Massachusetts ideas for adrenaline junkies: 10 best places to get your blood pumping
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If you’re looking for a little bit of adventure, look no further than your home state of Massachusetts.
There are plenty of places adrenaline junkies can have fun, whether you prefer to stay inside, experience the outdoors or something in between.
Check out some of the best places to get your adrenaline pumping below.
Six Flags New England is opening its gates on weekends and select days Saturday, beginning April 9. Spring break for Massachusetts and Connecticut will begin April 24.
Six Flags New England
It may seem obvious, but it’s absolutely worth mentioning Massachusetts’ largest amusement park, Six Flags New England.
The Agawam park lists 53 rides on its website, so there’s something for everyone, but some of the most thrill-inducing roller coasters are Batman: The Dark Knight, the Wicked Cyclone, and Superman the Ride. Superman reaches a height of 208 feet with a 221-foot drop that brings you underground before reemerging at a top speed of 77 miles per hour.
If you go on a hot summer day and bring your swimsuit, you can also check out the water park, the largest in New England. Try out the Typhoon slide which will send you both up and down the slopes in a three-person raft.
Six Flags New England is located at 1623 Main St. in Agawam, and has its own parking lot. One-day tickets to the park start at $59.99 during the week and $69.99 on weekends.
A Sand Tiger Shark swims in its aquarium at the Zoo-Aquarium in Berlin, Germany, Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2010. The body of one of these guys washed up in Longport this week. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)ASSOCIATED PRESS
Shark diving
If you’re feeling brave, face up to one of the ocean’s most terrifying predators by going shark diving.
Cape Cod Shark Diving offers both cage dives and open water dives, where guides will bring you out by boat to find blue sharks, mako sharks, basking sharks and perhaps even a great white. No dive certification or experience is necessary.
Up to six guests can participate in each shark dive trip, which is $325 per person. Pickups are available in Cape Cod, Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard and Fairhaven.
Whitewater kayaking at Zoar Outdoor. (Zoar Outdoor Photographer)
Zoar Outdoor
See the Berkshires in a way you never have at Zoar Outdoor, where you can zip line, kayak or whitewater raft through the beautiful outdoors.
The company offers guided boat trips on the Deerfield River of varying lengths and difficulties so you can find the right activity for you. According to the website, the most exciting whitewater rafting section of the river is the Monroe Bridge Dryway, a trip which takes about 4.5 hours, including a meal cooked at the Zoar base.
If you’d rather avoid the water, take a zipline trip that includes 11 different ziplines, two sky bridges and three rappel platforms.
Different activities are available at different times of year, but Zoar is open from April to November and is located at 7 Main St. in Charlemont.
Platforms and ropes course at Ramblewild in Lanesborough, Mass. (Courtesy Ramblewild)
Ramblewild
Lanesborough’s Ramblewild is another spot where you can zipline, but that isn’t the only aerial activity you can experience there.
The 11-acre aerial adventure park includes a ropes course, zip lines, ladders, bridges, platforms and more on eight different trails.
The $100 per person entry fee includes a four-hour guided experience as well as equipment and an orientation.
The park is located at 110 Brodie Mountain Road in Lanesborough.
Level 99
Weather not right for an outdoor adventure? Try out Level 99 at the Natick Mall for a unique experience that will get your blood pumping.
Level 99 includes more than 40 rooms of unique physical and mental challenges that you can do by yourself or with friends. The activities range from logic-based escape rooms to physical climbing tasks that would challenge an experienced gymnast to arena-like sports games to scavenger hunts.
If you visit more than once, you can even save your scores from your last visit to try to beat your own record next time.
Tickets start at $29.99 for two hours, which gives you access to all challenges at Level 99. The venue is located on the second floor of the Natick Mall, next to the food court, 1235 Worcester St., Suite 3330.
IMAGE DISTRIBUTED FOR TEMPUR-PEDIC – In a tandem skydiving stunt to help Tempur-Pedic® raise awareness for the power of sleep and “Tempur-Pedic This Sleep Is Power” campaign, Former Navy SEAL, Andy Stumpf, jumps from a plane at 13,000 feet at Skydive San Diego on Thursday, March 2, 2017, in an attempt to precisely land on a mattress in the center of a drop zone target to trigger the maximum donation of 500 Tempur-Pedic mattresses to a military organization to help special ops fighters get great sleep. (Sandy Huffaker/AP Images for Tempur-Pedic)AP Images for Tempur-Pedic
Jumptown Skydiving
For the ultimate adrenaline rush, there’s nothing like skydiving. There are a few places in Massachusetts where you can try out this extreme activity, but Jumptown in Orange is New England’s oldest.
Tandem skydiving at Jumptown is $220 during the week and $259 on weekends, although there are discounts for groups, students and military members.
Jumptown Skydiving is located at 31 C St. in Orange.
2/16/2016, Springfield, Ma. – Bounce! Trampoline Sports in the Springfield Plaza offers kids and adults of all ages a chance to bounce on trampolines, play dodgeball, try slam-dunking a ball, jump into foam pits and even try a Ninja Warrior course. It’s a very popular place during school vacation weeks. Here’s a view from the foam pit. (Don Treeger / The Republican) Staff-ShotStaff-Shot
Bounce
Bounce is another great option if you’re looking for some excitement on a rainy day or have children looking for adventure.
Here, you can jump on huge trampoline courts, including a main court, three basketball lanes, two foam pits, two dodgeball courts and obstacle courses.
When you need a break from jumping up and down, the venue also offers an arcade, two virtual reality gaming booths and laser tag.
Bounce is located at 1250 St. James Ave. in Springfield. Open bounce time starts at $12 for ages 6 and up and $8 for ages 5 and under for 30 minutes. Group reservations are also available.
Jiminy Peak resort in Hancock
Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort
The adventure doesn’t have to stop when the weather gets colder. Jiminy Peak is the highest ski resort in Massachusetts at 2,380 feet and has 45 trails, the longest of which is two miles long.
In the summer, Jiminy Peak offers a Mountain Adventure Park, including an alpine coaster, zip line and bungee trampoline as well as an Aerial Adventure Park ropes course.
Summer all-park passes are $59 for visitors 48 to 53 inches tall and $69 for people 54 inches or over. Winter lift tickets start at $49.
Jiminy Peak is located at 37 Corey Road in Hancock.
Drivers rev their engines to celebrate, “‘Merica,” at the ‘Merica 200 Compact FWD Enduro held at Kalamazoo Speedway in Kalamazoo, Michigan on Sunday, July 3, 2022. After a night full of racing and other car activities like Stacker Cars, Bumper Bash Derby, Truck Pull and Spectator Drags, drivers and spectators alike watch fireworks gleam in the sky. (Gabi Broekema | MLive.com)Gabi Broekema | MLive.com
Palmer Motorsports Park
Who hasn’t dreamed of driving a real race car? At this venue in Palmer, you can.
With the park’s “Arrive and Drive” program, drivers receive classroom instruction and then get to sit behind the wheel of a car with an instructor to hit the track. Most of the cars are manual, but automatic transmissions are also available.
For the more experienced drivers, try the open track lapping events, or if you’d rather just enjoy the ride at race speed, try the ride-along program.
Arrive and Drive single sessions are $399, half days are $649 or go for the full day for $995. Palmer Motorsports Park is located at 58 West Ware Road.
Codzilla (Boston Harbor City Cruises)
Codzilla
Another way to pick up speed is to head to Boston Harbor for this thrilling ride.
The Codzilla Thrill Boat Ride is a 70-foot aluminum boat which goes up to 40 miles per hour while still making hairpin turns and 360-degree spins. Passengers often get soaked, but free ponchos are available on board.
Tickets start at $34.95 for children and $44.95 for adults during the week and $36 for children and $48 for adults on the weekend. Tours meet at 1 Long Wharf in Boston, next to the New England Aquarium.
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