1. Lord Jeffery Inn
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Accommodations
Telephone: (413) 256-8200
Address: 30 Boltwood Ave.
Insider Pick:
Description: Following a 2011 major renovation, the 1926 Lord Jeffery Inn now perfectly blends modern convenience with historical significance. Every inch of the inn exudes refined New England country elegance, from the lobby with its fireplace and many intimate seating areas to the flagstone terrace of 30 Boltwood, the inn’s farm-to-table restaurant. The inn’s 49 guest rooms have been updated as well in a variety of pleasing color palettes and feature plush linens, flat-screen LCD HD TVs, and bathrooms with walk-in frameless glass showers.
2. Jones Group Realtors
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Relocation
Telephone: (413) 549-3700
Address: 01002
Description: The Berkshire real estate market is a Boston/New York City vacation home market, which puts a lot of upward pressure on the housing stock, locking out younger buyers and year-round residents. Located in southern Berkshire County, picture-perfect Great Barrington is a favorite second-home choice for urban escapees. Smithsonian Magazine recently named Great Barrington one of the “best small towns in America.” The median price for a three-bedroom house in 2012 was $345,000, up 52 percent from the previous year. But the data tells only half the story. Home prices vary greatly from $345,000 for a four-bedroom/two-bath in downtown Barrington, to $2 million for a large spread on a private tract outside the city.Pittsfield is located in the heart of the Berkshires and is the largest city in the county, with a year-round population of 45,000 and a revitalized downtown. Home prices are stagnant (they used to be falling) and offer lots of affordable choices. The average listing price of a home in 2012 was $226,000, which will buy a 3-bedroom, 2 1⁄2-bath colonial on a cul-de-sac.
3. Food For Thought Books
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Shopping
Telephone: (413) 253-5432
Address: 106 N. Pleasant St.
Description: Since 1976 this book shop (it actually follows a workers-collective model) has been on the front lines of raising political and social awareness in the Amherst community. Unapologetically far left of center, it stocks books from ecological/environmental issues to feminism to justice in the developing world. Feel free to join in and debate the issues of the day at the store’s frequent book and community events.
4. Emily Dickinson Museum
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (413) 542-8161
Address: 280 Main St.
Insider Pick:
Description: As is often the case with historic houses, the docent makes the tour—and these docents are very well versed (pun intended) on the life of Emily Dickinson and her poetry. The 90-minute guided tours include visiting the Dickinson Homestead, where Emily was born and spent most of her life. She wrote many of her poems in her sunny 2nd-floor bedroom. Emily was reclusive in her later years and was known in Amherst as the “woman in white.” You’ll see a replica “white dress” at the top of the 2nd-floor stairs. The simple cotton house dress with mother-of-pearl buttons is distinctive, too, for its special sewn-on pocket so that Emily would always have a scrap of paper and a pencil at hand. You’ll also visit the Evergreens next door, the Italianate house owned by her brother Austin, with its collection of Dickinson family furniture and artifacts. Serious poetry buffs should check ahead for information on the extensive schedule of special events and programs that take place—often in conjunction with leading academics from Amherst College. If you are not familiar with Emily’s poetry (“I’m nobody, who are you?”), the museum’s bookstore carries many excellent compilations. The museum is closed during Jan and Feb.
5. Eric Carle Museum Of Picture Book Art
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (413) 658-1100
Address: 125 W. Bay Rd.
Description: Ask any teenager or young adult and they will tell you that The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is one of the coolest picture books ever. Eric Carle and his wife established this museum, devoted to national and international picture-book art, in 2002. The museum appeals to all ages but was designed with children in mind; the artwork is hung lower than normal. The 3 galleries display a rotating series of exhibits. Eric Carle has illustrated more than 70 picture books and the West Gallery always features some aspect of his work; past exhibits have included “Bears and Beyond,” which examined Carle’s collage technique, and “Beyond Books,” a retrospective of his other artistic endeavors: photography, sketches, painting, and sculpture. The other galleries feature various other children’s picture-book authors; past exhibitions have included Maurice Sendak, Arnold Lobel, Leo Lionni, Lucy Cousins, and Latino folk tales. The gift shop has a phenomenal selection of classic picture books and related gifts. Before you go, make a list of kids you need to buy a gift for this year and get it done in advance.
6. Mead Art Museum
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (413) 542-2335
Address: 41 Quadrangle Dr.
Description: Set in a classic redbrick building on the campus of Amherst College, the museum has 6 galleries that cover a diverse range of culture and time periods. While the Mead’s holdings are expansive, with works as diverse as ancient Assyrian sculptures, European masters paintings, and Russian modern art, its American collection is its most renowned, with works by John Singleton Copley, Frederic Edwin Church, Winslow Homer, Childe Hassam, and Robert Henri. The museum is closed Mon but open until midnight Tues through Thurs and Sun—a boon in early-closing Amherst.
7. National Yiddish Book Center
City: Amherst, MA
Category: Tours & Attractions
Telephone: (413) 256-4900
Address: 1021 West St.
Description: From a distance the building looks like an isolated settlement on a hilltop overlooking an apple orchard. Built to resemble an Eastern European Jewish village, or shtetl, from the outside, the 37,000-square-foot Jewish cultural center has a bright, modern design inside and abundant natural light. In 1980 then–graduate student Aaron Lansky set out to save Yiddish books from Dumpsters and rescue unwanted texts from basements and attics in an effort to preserve Jewish language and culture. To date, more than 1.5 million volumes have been collected. Visit the library and art galleries or participate in the center’s extensive cultural programming, including concerts, films, and author talks. The center is located adjacent to Hampshire College; closed Sat (Sun, too, during the winter) and all major Jewish and legal holidays.