Planning a day trip to Plymouth from Boston (AKA one of the most iconic small towns in US history) and wondering what to expect?
If you’ve heard exactly one thing about visiting Plymouth in the 21st century, it’s probably that Plymouth Rock is disappointing–but don’t let that keep you from planning a Plymouth day trip!
The Plymouth of today is a darling gem of a seaside New England town that serves up a large helping of history that’s far more interesting than the rock itself (though, yes, you should see the rock).
We absolutely consider Plymouth one of the best day trips from Boston, and we think fellow history lovers of all ages will enjoy it, too.
Here’s everything you need to know to plan the perfect day trip to Plymouth, including the best things to do and a sample itinerary to follow!
Table of Contents
How to Travel From Boston to Plymouth (And Back!)
When it comes to planning a day trip to Plymouth from Boston, there are essentially 3 options for getting there: drive a car, book an organized day trip like this, or navigate public transportation.
Here are the pros and cons of each!
By Car
The simplest way to take a Plymouth day trip independently is to drive.
Parking is fairly cheap and easy (and we visited in July, the height of tourist season), and the flexibility makes it easy to move between sites, as some of Plymouth’s top things to do are fairly dispersed from each other.
If you need to rent a car, we recommend comparing prices and inclusions with multiple companies via Discover Cars.
Check prices + shop rental cars for your trip to Plymouth today!
By Train + Bus
Planning a day trip to Plymouth by public transportation is doable, but less than ideal.
You’ll need to take the commuter rail to Kingston, then hop on a bus with GATRA or take a rideshare around town.
To see the best of Plymouth in a day, you’ll likely need to take a couple bus or rideshare rides throughout the day, too.
By Tour
Looking for the absolute easiest day trip from Plymouth and want to see as much as possible?
If so, this popular tour will allow you to visit the living history museum at Plimoth Patuxet (and it includes the pricey ticket), see Plymouth Rock (which is better with a guide), and step onto a full-size recreation of the Mayflower.
You’ll also make a few other cool stops along the way–like John Adams’ birthplace.
The Best Things to Do on a Plymouth Day Trip
Lay eyes on Plymouth Rock.
Yes, yes, it’s “just a rock”… but it’s the rock, and it’s also very fast, easy, and free to see!
Plymouth Rock is located in (or technically, under) a pavilion built right along the beach, and there are beautiful views of the harbor near it.
While the rock itself is famously underwhelming, we enjoyed it much more than expected–a combination of low expectations paired with an excellent (free) presentation from an on-site interpreter employed by Pilgrim Memorial State Park.
It’s also right next door to the Mayflower II (more on that in a bit).
Visit the Plimoth Patuxet Museums.
If you ask us, the Plimoth Patuxet Museums–the hands-on, real-life, living-history component of spending a day in Plymouth–are the absolute star of the show!
Spread across 5 distinct sites (3 of them located in the same complex, the other two in central Plymouth), the Plimoth Patuxet Museums are incredibly memorable Jeremy, our young son, and I all immensely enjoyed visiting (and intend to go again in future years).
The Plimoth Patuxet Museums are a bit pricey as far as museums go, but when you see the immense amount of labor and detail involved, it’s obvious why.
We recommend reviewing the different stops, considering exactly what you want to do with your day in Plymouth, and then picking the ticket that’s right for you. We also recommend visiting between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM, as that’s when there will generally be the biggest amount of activity and role-playing happening.
Here’s what you can see while visiting!
Historic Patuxet Homesite
Curious about the lifestyle of the Wampanoag people who called this part of Massachusetts home before 1620–and still do today?
A visit to the Historic Patuxet Homesite is a fantastic way to learn about their culture and history, and we found it one of the most captivating parts of our trip to Plymouth.
Interpreters were available inside a wetu (winter house), at a dugout canoe (our favorite stop, the interpreter was incredible), and cooking over a fire. There’s also a large garden at the homesite.
While smaller than the better-known 17th-Century English Village site, Plimoth Patuxet is working to expand it, and we’re excited to see what’s added when they do!
17th Century English Village
The most famous of all the components of the Plimoth Patuxet Museums, the 17th-Century English Village is a detailed recreation of the original colonist village: think lifestock, many gardens, some fields, historical role-players/interpreters performing traditional work (cooking, chopping firewood, farming, and building a house are just a few we saw).
In addition to the outdoor work, there are around a dozen furnished buildings that you can enter.
You’ll find interpreters in here, too: we interacted with a barber surgeon and a woman cooking (with the help of a very excited visiting child), among others.
It’s quite immersive, as the role players are playing specific colonists–not just a general 17th-century pilgrim.
We loved our visit and stayed longer than we expected!
Don’t miss climbing to the second floor of the fort at the top of the hill: the view of the village and the sea beyond it is wonderful.
Craft Center
Want to watch pottery be created, 17th-century style?
Head to the Craft Center, where you can find potters at work!
There’s also a gift shop, small cafe, and restroom here, all of which can come in handy as you make your way between the Patuxet Homesite and 17th-Century English Village.
Don’t miss the Humoral Gardens just outside, either!
Plimoth Grist Mill
Built as a reproduction of the original grist mill on Town Brook (circa 1636), the Plimoth Grist Mill is an actual working mill–and not just for educational purposes!
The Plimoth Grist Mill sources grain from local farmers, processes it, and even sells it–including to local restaurants.
Mayflower II
Last but certainly not least, exploring the Plimoth Patuxet Museums can include stepping foot on a reproduction of the iconic Mayflower!
We had terrible luck with the weather here, which seemed fitting for learning about a famous, successful, but also extremely unpleasant (by 21st-century standards) trip across the ocean.
The interpretations on-hand guides were excellent, and the visit fascinating, but our overall takeaway was how small, cramped, and humid the ship was–it definitely left an impression on us!
Grab lunch in Plymouth.
With a full day of exploring to do in Plymouth, you’ll definitely want to pause for lunch at some point!
If you’d like to avoid any extra transit time, you can eat at the Plimoth Patuxet Museums themselves.
The visitor’s center offers a Thanksgiving Dinner, which is a fun addition to the day, as well as basics like burgers and sandwiches. At the Plimoth Grist Mill, you’ll find the Gillis Family Tavern, which gets solid reviews.
We opted to enjoy lunch at Bramhall’s Country Store near the 17th-Century English Village/Patuxet Homesite, which was darling and offers local produce/farm products in addition to lobster rolls and–importantly to us–incredible strawberry ice cream.
If you prefer to head to Plymouth Center, options abound! You’ll find dozens of options on Court Street between Pilgrim Hall and the Brewster Gardens alone, which is all of a 10-minute walk (more on those spots in a bit).
Check out the Brewster Gardens.
Located on Town Brook, which has long been an important waterway in Plymouth (it’s the same water you’ll find the Plimoth Grist Mill on), the Brewster Gardens were designed in the 1920s–but they’re located where original pilgrim William Brewster had his garden starting in 1620.
Lovely and peaceful, they’re only a 5-minute walk or so away from Plymouth Rock, and a lovely way to see a bit more of Plymouth on foot!
DTParker1000, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Planning a One Day in Plymouth Itinerary
The top things to do in Plymouth can essentially be divided into two geographical regions: the Plymouth Waterfront and proximity to Plymouth Center, which is where you’ll find the Mayflower II, Plymouth Rock, Brewster Gardens, the Plimoth Grist Mill, and several additional stops that fast sightseers might have time for (we’ll outline those below).
The second grouping of the 17th-Century English Village, Patuxet Homesite, and Craft Center requires a vehicle (your own, a rideshare, or a bus) to reach, and while a shorter list of things to see than those above, the village and the homesite are by far the biggest time commitments.
We recommend planning your Plymouth day trip itinerary by planning to see one set of these before lunch, and another after.
Which one should you see first?
I’d let the time you arrive in Plymouth and the time you plan to depart guide you.
Essentially, I’d make sure that you’re visiting the village and homesite between 10:00 AM and 3:00 PM, because while their hours are longer, all the signs we saw indicated that this is the most bustling time for role-players and interpreters to be out and about.
If that won’t be a problem either way, I would recommend doing the Mayflower II/Plymouth Center first if you would like to follow the pilgrims’ path, so to speak.
Alternatively, for fast sightseers, you might consider visiting the homesite and village first, therefore leaving more flexibility to add various stops onto your time in Plymouth Center as time allows.
Either way, I’d recommend planning 2+ hours in your schedule for visiting the homesite, village and the Craft Center.
More Cool Things to See With One Day in Plymouth, MA
While everything we listed above definitely makes for a full day trip to Plymouth, fast sightseers and ambitious travelers may want to squeeze another stop or two in!
Here are a few more of the top things to do in Plymouth that might make sense to add to your one day Plymouth itinerary:
Visit Pilgrim Hall.
Want to see actual possessions of the original 1620 immigrants, learn more about their relationship with the indigenous Wampanoag people, get more details on the history behind the legend of the first Thanksgiving, and more?
If so, you might want to visit Pilgrim Hall!
Dating to the 19th century and conveniently located in Plymouth Center, Pilgrim Hall is a fun addition to a Plymouth day trip for travelers interested in diving even deeper into the area’s famous history.
Pilgrim Hall is open 9:30 AM to 5:00 PM, early April through early December.
Explore Burial Hill (and its views).
From the top of Burial Hill, you can see much of Plymouth and out to sea–so it’s no surprise that this is where the pilgrims built their first meeting house!
Burial Hill has also operated as a cemetery for roughly that long, with the earliest graves dating to the 1620s, though the oldest markers haven’t survived.
Some of the original pilgrims found their final resting place here, along with many other local residents–all the way up through 1957!
Today, Burial Hill is a beautiful and peaceful place to visit, and it offers a different perspective on the many historical attractions in the city.
When we visited, we used street parking on School Street and climbed the hill, but there’s also a parking lot on S Russell Street that can limit your climbing (we probably would have used it had we known).
Burial Hill is free to visit.
Step inside the Jabez Howland House.
Living history museums are wonderful, and reproductions educational… but there’s something incredible about stepping inside a truly historic building, and that’s what you’ll find at the Jabez Howland House.
As the only remaining building in Plymouth that the pilgrims actually stepped foot in, this 17th-century house museum is truly something special!
Like much of Plymouth (and New England in general), the house is only open seasonally.
As of the time of writing, hours are 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, from June 13 through Halloween, on all days of the week except Tuesday and Wednesday. You can check updated hours and ticket information here.
If you want to add the Jabez Howland House to your Plymouth day trip, I recommend planning around its somewhat limited hours.
Visit the Monument to the Forefathers.
Reaching 81 feet into the air, the imposing Monument to the Forefathers is the largest solid granite monument in the country!
… It’s also not a monument that I would necessarily recommend going out of your way to visit with only one day in Plymouth, but it’s still worth a mention for those who are interested!
Built in the late 19th century, the monument commemorates the efforts of the pilgrims (before visiting, I assumed “forefathers” was a reference to the founding fathers, but nope!), and depicts figures representing the virtues of Faith, Morality, Education, Law, and Liberty.
The statue is dramatic–it reminds me of something you might see in DC–but it’s a bit out of the way, and there’s not much to do there but take a look at it.
It is free and quick to visit, though, so if you’re driving to Plymouth and want to see it, it’s a simple stop on the way into or out of town!
Read More About Visiting New England
Did you find this guide to planning a day trip to Plymouth helpful?
If so, we’d love to help you keep planning your trip to the Boston area (or beyond) here at Our Escape Clause!
You may also enjoy these blog posts about New England:
- 15+ Delightful Day Trips From Boston (By Train, Car, or Tour!)
- 2 Days in Boston: The Ultimate Weekend Itinerary
- 15 Wicked Fun Quotes About Boston
- The Most Amazing Things to Do in Acadia National Park
- 25 Mesmerizing Places to Visit in New England
Map of What to See in Plymouth in a Day
Want to get a visual look at how close together these things to do in Plymouth are?
This color-coded map has each spot mentioned in this blog post laid out (and you can download it to bring with you if you like!):
Take This Map With You! Click each highlight to pull up the name of the destination. To save this map to “Your Places” on Google Maps, click the star to the right of the title. You’ll then be able to find it under the Maps tab of your Google Maps account! To open the map in a new window, click the button on the top right of the map.
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