Framingham

Framingham is the home of several major corporations, including Staples, TJX, Perini, Boston Scientific, and Bose Audio, and also is part of what is known as the Golden Mile, a large conglomeration of shopping malls and retail outlets. This is where the first mall in America was built.

• Local Inter Framingham Transit (LIFT), ☏ +1 508 532-5459, toll-free: +1-800-649-6096. Town-operated bus system operates throughout Framingham and surrounding towns. 
• 🌍 Tommy's Taxi, 167 Franklin St., ☏ +1 508-872-3500. 
• Town Taxi Co., Phone: +1 508-875-4241.
• Executive Coach, Phone: +1 508-872-6100.
• Typically several taxis are waiting for arrivals from the airport at the Logan Express station.

• 🌍 Framingham Town Common, Edgell and Vernon Streets ((Park on Oak street.)). The Town Common is the home to several historic buildings including The Old Village Hall, Edgell Library, the Framingham Historical Society as well and the Unitarian (First Parish) and Plymouth Churches. There are also various monuments and plaques throughout the Common. 
• 🌍 Framingham Town Hall, 150 Concord St, ☏ +1 508 532-5520. Intersection of Union Avenue and Concord St. Go in to the Framingham Town Hall just to see Framingham's history, or to get a schedule of events in Framingham coming up. 
• 🌍 Village Hall, 2 Oak St, ☏ +1 508 879-8995. Great historic venue in the Greater Boston area. Built in 1834, it is on the list of National Register of Historic Places. 
• 🌍 Village of Saxonville. Saxonville is a village in Framingham. The main road is Concord Street (Route 126) and branches out on to Central Street and Elm Street. The Sudbury River surrounds the village on 3 sides. Saxonville has some wonderful historic landmarks and architecture to see. 
• 🌍 Athenaeum Hall, Concord Street at Watson Place. Built in 1847, Athenaeum Hall was first the town hall. The building has also server as "a school, a jail, a hospital, a polling place, and a newspaper pressroom." 
• 🌍 Old Danforth Street Bridge, Danforth Street.. This bridge was completely renovated and refurbished in 2003. The bridge also leads to the Carol J. Getchell Nature Trail. 
• 🌍 Carol J. Getchell Nature Trail (Starts at the intersection of Sudbury Landing and Danforth Street next to the bridge.). Named for one of the founders of the Friends of Saxonville, the trail runs along 1 mile of the Sudbury River. 
• 🌍 Saxonville Fire Station (Concord Street to Watson Place next to the Athenaeum Hall.). The fire station was built in 1902 and is the oldest active fire station in Framingham. 
• 🌍 Saxonville Mills & Josephine Kochnowicz Clock Tower, Concord Street and Central Street.. The mill complex runs along Concord Street and turns left onto Central Street by the Sudbury River. Building #7 (on Concord Street) is the only original building to have survived the great fire of 1883. (All the other buildings are circa 1884 or after.) The Clock Tower is on Central street across from the Saxonville Falls Dam. 
• 🌍 Saxonville Falls and Dam (Central Street at the intersection of Water Street across from the mill clock tower.). The dam was built on the falls to use the Sudbury River to power the mill turbines before the mill switched to steam power. Today it is used for flood control. 
• 🌍 Edwards Church & Edwards Cemetery (Off of Elm Street.). Edwards Church is one of the oldest churches in Framingham. The cemetery has an interesting array of headstones both "old" traditional headstones and newer headstones that are more pieces of a "artwork". 

• 🌍 Callahan State Park, ☏ +1 508 653-9641. Millwood St., 820 acres of hiking, biking and cross-country skiing in northwest Framingham. Horseback riding, fishing or even a picnic are just a few other options as well. Callahan is also dog friendly. On a hot summer day you will find dozens of dogs frolicking in and around Eagle Pond, near the South entrance on Millwood Street. There are no admission fees. (updated Sep 2023)
• 🌍 Cushing Park, Dudley Road.. Located near Farm Pond, it serves as a walking, running, biking, rollerblading and picnic area. It is dog friendly and no admission fees. 
• 🌍 Farm Pond Park, Dudley Rd ((Route 135 to Fountain Street)). This park provides walking trails, picnic / cookout areas, a playground, and the opportunity for swimming, fishing and non-powered boating along the beautiful Farm Pond. 
• 🌍 Fun and Games Family Entertainment Center, 50 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 879-5707. (Rt. 9). Lazer tag, mini-golf, out-of-this-world arcade, and home of the Ultimate Birthday Party. 
• 🌍 Garden in the Woods, 180 Hemenway Rd, ☏ +1 508 877-7630. A 45 acre retreat containing a stunning selection of local flora and fauna. There are over 1600 species and a variety of plants and wildflowers. $14 Adults, $10 Seniors (65+), $6 Youth (5-17), free for children under 5. 
• 🌍 Loring Arena Ice Skating Rink, 1 Fountain St, ☏ +1 508 620-4877. Public ice skating, private birthday parties, private lessons and leagues all take place in the arena. You can rent ice-skates and there's a skate shop and snack bar inside. 
• 🌍 Nobscot Mountain. in North Framingham. Nobscot Mountain and Nobscot Reservation provide over 1,000 acres of hiking, camping, and sightseeing, managed by the Knox Trail Council of the Boy Scouts of America. 

If you enjoy shopping, Framingham is definitely the place in eastern Massachusetts to visit. There is every major retail chain from Wal-Mart to Best Buy and more. The shopping district, nicknamed "The Golden Triangle", is located along Route 9 (Worcester Rd) in the eastern part of town and extends into neighboring Natick. The shopping district includes Shoppers World (on the border with Natick), a vast outdoor mall featuring 795,308 square feet of retail space.

• 🌍 Jordan's Furniture Store. Absolutely do not miss Jordan's Furniture Store. It may sound strange that a furniture store is considered an attraction, except that this particular furniture store has a Mardi Gras celebration nearly every hour, intensely themed rooms, an IMAX theatre, virtual reality arcades, and more. Located adjacent to the IMAX is Kelly's Roast Beef. It has a large menu which is popular for it's roast beef and also has a giant aquarium located in the middle of the restaurant. 

• 🌍 Aegean Restaurant, 257 Cochituate Rd, ☏ +1 508 879-8424. Greek and American Cuisine. 
• 🌍 Aztec Restaurant, 2 Waverly St (Route 135 at the Natick border), ☏ +1 508 820-2523. A small family owned restaurant serving great Mexican dishes. The menu is limited, but the food is more authentic than at the large Tex-Mex chains. 
• 🌍 Ken's Steak House, on Route 9 near Wal-Mart.. Of Ken's Salad Dressing fame. A local favorite. 
• '🌍 Minado, on Route 9 near the Hampton Inn.. If you like sushi, you'll love Minado. It's an all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet with exquisite sushi at very reasonable prices. 
• 🌍 La Cantina Restaurant, 911 Waverly St, ☏ +1 508 879-7874. M-Th 3:30-9PM, F Sa 11:30AM-9PM, Su noon-9PM. Fine Italian Cuisine. 
• 🌍 Samba, 1138 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 628-0288. (Rt. 9). Steak and sushi are just a few selections on the menu. It is also a Hibachi style restaurant. 

• 🌍 Jack's Abby Brewing, 81 Morton St, ☏ +1 508 872-0900. Brewery specializing in lagers of all types. Jack's Abby has essentially proven that any style of ale you like, from IPA to Porter, can be made using lager techniques. (updated Apr 2015)
• 🌍 Framingham Beerworks, 345 Cochituate Rd, ☏ +1 508 309-3373. Framingham outpost of Boston Beerworks. Serves all the same beers, just with Framingham inspired names. (updated Apr 2015)
• 🌍 John Harvard's Brewhouse, Shoppers World, 1 Worcester Road, ☏ +1 508 875-2337. Basically the same as the Cambridge John Harvard's, but with free parking. 8 or so beers on tap, nothing particularly crazy. There is also a patio overlooking the rear parking lot of Framingham Shopper's World. (updated Apr 2015)

There's a large selection of lodging in and near Framingham, including:

• 🌍 Best Western Framingham, 130 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 872-8811, fax: +1 508-875-4136. 
• 🌍 Crowne Plaza Boston Hotel - Natick, on the Framingham Border, 1360 Worcester St, ☏ +1 508 653-8800, fax: +1 508-653-1708. Check-in: 3PM, check-out: noon. 
• 🌍 Econo Lodge, 1186 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 879-1510. (Route 9) 
• 🌍 The Monticello Motel, 90 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 875-1394, fax: +1 508-875-2392. 
• 🌍 Motel 6 Boston West - Framingham, 1668 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 620-0500, fax: +1 508-820-0868. 
• 🌍 Old Colony Hotel, 2 Franklin St, ☏ +1 508 875-8748. 
• 🌍 Red Roof Inn Boston Framingham, 650 Cochituate Rd, ☏ +1 508 872-4499. (Rt. 30). 
• 🌍 Residence Inn Boston Framingham, 400 Staples Drive, ☏ +1 508 370-0001, fax: +1 508-370-0440. 
• 🌍 Sheraton Framingham Hotel, 1657 Worcester Rd, ☏ +1 508 879-7200. (Route 9). 

Boston and Worcester are reachable by train. For day trips by car, try Plymouth, Cape Cod, or North Shore towns.