Williamstown (Massachusetts)

Williamstown is a town in the Berkshires at the northwest corner of Massachusetts. It shares a border with New York and Vermont. It is a true college town, having hosted Williams College since 1793.

Understand

Williamstown is a lovely historic town that's well worth a visit. There are quite a few tasteful 18th-, 19th- and early 20th-century buildings, on and off campus.

Get in

Map of Williamstown (Massachusetts)

From the South or West: From I-87, take Exit 6; drive 45 minutes east on NY/MA Rt. 2 into Williamstown.
From Taconic Parkway: Take NY Rt. 295 East to NY Rt. 22 North to NY Rt. 43 East (which becomes MA Rt. 43 North) to US Rt. 7 North into Williamstown.
From the North (Vermont): Follow US Rt. 7 South to Williamstown.
From the East (Boston): Take Mass. Pike (I-90) to Exit 2 (Lee); US Rt. 20 West. This will merge with US Rt. 7 North, which you follow into Williamstown.

There is a bus direct from Port Authority (New York City) that takes about 5 hours. Check Peter Pan Bus lines.

Get around

Williamstown is a small town, and most locations are reachable on foot. For further trips to Vermont or neighboring North Adams, you're best off with a car, although local public transportation can get you around too. Buses run infrequently, so plan well. The Berkshire Regional Transit Authority webpage, with schedules, is at this link ^{[formerly dead link]} .

See

Aside from the following museums, you can enjoy walking around downtown Williamstown, looking at the outsides of buildings and walking into some of them, such as churches, if you visit when they are open.

42.711194-73.2026941 Williams College Museum of Art, 15 Lawrence Hall Dr, ☏ +1 413 597-2429, fax: +1 413 458-9017. W-Sa 10AM-5PM. Ste 2. One of the finest college art museums in the country with over 10,000 pieces, including a significant collection of Prendergast paintings, a Sol De Witt installation, and paintings by Hopper and Warhol in the permanent collection. WCMA's building was once the Williams College library and features a unique octagonal rotunda. Free. (updated Nov 2021)
42.7078-73.21362 Clark Art Institute, 225 South Street, ☏ +1 413 458-2303. Tu-Su 11AM-5PM. An excellent museum with over 30 paintings by Renoir and canvases by Monet and Pissarro in their collection. In 1950 Sterling and Francine Clark chartered the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute as a home for their extensive art collection. Opened to public in 1955, the Institute has built upon this extraordinary group of works to become one of the most beloved and respected art museums in the world, known for its intimate galleries and stunning natural environment. One of the few institutions in the United States that combines a public art museum with a complement of research and academic programs, including a major art history library, the Clark is now a leading international center for research and discussion on the nature of art and art history. Adult $20, under 18 free. (updated Sep 2020)

Do

Hiking: Pine Cobble There are countless hikes in the Williamstown area, but one of the most popular is certainly Pine Cobble. The Williams Outing Club publishes the North Berkshire Trails guide, available at Water Street Books (26 Water Street, ☏ +1 413 458-8071), the local bookstore, for $12. A trail description of Pine Cobble is available here^{[dead link]}. The trail (estimated time: 1 hour) climbs a hill north of Williamstown overlooking the Purple Valley and arrives at an expanse of quartzite rock exposed by glaciers long ago.
Lansing Chapman Skating Rink at Williams College, ☏ +1 413 597-2433. Latham Street. Call for hours.
Williams College Tennis Courts, ☏ +1 413 597-3151. Lynde Lane. Call for reservations.
Williamstown Theatre Festival, ☏ +1 413 597-3400, +1 413 458-3200 (Sep-May), wtfinfo@wtfestival.org. Late Jun-Aug. The Williamstown Theatre Festival (WTF) is a renowned festival that presents around two hundred plays, both classic and new productions, every summer on its stages, in addition to readings, workshops, and other special events. The festival was founded in 1954 and since then, a number of productions have gone to Broadway, Off-Broadway, and to theatres around the US. Roger Rees is WTF's artistic director, whom some television viewers may know as Lord John Marbury, the British Ambassador on the television show "The West Wing." Notable actors who have acted at WTF include Gwyneth Paltrow, Blythe Danner, Olympia Dukakis, Christopher Reeve, Marisa Tomei, Ron Rifkin, Richard Chamberlain, and Chris O'Donnell.

Golf

Taconic Golf Club, 19 Meacham St, ☏ +1 413 458-3997. Apr 15-Nov 15. Semi-private, 18 holes. A beautiful golf course, particularly in autumn when the leaves change. Trivia: Jack Nicklaus shot his first hole-in-one at the national junior championships on the Taconic's 14th hole (a small stone marker indicates the spot). In winter, the golf course is a favorite local cross-country skiing location.
Waubeeka Golf Links, ☏ +1 413 458-8355. Route 7. Public, 18 holes. Apr 1-Dec 1. Make reservations:.

Buy

Eat

1896 House Pub, ☏ +1 413 458-1896, celebrate@1896house.com. Rt. 7. Daily 5PM to close. Pub food.
Chef's Hat Restaurant, 905 Simonds Road, ☏ +1 413 458-5120. Tu-F 6:30AM-2PM, Sa 6:30AM-3PM, Su 7AM-3PM. Great breakfast place.
Chopstick's Restaurant, 412 Main Street, ☏ +1 413 458-5750. M-Th 10:30AM-10:30PM; F Sa 10:30AM-11PM; Su 11AM-10:30PM. Fine Japanese, Korean, Chinese.
Colonial Pizza, 243 Main St, ☏ +1 413 458-4009. Su-W 11AM-1AM, F Sa 11AM-2AM.
Coyote Flaco, 505 Cold Spring Road, ☏ +1 413 458-4240. Tu-Th 4PM-10PM; F Sa 4-11PM. Mexican/Spanish. Margaritas!
Cozy Corner Restaurant, 850 Simonds Road, ☏ +1 413 458-3854. M-F 11AM-9PM; Sa 11:30AM-9PM; Su noon-9PM. (Rte. 7). Seafood, Italian.
Dining Halls, Williams College (Williams College Campus). The dining halls at Williams College seem to be open to everybody. There are three dining halls: Driscoll, Whitmans (Paresky), and Mission. Follow the link for menus and hours. All except Whitmans are all-you-can-eat buffets. These cost $12 for dinner and $7 for lunch. At Whitmans you can buy different courses separately, but the most expensive will only be $12 as well. At night, there is a snackbar in Paresky, and every night except Sunday and Monday there is pizza in the basement for $7 (really good). 3-12.
Gala (formerly Yasmin's Restaurant), 222 Adams Road, ☏ +1 413 458-9611. Breakfast 7AM-10AM, lunch noon-2PM, dinner 5:30PM-9PM, Su brunch 10AM-2PM. Beautiful courtyard/garden setting. Gourmet cuisine and great wine list.
Happy Star Chinese Restaurant, 240A Main St., M-Th 10:30AM-10:30PM; F Sa 10:30AM-11PM; Su 11AM-10:30PM.
Hobson's Choice, 159 Water Street, ☏ +1 413 458-9101. Daily 5-9:30PM.
^{[dead link]} Jae's Inn, 1111 South State Street, ☏ +1 413 664-0100. Lunch M-Sa 11:30AM-4PM, Su noon-4PM; dinner Su-Th 5-9PM, F Sa 5-10PM. Korean. Japanese.
Mezze Bistro & Bar, 16 Water Street, ☏ +1 413 458-0123, nancy@mezzeinc.com. Dinner daily 5PM. Excellent choice with imaginative offerings. $19-$24.
Michael's Restaurant, 460 Main Street, ☏ +1 413 458-2114. Tu-Su 4-9PM. (Route 2). Homemade Italian and Greek.
Moonlight Diner & Grille, 408 Main Street, ☏ +1 413 458-3305. (Route 2). Su-W 7AM-10PM; Th until 11PM; F Sa until midnight. Breakfast all day.
Pappa Charlie's Deli, 28 Spring Street, ☏ +1 413 458-5969. M-Sa 8AM-8PM; Su 8AM-7PM. Best sandwich place.
Pera Mediterranean Bistro, 60 Spring St, ☏ +1 413 458-8676. Su-W 11AM-9PM; Th-Sa 11AM-10PM. This place provides excellent food made from fresh ingredients in generous portions, with good service, and refills tea without charge. The menu is really not as expensive as these prices make it seem, because main dishes include soup or a side salad and the separate salad plates are big for one person. The wine list also is quite inexpensive, with bottles between $19.50 and $49.00, quite a few of which are toward the low end of that range. Apps: $6.95-13.95; salad plates: $8.95-12.95; pasta: $13.95-19.95; sandwiches and wraps: $9.95-14.95; entrees: $16.95-27.50; dessert: $5.95-7.95. (updated May 2015)
Spice Root Modern Indian Cuisine, 23 Spring Street, ☏ +1 413 458-5200. Lunch: Tu-Sa 11:30AM-2:30PM, Su noon-3PM; dinner: Su Tu-Th 5-10PM, F Sa 5-11PM. Fine Indian. Vegetarian available.
Sushi Thai Garden, 27 Spring Street, ☏ +1 413 458-0004. Lunch daily 11:30AM-10PM, dinner daily 5-10PM. Thai/Japanese.
The Water Street Grill, 123 Water Street, ☏ +1 413 458-2175. M-Th 11:30AM-midnight, F-Su 11:30AM-1AM. (Route 43).
The Williams Inn, ☏ +1 413 458-9371. On the Green, Jct. Routes 2 & 7. Daily 7AM to 10PM;10PMbrunch 11:30AM - 2PM. A la carte. Also a Tavern with casual food. Has the Sunday brunch.

Drink

The Red Herring, 46 Spring Street, ☏ +1 413-458-2808. Open every day. Located underneath the movie theater in town, it's a cozy location to grab a beer after class. Dancing usually occurs on Thursdays, upstairs.
Waterstreet Grill. see above under food. Much classier (and more expensive) than the Red Herring.

Sleep

Hotels

^{[formerly dead link]} Howard Johnson Express Inn, 213 Main Street, ☏ +1 413-458-8158. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. Jacuzzi Rooms, Business Center, Free wireless Internet Access, Free Breakfast, Outside Pool, Free Parking, TV with cable HBO, Near to Williams College.
The Orchards Hotel, 222 Adams Road, ☏ +1 413 458-9611, toll-free: +1 800-225-1517, hoteladmin@orchardshotel.com. $170-325.
The Williams Inn, On the Green, Jct. Rtes. 2 & 7, ☏ +1 413 458-9371, toll-free: +1-800-828-0133, innkeeper@williamsinn.com. $140-280. (updated May 2015)

Motels

^{[formerly dead link]} Howard Johnson Express Inn, 213 Main Street, ☏ +1 413-458-8158. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: 11AM. Jacuzzi rooms, business center, free Wi-Fi, free breakfast, outside pool, free parking, TV with cable HBO. 37 rooms. $49-225.
1896 House - Brookside and Pondside (Route 7), ☏ +1 413 458-1896, toll-free: +1-888-999-1896, celebrate@1896house.com. 30 rooms. $69-219.
Berkshire Hills Motel, 1146 Cold Spring Road (Route 7), ☏ +1 413 458-3950, toll-free: +1-800-388-9677, info@berkshirehillsmotel.com. 21 rooms. $69-159.
Cozy Corner Motel, 284 Sand Springs Road, ☏ +1 413 458-8006, ccmotel@aol.com. (Route 7). 12 rooms. $50-125.
Green Valley Motel, 1214 Simonds Road (Route 7), ☏ +1 413 458-3864, GreenValleyMTL@aol.com. 10 rooms. $40-85.
Maple Terrace Motel, 555 Main Street, ☏ +1 413 458-9677, stay@mapleterrace.com. 17 rooms. $55-145.
Northside Motel, 45 North Street, ☏ +1 413 458-8107, northside@bcn.net. 33 rooms. $49-139.
^{[dead link]} The Stratton Inn of Williamstown, 62 Stratton Road, ☏ +1 843 270-6157, strattoninn@gmail.com. 2 suites. $179-229.
^{[dead link]} Villager Motel, 953 Simonds Road (Route 7), ☏ +1 413 458-4046, toll-free: +1-877-98-MOTEL (66835), vivek@berkshire.net. $46-135.

Connect

Go next

There is a Peter Pan bus to New York City on Sundays that costs $45. Buy tickets at the Williams Inn. Leaves at 4PM.

You can take the Berkshire Transport to Pittsfield (about 20 minutes south) for many more transportation options, including a train. The bus to New York City also stops in Pittsfield.

If you are a student at Williams then log onto WSO and check out the rideboard.

Routes through Williamstown

Rutland ← Bennington ←	N S	→ Lanesborough → Pittsfield
Troy ← Becomes ←	W E	→ North Adams → Greenfield

This city travel guide to Williamstown is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.