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The tiny state of Massachusetts is a great fall vacation destination.

Massachusetts may not be a huge state, but it has an amazing amount to offer a visitor. Go whale watching at Cape Ann, relive American history at Plymouth, Salem, and Lexington, enjoy the almost ethereal beauty of Cape Cod and the Islands, savor the cosmopolitan flavor of Boston, or listen to music under the stars at the Tanglewood estate. Within this overwhelming list lies a considerable amount of uniqueness. Massachusetts has several of the “first”, the “oldest”, the “largest” and “one of a kind” attractions that make it an extremely fascinating destination.

FIRSTS If you have to start with “firsts”, then a good beginning is “America’s Hometown” of Plymouth. A visit to Plymouth Plantation with its re-creation of the 1627 Plymouth community, and Mayflower II, a reproduction of the ship in which the immigrants landed, gives you a taste of new beginnings. Pay tribute to one of America’s favorite sports at the Basketball Hall of Fame in Greater Springfield. The Hall has three levels of exhibits and is packed with activities. Dr James Naismith invented the game here in 1891. Drive down the Mohawk Trail and take in some spectacular natural beauty along America’s first scenic automobile route. Enjoy the fall foliage season when the trees break into a riot of color, The Bridge of Flowers, an old trolley bridge that is planted with masses of blooms throughout spring and summer, or the breathtaking drive up the Notch Road to the summit of Mount Greylock, the state’s tallest mountain. A few other “firsts” include Essex, in the north of Boston, where the fried clam was first cooked, Lexington’s Battle Green and Concord’s North Bridge, where the first shots of the American Revolution were fired, and the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, which is the first full-scale museum in America devoted to picture book art!

OLDEST AND LARGEST Hop across the river from Boston to Cambridge to visit America’s oldest university, Harvard. Along with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, this famed Ivy League university gives the area of Cambridge its vibrant and energetic atmosphere. New England’s oldest surviving mansion, Turner-Ingersoll Mansion, was made famous by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and is rich in the history of maritime trade that established Salem as an important colonial seaport. If you are in the mood for some cutting edge art then head for the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, the nation’s largest contemporary art center in the Berkshires region at North Adams. You can also find the largest collection of Norman Rockwell original illustrations at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge. The kids will delight in America’s oldest working carousel, the Flying Horses, at Martha’s Vineyard while all of you can enjoy some great performances at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival at Becket, the oldest such festival in the country, which showcases modern dance, ballet, and jazz in a rustic setting.

ONE-OF-A-KIND-EXPERIENCES The uniqueness of the state can be experienced through some truly one of a kind attractions. If you are in Boston for New Years Eve then you must attend, what is reputed to be, America’s largest New Year’s Eve Party - The First Night Festival. With ice sculptures, a parade, and thousands of performances this is one long party, lasting around ten hours! If the frantic reveling from New Years Eve leaves you yearning for calm there is plenty of natural beauty in Massachusetts to soothe and relax. Enjoy picturesque Rockport Harbor, rated as one of the nation’s top 10 scenic places by Walt Disney Productions or be charmed by the festivals at Nantucket Island. Celebrate nature and all her bounty at the Daffodil Festival that abounds with flowery excitement and the Cranberry Festival, which lasts a week to celebrate the harvest. Take your family to the Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden where you too can relive your childhood with life size statues of Seuss characters like Horton, the Grinch, and the Lorax. No destination can be viewed in its entirety in a single visit and this applies to Massachusetts as well. However, the uniqueness of so many of its attractions definitely provides you with a one of a kind vacation!