Massachusetts Travel & Tourist Attractions
You'll be surprised how much Massachusetts has to offer - great beaches, outdoor fun, major-league sports, and a wealth of cultural activities. If your idea of a perfect getaway is to head straight to the shore, you'll find some spectacular places to set your beach umbrella. Prefer an active vacation? Massachusetts' parks, mountains, and rivers offer wide-open spaces and a chance to hike, bike, canoe, or rocket through whitewater rapids on a raft. Want to re-live the excitement and drama of America's past? Our living history museums and walking trails will transport you back in time.
Basketball Hall of Fame - Visit the birthplace of Basketball in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Battleship Cove - For over thirty years, Battleship Massachusetts has welcomed visitors of all ages. The historic naval ships, military exhibits, and related memorabilia tell the stories of brave sailors and their proud fighting days long ago. Walk where these sailors fought, man the guns they used to defend our freedom, or try on a Navy bunk for size!
Berkshire Museum - The Berkshire Museum, recognized as one of the finest small museums in the nation, is one of the few museums where art, history and the natural world are displayed in one place.
Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum - Excursion train rides between Lenox and Stockbridge two times per operation day. 20 mile, 2 1/2 hour round trip plus new permanent Gilded Age exhibit. Open Saturdays, Sundays and summer holidays from June through October.
Boston Children's Theater - For 75 years, the corporation now known as Boston Children's Theatre (BCT) has provided public services to the Boston Community. For the last 50 years, those activities have been devoted to children's theatre- 'Live Theatre for Children by Children .' BCT is one of the oldest children's theatrical organizations in the country.
Boston Harbor Cruises - Since 1926, Boston Harbor Cruises has been the city's premiere ticket to ride on Boston's extraordinary harbor. Cruises include whale watching, exclusive harbor island ferries, sightseeing cruises, private charters, special events and more.
Breezy Picnic Grounds Waterslides - Breezy Picnic Grounds is a family-owned recreational facility nestled in the heart of the Blackstone Valley National Heritage Corridor in south central Massachusetts. The facility features two 300' Alpine waterslides, picnic areas, lake swimming with 500 ft. beach & sandy areas for kids, game rooms, snack bar and more.
The Butterfly Place - The Butterfly Place is an indoor living environment which has been carefully designed for the propagation and development of some of nature’s most colorful living creations.
Buttonwood Park Zoo - Recently called “one of the finest small zoos in the United States” by the American Zoo and Aquarium Association, Buttonwood Park Zoo features over 250 animals, including elephants, bison, mountain lions, seals, otters and farm animals. Train rides and pony rides are available on a seasonable basis, plus weekly programs and a creative arts playgroup every Monday.
Cabot Street Cinema Theatre - Restored 1920 theatre offering magic shows and movie classics. Featuring Marco the Magi's Production of "Le Grand David".
Cape Cod Children's Museum - The Cape Cod Children's Museum is a place where families can learn and play together. The museum offers lots of hands on exhibits including a pirate ship, an indoor planetarium, puppet theater, toddler play area, gift shop and daily programs.
Cape Cod Duckmobile - The Cape Cod Duckmobile offers narrated land and sea tours aboard an amphibious vehicle.
Capron Park Zoo - Capron Park Zoo is dedicated to the professional management of animal species, and providing the public with educational programs and recreational activities. The zoo features animals from around the world, Asian rain forest, nocturnal building and more.
The Children's Museum - The Children's Museum in Boston exists to help children understand and enjoy the world in which they live. The Museum is the second oldest in the nation. The museum features a variety of interactive, hands-on exhibits that are great for children ages 10 and under. Some of the most popular are Climbing the Walls, Arthur's World, Bubbles, and PlaySpace.
Children's Museum of Easton - The Children's museum in Easton is a 'learning playground' where parents and children explore, imagine, and learn about our everyday world. The museum sparks curiosity, encourages questions and fosters creativity in children and adults through it's exhibits and programs. The Museum is a friendly place for children to explore.
Children's Museum at Holyoke - Located in the Heritage State Park Complex, the museum enhances the educational and cultural awareness of all children in the arts, the sciences, and the world around them in a museum environment which features participatory exhibits that invite the interaction of children and adults.
Davis' Farmland & MegaMaze - Two great parks and twice the fun. Davis' Mega Maze is a world class field maze. Designed for adults, but enjoyed by all ages, it's the ultimate 3-D challenge of your life! Davis' Farmland is ""home"" to the nation's largest exhibit of endangered farm animals and part of a seven generation family farm, operating in Sterling since 1846. Farmland features discovery learning.
Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary - Experience life on a working New England farm, complete with pigs, horses, cows, and more. Take a hayride along the farmyard trail and enjoy the sights and sounds of farm animals (see baby animals seasonally).
Duck Tours - Land and water tour aboard a huge World War II Duck (amphibious vehicle) tours last about 80 minutes.
Eco Tarium - EcoTarium is an environmental science museum set on 60 scenic acres just two miles from downtown Worcester, Massachusetts. Visit EcoTarium and explore exhibits on water, energy, ecosystems and more. a planetarium, wildlife, nature trails, the Express Train, special programs and more.
Edaville USA/Railroad - Edaville Railroad recreates the era when traveling was slower and the little things enjoyed a lot more. You'll enjoy a 30 minute ride on America's oldest authentic 2 foot, narrow gauge railway. Steam engines and diesel locomotives will pull passenger cars through 5 1/2 miles of beautiful Massachusetts landscape.
Fall River Carousel - Located at Battleship Cove is the magnificent Fall River Carousel. Fully restored to its previous splendor, this Philadelphia Toboggan Company Carousel #54 is now housed in a beautiful Victorian-style pavilion. This seventy-three year old carousel, with its 48 majestic steeds and two spectacular chariots, is the oldest functioning carousel in America.
Flying Horses Carousel - Located on Oak Bluffs Avenue in the heart of Oak Bluffs, this treasured carousel has been enjoyed by Vineyarders and visitors for more than a century.
Green Briar Nature Center and Jam Kitchen - The old jam kitchen was started in 1903 where they still make jam "the old fashioned way." The nature center is great for families with exhibits, nature trails, a wildflower garden and organized programs.
Hancock Shaker Village - Hancock Shaker Village is an outdoor history museum of Shaker life on 1,200 acres in the scenic Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. Its twenty original buildings and historic working farm and gardens preserve and interpret the life of America’s most successful communitarian society.
Harvard Museum of Natural History - Come face to face with one of the first Triceratops ever discovered, admire a 1,642 pound amethyst geode and wander through a "garden" of Glass Flowers. Presenting the collections and research of Harvard's natural history institutions, the HMNH is a fun learning experience for the whole family.
Higgins Armory Museum - The Higgins Armory Museum enjoys the distinction of being the only museum in the Western Hemisphere entirely devoted to the study and display of arms and armor. Artifacts ranging from Corinthian helmets of ancient Greece to ornate suits of armor from the height of the Renaissance give visitors an exciting glimpse into the past.
Historic Deerfield - Historic Deerfield is a museum of New England history and art within the carefully preserved 330 year old western Massachusetts village of Deerfield. See a collection of 18th and 19th century houses and the Flynt Center of Early New England Life filled with some of the great decorative arts treasures of early America.
John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum - The John F. Kennedy 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.
Lobster Tales - Enjoy a fun, affordable, ""hands-on"" lobstering experience as a one hour excursion takes you to haul lobster traps from historic Plymouth Harbor. One of the most popular cruises aboard Lobster Tales is a Pirate Cruise. Pirate passengers will set sail to reclaim a treasure chest lying beneath Plymouth Harbor.
Magic Wings - Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory & Gardens consists of a 14,400 square foot facility that includes a 4,000 sq. ft. glass conservatory filled with butterflies, moths and tropical vegetation.
Maria Mitchell Aquarium - Where but Nantucket could you find a real marine aquarium in a quaint waterfront shack? The marine organisms of Nantucket's salt marshes, harbors, and near shore waters await your acquaintance on Washington Street. There are friendly science interns to answer all your questions about the mollusks, crustaceans, and finfish, and hands-on exhibits for children.
Marino Lookout Farm - Marino Lookout Farm is recognized as the oldest continuously working farm in the country; it was first deeded in the late 1600's. The farm is a popular, family-oriented apple-picking working farm, with animal attractions, train rides, stagecoach rides and more.
Moby Duck Sightseeing - A unique 55 minute family experience aboard amphibious U.S.C.G. certified vessels. Enjoy this narrated tour, with your personal, licensed Captain at the helm and narration by your ""Duck Mate"". Your trip will provide spectacular panoramic views, by ""land and sea"". A calm sightseeing cruise will provide fun for the entire family.
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston - MFA is one of the most comprehensive art museums in the world; the collection encompasses over 400,000 works of art. More than one million visitors each year experience art from ancient Egyptian to contemporary, special exhibitions, and innovative educational programs.
Museum of Science - The museum is dedicated to stimulate interest in and further understanding of science and technology and their importance for individuals and for society.
New England Aquarium - The Aquariums extensive collection includes the exotic and the familiar. More than 70 exhibits feature aquatic animals from as far away as India, the Amazon Rain Forest and Hawaii and as near as the Maine coast. And marine mammals make a big splash in daily presentations aboard Discovery, a unique floating pavilion.
Ocean Spray's Cranberry World Visitors' Center - Exhibits and interactive displays bring you the history of the cranberry from Native American times to present day. Learn how cranberries are grown and harvested, how your favorite juice company was formed, and how the growers who own the company work at preserving the environment while bringing you the wonderful products you know and love. Free admission. 225 Water St., Plymouth. (508) 747-2350.
Old Sturbridge Village - Explore early New England in the company of farmers, craftsmen, and fascinating characters. Celebrate yesterday's proud traditions on your remarkable journey into America's past.
Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology - Founded in 1866, the Peabody Museum is one of the oldest museums in the world devoted to anthropology and houses one of the most comprehensive records of human cultural history in the Western Hemisphere.
Pilgrim Monument - Dedicated in 1910 to commemorate the first landing of the Pilgrims in Provincetown on November 21, 1620,the Pilgrim Monument is the tallest all-granite structure in the United States. Walk to the top of the Pilgrim Monument and delight in the panoramic view of Cape Cod Bay and Provincetown Harbor, including the sand dunes of the Cape Cod National Seashore.
Pioneer Village: Salem in 1630 - Step back in time to 17th century New England at Salem's oldest living history museum. Discover Salem 1630: Pioneer Village. It is a recreation of the English colony established by Roger Conant and his intrepid band of settlers. From these humbling beginnings the seeds of Revolution were planted.
Plimoth Plantation - Plimoth Plantation is a living history museum founded in 1947. The museum has grown from one small re-created house on the Plymouth waterfront to include three major open-air exhibits-the 1627 Pilgrim village, Hobbamock's Wampanoag Indian Homesite, Mayflower II and other facilities, exhibits and programs.
Plymouth Hall Museum - The oldest continuously operating public museum in the nation, a gallery museum that uses the actual 17th century Pilgrim possessions - the cradle of Peregrine White, the bible of William Bradford, the sword of Myles Standish - as well as Native American artifacts to tell the story of the Pilgrims and Plymouth Colony.
Plymouth National Wax Museum - The Wax Museum gives a graphic portrayal in the magic of light, sound, and animation. Recreating the persecuted years in England, the escape to Holland, the Mayflower voyage and the landing at Plymouth.
Salem Witch Museum - The Salem Witch Museum takes you 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.
Six Flags New England - The all-new Six Flags New England offers amazing thrills, rides and shows for the entire family - from a SUPERMAN megacoaster to a BATMAN stunt show to BUGS BUNNY and pals.
Skywalk Observatory - The Skywalk View and Exhibit on the 50th floor of the Prudential Tower, enables visitors to discover all of Boston, from its founding to the present. It uses the panoramic views of the city as prompts to highlight people and sites, which make the city special. Twenty nine different exhibits present approximately 300 pieces of information that show what is behind the 360 degree view.
Springfield Science Museum - The museum features a Dinosaur Hall; the multi-level R.E. Phelon African Hall, exhibits on African cultures; the Solutia Eco-Center, an aquarium and live animal center; Mineral Hall; hands-on exhibits; Native American Hall; a 100-seat planetarium; an observatory; and an exhibit on the Springfield-based aviation pioneers, the Granville Brothers.
Stone Zoo - Visit Stone Zoo to experience and learn about a variety of animals from around the world! The species you'll discover include arctic foxes, Mexican gray wolves, flamingos, and snow leopards, to name a few!
Thornton W. Burgess Museum - Here the life, works, and spirit of Thornton Burgess, renowned children’s author, naturalist, and Sandwich native are preserved in the 18th century house once owned by his Aunt Arabella. The museum collects, maintains and exhibits artifacts, art, writings and other personal and professional memorabilia which relate to his life and work.
U.S.S. Constitution - Located in Charlestown, the U.S.S. Constitution was launched in 1797 and served in the Navy of the fledgling United States. Today, the Constitution remains the world's oldest fully commissioned warship afloat.
Wenham Museum - A museum of family life, the Wenham Museum invites visitors of all ages to explore how we have lived, dressed, worked and played from the 17th century to today. The museum features the Claflin-Richards House, international doll collection, model and toy-train exhibit, toy soldiers and a play and learn room.
Whale Watching - Discover the great whales of the North Atlantic during a 4-hour Capt. John Boats Cape Cod whale watch adventure. Among the whale and marine mammal sightings are the Humpback Whale, Finback Whale, Minke Whale, Right Whale and Pilot whale, as well as dolphins, porpoises and seals.
Woods Hole Science Aquarium - One of the oldest aquariums in the country! Explore Cape cod sea life.
The Zoo in Forest Park - Visitors can see over 200 domestic and exotic animals. The zoo also features a Discovery Room, train rides, gardens, duck ponds, paddle boats, and picnicking.
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