Massachusetts Attractions

Massachusetts has no shortage of fun things to do. From museums, to amusement parks to historic houses as well as seasonal attractions like haunted attractions, there’s something for everyone in Massachusetts.

The following is a list of popular tourist attractions in Massachusetts:

Agawam:

Six Flags New England: an amusement park that features thrill rides, shows and activities

Agawam Axe House: an indoor axe throwing range that features 8 throwing lanes and a VIP lounge

Amesbury:

Lowell’s Boat Shop and Museum: a historic 18^th century boat shop and museum

Amesbury Carriage Museum: a museum that features a collection of 18^th and 19^th century carriages

Macy-Colby House: a historic 18^th century house

Amherst:

Emily Dickinson Museum: a historic house museum where poet Emily Dickinson lived

Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art: a museum about artwork in children’s picture books

Beneski Museum of Natural History: a museum about fossils and minerals

Mead Art Museum: a fine art museum at Amherst College

Barnstable:

Coast Guard Heritage Museum: a museum dedicated to the history of the Coast Guard

Berkley:

Dighton Rock Museum: a small museum that houses the historic Dighton Rock, which is a boulder covered in mysterious petroglyphs

Beverly:

John Hale Farm: a historic 17^th century house where Reverend John Hale lived during the Salem Witch Trials

John Balch House: a historic 17^th century house that is considered one of the oldest wood-frame houses in America

John Cabot House: a historic 18^th century house

Brewster:

Cape Cod Museum of Natural History: a small museum about natural history and archeology

Crosby Mansion: a historic 19^th century mansion

Boston:

Dreamland Wax Museum: a wax museum featuring wax figures of celebrities and historical figures

The Mapparium: a three-story stained glass globe built in 1935

John F. Kennedy Library and Museum: a library and museum dedicated to John F. Kennedy

Boston Children’s Museum: a museum dedicated to educating children

Museum of Fine Arts: a fine art museum established in 1870

The Institute of Contemporary Art: an art museum featuring modern art

New England Aquarium: a public aquarium featuring 20,000 animals and fish

Museum of African American History: a history museum about African-Americans in Boston in the 19^th century

Museum of Science: a science museum and indoor zoo

Boston Tea Party Museum: a history museum about the Boston Tea Party

Old State House Museum: a history museum about the Old State House and the American Revolution in Boston

Commonwealth Museum: a free museum about the history of Massachusetts

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: an art museum featuring a collection of European, Asian and American art

Paul Revere House: a historic 17^th century house where Paul Revere lived during the American Revolution

Fenway Park: a historic baseball park and home of the Boston Red Sox

Warren Anatomical Museum: a historical medical museum that features medical specimens from Harvard Medical School

Brookline:

Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site: a historic 19^th century house where landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted lived

International Paper Museum: a museum dedicated to the history of papermaking

Larz Anderson Auto Museum: a car museum housed in a historic 19^th century carriage house

John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site: a historic early 20^th century house where John F. Kennedy was born and raised

Cambridge:

Cooper-Frost-Austin House: a historic 17^th century house that is the oldest house in Cambridge

Harvard Art Museums: a series of three art museums, the Fogg, Busch-Reisinger, and Arthur M. Sackler Museums, owned and operated by Harvard University

Hart Nautical Museum: a gallery in the MIT Museum at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Harvard Museum of Natural History: a natural history museum owned and operated by Harvard Museum of Natural History

Longfellow House / Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site: a historic 18^th century house

Carver:

Edaville Family Theme Park: an amusement park and heritage railroad

King Richard’s Faire: a renaissance fair held every fall

Chatham:

Marconi-RCA Wireless Museum: a historic short-wave radio station and museum

Chatham Railroad Museum: a historic 19^th century train station and locomotive museum

Concord:

Old Manse: a historic 18^th century mansion where Concord writers Nathaniel Hawthorne and Ralph Waldo Emerson lived during the 19^th century

Orchard House: a historic 17^th century house where Louisa May Alcott lived when she wrote Little Women in the 19^th century

Concord Museum: a museum about Concord’s history

Ralph Waldo Emerson House: a historic 19^th century house where Ralph Waldo Emerson lived

Danvers:

Rebecca Nurse Homestead: a historic 17^th century house where Rebecca Nurse lived during the Salem Witch Trials

Glen Magna Farms: a historic 19^th century country estate

Judge Samuel Holten House: a historic 17^th century house where Sarah Houlten lived during the Salem Witch Trials and where Judge Samuel Holten lived in the 18^th century

Dedham:

Fairbanks House: a historic 17^th century house that is considered the oldest surviving timber-frame house in North America

Deerfield:

Historic Deerfield: a museum about the history of Deerfield

Indian House Children?s Museum: an interactive history museum for children

Memorial Hall Museum: a history museum established in 1880, making it one of New England’s oldest history museums

Dennis:

Cape Cod Museum of Art: an art museum that features artwork from Cape Cod artists

Duxbury:

Alden House Historic Site: a historic 17^th century house where Mayflower pilgrims John and Priscilla Alden lived

Gershom Bradford House: a historic 19^th century house where Captain Gershom Bradford lived

King Caesar House: a historic 19^th century Federal-style house

Essex:

Cogswell’s Grant: a historic 18^th century working farm and farmhouse

Essex Shipbuilding Museum: a maritime museum about the history of the local shipbuilding industry

Lafayette-Durfee House: a historic 18^th century house owned by the Durfee family and frequented by Marquis de Lafayatte

Fall River:

Maritime Museum: a maritime museum at Battleship Cove that features memorabilia, artifacts, and ship models

Falmouth:

Highfield Hall and Gardens: a historic 19^th century house and estate

Fitchburg:

Fitchburg Art Museum: an art museum featuring artwork by New England artists

Gloucester:

Hammond Castle: a castle built by American inventor John Hays Hammond out of pieces of historic European castles

Sargent House Museum: a historic 18^th century Federal-style mansion where feminist writer and philosopher Judith Sargent Murray lived

Cape Ann Museum: an art museum that features artwork by local artists

Beauport, the Sleeper-McCann House: a historic turn-of-the-century mansion

Groton:

Bancroft’s Castle: a stone tower built in 1906 by General William Bancroft

Hancock:

Hancock Shaker Village: a former Shaker community and historic site

Harvard:

Fruitlands Museum: a history museum about the former Utopian community that existed in the 19^th century

Haverhill:

Winnekinni Castle: a historic 19^th century castle built by local chemist Dr. James R. Nichols in the 1870s

Buttonwoods Museum: a museum featuring historic furniture, ceramics, glassware, quilts, dolls and toys as well as Native American artifacts

John Greenleaf Whittier Homestead: a historic 17^th century farmhouse were poet John Greenleaf Whittier was later born and raised in the 19^th century

Holyoke:

International Volleyball Hall of Fame: a sports museum dedicated to the players, coaches, officials, and leaders who have made significant contributions to the game of volleyball

Children’s Museum at Holyoke: a children’s museum featuring art and exhibits related to science and daily life

Hyannis:

John F. Kennedy Hyannis Museum: a historical museum dedicated to the legacy of John F. Kennedy

Cape Cod Central Railroad: a heritage railroad line

Ipswich:

Whipple House: a historic 17^th century house

Wolf Hollow: a wolf sanctuary where visitors can watch gray wolves in their natural environment

Castle Hill estate: a historic turn-of-the-century mansion on a sprawling country estate

Heard House Museum: a historic 18^th century house

Indian Orchard:

Titanic Museum: a maritime museum dedicated to the history of the RMS Titanic

Lenox:

Frelinghuysen Morris House and Studio: a historic house museum and art studio of American Abstract Artists George L.K. Morris and Suzy Frelinghuysen

The Mount: a historic turn-of-the-century house where writer Edith Warton lived in the early 20^th century

Ventford Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum: a historic Jacobean-style mansion built in 1893

Leominster:

Frances H and Jonathan Drake House: a historic 19^th century house that served as a stop on the Underground Railroad

Lexington:

Buckman Tavern: a historic 18^th century tavern where the local militia gathered before the Battle of Lexington

Hancock-Clarke House: a historic 18^th century house where John Hancock and Samuel Adams were staying when Paul Revere arrived to warn them the regulars were coming

Munroe Tavern: a historic 18^th century tavern where British soldiers gathered after the Battle of Lexington

Lowell:

Whistler House Museum of Art: a historic 19^th century house house where artist James McNeil Whistler was born

American Textile History Museum: a museum dedicated to the history of the textile industry in America

National Streetcar Museum: a museum and heritage railway dedicated to the history of the streetcar

Lynn:

Grand Army of the Republic Museum: a history museum about the Grand Army of the Republic which was a veterans organization for Civil War veterans during the 19^th century

Marblehead:

Abbot Hall: a town hall and history museum dedicated local history

Marblehead Museum: a museum dedicated to local history

Jeremiah Lee Mansion: a historic 18^th century mansion built by Colonel Jeremiah Lee

Martha’s Vineyard:

Cottage Museum: a museum dedicated to the history of the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association and its famous gingerbread cottages

Mashpee:

Old Indian Meetinghouse: a historic 17^th century meetinghouse for Native Americans who had converted to Christianity

Cape Cod Children’s Museum: a museum that features interactive play-&-learn exhibits designed for 6-month-olds to 8-year-olds.

Mashpee Wampanoag Indian Museum: a cultural museum housed in one of the oldest remaining homesteads in Mashpee and features a range of exhibits on the history of the Mashpee Wampanoag Indians

Milton:

Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory & Science Center: a weather observatory tower and science center

Blue Hills Trailside Museum: an interpretive center for the Blue Hills Reservation

Eustis Estate Museum and Study: a historic late 19^th century mansion

Forbes House Museum: a historic early 19^th century mansion

Milton Art Museum: an art museum that features a collection of fine art, limited prints, sculpture, photography, and Asian art

Monson:

Keep Homestead Museum: a historic farmhouse that features one of the largest collections of antique and vintage buttons in the northeast

Nantucket:

Nantucket Shipwreck and Lifesaving Museum: a maritime museum dedicated to the history of shipwrecks off the Nantucket coast and in Nantucket Sound

Fire Hose Cart House: a history museum that features exhibits and artifacts of firefighting on Nantucket

Mitchell House: a historic 19^th century house where astronomer Maria Mitchell lived

African American Meetinghouse: a historic 19^th century meetinghouse for the African-American community in Boston

Hadwen House: a historic 19^th century mansion

New Bedford:

New Bedford Whaling Museum: a maritime museum dedicated to the history of the whaling industry

New Bedford Art Museum: an art museum featuring local artists

Fort Taber / Fort Rodman Military Museum: a history museum dedicated to the history of Fort Taber and Fort Rodman

Newbury:

Coffin House: a historic 17^th century house

Dole-Little House: a historic 18^th century house

Newburyport:

Custom House Maritime Museum: a maritime museum housed in a historic custom house

Cushing House Museum and Garden: a historic 19^th century mansion

Museum of Old Newbury: a history museum about local history

Newton:

Jackson Homestead and Museum: a historic 19^th century mansion that served as a stop on the Underground Railroad

North Oxford:

Clara Barton Birthplace Museum: a historic 19^th century house where founder of the American Red Cross, Clara Barton, was born

North Adams:

Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art: an art museum that features contemporary art

Norton:

Massachusetts Golf Hall of Fame and Museum: a museum and hall of fame honoring notable golfers

Orleans:

French Cable Station Museum: a historic 19^th century cable station and museum that features displays of Atlantic undersea telegraphic cables, instruments, maps and memorabilia.

Peabody:

Elizabeth Cassidy Folk Art Museum: an art museum featuring local folk art

General Gideon Foster House: a historic 19^th century house

George Peabody House Museum: a historic 18^th century house where entrepreneur, philanthropist George Peabody was born and raised during the 19^th century

Nathaniel Felton Houses: a pair of historic 17^th century houses where Nathaniel Felton Sr and Jr lived during the Salem Witch Trials

Pittsfield:

Herman Melville’s Arrowhead: a historic 18^th century house where author Herman Melville lived during the 19^th century

Berkshire Museum: a museum about art, natural history and ancient civilization

Plymouth:

Plimouth Plantation: a living history museum about historic Plymouth colony

Plymouth Rock: a glacial erratic rock where the Mayflower pilgrims where reported to have landed in 1620

Pilgrim Hall Museum: a history museum about the pilgrims and Plymouth colony

1749 Courthouse and Museum: a historic 18^th century courthouse that is believed to be the oldest wooden courthouse in America

Harlow Old Fort House: a historic 17^th century house where Plymouth colonist Sergeant William Harlow lived

1809 Hedge House Museum: a historic early 19^th century house

Jabez Howland House: a historic 17^th century house where Plymouth colonists Jabez Howland House

Plimoth Grist Mill: a replica of Plymouth colony’s 17^th century grist mill

Mayflower House Museum: a historic 18^th century house operated by the Mayflower Society

Richard Sparrow House: a historic 17^th century house where Plymouth colonist Richard Sparrow lived and is considered the oldest surviving house in Plymouth

1749 Spooner House: a historic 18^th century house

National Monument to the Forefathers: a historic 19^th century monument dedicated to the Mayflower pilgrims

Pilgrim Mothers Monument: a monument dedicated to the female Mayflower pilgrims

Provincetown:

Provincetown Museum: a museum featuring exhibits on the region’s cultural & maritime history

Pilgrim Monument: a monument commemorating where the Pilgrims first landed in 1620

Rockport:

The Paper House: a house constructed entirely out of newspaper

Old Castle: a historic 18^th century house

Salem:

Salem Wax Museum: a wax museum featuring life-size figures depicting scenes from local history

Salem Witch Museum: a history museum dedicated to the Salem Witch Trials

Salem Witch House: a historic 17^th century house where Judge Jonathan Corwin lived during the Salem Witch Trials

The Witch Dungeon: a museum about the Salem Witch Trials that features a replica of the original Salem witch jail

House of Seven Gables: a historic 17^th century mansion that inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel of the same name

Peabody Essex Museum: a museum that features historical and cultural art, including American, Asian, Oceanic, African art and Asian export art, and two large libraries with over 400,000 books and manuscripts

Pioneer Village: a history museum that features a replica of Salem Village in 1630

New England Pirate Museum: a museum dedicated to the history of pirates in New England

Crowninshield-Bentley House: a historic 18^th century house

Gardner-Pingree House: a historic 19^th century house

Gedney House: a historic 17^th century house that served as a tavern during the Salem Witch Trials

John Ward House: a historic 17^th century house that was one of the first colonial-era houses to opened as a house museum

Ropes Mansion: a historic 18^th century house where scenes from the 1993 film Hocus Pocus were filmed

Salisbury:

Joe’s Playland arcade: a 100-year-old seaside arcade featuring classic games like ski ball and pinball as well as modern video games

Carefree Arcade: a seaside arcade with classic and modern video games

Salisbury Historical Society Museum: a historic 19^th century house that features historical maps, flags, documents, furniture, and Civil War memorabilia.

Sandwich:

Sandwich Glass Museum: a glass museum in Sandwich, Massachusetts, featuring a collection of rare glass

Heritage Museums and Gardens: a public garden that features a collection of specialty gardens and water features

Hoxie House: a historic 17^th century house that is considered one of the oldest houses on Cape Cod and one of the oldest surviving houses in Massachusetts

Sheffield:

Colonel John Ashley House: a historic 18^th century house where a slaved named Elizabeth “Mum Bett” Freeman worked before successfully suing the state for her freedom in 1781

Shrewsbury:

General Artemas Ward House: a historic 18^th century house where Revolutionary War general Artemas Ward lived

Somerville:

Museum of Bad Art: an art museum dedicated to art that is considered ?too bad to be ignored?

Southbridge:

Optical Heritage Museum: a museum that features a collection of microscopes, Lensometers, multifocal and antique spectacles

South Hadley:

Nash Dino Land: a quarry where you can view dinosaur tracks and other fossils

Springfield:

Doctor Seuss Museum: a museum dedicated to Springfield native Theodor Seuss Geisel, also known as Dr. Seuss

Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame: a sports museum and hall of fame dedicated

George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum: an art museum that features the collections of George Walter Vincent Smith

Titanic Museum: a small history museum dedicated to the history of the Titanic

Sturbridge:

Old Sturbridge Village: a living history museum which recreates life in rural New England during the 1790s through 1830s

Stockbridge:

Chesterwood Estate & Museum: a historic 19^th century house where American sculptor Daniel Chester French lived

Merwin House: a historic 19^th century house that features furnishings of the late 19th century, with period antiques and items collected during world travel

Mission House: a historic 18^th century house built by a Christian missionary to the local Mahicans

Naumkeag: a historic 19^th century 44-room mansion

Norman Rockwell Museum: an art museum dedicated to the art of Norman Rockwell

Waltham:

Charles River Museum of Industry: a history museum about the American Industrial Revolution

Girl Scout Museum: a history museum dedicated to the history of the Girl Scouts

Gore Place: a historic 19^th century country house

Watertown:

Edmund Fowle House and Museum: a historic 18^th century house that is considered to be the oldest surviving house in Watertown

Wenham:

Wenham Museum: a history museum that features a large collection of antiques

Weymouth:

Abigail Adams Birthplace: a historic 17^th century house where Abigail Adams was born in the 18^th century

Jason Holbrook Homestead: a historic 18^th century house that is now home to the Weymouth Historical Society

Worcester:

Worcester Art Museum: an art museum that features over 38,000 works of art

EcoTarium: a science and nature museum

Yarmouth:

Edward Gorey House: a house where author and illustrator Edward Gorey lived which now serves as a museum celebrating his life and work

Sources: “200 Things to Do Throughout Massachusetts.” Boston.com, Aug 10. 2017, www.boston.com/travel/travel/2017/08/10/200-things-to-do-in-massachusetts