Kids Tour

If you’re looking for a family-friendly vacation, then you’re coming home to Johnny Appleseed Country, which provides wholesome, fun activities and attractions that every age will appreciate. The Johnny Appleseed Trail Visitor Center in Lancaster even has a specially prepared packet of information that will appeal to kids. If a tour isn't quite what you have in mind be sure to check out our Ten Things To Do With The Kids page.

For example, start out your tour at Davis Farm/MegaMaze (www.davisfarmland.com) in Sterling, whose slogan is “Get lost in the Adventure!” A seven-generation family farm, the site is home to not only a functioning farm that houses endangered animals, but an award-winning three-dimensional field maze created from the farm’s cornfields. Open from August until October, the maze provides thrills to people of all ages. In addition, Davis Farm has teamed up with San Diego Zoo to create the world’s first “Frozen Zoo” for endangered farm animals by preserving their DNA. On a hot Summer day, there’s no need to swelter – you can enjoy Adventure Play & Spray, the nation’s largest zero-depth spray ground

Next stop is the Top Fun Aviation Toy Museum (www.topfunaviation.com) in downtown Fitchburg – the only toy museum in the world completely devoted to aviation-related toys. (Watch this site, as the museum expects to be moving soon!) Perfect for toy -plane lovers (or if it’s the odd, rainy day), the museum houses an international collection of over 2,000 toys, both contemporary and vintage. Whatever your generation – Elvis, Bugs Bunny, Buzz Lightyear, Star Trek or Star Wars – you’ll find something to smile about. You’ll rediscover the joy of flight, and witness the results of toy builders’ ingenuity and imagination. Don’t miss a visit to a virtual airport on the computer, or the chance to test-fly your own model. Open weekends.

Take advantage of the beautiful weather so beloved by Johnny Appleseed, and next make your way to Mount Wachusett (www.wachusett.com) in Princeton, the largest mountain in Massachusetts east of the Connecticut River, and winter home to area skiers and snowboarders. . . and celebrated for its outstanding ski instructors and its SnowMonsters programs for kids and “snowbunnies.”

In Summer and Fall, you’ll find Wachusett Mountain the venue for various festivals ranging from the Chilifest to music festivals, September’s KidsFest, and October’s AppleFest. Add a fun hike along mountain trails, and you’re all set!

Round out your trip with a visit to Red Apple Farm (www.redapplefarm.com) in Phillipston, a farm whose nostalgic appeal will charm parents and children alike. Whether you pick your own apples, peaches, blueberries, or pumpkins, or take an old-fashioned hayride, or visit with the goats and barn cats, there’s plenty to see, taste and do. With seasonal weekend barbeques and walking trails galore, the farm is also home to an apple tree with 108 varieties on it, as well as a tree descended from the one that Sir Isaac Newton sat beneath – and to which we owe the concept of gravity. Don’t miss the cider doughnuts and the fruits of the labor of good, old-fashioned farming.

The fun doesn’t stop here. Get your copy of The Guide to Johnny Appleseed Country to check out the calendar of activities. Find out about New England’s famous old-fashioned roadside ice cream stands, campgrounds, miniature golf, canoeing, roller skating. . . the list goes on.