The Berkshires Await: Your Guide to a Quick Getaway

The Berkshires, the western most part of Massachusetts known for it’s rolling hills, pastoral landscapes, and vibrant arts & cultural life. The Berkshires await and this is a your guide to a quick getaway!

I’ve always wanted to visit the Berkshires. I grew up in Massachusetts and even went to college at Mount Holyoke which is in western Mass, this family trip was our first time visiting and we all definately want to go back. We only had 24 hours in the Berkshires which wasn’t enough. You may remember we went camping with friends on Lake George and we decided to stop in the Berkshires before heading home.

Where We Stayed

We stayed at Porches Inn in North Adams and loved it. Their website says, “it’s more than a stay. It’s an experience.” We found this to be true. We got there relatively late on a Friday afternoon. It was a longer than expected ride from NY and we stopped at Hancock Shaker Village. So when we arrived at the inn after two nights of camping a steaming shower was calling my name. Our room was luxurious with a giant walk in shower, marble everywhere and a claw foot tub. We had two queen beds and a sitting area.

More about the Inn – Just steps from MASS MoCA Porches Inn created 47 guest rooms in beautifully appointed and restored row houses. The amenities are wonderful: a beautiful pool and hot tub, sauna, gym, firepit, fully stocked bar and areas for gathering outside on Adirondacks or inside around a board game or coffee table books.

The boys explored the city and we relaxed by the pool and in the hot tub. Then enjoyed the showers and went out for dinner. Had a lovely meal at Public.

Breakfast was included with our room rate and was more than just the usual continental breakfast – roasted potatoes, eggs, sausages, fresh fruit, baked breads, yogurt and more. Breakfast certainly filled our teenage boys up.

Before we checked out we explored Studio 9 on the campus of the inn. Studio 9 is a performing and recording space with amazing acoustics. We enjoyed a demo while there. They are currently building the FreshGrass Annex with Shaker inspired interiors for artists, creatives, and curious travelers and will be available for stays starting October 2025. This space includes art studios and music rehearsal spaces.

Places to Visit

There is so much to do and see. The challenge for us was trying to fit in as much as possible in one day. We plan to return and I’d love to stay at Porches Inn again.

Hancock Shaker Village

Luke has talked about visiting Hancock Shaker Village for many years. When he first got into woodworking, he was interested in seeing how the Shakers did it.

I’ve always loved the Shaker style. They developed so much we still use today. Did you know the invented the flat broom, the peg rail, and Shaker chairs?

I dream of putting Shaker style cabinets in our kitchen and I was surprised to find that the actual cabinets by the Shakers have a slight bevel to them. Look at that gorgeous woodwork. I probably could write an entire post on Shaker style and decor.

An hour and a half really wasn’t long enough here. I think we could easily have spent four hours or more. There are live demos and talks. We got to chat with someone about how the chairs are built, how the round boxes are made and why they used that method. We also got to see the blacksmith and hooks he was making along with a demo of the water turbine they installed to power the laundry and woodworking machines. What surprised us most was the Shakers’ willingness to adopt technology. I think we weren’t expecting that.

The buildings are absolutely gorgeous. The round barn:

We enjoyed seeing all the beautiful animals inside. How sweet are these goats?

I really loved seeing the interior of the communal living and dining building:

We learned men and women were considered equal but separated. They Shakers worked hard – 6 days a week with the sabbath day off. They were celibate and now only two remain up in Maine. They ate apple pie with every meal. It really was fascinating.

MASS MoCA

We absolutely loved the MASS MoCa in North Adams. It stands for Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. As you know, John and I adore art and musuems but Conor isn’t so keen on museums. I thought MASS MoCA would be similar to the ICA in Boston with a few exhibits. Well, I was wrong. MASS Moca is enormous and we could have easily spent the entire day here. What we loved was the building itself. The museum is housed in an old electric factory and they kept the shell of the building the same so you see the old brick and paint etc.

It’s directly across the street from Porches Inn so ideal if you’re staying there. The gift shops were fabulous and so was the art. Just phenonemal! There were so many types of contemporary art. One exhibit we loved was the Vincent Valdez:

A number of galleries were devoted to his work from large scale oil paintings, to pencil sketches and pastels. We discovered he is a RISD grad and they had some of his artwork from college and before in flat file drawers. It was really interesting for John to see this as he now is at RISD studying illustration.

I also loved Spencer Finch’s Cosmic Latte installation:

The museum offers residencies, events and music festivals. It truly is a cultural mecca and we can’t wait to go back!

Norman Rockwell Museum

We all decided we needed to visit the Norman Rockwell museum in Stockbridge. Norman Rockwell is so iconic in American history for his decades-long Saturday Evening Post covers and documenting American life. It was fascinating to see his process and his prolific artwork. I didn’t realize he had models pose for him. I also didn’t really know much about his life. I wish the museum took you through more of a progression about his life but it focused more on his art.

We walked the beautiful grounds and saw the exterior of his studio. You can pay extra to see inside, but Conor was musuemed-out.

The Town of Stockbridge

We enjoyed strolling around the town of Stockbridge which Rockwell made famous in a winter illustration. We had a wonderful early dinner outside at The Red Lion Inn. Then it was time to head home.

For Next Time We Go To the Berkshires

There was so much we couldn’t fit into this visit that we want to return another time. Of course, we’d like to return to MASS MoCA and stay at Porches maybe even see a concert or music performance whilst there. Here are other places we’d like to visit:

• Chesterwood – The summer home and studio of Daniel Chester French, the sculptor of the Abraham Lincoln statue in the Lincoln Memorial and the Minute Man in Concord among others.
• The Mount – Edith Warton’s turn of the century home. I loved her books, including Summer and Ethan Frome and would love to visit her home.
• The Clark Insititute – Art museum and research center located in Williamstown.
• Tanglewood – We’d love to see a concert or performance at the music venue.
• Jacob’s Pillow – this national and historical landmark is a renowned dance center with the longest running international dance festival.
• Naumkeg – Trustees of the Reservation property with a beautiful gilded age cottage and gardens designed by Fletcher Steele.
• Dream Away Lodge – a cool tucked away restaurant and music venue. Our neighbor grew up in the Berkshires and highly recommends this.
• More towns we’d like to explore – Williamstown, Great Barrington, Lenox

Let’s Keep in Touch

If you love the Berkshires and have places you’d recommend, please leave them in the comments so this can help everyone plan an amazing trip. If you’re planning a trip to the beautiful Berkshires be sure to save this pin for later:

We had so much fun during our short stay and really look forward to going back perhaps in the fall or winter. It seems there’s lots to do out there in every season.

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