Coming to the South End of downtown Springfield in 2018, MGM Springfield will be a world-class casino and entertainment complex. The mixed-used development includes a 25-story, 250-room hotel with a spa, pool and roof deck, plus 125,000 square feet of gaming space and 55,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. There are also plans for a dining, retail and an entertainment district, including an eight-screen cinema, bowling alley and an outdoor stage.
Plans are now underway for the creation of The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum, to be housed in the William Pynchon Memorial building on the Springfield Museums campus in downtown Springfield. Opening in 2016, the facility will feature an interactive exhibition featuring Seuss characters, as well as exhibits to honor author Theodor Geisel himself.
The newest hotel in the Berkshires, the Berkshire Hilton Garden Inn Hotel, opened in August in Pittsfield with 95 guest rooms and suites, a year-round indoor, heated swimming pool, as well as a fitness center. The property also offers an 875-square-foot meeting room, accommodating groups of up to 75 and a boardroom accommodating up to 10 people.
In Pittsfield, a pair of 19th-century buildings on the National Register of Historic Places recently transformed into Hotel on North, a new boutique property fully taking advantage of the quirky historical character of the buildings. The property, which opened in June, features 45 guest rooms and 3,000 square feet of versatile meeting space, including a reception hall and several intimate meeting spaces on each floor.
The Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown completed its final phase of expansion and recently received the coveted 2014 Apollo Award for Museum Opening of the Year. The center welcomes group tours and provides for a variety of opportunities, including picnics or nature hikes.
Amtrak last year began servicing New England’s Knowledge Corridor with its Vermonter train, stopping in Springfield and Holyoke, among other locales.
