Suggestions for Mass. Summer Vacation?

Has anyone visited the area near the Yankee Candle shop?

Is this a touristy area? Are there other things to do around there, we are looking for a nice area :

- no more than 4 hours from NY

- no more than 1/2 hour drive to antique malls

- nice hotel within walking distance to breakfast or restaurant

Thank you!

Suggestions for Mass. Summer Vacation?

From what I hear, Yankee Candle is a big draw to this area. There is also a butterfly conservatory near by. Northampton MA is a nice college town with a busy downtown, but since you would be there in Summer, it should be a little quieter. The Basketball Hall of Fame is in Springfield, just off I-91 about 20 minutes south. I don%26#39;t know the area real well, but I aside from Yankee Candle, I would not think of the area as a ';touristy area';

I%26#39;d suggest you check out the southern Berkshire hills of western Massachusets. Towns like Great Barrington, South Egremont, Stockbridge, Sheffield, New Marlboro and Lenox would offer lots of cultural things to do and also have a number of antique places.

Westernmass

Suggestions for Mass. Summer Vacation?

There are some good antique shops in the area. As the previous poster mentioned, there is the Basketball Hall of Fame, the cities of Springfield, Amherst and Northampton (lots of shopping in Northampton).

There is also a Six Flags out that way. You can spend the better part of a day at the Yankee Candle factory in South Deerfield. There is quite a bit to do there.

I lived 10 min north of Yankee Candle until I was 23 and it is a nice area, but there isn%26#39;t a lot to do. There are not many if any nice hotels, and none with in walking distance to anything. Like listed in the other comments, Northampton is a great town with lots of restaurants and artsy shops, but I wouldn%26#39;t spend more than a day there, the butterfly conservatory is alright, the Mohawk trail is a nice drive with a couple antique places, though most of them around here are not that great. Shelburne Falls is a tiny little town with some nice little shops, the bridge of flowers and the ';pot holes'; where the river has carved away stone, but again only entertaining for a few hours. There is nothing in Springfield and I would completely avoid it. Also in Deerfield is the historic center which you can tour. There are some nice inns around there, if you like the old traditional style, the Deerfield Inn and the Whatley Inn, and they both have restaurants. Yankee Candle is a nice place with lots and lots of candles, as well as home decor, the Christmas Villege and such but I wouldn%26#39;t reccomend basing a vacation around it, especially in summer when it is hot and very humid and there are no places around to swim around here. I hope this doesn%26#39;t sound too negative, I just wouldn%26#39;t want you be dissapointed. I do enjoy my home area but there just isn%26#39;t a lot to do. The berkshires are lovely or even the coast of Ct where you can enjoy the water, the little towns, tour the Thimble Islands or venture to Block Island, or I would suggest even traveling to Newport RI if that interests you. I hope this was a little helpful, not discouraging.

I spend 2 weeks in the Pioneer Valley every summer, and I NEVER get bored! I grew up there, and I currently live in Berkeley, CA. What these responders aren%26#39;t telling you about is the miles of bike trails (rail trails) and the many river activities, from swimming to fishing to kayaking/canoing. Plus, the area is so drop dead gorgeous, and it%26#39;s quiet in the summers, when all the students are gone. You can have all your fancy vacations and hotels and touristy shops--just give me an old country house B%26amp;B near the river and a bike trail and a good fruit %26amp; vegetable stand, and I%26#39;m good until the money runs out...