A reader question:
Dear Muffy,
While you're in NE travel mode, could I kindly squeeze in another question?
After sadly losing nearest and dearest family members, my oldest friend, one old and one young dog in the past five years, I've realized that, at the age of 56 now, perhaps I ought to start actually planning those 'someday/one day' big trips that I've been thinking about for years (you never know what's around the corner). There's Norway, Japan and the Alps further afield, but Massachusetts is also on the list. I'd really appreciate any suggestions and recommendations from your readers for places to visit, anywhere but particularly in the west of the state. We plan to do the full tourist bit in Boston. I'm a dual UK/US citizen and I've long been fascinated with the Revolutionary War period (if I'd moved here a few hundred years earlier I certainly would have been a Patriot!). I've been to Cape Cod so am familiar with that part of the state, but plan to visit again. We'd also like to do some hiking in the Berkshires and visit The Mount. Any nice hikes/towns/places we shouldn't miss out on and any particular order or direction it might be best to travel in? The west, Boston and The Cape feels awkward logistically. Having a rental car in Boston would probably be a hindrance, so best to do that first and pick up a rental car on out way out of the city? I lived in Waltham for a year when I was six but that was another lifetime!
Many thanks,
There are several Revolutionary sites in Boston (Freedom Trail) and Charlestown (Bunker Hill) https://www.nps.gov/bost/index.htm. A short ride from the city will bring you to Lexington and Concord where pivotal events took place in the the first hours of the conflict. https://www.nps.gov/mima/index.htm
ReplyDeleteChesterwood, the Norman Rockwell Museum, Naumkeag and Tanglewood are all great spots in and around Stockbridge MA in the Berkshires. Visit Williamstown and The Clark further north near the VT and NY border.
If you are flying into Boston, Lenox is only a 2 hour drive and then Lenox to Mid-Cape is only about 3 hours. Longer for the lower Cape and shorter for the upper Cape. If you add Lexington to your trip to Lenox, it will only add about 30 minutes to the drive. This is entirely dependent on the time of day and the time of year. Check out the Trustees of Reservation properties for unique ideas.
ReplyDeleteThank you to both of these contributors for recommendations of places to visit (which all look good), and those approximate driving times are really useful to know too.
ReplyDeleteI have never been to Massachusetts (on the list, every time we travel to the US, we only realise that we would need to live there for some time to learn most of the interesting states), but when you will be ready for Japan and Alps, I would be delighted to recommend some places. Japan is actually the only place I miss all the time. Enjoy your trip! Isabel
DeleteTry the Old Inn on The Green in New Marlborough Mass or just over the border, The White Hart in Salisbury Conn, if you’re looking for food and lodging.
ReplyDeleteBoth are truly superb choices! Cheers!
ReplyDeleteSalisbury is situated in the absolute northwest corner of Connecticut. The town hall is five miles from Massachusetts and five miles from New York. The town is known as “the Arsenal of the Revolution” thanks to its iron industry. The Appalachian Trail runs through Salisbury. And “Heroes of the Revolution and French and Indian War” are buried in the cemetery behind the town hall. The town library claims to be (it’s a matter of some dispute) the first tax supported public library in the country.
ReplyDeleteThere are many beautiful places to visit in western Massachusetts. Not to be missed is Historic Deerfield an historic 17th and 18th century village with many historic houses open to the public. The Historic Deerfield Inn in the middle of town would be a great centrally located charming place to stay The college towns of Amherst and Northampton are lovely too. My mother grew up in Orange Massachusetts a small town which once boasted a tapioca factory. I visited it about 10 years ago and fell in love with the area, I spent time in Greenfield researching her family tree and thought that town was a sample of typical New England charm with its broad main street and enchanting little local shops. Also forgot to mention Old Sturbridge Village, another historic house museum, the north's answer to Colonial Williamsburg.
ReplyDeleteOld Sturbridge Village, unlike 18th century Colonial Williamsburg, portrays the early 19th century, the 1830s. However! OSV hosts a wonderful annual event which transforms the place into a Revolutionary War era military encampment! It's called "Redcoats & Rebels" and takes place this year on Aug. 3 and 4, 2024: https://www.osv.org/event/redcoats-rebels/
DeleteMA: Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge. I have been to many living history museums but this one was especially great!
ReplyDelete-EM
Don’t forget to plan for a meal at The Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge. Save room for a cupcake at The Lost Lamb bakery across the street. I highly suggest heading over to Albany, NY and driving straight up to Saratoga and Schuylerville if you wish to see historic sites related to the Revolutionary War. You don’t mention where you are flying from, but flying into Albany Airport and traveling east seems a better bet than messing around with Boston traffic and then driving 3 hours west. From Albany Saratoga is about a 35 minute drive north. Heading east the Berkshires (Stockbridge, Lee, Lenox) are less than an hour, and Sturbridge is just a smidge over 2.
ReplyDeleteYes to Albany Airport if you’re primarily interested in visiting the Berkshires.
DeleteThat’s a “no-brainer.”
Of course there is Tanglewood in Lenox. Beyond MA, there is also Portsmouth NH and Portland ME (look for the Farnsworth Museum in Rockland ME). You won't run out of options.
ReplyDeleteA Revolutionary War buff might enjoy the national park visitor center, museum, and walking tours in Concord. Best time of year is the fall, when the leaves are turning; Concord Green is spectacular then. Lowell National Historical Park is a great place if you are interested in the industrial revolution.
ReplyDeleteThe Berkshires are nice; hiking up Mt. Monadnock or Mt. Chocorua in New Hampshire is also nice if you're looking for challenging but manageable day hikes (they're each roughly 2 hours from Boston by car).
Yes, Minute Man National Historical Park - https://www.nps.gov/mima/index.htm - is a must for anyone interested in the Revolutionary War. It is actually a long linear park, following the 1775 "Battle Road," which runs through four towns ... Concord, Lincoln, Bedford, and Lexington, Massachusetts.
DeleteOne word of caution if you'll be traveling during (what used to be called) the three day "Columbus Day weekend". We made that mistake years ago while driving through the state thinking we would just stop wherever on the Saturday night of that weekend. It was a big mistake; every hotel and motel from the middle of the state to Boston was full. (We slept in the car). Make sure to have reservations if you travel in October - and especially on that weekend.
ReplyDeleteHelpful comments and handy tips galore, thank you to everybody. Flying to Albany could be a really good idea, then the driving would be a big loop instead of back and forth. I'm not sure what time of year we'd go yet, September ideally. Judging by these suggestions, there would be too much to see. In the future we hope to make an effort to slow down a bit and not pack too much into our itinerary, something we've often been guilty of in the past. I'd also like to visit the Finger Lakes one day so we could incorporate that area with Saratoga, etc in a separate NY trip.
ReplyDeleteAs a fifth grader in elementary school, the entire fifth and sixth grades at my elementary school took a trip to Lexington, Concord, Freedom Trail, Old North Church, Fanenuil Hall, USS Constitution, Walden Pond, and Paul Revere House. Magical!
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