Plan Your Visit: Hours and Directions

Visitors are always welcome at our architecturally distinctive museum and Visitors Center, designed to recall a shtetl—a small Jewish town or village in eastern Europe—and set on a ten-acre apple orchard at the edge of the campus of Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts. We’re a two-hour drive from Boston, three hours from New York, and one hour from the Berkshires. 

The world's first Yiddish museum, the Yiddish Book Center is home to Yiddish: A Global Culture, our new permanent exhibition which places Yiddish at the very center of intellectual and creative life in Europe and the Americas. To learn more about Yiddish: A Global Culture, click here. 

We're also home to additional visiting exhibits about Yiddish and Jewish culture. We also offer a full schedule of virtual and some live public programs.

Hours and Admission

The Yiddish Book Center is open Sunday–Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Closed Shabbos (Saturday)

For a list of holiday closures please scroll to the bottom of this page.

TOURS 

We offer guided public tours of the Center’s exhibits. Availability is on a first come, first served, basis and the maximum number of participants is 25 people. Tours leave from the docent desk (located in our main lobby) and last approximately 45 minutes. Below is the tour schedule:

Sunday 
11 a.m.–11:45 a.m. 
1 p.m.–1:45 p.m. 

Please note: we will not offer tours on Sunday, December 17. There will only be an 11am public tour on Sunday, December 24.

Additional tour times to be announced.

Interested in scheduling a group or private tour? Email [email protected] or call 413-256-4900 to learn more. 

Holiday Closings

In addition to Shabbos, the Center is closed on the following holidays:

2023 Holiday Closings:

• Christmas Eve — close at noon December 24
• Christmas Day — December 25

2024 Holiday Closings:

• New Year's Day — January 1
• Martin Luther King Jr. Day — January 15
• Pesach — close at noon April 22
• Pesach — April 23 & 24
• Pesach — April 29 & 30
• Memorial Day — May 27
• Shavuot — June 12 & 13
• Independence Day — July 4
• Labor Day — September 2
• Rosh Hashanah — close at noon October 2
• Rosh Hashanah — October 3 & 4
• Yom Kippur — close at noon October 11
• Yom Kippur — October 12
• Sukkot — October 17 & 18
• Shemini Atzeret — October 24
• Simchat Torah — October 25
• Thanksgiving — close at noon November 27
• Thanksgiving — November 28 & 29
• Christmas Eve — close at noon December 24
• Christmas Day — December 25

Suggested donation:

$8 for adults; $6 for seniors. Free for members, students, and children.  

Visitor Guidelines / COVID Safety 

Masking is optional for staff and visitors. Anyone is welcome to wear a mask while at the Center. Hand sanitizing stations are available throughout the building. If you or someone in your party is experiencing COVID-19 or other flu-like symptoms, please join us when you are feeling better.

Service dogs are welcome at the Yiddish Book Center. The Center follows the U.S. Department of Justice’s ADA and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts requirements for service dogs. The dog must be trained to provide assistance to a person with a disability. Service dogs must be under the control of the handler at all times and be house-trained. If a service dog shows disruptive behavior, the handler will be asked to remove the dog from the Center. Visitors are not allowed to bring pets or emotional support animals into the Yiddish Book Center.

Directions

GPS: Set destination as “Hampshire College, Amherst, MA.” Once you arrive on campus, follow signs to the Yiddish Book Center.
Click here for directions and a map of the area.

Accommodations

We're located in Massachusetts' Pioneer Valley, home to renowned museums and colleges, a lively restaurant scene, eclectic shops, and a wide range of hotels and inns. 

To learn more about places to stay, eat, shop, and explore, go to Visit Hampshire County.