A beautiful day to sit outside and listen to music. It's free. Jazz and blues with great local…read moreartists. Food and drink for sale. Arts and crafts to browse. Grab a blanket or a chair and come on down. Going on until 10:00. Hopefully will become an annual event.

Visiting family here from Austin Texas and needed something for the kiddo to do while here. Took…read morehim here, he had a blast. I mention Austin because we have this place called the Thinkery which I can compare this with. The Thinkery is relatively new, super expensive, and very pretentious. Whereas this is much older, and while some parts are missing/broken, it had charm, character, was well priced and was accessible to all. My fav part was the large climbing structure. Would visit again when in the area.

Who would have thought that there was such a hidden gem in Holyoke. I absolutely love this place…read more At first I was a little hesitant about coming here based on the limited pictures and reviews. I am not going to lie, I don't spend much time in the Holyoke area, so I was a little skeptical when I was driving past all these abandoned buildings. The parking isn't bad and a few quarters take you a long way here. I know people are little dubious about the street parking, but I have never had an issue, aside from a few of the parking meters being inoperable. There are also two garages that are across the street from the facility and the pricing for that is also fair. Remember bring change!!! I had to learn that the hard way. When I went into the building, I amazed. It is such a cute little facility. It is two stories, but the top level is more of a sitting area. You pay to get into the facility downstairs. There are elevators if you are wondering. The staircase is the way I like to go down because there is an artsy little metal dog that is there and my son always wants to check it out. Before you enter there is a little area where you can hang your coats. People normally leave diaper bags and lunches there. I always pack a little snack for my guy and leave it there. The restroom is also in this area. No food and water is actually allowed in the museum, unless you are heading to the back for a scheduled birthday party. The prices to get in are super cheap. I paid at the cash register and the cashier stamped our hands. After that we were free to roam. There are numerous play stations in this museum. They have an astonishing climbing area, a water works area, a building room, a mini construction site, an airflow center, bubble makers, shadow room, ambulance, fire truck, costumes, grocery store, theatre, a small slide, a toddler area... We can literally spend hours here. My son enjoyed himself so much that I decided to get a family pass, we have been here about every other week since my first trip here. I even booked his party this summer here. I can't wait for all his friends to play with him here. Mom and dad are getting a little sick of climbing through the playscape with him. LOL. Honestly, this is a great place for your kid to exert their energy. I wish I came here sooner, it would have been a more active winter. I recommend all parents to bring their little people here.

The Beneski Museum of Natural History is on the Amherst College campus and is one of those smaller…read moremuseums that consistently surprises visitors who arrive without strong expectations. We walked into a building that is modern and elegantly designed, spotlessly maintained, and organized in a way that made navigation intuitive across the three floors. The collection spans three floors and covers fossils, dinosaur skeletons, mineral and gemstone specimens, and an extensive dinosaur track collection with particular connections to the Connecticut River Valley, which produced some of the most significant dinosaur trackways in North America. The dinosaur material is the centerpiece. Two full mammoth skeletons, a T. rex skull, and a range of other fossil specimens give the collection a visual impact that larger natural history museums with more resources and more famous specimens would be proud to have. The dinosaur tracks are a specific strength and the connection to local geology adds a regional dimension that makes the collection feel distinct rather than generic. Staff and professors associated with the collection were present and willing to answer questions in depth, which gave our visit a more engaged quality than a self guided tour at a larger institution typically offers. The museum is free and open to the public, which makes it an easy addition to any visit to the Amherst area without any planning required. For a small college museum that delivers a world class fossil collection in a beautiful modern space, the Beneski Museum of Natural History is a hidden gem in western Massachusetts and well worth a stop. It is the kind of place where you go in for a quick look and end up spending an hour without realizing it.

This place is about as awesome as it gets. I took my 8 year old son and my 70 year old mother, and…read morewe all had a great time walking around the three levels. The staff was very friendly, and my son was super happy to chat them up about the different things on display, and share what he knew with them. We spent about two hours, and we could easily head back again.

The only thing worth seeing in this museum was the poison dart frogs. Everything else was…read morereplicas, hardly anything was original except for the gems. It just felt old and not much to see compared to other science museums I've been in. This wasn't really on my list. I wanted to see the Dr. Seuss museum but you had to buy general admission for all the museums in the complex and the ticket booth happened to be located in the science museum.

We came from out of town for a nice stroll though the museums with our toddler but only hit two:…read morethe Science museum and the Dr. Suess museum. Both were well done, though obviously there is nothing else that can compare with the Dr. Suess museum. The Science museum was fun, and I loved the life size dinosaur and the animal exhibits on the ground floor including the dozens of pull-out drawers containing shells, bones, insects, etc. It is a shame part of the lower level was closed for repairs, but what can you do? We tried many of the buttons and exhibits but they either weren't plugged in or didn't work. That was a bit disappointing. We never even saw all of this museum, or much of the other museums included with admission. For $25 if you can see everything it is probably a good deal, but if you only want to go to part of it (or if you or your kid get tired or bored part way) it might not be such a good value.

As someone who has loved and cherished Emily Dickinson's poetry my entire life, I hate to leave…read moresuch a bad review, but it was my honest experience. So, they strongly recommend you order your tickets online to make sure there is enough availability, so I did. However, when we got to the museum, they said something along the lines of our tickets being invalid for some reason. We were a party of elderly and disabled people so if something went wrong on their online system or the ticket order wasn't processed correctly we should not be punished. They refused to let us in, but at least we could walk around the grounds for free, and they were truly very lovely; unfortunately, the people who run the museum are not.

I want to kick this review off with a fact nugget- I knew NOTHING about Emily Dickinson (except…read morethat she was a poet) before I planned my trip the prior week to visiting the museum. This was a learning experience. It was Mother's Day weekend and also the museums 41st annual poetry walk to celebrate the anniversary of Emily's death. This is really what caught my eye- I love special events. So here are two review in one: Poetry walk Review: You report to the home, pick up a pamphlet that identifies the poem that will be read at each stop along the way along with a map of the stops and your daisies (her favorite flower.) Note: you are asked to pre-register online for the event (I mean they need to know how many pamphlets and daisies!) Off you go! We knew we were going to make it for maybe one stop and the cometary (last stop) due to an early morning tee ball game I wasn't going to miss. So that's what happened, we were able to stop at one poetry stop right outside the cemetery where they read two poems aloud and people were able to ask questions. The final stop is visiting Emily at her family plot in the West Cemetery (take a look at that mural on your left as you start waling into the cemetery with Emily in the center.) As we neared her tombstone, they were passing out cups of lemonade for a noon toast to Emily. They told some facts about the cemetery, a song was song that was inspired by Emily's writing and then one of her poems was read. We then raised our glasses and cheers to the woman herself. After the toast, everyone took their daisies and gently placed them on or around her headstone or the gate to the family's plot. It was nice to walk back through town as we grabbed lunch and then scooted back to the house for our 2pm pre-purchased entry into the house. Very nice event. The House Review: First off- no parking on site. Based on my experience- I would suggest not visiting the house during the week when college is in session! Around the house most parking spots are permit parking only for the college. With the event happening as well, it was hard to find parking. The Dickinson house has bene restored to Emily's writing hay day. As much as we did not have a guided tour (those happen in the morning) there were people stationed in each room who were a wealth of information. I had a lot of questions and they were not stumped and answered beautifully. I learnt a lot from all these fine folks who were just so interested in her, the family and the historical aspects. Thank you! (I really asked a lot of questions.) Austin's house, The Evergreen House, next door is preserved. Very different from Emily's. One has frozen in time and one has been reinvigorated to present the time. Walking through Austin's home was quite interesting as well. Their art is very interesting. I do enjoy how the museum opted to treat each house differently. I have mixed feelings after my trip about Emily and her poems especially the heavy editing but none the less very impressed with the museum and the people working there- vast amounts of knowledge that they were easily willing to share.

Sawmill is a truly magical place. Located in Montague, Sawmill is located in the mill area that…read morecontains The Alvah Stone. It's a small but mighty and lovely shop that houses products from 15+ local member artists and 20+ local consignors. The artists take turns running the shop and are very proud of their co-op. If you're even so much as nearby Montague, you simply must stop here. It's really hard to describe such a place. Its jam-packed full of expertly curated paintings, photos, jewelry, scarves, knick-knacks, sculptures, cards and more. No two artists are the same. You can get lost for a very, very long time browsing the selections and getting to know the works of each artist. I mean, just look at my photos below. It is too much fun to turn the corner in the gallery and stumble across something new and colorful. I'm really regretting not purchasing a few wearable art pieces and a pen-and-ink art print of an owl. If you need a gift for someone (or you're like me, and every day is Treat Yo' Self day), Sawmill is a no-brainer of a stop. Not only are you getting an exceptional, handmade gift, but you're supporting local artists and keeping this interesting collaboration thriving. The prices range significantly, but everything here is affordable, and more importantly, uniquely interesting. Love, love, love!

Love this venue. Went to see Edgar Allen Poe Speakeasy Chapter II. Just as wonderful as Chapter…read moreI. 52 Sumner is wonderfully appointed and relatively new entertainment venue in the Springfield area. Convenient parking onsite and immediately across the street.

Attended a wedding here recently-- stunning property, great attention to detail, awesome staff…read more Highly recommend if you want to throw a beautiful wedding.

We got married about four months ago and I still think of Dan and Christina's unconditional…read morekindness and support almost everyday. The whole team at Valley View is truly amazing and Suzy and David are some of the coolest and kindest people I have ever met. Dan was our wedding planner and from the beginning was so calming and extremely buttoned up. My husband I got engaged in Dec and were married in Aug all thanks to Dan and the team! Dan was always available and made all of the planning fun and super personal to us. He truly felt like an extension of our family. Christina was with us the weeks leading up to our wedding and on our wedding day. I don't even know where to begin -her presence is so grounding and loving-I can't imagine the day without her there. She anticipated everything and was always one step ahead but also made the day fun! Again, felt like an extension of family on our wedding day. The food was also incredible. Our friends and family all said it was the best wedding food they had ever had. We loved the deserts so much we took them home and froze them and ate them for a mont after until we sadly ran out. The venue is a magical place. You can feel it when you begin the drive up. We can't wait to come back and visit. It was the best day ever.