Massachusetts family activities can keep kids entertained year-round

Massachusetts > State > Families and Kids > Family Activities

Massachusetts has welcomed families since the first one landed at Plymouth. Any time of the year, you’ll find family friendly lodging, activities, and adventures on day trips, weekend getaways, and longer vacations. Enjoy a full menu from museums to indoor and outdoor amusement parks and water parks, beaches, zoos and ziplines, whitewater rafting and kayaking, and the largest family go cart track in New England. The most complete set of early American historic sites are here with tales to tell and there are great beaches and endless scenic places to stop, relax, and snap some pictures.

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Salem Witch Museum

19 1/2 Washington Square North Salem, MA, 01970 Phone: 978-744-1692

Museum visitors will be entertained, and educated, by witch trial presentations, exhibits

Some attractions educate, others entertain, but the Salem Witch Museum takes pride in doing both. Through two immersive presentations, visitors to the museum will learn all about the famous witch trails of 1692, resulting in the deaths of 20 people, as well as the evolution through the years of the image of the witch and of the phenomenon of witch-hunting. The museum is in a renovated historic church building, close to several parking garages. Conde Nast Traveler says the presentations, with dramatic lighting, are “just spooky enough to summon the spirit of the witch trials without being off-putting for children.” And kids will love the gift shop at the end, with spell books, apparel and locally made treats. Tickets must be ordered online.

Trolley Tours - Greater Boston CVB - Boston, MA

Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau

Family-friendly Boston has something for everyone – and it’s all a short walk away

Families love Boston, and it’s no secret why: It’s so walkable, and there’s so much to do, everyone leaves happy. See tea tossed overboard at the Tea Party Ships & Museum, then take in the Children’s Museum practically next door. Visit the Paul Revere House and the USS Constitution on the exciting Freedom Trail, catch a game at Fenway or take a relaxing trip on the famous Swan Boats in the Public Garden (don’t forget to visit the “Make Way for Ducklings” statues while you’re there). There are plenty of playgrounds, a classic carousel, trolley and duck boat tours, street performers at fun Faneuil Hall, seals, penguins and sharks in the New England Aquarium – and you can watch a lightning storm happen indoors in the Museum of Science.

Kids with Hot Chocolate 500x250 - Berkshires Visitors Bureau - Photo Credit Ogden Gigli

Visit the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts

Make Unforgettable Memories this Winter in the Berkshires

Pack up the kiddos and head to the Berkshires for an unforgettable family getaway! Offering year-round fun for all ages, winter in the Berkshires is a special time for both in and outdoor play. Make family memories gliding over a fresh blanket of snow on snowshoes, skis, or in a tube. See a fun live show, get hands-on at a museum, or take a scenic train ride while you sip hot cocoa. Winter is a perfect time of year for treating the family to sweets, toys, and games at our many cafes and shops. To learn more click our listing link or search “Visit the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts” on Facebook.

See Plymouth

4 North Street Plymouth, MA, 02360 Phone: 508-747-0100 Toll-Free: 800-872-1620

Must-see family vacation destination includes outdoor activities, interactive museums

Family-friendly Plymouth has been a must-see vacation destination for kids and parents for generations. It may start with trips to Plymouth Rock and the majestic Mayflower II, but pretty soon you’ll discover a host of other fun activities, from whale watches and paddleboat cruises to ghost tours and playgrounds. At Nelson Memorial Beach Park, there’s a splash pad area, biking and hiking path as well as a great beach. There’s camping, canoeing, kayaking, fishing and swimming in state and local parks, with pleasant ponds for picnicking and boating. There are local theaters, interactive museums, all kinds of restaurants and unique shops. Visit the Plimoth Patuxet Museums to see a dugout canoe being made or to help soldiers in a muster drill! Please call 1.800.USA.1620, or visit our website to learn more about these activities and others to prepare for your trip to Plymouth.

Old Sturbridge Village - More than a Museum!

Begin your adventure at Plymouth Rock this spring - See Plymouth, MA!

Battleship Cove

5 Water Street Fall River, MA, 02721 Phone: 508-678-1100 Toll-Free: 800-533-3194

An exciting family adventure in America’s naval history

Battleship Cove is now open from 9am-5pm daily! Please remember to follow our safety & social distancing guidelines!
America’s naval history inspires the whole family at this world class heritage museum in Fall River. Explore the world's largest collection of US naval ships including the mighty USS Massachusetts, the destroyer USS Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., and PT Boats used in the South Pacific. The sheer size and impression these ships and their stories leave is overwhelming. There’s the state-of-the-art special effects Pearl Harbor Experience, the only outdoor multimedia reenactment anywhere. Scouts and youth groups can participate in a year round maritime camping program, overnights, and family nautical nights with affordable camping on site. Whether a casual visitor, history buff, student, teacher or scout leader, everyone learns. Special exhibits honor our men and women in uniform then and now.

Plimoth Patuxet

137 Warren Avenue Plymouth, MA, 02360 Phone: 508-746-1622

Families can travel back in time to the 17th century in these interactive, engaging museums

Take your kids on a journey back in time, to see how Native and Pilgrim children experienced life in the 17th century. At the Plimoth Patuxet Museums, contemporary interpreters at the Historic Patuxet Native village and 17th Century English Village engage visitors in everything from cooking lessons and muster drills to how to scoop out the insides of a dugout canoe with a shell. There’s a Craft Center, cinema and quick-service cafe. In Plymouth Harbor, you are welcome aboard the Mayflower II, a full-scale reproduction of the original famed tall ship. A pleasant stroll on the path along Town Brook (in the spring, watch for herring) takes you to the Plimoth Grist Mill, where you can watch cornmeal being ground.

Discover Quincy

Adams National Historical Park Visitor Center - 1250 Hancock Street Quincy, MA, 02169 Phone: 617-471-1700

Families valued by this historic South Shore city

From the home of one of the nation’s first families, the city of Quincy offers your family a variety of activities from which to plan a day outing or a long vacation. Take the trolley trip at Adams National Historical Park to see the home of John and John Quincy Adams, and the nation’s first presidential library, boat over to Boston Harbor Islands National Park, sunbathe at Wollaston Beach (or one of 10 other city beaches), fish from a pier or just relax at one of 52 parks, many with playgrounds, picnic areas and ball fields. Enjoy autumn colors strolling marsh-side and riverside trails. In the winter, go ice skating or try skiing or snow-shoeing at Blue Hills Reservation.

Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort

37 Corey Road -- Route 43 Hancock, MA, 01237 Phone: 413-738-5500 Toll-Free: 800-882-8859

Mountain resort has all the activities, accommodations, amenities for A+ family vacation

Exciting activities, comfortable inn and condo accommodations, great dining options: At Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort, they really have thought of everything to make your family vacation memorable. Rush down the mountain on an alpine coaster or slide, zip through the air in the Aerial Adventure Park, arc high into the sky on the Giant Swing or take a scenic chair lift ride up to the summit for astonishing views. And, of course, the skiing, snowboarding and snowshoeing is top-notch on the 2,380-foot mountain. There are camps, lessons and activities for kids including classic outdoor games and s’mores by the fire pit in the Fire & FunZone. Dining is casual in friendly taverns and pubs. Check the website for special seasonal events and activities.

Festival of Illumination 2022: Once Upon at Time - September 1 to December 31 at Southwick's Zoo in Mendon, MA

Old Sturbridge Village

1 Old Sturbridge Village Road, off Route 20 Sturbridge, MA, 01566 Phone: 508-347-3362 Toll-Free: 800-733-1830

Step back into the past and watch history come alive (and be fun!) in this re-created village

History is more than educational, it’s downright fun, at Old Sturbridge Village, where generations of families have been coming for years to explore rural life in an 1830s New England village. Kids (young and old) love visiting with the cattle, sheep, pigs and chickens at the Freeman Farm and watching how food was cooked at the kitchen hearth. Families can walk across a covered bridge along the riverside, hear a sampling of 1830s music, or make a craft such as a punched tin ornament. Take a horse-drawn wagon ride, play old-time games, then grab ice cream at the Scoop Shop or an all-time favorite (and famous) cookie from the bake shop. Your family will be delighted that Old Sturbridge Village is more than a museum.

Southwick’s Zoo

2 Southwick Street Mendon, MA, 01756 Phone: 800-258-9182

Looking for a wild idea for a family adventure? Zoo offers amazing animals, exciting rides

Your kids will go wild for all the attractions at Southwick’s Zoo. With more than 850 animals in naturalistic habitats, there are so many creatures to see, from lions and tigers and giraffes to chimpanzees, white rhinos and two-toed sloths. You can walk among colorful parakeets and cockatiels in an aviary and feed them with seed sticks, pet pygmy goats, take a ride on a camel or pony or check out tarantulas and lizards in the reptile and insect exhibit. And then there are the adventure rides, including the seated, two-person Soaring Eagle Zip Line, the Skyfari Sky Ride and the Rainforest Adventure Maze. For the young at heart, don’t miss the all new Play Park. Dining is right next door at Galliford’s Restaurant & Tavern, open for lunch and dinner year-round.

Beginning November 12, 2022, two amazing events come together at Southwick's Zoo - Winter Wonderland with the Festival of Illumination - creating an extraordinary and memorable holiday experience for guests of all ages.

Worcester Art Museum

55 Salisbury Street Worcester, MA, 01609 Phone: 508-799-4406

Family-centered activities a particular specialty at this art museum

Looking for an art museum that will engage the kids as well as the adults? At the Worcester Art Museum, families are a top priority. That means new interactive elements in many galleries (some that involve iPads), special family guides, 20-minute “zip tours: that focus on one artist or work of art, scavenger hunts and other fun activities from drawing to designing your own jousting helmet. (The kids will love the chivalric arms and armor collection.) Special touch carts allow children to, yes, touch things in a museum! On community days, there’s art-making, storytime, demonstrations and music-making. The museum, with exhibits ranging from medieval to modern times, also has a quiet-time Family Nook. Check the website for timed-admission information and safety protocols.

Galaxy Montage - Blake Planetarium - Plymouth, MA

W. Russell Blake Planetarium

117 Long Pond Road Plymouth, MA, 02360 Phone: 508-830-4470

Full-dome Plymouth planetarium a shining star for visitors of all ages

The sky’s the limit for visitors to the W. Russell Blake Planetarium, the only 4K full-dome planetarium south of Boston. As you sit back in angled chairs, you’ll gaze at a ceiling filled with stars and planets while learning to identify them and how to use a star map (that you can take home). It’s a spectacle of light and color not to be missed. Regular seasonal stargazing programs take advantage of the high-tech surround-sound system and jaw-dropping full-dome views.

Festival of Illumination 2022 - Once Upon a Time

Southwick's Zoo - 2 Southwick Street Mendon, MA, 01756 Phone: Toll-Free: 800-258-9182

There are bound to be a lot of oohs and aahs as kids journey through zoo’s spectacular illumination festival

Imagine the expressions on your children’s faces as they experience the spectacular lantern displays during the Southwick’s Zoo’s Festival of Illumination. The theme of this year’s extravaganza is “Once Upon a Time,” with intricately designed and LED-lit lanterns, produced in cooperation with the famous Zigong Lantern Group, telling the stories of long-forgotten myths, legends and fairytales. On Nov. 25, the festival becomes a magical drive-through experience with the addition of the Winter Wonderland holiday lights and holiday-themed festival lanterns. Kids can also have a word with you-know-who in Santa’s Village, and there’s live entertainment. At Galliford’s Restaurant & Tavern next door to the zoo, families can dine on comfort food, burgers, salads, seafood, pizza and other specialties.

Beginning November 12, 2022, two amazing events come together at Southwick's Zoo, Winter Wonderland with the Festival of Illumination, creating an extraordinary and memorable holiday experience for guests of all ages.

Whitewater Crew 500x250 - Crab Apple Whitewater - Charlemont, MA

Crab Apple Whitewater (MA)

Route 2 Charlemont, MA, 01339 Phone: 800-553-7238

Family Owned and Operated Whitewater Rafting Outfitter in the Berkshires

Crab Apple ran the first ever raft trips in 1989 on the dam controlled Deerfield River. The excitement continues on a wide range of full day and half day trips. Kids 8 and up can enjoy rafting trips on mild Class 1-3 rapids, teens on more aggressive Class 3-4 rapids, and those age 5 and up will have a great fun time in guided rafts or inflatable kayaks on mild whitewater. The guides are great with kids of all ages and help rafters explore the Deerfield sharing information about local history, wildlife and hydrology along the way. There’s great food, hospitality and service, the best equipment, and riverside base camps with the comforts and convenience to make your rafting adventure one that you’ll never forget.

Island Queen

75 Falmouth Heights Road Falmouth, MA, 02540 Phone: 508-548-4800

Family activities abound from one end of this Cape-to-island ferry voyage to the other

Fabulous beaches, scenic hikes and bike rides, great restaurants, interesting shops and museums: There is so much for your family to love about Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard! Connecting these two vacationlands is the Island Queen passenger ferry, which turns the 35-minute sail from Falmouth to Oak Bluffs into a fun activity of its own, with amazing views and a full-service snack bar. On the Vineyard, you can visit the Whaling Museum in Edgartown, the “Flying Horses” carousel in Oak Bluffs or the astonishing red clay cliffs of Aquinnah. In Falmouth, there’s the Shining Sea Bikeway, Falmouth Museums on the Green and Cape Cod League baseball. And of course the Cape has New England’s most beautiful beaches and quaint seaside towns.

Concord Museum

35 Cambridge Turnpike at Lexington Road Concord, MA, 01742 Phone: 978-369-9763

Families who visit this engaging museum find learning about history is a fun, shared experience

Families who immerse themselves in the varied exhibits at the Concern Museum find that learning about America’s history can be both enlightening – and fun! Start at the Family Station to get a Family Trail guide and drawing materials so you can hunt for objects, learn fun facts and and sketch favorite objects (don’t forget to share your artwork). Favorite objects include Native American stone tools and one of the lanterns that signaled Paul Revere to take his famous ride. There are several hands-on areas as well as activities to take home. The museum has plenty of places to rest, chat and draw – and strollers are welcome! Check the online calendar for special holiday and school vacation events, crafts sessions and other group activities.

Greater Merrimack Valley

61 Market Street, Unit 1C Lowell, MA, 01852 Phone: 978-459-6150

Activities from art museums to escape rooms will engage every member of your family

Visit the Concord Museum to see the “one if by land” Paul Revere lantern or Thoreau’s writing desk. Marvel at the intricacies of the model ship collection at the Addison Gallery of American Art. Climb up the crow’s nest on the Discovery Museum’s. Just-for-kids ship, or make pinch-pot clay animals and trinket dishes at the Pottery Mill Clay Studio. Go on a winter walk or explore the Native American and Shaker collections at the Fruitlands Museum. Or step into your own private escape game, cracking codes and solving puzzles, at Escapology. There are so many activities to delight families in the Merrimack region, from trampoline parks and bowling alleys to museums with astonishing art and activities that engage even the youngest visitors.

Harvard Peabody Museum of Natural History Kronosaurus Cambridge MA

Harvard Museum of Natural History

26 Oxford Street Cambridge, MA, 02138 Phone: 617-495-3045

A memorable & amazing journey into our world's history

For families, it’s hard to beat the 16 galleries in this museum displaying 500 taxidermy animals -- full-size elephant, rhino, hippo, tiger, bison, even a 15-foot giraffe -- not to mention huge whale skeletons. Don’t miss the skull of one of the first Triceratops ever discovered and the world’s only mounted skeleton of the 42 ft.-long Kronosaurus. Explore a timeline of Earth’s history, and admire 3,000 rare minerals and gemstones. Touch a meteorite from outer space. New and changing multi-media exhibitions showcase cutting-edge research. The museum is an easy 8-minute walk across the historic Harvard campus from Harvard Square with its popular shops and restaurants and MBTA station. The museum is connected to Harvard’s Peabody Museum, and one admission fee covers both museums.

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