17 Overnight Summer Camps Near Boston
Ready to send your kid to sleepaway camp this year? We're gathering parent recommendations for the best overnight camps near Boston...or near enough to be worth the trip for an epic summer experience!
Parent reviews are essential to picking out the right overnight camp, so please add a review below if your kids have attended any of these. Boston parents, if your favorite overnight summer camps in Massachusetts or around New England aren't on the list yet, please suggest them as new recommendations to let the community know about them.
Find more summer fun on our full Boston camp guide.
Emagination STEM Camps
Emagination is summer camp for kids who love technology. In addition to the technical workshops such as Youtube Video Creation, Minecraft World Design and Coding, each camper will engage in recreational activities such as swimming, ultimate frisbee, dodgeball and theater improv to ensure a balanced summer camp experience. The evening program offers more choices including open labs, field games, free dorm time, talent shows and other special fun events.
Camp Mah-Kee-Nac
The Mah-Kee-Nac Way revolves around a supportive community that also encourages each boy's growth and is carried through the guiding principles of community, action and power. Each day the Elective-Based Program offers age-appropriate activity choices with the ability to make new choices each week. Evenings are for whole-camp programs and encourage friendships across all age groups. Activity choices include baseball, cycling, color wars, model rocketry design, swimming, strength conditioning and more.
Brant Lake Dance Camp
This sleepaway camp offers instructional help in several disciplines of dance like hip-hop and jazz. Besides dancing, girls will have a chance to do arts and crafts, water activities, go on field trips and enjoy other sports.
Camp Emerson
This coed summer camp prides itself on its staff and their philosophy of respecting each child as an individual and freedom of choice along with structure and guidance. Their unique Step Beyond program is a collection of camper-created activities that are fast-paced, hands-on programs for kids who want intellectual stimulation and challenge. Camp Emerson also leads the way as a food allergy specialist camp. They are completely peanut, treenut, shellfish and sesame free and support all food allergies, Celiac Disease and EoE.
Camp Watitoh
This traditional coed camp offers a combination of group activities organized by cabin and age group as well as individual choice periods which offer a time for campers to spend more time at their favorite activities and those that have sparked their interest. Campers rotate daily between swimming, sailing, kayaking, canoeing instruction and waterskiing at the waterfront. Land activities include athletics, adventure activities such as climbing wall, ropes course and zipline and creative activities such as theater, photography and music.
Camp Taconic
This traditional, residential, coed summer camp is located on the shores of Lake Ashmere in the Berkshires. Younger campers follow a more structured program and the older campers are given the flexibility to design their own program based on their interests and skills. Each day is filled with activities in aquatics, adventure, performing arts, athletics, circus arts, horseback riding and creative arts and evening events such as campfires, scavenger hunts, pool parties and camp tournaments.
Camp Howe
Camp Howe offers coed resident camps divided into Juniors, Teens, Counselors-In-Training and ECHO (for campers with special needs) programs. All programs are structured with group and individual activities like swimming, climbing tower, challenge course, arts & crafts, and sports. The teen program is more customized and includes off-site trips such as rock climbing or skeet shooting. The ECHO Program campers are fully integrated into every aspect of the camp program from cabin living to activities.
Wizards & Warriors STEM Summer Camp
This creative STEM-based summer camp empowers kids and teens to discover their own inner hero. Activities include potion-making (chemistry), deciphering scrolls and spells (languages), biology, environmental science and conservation in the classroom and hiking the nearby woods, creatures and mythical item research (history, literature and mythology). The adventures also promote critical thinking and communication skills all while having a blast!
Mass Audubon Wildwood Overnight Camp
Wildwood is a camp for outdoor exploration. Campers will get to choose from a variety of activities daily including wetland exploration, paddle boarding, archery, sailing, improv, arts & crafts and swimming. Each evening includes games that involve the entire camp as well as campfires, songs and skits. In addition, a special overnight camping trip for those attending a two-week session creates a great bonding experience and further enhances campers' connection to the outdoors.
4-H Camp Middlesex
Camp Middlesex offers safe camp programs in a tech-free, natural wonderland and focuses on building life skills through the 4-H mission of Head, Heart, Hands, and Health. Campers get to choose weekly activities such as archery, field sports, swimming, horseback riding, woodworking, ceramics, dance, video production, barnyard care and outdoor living skills. Weekly themes and camp-wide games, lip sync contests, dances and weekend field trips add to camp life fun.
Camp Kenwood & Camp Evergreen
Camp Kenwood and Camp Evergreen offer boys and girls a program designed to learn and develop social and emotional intelligence, resiliency and critical thinking while staying committed to their core values of friendship, fun and exploration. The structured choice schedule encourages campers to challenge themselves with activities such as individual and team sports, waterfront activities, instructional and free swim, climbing and ropes courses, visual and performing arts and outdoor adventures as well as evening programs and special events.
iD Tech Camp
With over 30 courses like game design, coding, video production, 3-D printing and modeling, robotics and engineering, iD Tech is a great camp. The instructors empower campers to be independent and make new friends while gaining valuable skills. Days include instructional time, outdoor activities and socializing, and free time.
Zombie STEM Summer Camp
Send your child to Zombie camp this summer! Kids will research past civilizations and technology from real-world history, mythology and literature. In the science lab, campers learn about DNA, math, physics and biology which is vital for defeating zombies. They'll learn first aid skills (important in case of zombie attack), goal setting (battle strategies and tactics), teamwork (to attack the zombie’s lair), problem-solving (riddles, puzzles and traps) and the importance of character (honor, courage and compassion).
Camp Rotary
Camp Rotary was first started as a service project for the Lynn Rotary Club. The facilities include a state of the art ropes & challenge course, BMX Bike racing track, rifle range and beautiful waterfront. Campers get to choose from a large variety of activities for each week including BMX bike racing, archery, dance, fishing, riflery, snorkeling, a "Survivor" style ultimate games program and their popular "X-Treme Stiles" aquatic program. Optional field trips are also offered throughout the summer.
Camp Birch Hill
Situated in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, Camp Birch Hill offers a choice of over 50 elective activities to let campers personalize their own schedule. Just a few of the activities available are waterskiing, swimming, windsurfing, horseback riding, martial arts, kickball, lacrosse, gymnastics, ceramics, mini-golf, rock wall, tennis, photography and cooking. Evening programs, campfires, social events, overnight campouts, camp shows, talent nights, carnivals and fun off-site adventures round out camp life.
Primary photo: Josh Campbell on Unsplash
Upparent collects community-submitted recommendations and reviews, and any ideas that are shared reflect the opinions of individual contributors.