Cold-Weather Things to Do North of Boston, Town by Town

Museums with winter hours, trails that stay open, candlepin lanes and library museum passes in Salem, Lynn, Wenham, Topsfield, Lowell and more.

Boston Neighbor staffPublished November 9, 20266 min read

Illustration of a snowy North Shore trail beside a candlepin bowling alley window glowing yellow at dusk

The coldest weeks of the year are when a lot of people north of Boston stay home and complain. They do not have to. Plenty of museums keep winter hours, the trails do not close, and an old regional bowling game is waiting at a handful of lanes. Below is a town-by-town list of ideas, with the hours and prices each place has posted. We have not visited these places for this piece, so we stick to what they publish. Winter hours change, so confirm before you go.

Salem: three indoor options and a wharf

Salem has the most rainy-day choices in one walkable place.

Peabody Essex Museum (161 Essex Street) is open 10 am to 5 pm Thursday through Monday and closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Adults are $25, seniors $23, students with ID $15, and youth under 16 and Salem residents are free.
Salem Witch Museum (19½ Washington Square North) is open 10 am to 5 pm year-round, with adults at $19, seniors 62 and over at $17.50 and children 6 to 14 at $16.
Salem Maritime National Historical Park is free. From November 15 to April 30 the Salem Armory visitor center is open Wednesday to Sunday, 9:30 am to 4:30 pm. The Custom House is closed for the season, but Derby Wharf and the grounds are open 24 hours, so you can walk the wharf in a hat and scarf even when the buildings are closed.

For a full day in town, see our Salem December guide.

Lynn: a small museum with a free night

The Lynn Museum & Arts Center lists 2026 hours of Wednesday 3 to 7 pm with free admission, Thursday and Friday 11 am to 4 pm, and the second and fourth Saturdays of each month 10 am to 2 pm, free to the public. General admission is $8, seniors and Lynn residents pay $5, and children under 12 are free. The museum says it takes part in the Card to Culture program, a collaboration with the state that is aimed at EBT cardholders.

Wenham: a museum for kids that opens in the morning

The Wenham Museum is open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 am to 1 pm, with extended hours (9 am to 6 pm) on the first Wednesday of each month. It is closed Monday and Tuesday. Admission since July 1, 2026 is $14 for adults and children age 1 and up, $12 for seniors 55 and up and grandparents, with children under 1 and members free. The short afternoon cutoff makes this a morning outing. Pair it with lunch somewhere else.

Topsfield: trails and a nature center

Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary (87 Perkins Row, Topsfield) is a Mass Audubon sanctuary with 12 miles of trails. Trails are open Tuesday to Sunday, plus Monday holidays, dawn to dusk. The visitor center is open Tuesday to Friday 10 am to 3 pm and Saturday, Sunday and Monday holidays 9 am to 4 pm. Admission is $7 for adults, $4 for seniors 65 and over and $4 for children 2 to 12. Dogs and horseback riding are not allowed, and visitors should stay on trails. The sanctuary lists a nature center and museum, restrooms and parking. The phone is 978-887-9264.

Saugus: Breakheart Reservation

Breakheart Reservation is a state forest (DCR) listed by Mass.gov as open sunrise to sunset and included among its cross-country skiing locations. Skiing and snowshoeing depend entirely on snow, and we found no grooming information, so go when the forecast says there is enough. DCR’s winter programs flyer for 2025-26 said all programs at the reservation were free and weather-dependent. The office is at 177 Forest Street, (781) 233-0834. We found no 2026-27 program schedule, so call the office or check the Mass.gov page in December.

Lowell: a shorter winter schedule

Lowell National Historical Park is closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day, and it cuts back from November 29, 2026 through March 2027. Through November 28 it runs a fuller fall schedule. For the winter stretch, the park’s hours page lists:

Boott Cotton Mills Museum (115 John Street): Monday to Friday, noon to 4 pm, and Saturday and Sunday, 9 am to 4 pm. Weave Room demonstration times vary, so the park asks you to check daily.
Into an 1840s Boarding House and One City, Many Cultures (40 French Street): Saturday and Sunday only, noon to 4 pm.
Boarding House Park and the canal walkways are open daily, though the Northern Canal Walkway stays closed for the season.
Also listed: the trolley shuttle Wednesday to Sunday (service may be disrupted by construction), the Visitor Center at 246 Market Street on Saturday and Sunday 9 am to 4 pm, the Suffolk Mill Tour (which includes the turbine exhibit) Wednesday to Sunday at 2 pm, and the Step into History Walking Tour Saturday and Sunday at 10 am.

The NPS page has a fees and passes section covering the paid museum and tours. Because the weekday winter schedule is thin, a Saturday or Sunday is the best day to go.

Danvers and Tewksbury: candlepin

Candlepin bowling is the regional version: smaller, lighter balls with no finger holes, and three rolls per frame. The Massachusetts Bowling Association lists two centers north of Boston:

Sunnyside Bowladrome, 176 Water Street, Danvers, with 32 lanes. Phone (978) 774-1983.
Wamesit Lanes, 434 Main Street, Tewksbury, with 12 lanes. Phone (978) 349-0000.

We could not find posted hours or current prices on the association’s page. Call first, ask about league nights and ask whether lanes are open for walk-ins.

Melrose and your library: free and discounted museum passes

A library card can be your cheapest winter plan. Three libraries in this part of the state publish pass programs:

Melrose Public Library: passes are discounted, with a co-pay collected by the museum in most cases. One pass per household per day, and reservations can be made up to four weeks ahead. Most are digital, but some, such as the Paul Revere House, Historic New England, Trustees of Reservations and Zoo New England passes, must be picked up at the library. The library notes that a pass is not a ticket, and many museums require timed-ticket reservations.
Salem Public Library: passes to several Boston and North Shore museums; reserve online, at the Reference Desk or by calling (978) 744-0860.
Topsfield Town Library: discounted and free admission passes, available to anyone with a Massachusetts library card in good standing; one pass per card per day. If your home library is outside the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium, you have to register your card in Topsfield first.

Check your own town’s site too. Malden and Somerville run pass programs too (see our library museum passes guide). We could not confirm a program for Medford or Stoneham, so ask at the desk rather than assuming there is none.