Day Trip to Amherst and Deerfield, Massachusetts
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I’m one of those people that loves to do something for their birthday. Last year, it was a trip to Assateague Island. This year, I was supposed to do a cruise out of Boston to see lighthouses. However, that was cancelled due to rain. Since I already had the day off, I planned something else. I settled on a day trip to Amherst and Deerfield in Massachusetts for a low-key day trip.
Amherst, Massachusetts
This was my first time visiting Amherst, Massachusetts. The reason I wanted to visit was to go to the Emily Dickinson Museum to tour the homestead. I love touring historic buildings, and this spot has been on my list for a while.
Breakfast
Before our 10am tour, we decided to grab breakfast in town. We settled on Coronation Cafe because it had a whopping 4.9 rating on Google. I’m one of those people who reads lots of reviews before going anywhere because I want to make sure it’s going to be worth it.
This breakfast spot did not disappoint. I got a cinnamon roll and a bacon egg and cheese sandwich. The cinnamon roll was honestly one of the best cinnamon rolls I have ever had. The roll and icing were so good. It was quite large, so I didn’t finish it. But, I did bring it home for my boyfriend to enjoy the other half. He was also a huge fan of it.
The egg sandwich was also really good. I’m pretty picky about my eggs and how they’re cooked, but I thoroughly enjoyed my sandwich. My friend got an omelet and she said it was one of the best omelets she has had. I’d say this spot was definitely worthy of that 4.9 rating it had on Google.
The Emily Dickinson Museum
After we finished breakfast, we headed to the Emily Dickinson Museum to tour the homestead where the American poet was born and also died. I’m going to be honest, I did not know anything about Emily Dickinson prior to this and I am not sure that I’ve even read any of her poetry. I was interested in visiting because I really love touring historic homes.
During the tour, I learned so much about Emily Dickinson and her poetry. I loved the guided tour and how it really told the story of her life as we made our way through the house. Even without being a fan of Emily Dickinson, I really enjoyed the tour. In fact, after the tour, I actually really wanted to learn more about her and explore read of her poetry. I used to love reading and writing poetry when I was younger and visiting this house really brought my love for poetry back.
The museum also has a second home you can tour. Emily Dickinson’s brother’s Italianate home, The Evergreens, is right next-door to the homestead. Unfortunately, they were doing renovations on The Evergreens when I visited. However, I would love to go back and visit this museum when that house is open again. The tickets include visits to both houses and I’d gladly tour the homestead again as well.
If you’re planning on visiting this house, one thing to note is that the parking is metered street parking. And if you’re traveling from far away, there’s a really cute bed and breakfast right across the street, the Amherst Inn. It’s housed in a historic 1873 home and it’s highly rated on Tripadvisor.
Deerfield, Massachusetts
After the Emily Dickinson House, we headed to Deerfield. Due to the rainy weather, the plan was to go to the Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory and Yankee Candle Village.
Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory
I have been visiting this spot since I was a kid. I have a lot of great memories of visits here with my extended family. There’s something magical about having butterflies flying around you while also being surrounded by lush plants. If you’re lucky, you’ll even have one land on you!
It’s a great spot to visit for kids as they have a lot of different activities like scavenger hunts to find different types of butterflies and showing off other cool living things like reptiles. Before you go into the greenhouse where the butterflies are, there is a room that has some reptiles and bugs on display.
Inside the butterfly conservatory, it’s like walking into a fairytale as butterflies fly around you. There are a lot of spots you can just sit back and relax and take it all in like benches and a gazebo. There are also various paths you can walk through.
Aside from Butterflies, you’ll also see tortoises near the entrance and birds such as quails running around as you make your way through. Since there are small quails running around, be mindful of your surroundings as you walk around to make sure you don’t accidentally step on one. Also, be sure to respect them by letting them have their space and not chasing them.
While I love this place and think it’s awesome, I just want to note that it’s not a great place to visit if you’re terrified of bugs. It’s not like going to a zoo where the living things are kept away from you. You’re immersed in their environment and there will be butterflies flying super close to your face and body.
Yankee Candle Village
After Magic Wings, we headed over to Yankee Candle Village. This is another spot that I used to go to growing up. We would always stop here after our visit to the Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory.
I’ll start by saying this is not your typical candle store. Visiting Yankee Candle Village is an experience. For starters, it is Christmas year-round. The Bavarian Village section is like walking into a winter wonderland. It even snows every four minutes!
You can also visit Santa’s workshop. There are a lot of toys in this section of the store and there are so many fun details like presents hanging from the ceiling and being moved. It really feels like you’re stepping into the real deal. You’ll also sometimes find Santa there!
In the center of the store is a food court. There’s an animatronic band in this section as well as a beautiful fountain to dine by. In the food court, you can grab a quick slice of pizza for lunch, enjoy some Ben & Jerry’s, or get specialty fudge and popcorn. Also in this part of the store is a spot where you can get ornaments customized. We used to get ornaments every year from here.
There are also activities you can do in the store. You can make your own candle or make your own candle scent. This was something I was hoping to do when I visited this time, but none of these sections were open. I’m thinking it was probably because I went on a random Thursday. But, I have made candles here in the past and it was a lot of fun.
And since this is a Yankee Candle, you can also shop for candles. The store is huge and they have a hug selection of scents to choose from. There’s also a lot of other things you can shop for here like the ornaments I mentioned earlier, toys, candy, clothes, bags, and more.
Other Things To Do In The Area
While this day trip ended at Yankee Candle Village, there are some other things you can do specifically in the Deerfield area. These are things I would have liked to do if the weather wasn’t so rainy.
Historic Deerfield
If you’re interested in history and historic homes, Historic Deerfield is a great place to visit. I visited this spot for the first time last fall and I absolutely loved it. I expected it to be like Old Sturbridge Village, but it was actually quite different. You don’t actually enter a village at Historic Deerfield like you do at Sturbridge. Instead, it’s a collection of homes along an actual road with residential houses people actually live in between some of the museum houses.
You check in and get your tickets and then you get to pick and choose which houses you’d like to tour. You’ll get a schedule that tells you when the tours are for specific houses. I didn’t get to go to all of the houses when I visited, so I’m hoping to go back this year!
Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation
Another spot to check out in Deerfield is the Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation. This is a great spot to visit if you love nature and scenic views. You can hike to the top where you’ll be rewarded with great views of the Connecticut River, or you can drive up to the top. If you drive to the top, you will have to pay for parking.
At the top, there is a pavilion, an observation tower, and bathrooms. Be sure to climb the observation tower to get some seriously great views. If you’re not able to climb the stairs of the observation tower, there are also great views from the ground. You can’t go wrong with any of the vantage points here. It’s all super pretty.
If you’re planning to drive up, the road is very narrow and it can be a little sketchy if there is another car coming from the opposite direction. Drive slowly and cautiously. If you’re planning to hike, it’s a 2.2 mile hike with 456 feet of elevation gain.
Final Thoughts
I think that both of these towns make a great spot for a day trip. I’d love to go back to Amherst and explore downtown a bit more when it’s not rainy and I’d also love to go back to tour The Evergreens at the Emily Dickinson Museum once it opens again. And I’d totally be up for another one of those cinnamon rolls from Coronation Cafe.
