New England’s four seasons lend themselves to an exciting variety of outdoor activities. The City of Worcester takes advantage of those seasons with its surprisingly large collection of parks, lakes, beaches and pools. Greater Worcester offers plenty of other activities, from biking and hiking to sailing, skating and swimming. Outdoor events like Worcester’s signature First Night, stART on the Streets, and Art in the Park, along with a host of festivals and parades keeps the City’s streets and parks bustling year round.
Quinsigamond State Park consists of two sites located on Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester: Regatta Point and Lake Park. The 25-acre Regatta Point area offers facilities for swimming, sailing, jet-skiing, picnicking and fishing. The area is used extensively for sailing and rowing-crew regattas.
The 2,000-meter rowing course established on Lake Quinsigamond is internationally recognized as one of the best courses in the world. The Lake Park area provides a number of recreational opportunities including a picnic area, swimming beach and tennis courts.
The 193-acre lake offers many family activities including two public swimming beaches, picnic and recreation areas, a public boat launch, fishing areas and a tennis court.
Elm Park is famous for its historic bridges reconstructed in 1985. Facilities include a playground, tennis courts, basketball court, and winter skating. There are numerous picnic areas and hiking trails. Elm Park is the most sought-after park in Worcester for exchanging wedding vows.
Green Hill Park is Worcester's largest municipal park, with more than 480 acres that include two ponds, a petting zoo, picnic grove, playground, little league field, golf course, and handball courts. It is also home to the Massachusetts Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the delicious Grill on the Hill restaurant and deck bar.
For more information on Worcester’s 53 parks, click here.
What would summer be without swimming? Worcester has six beaches, complemented by three swimming pools and a spray park.
Streeter Point State Recreation Area
For more information on beaches and pools, click here.
Greater Worcester offers a variety of options for stretching your legs and taking in the sights and sounds of nature.
Broad Meadow Brook Conservation Center and Wildlife Sanctuary - Explore 430 acres of conservation land, woods, fields, streams and marsh.
Blackstone River Bikeway - a 48-mile bikeway from Worcester to Providence, RI
Mass Central Rail Trail - a 104-mile Northampton (MA) to Boston (MA) trail for mountain biking, walking and cross-country skiing.
Purgatory Chasm - a unique natural landmark that runs for a quarter-mile between granite walls rising as high as 70 feet. Popular with picnickers and rock-climbers alike, the Chasm is believed to have its origin in the sudden release of dammed-up glacial meltwater near the end of the last Ice Age, approximately 14,000 years ago.
What game is now played in about 40 countries on one of 3,000 courses? Disc golf, of course. Try your hand at traversing a course from beginning to end in the fewest number of throws of the disc.
Greater Worcester boasts a full range of golf courses, from a public 9-hole course to a nationally recognized, 36-hole private golf club.
Green Hill Golf Course (Municipal)
Tatnuck Country Club (Private)
Worcester Country Club (Private)
Cyprian Keyes Golf Club, Championship Course (Public)
Heritage Country Club, Heritage Course (Public)
Holden Hills Country Club, Holden Hills Course (Public)
Wachusett Country Club, Wachusett Course (Public)
International Golf Club Inc., Pines Course (Private)
Mt. Pleasant Country Club, Mt. Pleasant Course (Private)
Pakachoag Golf Course, Pakachoag Course (Municipal)
Westborough Country Club, Westborough Course (Municipal)
For a more complete list of golf courses click here.
Whether it’s your first riding lesson or you’re just looking to relax along miles of trails, local stables and equestrian centers are ready to accommodate your needs.
Brigham Hill Equestrian Center
Hillside Meadows Equestrian Center
For a more complete list of equestrian centers and stables, click here.
Winter sports are alive and well in Greater Worcester. Residents and visitors alike have also discovered great sledding in this ‘City of Seven Hills.’
From the historic Worcester Tennis Club, featuring seven superbly maintained red-clay courts to the dozens of courts dotting Worcester’s parks, tennis remains one of Worcester’s most popular activities.
For more information on other tennis courts in Worcester’s parks click here.
