(WGGB/WSHM) – While you might not be thinking about fall just yet, with the season right around the corner, we wanted to scope out the best local destinations for you to check out.
“It’s so cultural. There’s always something to do. It’s the best weather,” said Ephraim Likerman of Delray Beach, FL.
Fall in western Massachusetts attracts people to our area from all over the United States. Luckily, if you live here, you don’t have to travel far to experience the thrills.
“You feel like you’re able to just kind of unwind briefly, enjoy a quiet breakfast, have a nice dinner, take a stroll down Main Street, maybe get a hike in. There’s so much here that, I think, is for locals, it’s a great little getaway,” said Max Scherff, general manager of the Red Lion Inn.
Take a trip to the Berkshires and enjoy a relaxing weekend at the Red Lion Inn, located in downtown Stockbridge.
“I think people here really come to enjoy the inn and enjoy each other. People love to mingle in the lobby, love to sit together on the front porch,” Scherff added.
With a wide range of rooming options, multiple restaurants, and venues on property, there’s something for everyone at this iconic hotel and Scherff told Western Mass News that there’s a special perk for locals.
“We have a Mass. insider rate that we’ve kind of extended to the region to really help people that are as we just mentioned our locals that are maybe within 20, 30 miles and that is a dynamite rate,” Scherff explained.
Closer to home, take the whole family to the pumpkin patch at McCray’s Farm in South Hadley.
“It’s Pick Your Own Pumpkin. Pumpkins range in price from $1 to $30,” said Barbard Cote, manager
When the leaves start to change color, McCray’s prepares for its busiest season of the year with hayrides, bonfires, a free petting zoo, schools tours, and more.
“Kids that come out of the city that have never been to a farm before…Their eyes are like wider than wide. It’s really cool,” Cote noted.
Also, make sure to stop inside for a sweet treat while you’re there.
“Come on in, we have a lot of good stuff. It’s called Barbie’s Bakery,” Cote added.
You can also step back in time for a day in Old Sturbridge Village.
“I would say the setting here in the fall is probably the most beautiful. All of the landscape and everything comes to light with the leaves changing, with the harvest, with all of our gardens,” said Christine Freitas with Old Sturbridge Village.
Education meets entertainment on this 200-acre property with over 40 buildings that have been assembled to recreate an 1830′s village and some help from the interpreters who help it all come to life.
“They’re going to give you information about what they’re doing or what somebody would’ve been doing in that day and age, they’ll talk about their craft or they’ll talk about the building they’re in,” Freitas explained.
Old Sturbridge Village offers unique entertainment in the fall including a folk music and cider festival, a military-themed muster day, and a special Halloween experience called ‘Phantoms by Firelight.’
“If you haven’t come since you were a kid on a field trip, you need to come back here and experience it as an adult because it’s not just for kids. There’s so much more here,” Freitas said.
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