field trip: learning through our high ropes challenge course.

Our mission is to empower and inspire people to challenge themselves both mentally and physically. With challenge comes greater self-confidence and achievement. To Be Boundless: Have No Limits.

What To Expect

"Broke Down The Usual Middle School Social Order"

Between helping to plan the trip and the countless questions we had, to your staff giving us regular updates on waivers, the experience leading up to it was very helpful. As for the day itself, it couldn’t have gone better. It was so great to see students challenge themselves and try new experiences. The activity broke down the usual “middle school social order” and we saw typically quiet and reserved students excelling, “coaching” and helping their peers. Many of the students came to us after and said it was their favorite day of the week by far. On a personal note, I enjoyed it very much and plan on taking my family at some point this summer.

– Mike B

“My trip to Boundless Adventures prepared me for school because it made me courageous and brought me out of my comfort zone. I’ve been down on myself this past year starting high school. This school year I plan on taking this courage I found at Boundless Adventures and apply it to my life”

Miranda C – Auburn High School – Age 15

“How far away from the ground on the blue level?  How many steps are that ladder? When you’re on a zip line why do you drop close to the ground? How many wood blocks did it take to make that platform?”

Amelia P – PS 15 Yonkers – Age 10

“As the building principal what touched me the most was the encouragement and support I heard from the students and staff as the accomplished all sorts of trials and tribulations in the treetops.”

Trisha N – Hutchinson Elementary School – Principal

“The mental side is just as strong if not stronger than the physical side. I mean yes you have to be able to physically do all of the obstacles, but if you can figure out a plan and know before you start climbing how you can successfully climb across then you will be able to do it”

Sophia H – Advanced Math & Science Academy – Age 11

Field Trip Planner

Our Field Trip Planner makes planning your trip a breeze. Get details on what to expect and ideas for after trip discussions.

Before You Book: Reserving

What grades is this activity appropriate for?

Boundless Adventures is great for grades 4-12 as well as college-aged students. Given the diversity of the courses, our park is appropriate for everyone from young children to even the most athletic adrenaline junkies (not that these two groups are mutually exclusive).

How do I reserve a group?

Simply fill out the inquiry form above. Someone from our sales team will reach out to you shortly! You can also call us as well at 978-592-0017. We are extremely responsive and will be there for you throughout the process.

What times are available for group reservations?

During the spring and fall, when we are closed to the public on weekdays, we can open the park for groups of 25 or more participants.

Weekends (Saturdays, Sundays & Holidays) – Due to strong demand on the weekends, we have limited capacity for group reservations. The school group rate is deeply discounted, and not available on weekends. You are always welcome to book at our normal group rate of $49/person.

What is the group cancellation policy?

Cancellations made 30-60 days in advance of reservation

For groups consisting of 25 or more participants, you will receive a refund of all amounts paid, less a cancellation fee of $500.

Cancellations/Reschedules/Group Reductions made between 7 to 29 days in advance of reservation

You will incur a cancellation fee equal to 50% of the contracted amount. In the case of group reductions, the fee is 50% of the cost for the cancelled group members.

Cancellations/Reschedules/Group Reductions made less than 7 days in advance of reservation

You will incur a cancellation fee equal to 75% of the contracted amount. In the case of group reductions, the fee is 75% of the cost for cancelled group members. That fee is waived if the cancellation is weather related. In that event, you can always reschedule your visit with no penalty, as long as you provide at least one hour advance notice.

We do not provide any refunds within 30 days of the scheduled visit. All credits are in the form of a store credit. Store credits never expire.

If you fail to show on the day/time of your scheduled reservation you will not be eligible for a refund or credit.

What if I have last minute add-ons?

We know it is challenging to provide an exact count! We wish we could let you tell us at the last minute. However, we have a limited capacity in the park, and the best way to accommodate the capacity constraints is to require payment in full for a firm headcount seven days in advance. Last minute additions are welcome at the same day group rate (subject to harness availability). Keep in mind, last minute additions also lead to additional time spent checking waivers which can cut into your climb time.

Do you require a deposit and when is full payment due?

We request a 50% deposit upon booking, and full payment 7 days in advance of the reservation. We do understand that this doesn’t work for certain schools, and we are happy to work with you.

Before You Come: Waivers

Where can I find the waiver?

When you reserve, you will receive a unique electronic waiver link in your email confirmation.

For Group Leaders : In your email confirmation, you will see a URL that says “Forward this link to all of your guests”. This link is tied to your specific event. That will link your guests’ waivers to your party. Even if your party guest has been here before, we ask that they still click on the link and provide their email address to link their waiver to your party.

You will also receive a link entitled “Group Waiver Management”. This will provide you with a real-time picture as to who has completed the waivers. We ask that you put checkmarks next to the participants, and mark those that are not attending, as “not participating”.

Group Guests: Please contact your group leader, and ask them to share the waiver link with you.

Why is it important for all of my guests to complete the waiver in advance?

We want your event to exceed your expectations. The first step is to ensure a smooth check in process. If the waivers are not completed in advance, it can delay your start time by up to an hour. Often, the end time is set on your invitations. Hence, a delayed start can result in an abbreviated climbing experience.

In your email confirmation, you will see a URL that says “Forward this link to all of your guests”. This link is tied to your specific event. That will link your guests’ waivers to your party. Even if your students have been here before, we ask that they still click on the link and provide their email address to link their waiver to your party.

We know this seems complicated. That is because often mom completes the waiver, but mom isn’t participating. Other times, someone completes the waiver, but has a conflict and is unable to attend. You are the one who needs to tell us who is part of your group event, and who is not.

If you arrive with all of the waivers completed in advance, and your guests arrive on time, we guarantee that you will not be delayed!

Planning Your Event

What will a day in the trees look like?

When you arrive at Boundless Adventures in Berlin, you will first visit our reception center. Our staff will then escort your group to the park. Once there, your students (and participating chaperones) will get harnesses and receive a safety briefing (30-60 minutes depending on the size of the group) on how to zipline and climb on our high ropes course. They will then have 3 hours of developmental team building activities utilizing the “Challenge by Choice” principle. Participants will be given the opportunity to traverse different trails of varying difficulty with their classmates. During this time, they will work together to overcome challenges, inspire each other to face fears, and leave with a better understanding of themselves and their peers.

How does Boundless Adventures incorporate CASEL Core SEL Competency principals?

Self-Awareness

A. Identifying emotions 1. Guests are encouraged to continuously monitor how they are feeling and how it changes. Some climbers may arrive feeling nervous, confident, excited, anxious, etc. Once they begin climbing and throughout the experience their emotions evolve. 2. We provide a trip planner that should be utilized both before and after the trip to reflect on the range of emotions felt before, during and after the outing.

B. Accurate self-perception 1. Climbers must evaluate which level course they would like to try- Beginner, Moderate, Advanced, or Expert. If they do not portray an accurate self-perception, they may find themselves in over their head and wishing they were on a less challenging course or that they underestimated themselves and they should have chosen a more challenging course.

C. Recognizing strengths 1. Climbers will start to realize which types of obstacles they excel at. Some climbers enjoy the zip lines while others like the challenging obstacles. Perhaps obstacles where balance is highlighted more than physical strength is easier for some and vice versa. 2. Individuals realize that they have more than just physical strengths. Leadership qualities emerge and problem-solving tactics are taking place.

D. Self-confidence 1. Confidence is gained with every obstacle that is successfully completed. As climbers progress through the courses and meet their goals, they start to trust their abilities and judgement. Their sense of doubt in themselves significantly diminishes.

E. Self-efficacy 1. Guests practice the self- efficacy theory of motivation through experience, vicarious experience, social persuasion, and positive physiological feedback.

Self-Management

A. Impulse control 1. Boundless Adventures has rules in place for safety purposes and to preserve the environment. When students are excited, they must control their impulse to run to the starting platform, have more than one person on an element at a time, and to leave the predetermined nature trail to create a shortcut to their destination.

B. Stress management 1. Stress management techniques are practiced on the course including positive attitudes, exercise, social support, deep breathing, mindfulness, and nature stress relief.

C. Self-motivation 1. Guests are welcome to ask for assistance off a course at any time, but the majority of the climbers would rather practice self-motivation to push through a challenging moment. Climbers are often overheard talking themselves up or asking staff to watch them but not help because they want to accomplish it themselves. 2. With the Bornack SSB clips employed for safety, we are able to provide a setting that fosters self-reliance.

D. Goal setting 1. Guests are encouraged to set a goal of which courses they would like to complete. With 4 levels of difficulty, there are many opportunities for goal setting. As the experience progresses, they reflect on how their goals are being met and if they should adjust them.

Social Awareness

A. Empathy 1. Boundless Adventures offers a unique experience which allows guests to have the ability to understand and share what the other climbers are feeling. Everyone has the same feelings of excitement, nervousness, exhaustion, and thrill. 2. Our activity provides a uniquely level playing field, breaking down the social norms that typically exist in groups.

B. Respect for others 1. Boundless Adventures is a positive environment for people to grow. While at the park everyone will be mindful of their words and actions to promote respect for their peers, staff, and the environment. 2. We foster a “challenge by choice” philosophy whereby everyone’s role in the day is respected, and there is no tolerance for intimidation or group pressure.

Relationship Skills

A. Communication 1. Climbers communicate with staff and their peers while they are in the trees. They describe challenges they are facing, ask for advice about specific elements, and alert a staff member if they would like to get down from a course. 2. When teachers participate, we find that not only does peer communication improve, but the teacher student relationship can be strengthened. 3. We can create climbing teams to foster better communication between certain members of the group if this is applicable. 4. **Depending on the group’s requirements, we can offer icebreakers at the beginning of the day. This is particularly useful for groups that either have dysfunctional cliques or involve subgroups coming together.

B. Teamwork 1. Independent climbers are working together to complete the courses. Word of encouragement, advice on how to complete an obstacle, and what to expect ahead are exchanged. 2. Aspects of teamwork practiced on the course include motivation, individual qualities, developing relationships, healthy competition, and problem solving. 3. **Depending on the group’s requirements, we can offer activities on the ground that fosters teamwork. These activities can be active or can have a problem-solving component to it.

Responsible Decision-Making

A. Identifying problems 1. Each element offers a different obstacle to solve.

B. Analyzing Situations 1. Each course and element offer an opportunity to examine the circumstances, identify perceived risks, and identify any relevant information they may need to complete the task.

C. Solving Problems 1. Climbers employ a variety of problem-solving techniques in the park such as brain storming, lateral thinking, means-end analysis, reduction, root-cause analysis, and trial and error.

D. Evaluating 1. Guests assess each course prior to climbing it. Ideas about how many zip lines, challenging obstacles, or moving elements are made. Guests then relate that information to how they are feeling emotionally and physically to see if it is a good fit for their next challenge.

E. Reflection 1. At the end of the experience the group is encouraged to gather for a moment to debrief. This is the most important part of team building because it is when the value of the experience is realized. During this process the group will share ideas, opinions, what worked, what didn’t, what they would have done differently, and how it can be applied in our everyday lives. Each of the CASEL core SEL competencies should be touched on during this time. This is essential for personal and team growth. 2. **We can facilitate a discussion about the day with a debriefing.

** For an additional $10/guest, we can add 1 hour of structured facilitation. The “**” items are typically part of that hour, but we tailor it to the group dynamics and what the group goals are.

Is this activity educational or recreational?

Both! We provide your school with a “Before the Trip” and an “After the Trip” questionnaire to give your students. This is very helpful to get the students to learn about themselves and their classmates, improve on their teamwork skills, and gain self-confidence which will help them take more risks when they need to do public speaking, creative writing, and scientific experimentation. However, all of this learning will take place while they are having an amazing time. Some will even say it was their best day ever!

How many chaperones do I need?

We allow for one free chaperone to climb for every ten paid climbers. Additional climbing chaperones would pay the school group rate. Non-climbing chaperones can come at no cost.

For the younger kids, the more the merrier. There are course restrictions that are age based, and the chaperones can take the students on the more advanced courses. For kids 14+ the free chaperones are a perk as opposed to a requirement.

Is there a place to park the bus?

Yes. Parking is free and conveniently located on site.

What do we do about food?

We have picnic tables throughout the park. We sell snacks and drinks for your convenience. You are welcome to bring your own food, or have food delivered.

What if it rains?

We are open rain or shine. If you prefer to reschedule your group due to inclimate weather, we are happy to do so as well.

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Here Are 14 Unique Day Trips In Massachusetts That Are An Absolute Must-Do

Massachusetts native. Freelance writer and strawberry eater.

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There’s always a little more to explore in Massachusetts. Just when you think you’ve visited every interesting nook and cranny, another must-visit destination pops up on your radar. We wouldn’t have it any other way, so here are 14 more wonderful and unique day trip ideas for your next weekend adventure. These are some of the best day trips in Massachusetts you can take!

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Have you been on any of the day trips in Massachusetts featured here? Let us know which ones in the comments. Or, if you have discovered any fun day trips near you, be sure to share those as well. If you’re looking for more Massachusetts activity inspiration, check out these nine picturesque trails that are perfect for hiking any time of year.

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Best day trips in massachusetts.

What are some of the most unique things to do in Massachusetts?

Some of the most unique things to do in Massachusetts are to find the hidden gems around the Bay State .

• Peruse the shelves of the Brattle Book Shop to find your next read
• Check out the oddities at The Warren Anatomical Museum
• Take in the views at Castle Hill at the Crane Estate

What are some of the best road trips in Massachusetts?

Some of the best road trips in Massachusetts include:

• The Massachusetts Ice Cream Trail
• A Hidden Beaches Road Trip
• A Massachusetts Castle Road Trip
• An Abandoned Places Road Trip

There are plenty of road trip ideas around the state but if you don’t want to plan your own, don’t worry. We did some hard work and put together a list of road trips around Massachusetts . Take your taste buds on a tour of the best ice cream shops along an ice cream road trip or, perhaps, check out some of the state’s most beautiful hidden beaches. The world is your oyster!

What are some of the most relaxing getaway spots in Massachusetts?

Some of the most relaxing getaway spots in Massachusetts include:

• A waterfront getaway in Gloucester
• Ocean Edge Resort
• The Harbor View Hotel

Whether you enjoy the beach or mountains, we are so lucky in the Bay State to have the options we do. A relaxing stay by the water may take you to Ocean Edge Resort while a stay at a cabin in the mountains may also sound ideal.

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10 Best Places to Live in Massachusetts, According to Local Real Estate Experts

These are the best places to live in Massachusetts, from small towns to bustling cities.

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From spectacular Atlantic beaches to the lush Taconic Mountains, Massachusetts is packed with natural beauty and history that draw both tourists and locals to destinations around the state. Boston, Plymouth, Cambridge, and Salem are popular destinations for travelers seeking history, while others prefer to enjoy Massachusetts's nature and head to Cape Cod, the Berkshires, Nantucket, and Martha's Vineyard. As a major economic hub in the Northeast, Massachusetts also draws entrepreneurs for its favorable business environment ( U.S. News & World Report placed it first among the best states for business in the country) and excellent academic institutions, churning out highly skilled graduates.

Considering a move to the Bay State? Here are 10 of the best places to live in Massachusetts, according to local real estate experts.

"Brookline is one of the most sought-after towns in Massachusetts because of its proximity to Boston, excellent public school system, and exceptional real estate offerings," Dave Costello, managing director at Advisors Living/Luxury Portfolio International , said of the historic town located just four miles southwest of downtown Boston. Its residents have easy access to the city (via the Green Line subway) and some of its best universities and medical facilities like Boston College and the Longwood Medical Area. 

While homes in Brookline don't come cheap — the median value is around $1,100,732 — the town has one of the most diverse housing markets in the Boston area, Costello explained, ranging from suburban estates to condos. Neighborhoods like Chestnut Hill feature a classic blend of old and new homes, while "Coolidge Corner and Washington Square offer handsome row houses and renovated condos," he added.

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Salem may have a reputation for being a spooky Halloween destination , but the town has much more to offer throughout the year. Affordable housing and proximity to Boston are just two factors that bring people here. The median home price is currently around $561,655. However, as Boston Magazine suggested, you should act fast as prices have skyrocketed in recent years.

The town's cityscape is characterized by historic buildings and residences as well as independent businesses. Salem has the second-deepest port in Massachusetts, which is good news for sailing enthusiasts (over 8,000 boats roam the waters of the Salem Sound).

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With its world-class museums, universities, and sports teams, Boston is one of America's most vibrant cities, blending historic charm and modern amenities. "Natural treasures such as Boston Harbor, The Public Garden, and Charles River offer outdoor enthusiasts and families plenty to do on a warm summer day. During the winter, a snowy walk down the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, illuminated by thousands of holiday lights, is simply beautiful," Costello said.

Despite the high cost of living in Boston, its role as a major economic, educational, and cultural hub in New England attracts professionals from around the globe.

"Buyers looking to purchase in Boston should start their home search early in the year. Winter is a great time to become familiar with our market and prepare for the most active period of the year: the spring market," Costello explained.

Related: 30 Best Things to Do in Boston

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"Situated on the Charles River, Cambridge is known for its charming neighborhoods, historic architecture, and tree-lined streets. From the young to the young at heart, and spanning all cultures, Cambridge offers an enriching living experience that captivates its residents," Ali Joyce, an agent at William Raveis Real Estate/Luxury Portfolio International , said. Of course, Cambridge is also a major academic hub, home to several universities, including Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

"Cambridge has over 20 distinct neighborhoods, each with its own flavor and advantages. A favorite destination for tourists and residents is, of course, Harvard Square. For higher density and high-rise buildings, you might prefer Inman Square, Kendall Square, Central Square, and Porter Square, and for a more residential vibe, head west," Joyce suggested.

Provincetown

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Located at the tip of Cape Cod , Provincetown is a place unlike any other. "We offer the unique charm of a small town, coupled with world-class entertainment, nightlife, restaurants, galleries, shops, and environmental beauty. We have a history steeped in maritime activity, theater, and the arts. Ptown, a common nickname for the town, thrives on its diversity and has long been a safe haven for the LBTQ community," Rob Tosner, an agent at William Raveis Real Estate, explained.

In the summer, the main drag, Commercial Street, buzzes with activity and events such as the annual Provincetown Portuguese Festival & Blessing of the Fleet and the Carnival Parade. The town is roughly divided into three areas — East End, Central, and West End — and you can find waterfront properties with ocean views in each of them.

The town is connected to Boston via a daily ferry service, which only takes about two and a half hours, and there's a small municipal airport, 10 minutes from downtown, serviced by Cape Air.

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Last year, WalletHub ranked this charming spot just outside of Boston as the second-best small city in the country and first in Massachusetts, scoring top results in the education and health category. Thanks to the excellent schools, safety, and amenities, Lexington is an incredibly sought-after community, especially by families.

"Homes in Lexington are so popular, it doesn't matter the style! Fortunately, we have a lot to choose from between our historic colonials and Victorians to the mid-century moderns seen in the Peacock Farm to the quintessential New England Cape [style]," Kenda Coleman, an agent at William Raveis Real Estate, said. 

However, Coleman added that limited inventory is an issue, which, together with the high demand, is driving home prices up. Currently, the median value stands at $1,474,565, up 11 percent since last year.

This town of about 40,000 in western Massachusetts is famous for its top-ranking colleges, natural beauty (the town is at the heart of Pioneer Valley), top-notch dining scene, diverse population, and endless outdoor activities.

"It is very family-friendly, boasting a sought-after elementary-through-high school education system, as well as many other private school options," Karen Stiles Jones, an agent at William Raveis Real Estate/Luxury Portfolio International, added. "Amherst's property values have a history of remaining strong and are consistently a great investment."

She explained that the town is home to a wide variety of home styles, from historic residences built in the 1700s to contemporary homes with modern amenities. However, they all have one thing in common. "A lot of buyers like the uniqueness of our inventory. Many buyers say they don't want a 'cookie cutter' home," Jones said. 

And while Massachusetts's real estate market is one of the priciest in the country, homes in Amherst have a median value of about $480,519, over $100,000 lower than the state's average of $596,410.

Springfield

Springfield is a magnet for people seeking affordable housing (the median home value is $262,276, lower than the national average and the lowest of all markets on this list) and endless outdoor recreation. The state's third-largest city is home to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum, and the expansive, 735-acre Forest Park. Plus, the city is just an hour away from the picturesque Berkshires.

"[Framingham] is a unique city where there are sections that encompass urban, suburban, and even rural living experiences," Scott Accorsini, managing director at Advisors Living/Luxury Portfolio International, explained, adding that the city is home to one of the largest Brazilian American communities in the country. 

Beyond the diverse communities and lifestyles available in the city, another major factor that has made Framingham a popular choice among newcomers is affordable housing. Unlike many other communities close to Boston, where the median home value reaches — and sometimes surpasses — the $1 million mark, median prices here currently stand at $608,815 .

"If you are looking to buy a property in Framingham, you can find anything from an urban-style condo to an equestrian farm," Accorsini explained, highlighting the neighborhood of Saxonville for its classic character.

Worcester is one of Massachusetts's largest cities, so it's an excellent option for those seeking big-city amenities without the high price tag of Boston's housing market (the city is only about an hour away). Worcester has a vibrant arts scene with many museums and performance arts venues, but it also caters to those who lead an active lifestyle, as the city is home to over 50 parks and 20 lakes and ponds.

The median home price in Worcester is $395,417, slightly above the national average but much lower than the median values for Boston or Massachusetts as a whole. The city is also No. 77 on U.S. News & World Report's list of best places to live in the country and 35th on the list of best places to retire.

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Nashoba Valley, while being a full-service ski area offering lessons, rentals, skiing, and snowboarding is also host to numerous other activities, all of which make Nashoba Valley Boston’s own year-round recreational facility.

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