" Hours Wednesday- Sunday 11:am -4pm it's FREE"…read more "Waterworks Museum". Wow I live right near here and I didn't know this place existed . The y have a small parking lot . If this doesn't work out , they have street metered parking . It's very interesting. My husband and I had a great time . We learned something new , it was free . We even found non metered parking . So the parking was free .

Hidden gem in plain sight striking a gorgeous pose on the reservoir near BC, this museum is a work…read moreof art and function. You can see everything in under an hour - 15-30 mins if u just pop through and marvel at the architecture. Informative 30 min tours also offered, moves fairly quickly and is good for kids as well. There is a small exhibit and kidspace upstairs that also gives you a higher vantage point over the machinery. About 30 or so Free Parking spaces. Free admission. Drop dead fab architecture inside and out. Don't miss the basement restroom-level displays of yesteryear commodes. A fantastic and impressively aesthetic tribute to pioneering waterworks and engineering wonders.

A friend recommended this art collection in this beautiful space so I reserved tickets online for…read moretoday at 11 when it opened. You can buy your tickets in person as well. It's a separate entrance line than the preordered tickets. They do check your bags and tell you to leave your water bottles at the coatcheck on the 1st floor or downstairs at the lockers. We started upstairs on the 3rd floor, and worked our way down. Every room is specifically designed to highlight some theme by Isabella, from the brocade on the walls to the ceiling to the doors to the artwork/furniture everywhere. Because it's a three story mansion, it's decorated as such and has less of the feel of a gallery as a luxuriously decorated estate. Most of the artwork is not identified as it would be in a museum, but it can still be appreciated. There were a few signs along the way that explained the theme of the room according to Isabella. From the third floor especially, the live music in the central garden could be heard so well because of the magnificent acoustics. (There was music in honor of Juneteenth today). If it's your first time there, pay attention to the plaque by the elevator on the 1st floor that states it was the entrance that Isabella herself had used. Apparently that was the original entrance to the museum for a long time and the glass encased current entrance used to be greenhouses. We spent 1.5 hrs there and enjoyed exploring and appreciating the unique museum experience together. Highly recommend!!

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum was commonly mentioned as a must see in Boston, so we decided to…read morecheck it out on a rainy Sunday during our trip. It seems like everyone else had the same idea as well because the museum was packed! Definitely recommend booking tickets at least a few days in advance because some time slots were sold out. We booked the 10:30am-11am time slot and it was already crowded at this time. Check in was straightforward and there are lockers in the basement to secure large bags. This is very different to the standard art museums. Isabella Stewart converted a home into a museum and it is amazing how much time and effort went into the process. There are three stories, each having several rooms to walk through. A couple rooms have limited capacity so we had to wait in line for 10-15 minutes to enter. My personal favorite part of the museum was the courtyard - very pretty with all the plants and statues. We also witnessed a proposal! I'm usually not a huge museum fan, but this was definitely worth checking out. Many people suggested listening to the audio guide available on the website, and while it was interesting, it was a bit slow and I wasn't able to listen to everything - wish the recordings had 2x speed. This is a very popular museum so the crowds made it feel a bit chaotic. I recommend going on a weekday!

This was a small, but enjoyable and FREE museum on Brandeis's beautiful campus…read more It had three exhibits as of our visit on 1/26 - all three were surrealist and we got to see a Kahlo and a Magritte in addition to other wonderful works of art. They would liked you register before you go, but I didn't get the sense that we'd have been turned away if we hadn't. There is very limited parking near the Museum - we parked down by the admissions building and walked up.

I didn't know about this museum until recently. So glad I found it. It's located at Brandies…read moreUniversity in Waltham. There are places to park up close. The museum is free to enter. There are many different kinds of art here, like paintings, photographs, sculptures. It's very different and informative with information about the artists. What I enjoyed was a room decorated from the 1970s. A living room with the old fashioned couch, television, radio, record player. They had artwork from Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso, Mark Bradford, to name a few. There was so much artwork to see, focusing on American art,from the 1960s to 1970s. So much to see it can be overwhelming. I will have to go back. It's good that it is handicapped accessible with ramps and elevators. There are clean bathrooms. Highly recommend.

The Waltham Museum is such a gem tucked away in a historic neighborhood. My entrance was free as I…read morewas enrolled in a watchmaking class held by the New York horological society. You can tell that the museum organizers really care to make this area a family, friendly experience. There is naturally a lot of history and museum artifacts surrounding the Waltham watch company, which made amazing pocket watches in the 19th and 20th century. Definitely recommend this museum if you're in the area.

If enthusiasm counts for anything, this museum is tops! The docent was helpful and loved the…read moremuseum. She had so much to share. Her voice was full of love for Waltham. She moved there at a young age, so she has the personal touch. The Museum itself is overflowing with information from the Native American days to almost current events. Waltham has contributed so many inventions - did you know chalk sticks were created in Waltham? Or a ten-seat bicycle was built there by the Metz Car Co. (also from Waltham that sold car kits that the customer put together himself). So many more unique bits of knowledge await the curious, the proud Waltham citizen or the amateur history buff. Maybe you are all three? Go and enjoy yourself!

What a treat it was to be able to see this in my lifetime and to spend some time on the grounds of…read moreHarvard University. So much in this museum I don't think you could possible see the whole place in one day. We spent 4-5 hours here and may have seen 50%. I so wish I lived closer so I could take it all in over several visits. The mineral and rocks area especially drew lots of my attention and I spent way too much time there and slowed us down a good bit. It's was so freaking cool though! Giant wads of gold and precious metals everywhere. Things I have never seen. Wonderful things! Also.... They have dinosaurs and so many cool things. Glass flowers, ancient artifacts, rare finds from around the world all housed in the historic University of Harvard campus. Check out my pics. I even have one where I am the last link in the evolutionary chain, LOL. Totally worth a trip here if you can. So many wonderful things to see!! '26 - 29

I came for the glass flowers and they did not disappoint! It turns out that access to the glass…read moreflower exhibit also permits you to access the Peabody museum, the taxidermy exhibits, and the glass sea animals. I was most impressed by the glass exhibits and the entomology collection. I only wish they had a little more information on how the glass flowers were maintained and created, I learned a lot from asking a docent but I'd love to see more info! The taxidermy smelled a bit strongly but was very interesting! The Peabody exhibits were interesting... I was most amused by the Fiji mermaid and the "stickball" exhibit (wtf)!

Great staff and there so much to see. Being able to see some of these innovations in real life,…read morethat I had only previous seen in history books or documentaries was pretty neat. My favorite part was to see some of the belt driven machinery actually work. We had visited the day after a person had come and replaced some of the belts. We were able to see a belt driven (automated) saw cut through a chunk of metal. It was an impromptu demo as we were walking around the the staff member saw us examining this particular piece of equipment (with our eyes of course). And he started it up for us. Again...staff is really enthusiastic and engaging. We also got to see where they do hands on workshops, where kids can design and print things in 3D, which is pretty cool. They had a nice even space as well for smaller weddings/events. Easy parking (pay) in a nearby garage and a easy walk across the bridge/walkway to get to the museum. If this type of history interests you, I would definitely recommend you stopping by. We were there for a couple of hours and throughly enjoyed the staff showing us around. Cute gift shop as well.

I'm embarrassed to say that I've worked over a decade in this area of Waltham and have never…read morerealized this hidden gem of a historical museum existed. The guys working the front desk are super knowledgeable, funny, helpful and nice. One of them was kind enough to give us a brief intro when we first arrived. They can totally geek out on all sorts of interesting facts, which I live to absorb. Still, I wish I had planned it in advance so we could have a formal tour because there's so much to see. Before coming here I had no idea that Massachusetts held such a rich industrial heritage. We spent two hours exploring the two story museum. There were plenty of interactive exhibits (great for the kiddos and adults) and each time we looped around the museum we found something else we missed the first time going through. This place is a haven especially for those who are interested in history and engineering. They had antique bikes, wooden cars, steam fire engines, watchmaking tools, belt driven machines, typography machines, horse drawn fire truck, and even a phone booth! They also do a great job of mixing in some modern and new exhibits (e.g., we saw whimsical puppetry paintings by Tanya Harsch). The second floor also has a beautiful and grand ballroom space (perfect for corporate events or weddings). I can't wait to come back here. Whether you are local or from out of town I'd highly recommend a visit.

The Boston Museum of Fine Arts features an impressive selection of art from around the world and…read moreacross different periods. We explored the Egyptian, Greek, European, Flemish and Dutch, Asian, Impressionist, and a small Jewish section. The exhibits are wonderful, and the museum is too large to explore in a single day. The gift shop has a nice selection of books, cards, and other typical museum knickknacks. Their Impressionist-themed puzzles were especially interesting. This is a progressive museum that strongly supports respective causes. If that bothers you, you may not enjoy your visit.

Absolutely amazing museum! It's a whole day visit (and more depending on how in depth you go in the…read moreexhibits). This is by far the biggest art museum I have ever seen. Plenty of exhibits, information/maps to guide you, a huge cafeteria space, plenty of restrooms, and handicap accessible. Plan a day for yourself to visit! Our experience was to get there early (maybe a half hour after they opened). We were able to walk right up to the ticketing area. As we were leaving at around 3pm, all the queuing lines were full and there was a huge line around the building outside in the rain. Timing does matter here!

Had never heard of this artist. What a nice small museum highlighting his work and life! Amazing…read moresculptures. Loved the story of how he never gave up on creating the Paul Revere sculpture . Spoke with two nice ladies working there. Would recommend stopping in to see it if on the area. Now I know about Cyrus Dallin!

Stopped here at the end of a biking trip and thoroughly enjoyed the free tour. I'd never heard of…read moreDallin or this museum before, and after the visit, I found that fact somewhat appalling. I went in not expecting much and left absolutely amazed. There is so much movement and expressivity in his sculptures. They remind me of early Rodin. In short, this guy created the Paul Revere statue in the North End, the Native American Statue in front of the MFA, and the trumpeting angel of the Mormon church, among others. He could easily be the best American sculptor of the 20th century but, due to political conflict and possibly his own obstinacy/arrogance, he has virtually no legacy. Poor guy, it took him 60 years to erect the Paul Revere statue in the North End and his name isn't even engraved on the pedestal! Boston politicians apparently didn't care for him much at all. He died penniless and all he gets is four rooms in a tiny house in Arlington to showcase his masterpieces. It's a nice little museum though, and the curators are very knowledgeable and dedicated. You can walk through the place on your own, but it's small enough that having a docent guide you through a detailed tour wouldn't take more than 40 minutes. As I said before, everything is free, though donations are greatly appreciated. If you are hosting visitors or just have an hour to kill on a weekend afternoon, this local treasure is well worth the trip.