The Pioneer Valley offers the urban centers of Springfield, Northampton and Greenfield along the Connecticut River, and mountains, trails and waterways in its open suburban and rural spaces.
Art, culture and history abound and there is a full range of outdoor activities minutes away from anywhere. The Valley is as geographically diverse as it is cultural. Residents and tourists alike are drawn to numerous attractions the region has to offer, including cultural and historical sites such as the Emily Dickinson House in Amherst, the Springfield Armory National Historic Site, and the Basketball Hall of Fame on Springfield's riverfront. Higher education and all that it offers local residents is easily accessible, with the Five Colleges in Hampshire County and the eight Cooperating Colleges of Greater Springfield in Hampden County. The resurgent city of Springfield represents the hub of the region, whose contributions include the invention of basketball, the birthplace of Dr. Seuss and the newly-opened Dr. Seuss Museum, and the world’s first American-English dictionary, Merriam-Webster, to name a few; its unspoiled nature, numerous parks and recreational facilities, including state parks, ski resorts, Yankee Candle headquarters and flagship store, Eastern States Exposition, home to one of the top ten fairs in North America - The Big E - and New England's largest and most popular amusement park, Six Flags New England in Agawam.
