Guide to Amherst, Massachusetts | Eat, Stay, Play

Learn the best things to do, where to eat, and where to stay in our guide to Amherst, a vibrant college town in the Pioneer Valley of western Massachusetts. Best known as the home of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst College, and nearby Hampshire College, Amherst combines a youthful, intellectual energy with a rich cultural and literary heritage. Surrounded by rolling hills, farms, and forests, Amherst offers a lively downtown with shops, cafés, and museums, along with easy access to outdoor adventures and scenic views that are especially stunning in the fall.

Guide to Amherst: Things to Do

Amherst Cinema

Offering classics, indies, and National Theatre Live films, this movie house urges you to “See Something Different!”—which could mean belly-laughing at 1959’s Some Like It Hot or quietly weeping at Wim Wenders’s 2023 Perfect Days. Oh, and they serve wine and beer at the high-end snack bar, too.

The Drake

Partly funded by the town, this music venue opened in 2022 and quickly drew crowds with such acts as Dinosaur Jr., Regina Carter, and Roomful of Blues.

Emily Dickinson Museum

Apart from tours, the museum also hosts engaging events such as September’s “Tell It Slant” poetry festival, which features a group reading of all 1,789 of Dickinson’s poems. Bonus: The creators of the TV series Dickinson recently gave the museum a number of the show’s costumes.

Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art

Carle’s beautiful illustrations from The Very Hungry Caterpillar and other childhood classics share the spotlight with rotating exhibits (this fall, look for the work of Brazilian illustrator Roger Mello), as well as kid-friendly art projects and storytelling sessions.

Mike’s Maze

Wagon rides, pedal carts, potato cannons, a playground, a petting zoo, and a wildly inventive eight-acre corn maze are this Sunderland attraction’s ingredients for cooking up a perfect autumn play day.

Skinner State Park

Hike or drive to the top of Mount Holyoke, crowned by a former 19th-century hotel, and soak up the summit views of jewel-toned foliage and the Connecticut River Valley.

Guide to Amherst: Restaurants

The Archives

Amherst’s best-kept secret is a modern speakeasy that opened in 2022 with a faux-studious vibe (among the cocktail options: the Study Abroad). The address is 30 Boltwood Walk, but it’s intentionally tricky to find—dare yourself to try.

Atkins Farms Country Market

Here’s where to satisfy that seasonal hankering for fresh cider doughnuts—not to mention pumpkin whoopie pies and caramel apples. Plus: Look for the monthly tastings of wines, beers, and ciders.

Blue Heron Restaurant

The longtime owners of Blue Heron, set in the 1867 Old Town Hall in Sunderland, were 2022 James Beard Award semifinalists for Best Restaurateurs. The culinary results of their expertise (such as the irresistible truffled mushroom risotto) speak for themselves.

Fresh Side

This Asian fusion cuisine—Thai, Korean, Vietnamese, and more—is innovative and healthy. Try the signature tea rolls or Five Spicy Beef Noodle Soup. There’s sidewalk dining in good weather.

Protocol

Opened in 2023, Protocol puts a cosmopolitan spin on farm-to-table, with a gleaming bar and copious greenery. Seasonal fare and great bar-food staples fill a menu that the chef calls “high-end and low-brow.”

Guide to Amherst: Lodging

Inn on Boltwood

Stay in the heart of it all at this 1926 Colonial Revival hotel, where each of the 49 rooms has a view of either Amherst College or the town center. Its eco-friendly initiatives have earned Silver LEED status, a rare honor for a historic inn.

What would you add to our guide to Amherst? Let us know!

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