Northampton, Massachusetts
Overview
Northampton is a city in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts with a picturesque and vibrant downtown, consisting of numerous art galleries, restaurants and quirky shops sprinkled among coffee shops and performing arts venues. It is home to the prestigious Smith College and the Clarke School for the Deaf. Northampton lies only 15 miles north of the City of Springfield, Massachusetts, and is 6 miles west of Amherst, another famous college town.
Language Schools and Camps in this Destination
In Northampton, Marshall Language Services also works with the International Language Institute of Massachusetts, which offers English and exam preparation courses for adults.
Northampton, Massachusetts
Things to Do and See During a Vacation Study
Smith College Museum of Art
This impressive campus museum boasts a 25,000-piece collection. The collection is particularly strong in 19th- and 20th-century European and North American paintings, including works by Degas, Winslow Homer, Picasso and James Abbott McNeill Whistler. Another highlight is the so-called ‘functional art’: the remarkable restrooms and the eclectic collection of benches (that you can actually sit on) – all designed and created by contemporary American artists.
Lyman Conservatory
Visitors are welcome to explore Smith College’s collection of Victorian greenhouses, set opposite Paradise Pond, which are packed to the brim with odd things in bloom. There’s a popular ‘bulb show’ in spring and a ‘mum show’ in the fall. A handy campus map also shows the way to the campus arboretum and half a dozen other more formal gardens.
Academy of Music Theatre
This balconied theater is one of the oldest movie houses in the USA (1890), and one of the most beautiful. It shows first-run independent films, plus books all sorts of music concerts from folk to cabaret as well as theatrical troupes.
Calvin Theatre
This restored movie house hosts big-name performances with everything from hot rock and indie bands to comedy shows. The Gilded Era decor is pretty fancy, and there’s an air of faded grandeur about the place.
Thornes Marketplace
This behemoth with the green awnings takes up a large chunk of Main St between Pleasant St and Old South St in the town center. The historic building houses an urban mall that contains an array of boutiques, student-centered shops and eateries.
How to Arrive at your Language Course
By Air
Boston’s Logan Airport is 133 km from Northampton. There is no direct bus from Logan Airport to Northampton, but there are services departing from Terminal B Stop 2 – Arrivals Level and arriving at Peter Pan Bus Terminal, Northampton, MA via South Station, Boston, MA. The journey, including transfers, takes approximately 3h 40m.
By Bus
Peter Pan Bus Lines offers frequent service from Boston and New York to Northampton and Amherst.
By train
Amtrak’s Vermonter Line provides direct service to the Pioneer Valley with station stops in Springfield, Northampton, and Greenfield. The train operates along a route that travels between Washington DC and Vermont through New York City. You can take a cab from the train stations to all points in Hampshire County (20-25 minutes).