Tips for moms and dads from moms and dads.
Traveling with young children? The northern Berkshires is family-friendly! You’ll find free art-making activities, swimming holes, outdoor fun, theatre, music, and easy places to eat.
Worried about where to stay? Our hotels and inns welcome kids of all ages. Many offer breakfasts and the essential morning coffee or tea for you.
And most places have suites where you can stay with your kids, but a little apart. Ah! Family time!
Family-run, friendly meals
- The Log by Ramuntos offers comfortable dining, delicious wood fired pizza, and, oh, the garlic knots!
- Water Street Grill serves great burgers, kid menu meals, and craft brews for you.
- For snacks and scrumptious home-made sandwiches, check out Wild Oats Market.
- And if you’re finishing up a hike at Field Farm or elsewhere in south Williamstown, visit The Store at Five Corners.
Picnic Spots
- Linear Park offers a quiet beautiful setting with a playground and river access.
- Mount Hope Park is a little further south of town with river access, picinic tables and grills.
- Windsor Lake in North Adams has a beach, picnic tables, grills, a playground, open space, and summer concessions.
- Margaret Lindley Park has a smaller beach and shallow, stream fed pond. Enchanting hikes nearby.
- The Spruces Park has picnic tables and a pollinator garden. Great dog-walking too!
Swimming Holes
- Margaret Lindley is a shallow natural pool where local families go to cool off and play.
- Windsor Lake aka “the fish pond” has a great beach, lifeguard, lawn, and more.
- Sand Springs Pool is a non-profit community pool open to everyone. The water comes from thermal springs deep in the ground.
- eld Athletic Complex.
Ice cream worth the queue
- Lickety Split is a Williamstown tradition and one of the few places in the world to feature Steve Herrell’s small-batch ice cream.
- Spoon Café serves artisan crafted locally sourced frozen yogurt and sorbetto. Located in The Williams Bookstore near Lickety Split. A refreshing alternative!
Art Mecca
- WCMA (always free) often hosts special events oriented specifically for kids and families.
- The Clark Art Institute includes art-looking and art-making for kids, festivals and live outdoor music. Plus the reflecting pools are always a hit in summer and fall.
- Kidspace (free) at MASS MoCA features kid-oriented exhibits and an ArtBar full of options to make your own art.
- Walk through Williams College campus exploring art outdoors!
More Rainy Day Indoor Fun
- Greylock Bowl and Golf contains 30 classic wooden lanes and 3 state-of-the-art golf simulators.
- Images Cinema is a nonprofit, independent movie theater screening a wide variety of films.
- The Print Shop offers creative craft projects to keep everyone busy.
Canopy adventures
- Ramblewild is award-winning aerial adventure park where you can swing through the trees!
- Jiminy Peak has an aerial adventure park plus a giant slide, swing, and more in the summer. Great family skiing in the winter.
- Just a few miles east on a scenic drive, Zoar Outdoor offers zip lining and river kayaking and rafting!
- Near Zoar, you’ll find Berkshire East. There you can zip line, swing in the trees, mountain bike, and more.
Farms Galore
- Cricket Creek Farm is a working farm with baby animals and honor-system artisanal products like beef, pork, milk, cheese, and more.
- Ioka Valley Farms offers seasonal activities including maple sugaring and pancake breakfasts, an outdoor farm-themed playground with live animals, pumpkin patch, hay rides and Christmas trees.
- Hancock Shaker Village is a living history museum with family-friendly events, including a baby animals festival each spring.
Take a hike
- Easy = Cascades (North Adams)
- Moderate = Hopkins Forest (Williamstown)
- Challenging, even for many adults = Pine Cobble (Williamstown)
Out-of-this-world night sky
- Cloudy = Williams College Milham Planetarium
- Clear = Cole Field located at the bottom of Cole Avenue. Turn west at Flamingo Motors.
Awesome Playgrounds
- Linear Park
- Broad Brook Playground
- Windsor Lake
- Bennington Splash Pad (and outdoor music concert stage)
- North Adams Splash Pad, water park, and playground is located in Noel Field Athletic Complex.
Here, it’s easy to get around, safe to play, friendly, and welcoming. Families travel from across the country to visit the northern Berkshires. Join them and give your family a gift of delightful culture, beautiful outdoors, and togetherness.