Who says rainy days have to be boring?  New Hampshire has plenty of fun-filled indoor activities to keep the entire family entertained- no matter what the weather!


1. Tax-Free Shopping 365 Days a Year
(http://www.visitnh.gov/what-to-do/shopping-and-antiquing/).

 

Shopping is an important part of any vacation, especially in New Hampshire, where shopping is tax-free and the choices are exceptional!  Come browse through interesting and unique shops, from old-fashioned 5¢ & 10¢ stores to the League of NH Craftsmen shop, name brand factory outlets, and antique shops.  Take home some authentic New Hampshire products made by local craftspeople (also available through NH Made).

2. Dining Experiences
(http://www.visitnh.gov/what-to-do/dining/)

Whether it’s wine and cheese, burgers and fries or seafood, there is great dining to be had in New Hampshire.  That includes some amazing experiences at the many different inns, restaurants and dining establishments throughout the state.  There are also many festivals and tastings around dining in the state.  Check the events calendar for the latest happenings in your area.

3. Enfield Shaker Museum in Enfield
(http://www.shakermuseum.org/)

Established in Enfield more than 200 years ago, the Shaker Village and Museum is a wonderful place to learn about the “Shaking Quakers” of New Hampshire, who practiced equality of the sexes and races, celibacy, pacifism, and communal ownership of property.   They farmed over 3,000 acres of land and built more than 200 buildings, including the Great Stone Dwelling (the largest Shaker dwelling ever built).  Make your own furniture, purchase gift items in the museum and see the collection of Shaker furniture, tools, clothing, photographs and agricultural implements.

4. Moffett House Museum and Genealogy Center in Berlin
(http://www.aannh.org/heritage/coos/moffett.php)

This Victorian house in Berlin was formerly occupied by Dr. and Mrs. Irving Moffett and is now a museum and genealogy center, housing military artifacts and historical documents about the surrounding towns.  There are two floors of artifacts and books open to the public for viewing and research on a regular basis.

5. The Poore Family Homestead in Colebrook
(http://poorefamily.homestead.com/)

The Poore Farm Museum is a historic homestead/settlement that shows the way of life for one family from the 1830s to the 1980s.  The house, barn and outbuildings are all in original condition and reflect an era before rural electrification.  The Poore Family Foundation For North Country Conservancy endeavors to continue and propagate the traditional spirit, values, way of life and philosophy of the settlers of the headwaters of the Upper Connecticut River Valley.

6. Funspot Arcade in Weirs Beach
(http://www.funspotnh.com/)

Funspot is the largest arcade in the world with the largest selection of classic games anywhere, featuring more than 500 games, an indoor golf center, a 20 lane ten pin & candlepin bowling center, cash bingo, mini-golf, a restaurant, a tavern and more.  Funspot was also featured in a recent documentary on Donkey Kong called “The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters”.

7. Currier Museum of Art in Manchester
(http://www.currier.org/)

The museum recently re-opened after completing a $21.4 million dollar expansion, including a 33,000 square foot addition, new galleries and a new reception area.  The museum is home to an internationally respected collection of European and American paintings, decorative arts, photographs and sculpture. New galleries showcase the collection of over 11,000 objects, including works by Picasso, Matisse, Monet, O'Keeffe, and Warhol.

8. Christa McAuliffe Planetarium in Concord
(http://www.starhop.com/)

Participate in a rocket-making workshop, make a comet, land the space shuttle, look through a telescope at the rings of Saturn or take in a show in New England's most technologically advanced planetarium theater.  Keep an eye out for a new addition to the Planetarium being constructed right now, which will also change the name of the Planetarium to the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center.

9. The Arts at Keene State College in Keene 

Redfern Arts Center on Brickyard Pond
(http://www.keene.edu/racbp/)

The Redfern Arts Center on Brickyard Pond is home to the performing arts on the Keene State College campus. It has three performance venues: the Alumni Recital Hall, home to musical performances and the annual KSC Film Festival; the Main Theater, which sometimes hosts touring performances and can seat five hundred seventy-two; and the Wright theatre, a black box theatre used for small performances and Theatre department classes.  The 2008-2009 season will celebrate KSC’s centennial (1909-2009).

The Thorne-Sagendorph Art Gallery
(http://www.keene.edu/tsag/)

The gallery was donated to Keene State College in 1965 by beaTrix Sagendorph and originally named after her mother, Louise Thorne.  The name was changed after a new wing was added in honor of her husband, Robb Sagendorph, founder and publisher of Yankee magazine..  The Thorne's permanent collection includes an impressive selection of nationally recognized 19th-century artists who flourished around Mount Monadnock at the turn of the century, including Alexander James, Richard Meryman, Joseph Lindon Smith, and Barry Faulkner, but the collection has grown over the years to include works by other contemporary artists, such as George Rickey, Robert Mapplethorpe, Vargian Bogosian and Jules Olitski.

10. Seacoast Science Center at Odiorne Point State Park in Rye
(http://www.seacoastsciencecenter.org/)

Located right on the coast at Odiorne Point State Park in Rye, the Science Center’s goal is to connect people with nature.  There are several exhibits, including a hands-on critter tank where kids can touch starfish, crabs and snails. There are also fish tanks, historical displays and a play area for children.

11. Children’s Museum of New Hampshire in Dover
(http://www.childrens-museum.org/cmnh/)

The Children’s Museum has a new name and a new location in Dover.  They have tripled their space and added new attractions, including the “Build It, Fly It” exhibit and the “Cochecosystem”.  The museum also has added bathrooms, parking and a snack bar along with the gift shop.

12. The Frost Place in Franconia
(http://www.frostplace.org/)

This farmhouse in New Hampshire where Robert Frost and his family lived full-time from 1915 to 1920 and spent nineteen summers is owned by the town of Franconia and has been turned into a nonprofit educational center for poetry and the arts.  Since 1977, the Frost Place has awarded a fellowship each summer to an emerging American poet, including a cash stipend and the opportunity to live and write in the house for several months.  The Frost Place “Living Museum” has a collection of signed first editions of Frost’s works and other memorabilia from his stay in the home.

13. Cinemagic & IMAX Theater in Hooksett                                                (http://www.cinemagicmovies.com/showtimes_hooksett_index.html)

Escape from the “real world” for a few hours at this local theater.  Among the amenities offered at the IMAX Theater in Hooksett are stadium seating, a game room and ticket kiosks as well as movies in the IMAX format, which includes crystal clear pictures and digital surround sound audio.  Some movies offered in 3D format.  Get your popcorn and soda and enjoy the rain-free show!

14. Kahuna Laguna Indoor Water Park at the Red Jacket Mountain View Resort in North Conway
(http://www.kahunalaguna.com/)

Northern New England’s first indoor water park, the Kahuna Laguna, is located at the Red Jacket Mountain View Resort in North Conway, NH.  The water park is 40,000 square feet and has several tubes, a wave pool, water basketball and volleyball and water cannons.  The park is open year round rain or shine and is the perfect outing for your family.

15. SEE Science Center in Manchester
(http://www.see-sciencecenter.org/)

The SEE Science Center has been getting kids from toddlers to teens excited about science since 1986.  Explore two floors worth of hands on activities, from experiments with light and sound to gravity and momentum.  Don’t forget to check out the LEGO Millyard Project- the largest permanent LEGO installation at mini-figure scale in the world. It represents Manchester's Amoskeag Millyard as it might have looked when it was the largest textile manufacturer in the world circa 1915.

16. The Old Print Barn in Meredith
(http://www.lakesregion.org/oldprintbarn/)

This Civil War era farm was a traditional farm in the 19th century, with livestock, chickens and cows, but was converted in the 20th century to a modern home and art gallery, minus the animals.  The 1790 barn is now home to one of the largest art galleries in New England and contains over two-thousand original works of art, from etchings to mezzotints, photography, watercolors, and oil paintings.  Explore the upper lofts as well as the main floor and side building and purchase some art work while you’re there.

17. The Fort at No. 4 Living History Museum in Charlestown
(http://www.fortat4.org/)

Immerse yourself in the rich history of colonial New England with the Fort at No. 4 in Charlestown.  Costumed guides take you through an authentically reconstructed settlement from the 1740s.  Experience a day in the life of an 18th century settler by churning butter, bartering and trading and learning about the art of 18th century crafting.  You can also watch musket-firing demonstrations and military drills as well as “meeting” famous people from New Hampshire history in Charlestown. 

18. Barnstormers Theatre in Tamworth
(http://www.barnstormerstheatre.org/)

Originally built as a store in the 1820s, it was remodeled as a theatre in 1936 and became home to the Barnstormers, a summer acting company founded in 1931 by Francis and Alice Cleveland and Ed Goodnow.  The Barnstormers produce a new show each week during July and August and then rent the space out from September through June for local concerts, dramas and community activities.  According to them, they are the only theatre in the country still producing a show a week with a resident company in the old summer stock tradition.

19. Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum in Warner
(http://www.indianmuseum.org/)
The co-founders of the Mt. Kearsarge Indian Museum wanted to create a “Museum with a Voice”- one that was more than just a collection of artifacts, but instead would inform in a hands-on way the study of cultures that understood how to live harmoniously with this land so as to leave it fruitful and beautiful for generations to come. With this in mind, the Museum galleries, grounds and gardens were designed as teaching tools while also functioning as tranquility zones in which visitors would find respite from the hectic pace of modern life.  Check out the museum to see how Native American history connects to the present.

20. Mariposa Museum and World Culture Center in Peterborough
(http://www.mariposamuseum.org/)

Located in the historic Baptist Church building in the center of Peterborough, the Museum features an entrance gallery with small museum shop, interactive exhibits and information, crafts classes and the main gallery upstairs with displays and wood-floored performance space. A partial loft houses displays, the music room and the children's reading nook.  Interactive exhibits, both rotating and permanent, showcase the creativity of people across cultures through folk arts, folk traditions, and story telling. Performance space encourages sharing cultural legacies such as folkdance, music and rhythm, oral tradition.