Massachusetts

In 1620 the Mayflower dropped anchor near Plymouth, and in 1773 Boston citizens dumped British tea into the harbor – Massachusetts is where American history began in many respects. A vacation in Massachusetts takes you through Boston's brick-lined neighborhoods, to the dunes of Cape Cod, out to the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, and in fall into the colorful forests of the Berkshires.

Landscape and Location

This small, densely populated state in the heart of New England stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the hills along the New York border. The coastline is rugged: north of Boston lies rocky Cape Ann, while to the south Cape Cod curves into the sea like a bent arm, with sand dunes, salt marshes, and lighthouses. Inland, the Connecticut River flows through the fertile Pioneer Valley, and in the far west the Berkshires rise up with Mount Greylock. Lakes, ponds, and forests shape the landscape, including Walden Pond near Concord, where Henry David Thoreau lived.

Boston and Cambridge

Boston is one of the oldest cities in the US and is surprisingly easy to explore on foot. The Freedom Trail, a red line in the pavement, runs about 2.5 miles past 16 historic sites, from Boston Common and the Old State House to the USS Constitution. Beacon Hill with its gas lamps and cobblestones, the Italian North End, the Back Bay with its brownstones, and the Museum of Fine Arts are all part of the picture, as is Fenway Park, the oldest ballpark in Major League Baseball. Across the Charles River lies Cambridge, home to Harvard University and MIT. Neighboring cities such as Somerville, Quincy – home to two presidents named Adams – and Newton are part of the greater metropolitan area.

Sights in Massachusetts

Cape Cod, with the Cape Cod National Seashore, the artists' town of Provincetown at its tip, and fishing villages like Chatham, is among the most popular destinations in Massachusetts. By ferry you can reach Martha's Vineyard, with its colorful gingerbread cottages in Oak Bluffs, and Nantucket, the former whaling capital. In Plymouth, a replica of the Mayflower and an open-air living history museum commemorate the Pilgrims. Salem draws visitors with the history of the 1692 witch trials and the Peabody Essex Museum. In Lexington and Concord, the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired in 1775. In the Berkshires, highlights include the Tanglewood music festival and the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge.

History and Culture

Puritans founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630 with Boston as its center, and in 1636 Harvard followed as the country's oldest institution of higher learning. The Revolution began here, from the Boston Tea Party to the Battle of Bunker Hill. In the 19th century, textile mills turned cities like Lowell into engines of the Industrial Revolution; today it is a national park devoted to industrial history. Worcester, the second-largest city, and Springfield, where basketball was invented in 1891, represent the interior of the state. Irish and Italian immigrants shaped Boston, and later people arrived from all over the world. Today Massachusetts is a center for medicine, research, and biotechnology.

Food and Drink

Clam chowder, a creamy clam soup, is on nearly every menu in Boston, as are lobster rolls with lobster meat in a bun. Along the coast, people eat fried clams, cod, and oysters from Wellfleet. Boston baked beans gave the city its nickname "Beantown," and Boston cream pie is the official state dessert. In fall, cranberries from the bogs of Cape Cod and apple cider are part of the picture, and the North End tempts with cannoli.

Getting There and Best Time to Visit

Boston Logan Airport (BOS) has numerous direct connections to Europe. Boston has the "T," the oldest subway system in the US; commuter trains run to Salem, Plymouth, Worcester, and Lowell, and Amtrak goes to New York. For Cape Cod and the Berkshires, a car is handy. The best time to visit is between June and October: summer is ideal for beaches and islands, and from late September to mid-October the fall foliage blazes with color. Winters are cold and snowy, with occasional fierce nor'easter storms.