Parking & Directions

Parking at Borderland State Park costs $5 a day for cars with Massachusetts plates and $20 for other plates, charged year-round. The main lot is at the visitor center, just inside the entrance at 259 Massapoag Avenue, North Easton, with 250 spaces. Pay with the Yodel app or at the pay machine; DCR does not take cash. On nice weekends the lot can fill by late morning, and DCR then closes the park to new cars until spaces open.

Getting There

Put 259 Massapoag Avenue, North Easton, MA 02356 into your map app. The entrance road off Massapoag Avenue is the park's only public road, and it leads straight to the main lot and the visitor center. The park sits on the Easton–Sharon line, about 9 miles southwest of the Blue Hills Reservation by DCR's description. DCR's site and this site list no public transit to the entrance.

The Lots

• Main lot (visitor center): 250 spaces, including 10 accessible, with two pay stations. This is where almost everyone parks, for the trails, the disc golf course and the mansion tours.
• Season-pass lot: 33 spaces near the main entrance, the park's original lot. DCR's management plan says it is for season pass holders.
• Bay Road at Allen Road: a small lot of about 10 spaces on the east side of the park in Easton, by the second park sign. Bob's Trail starts near here.
• Event parking: for weddings and events at the mansion, DCR uses accessible spaces by the house and a field nearby. A small gravel lot at the Smith farmhouse is only for people attending its own events.

How to Pay

DCR's preferred way is the free Yodel app: pick Borderland, enter your plate with no spaces or dashes, and pay by card. You can also pay at massdcrparks.yodelpass.com in a browser, or use the Pay and Display machine and leave the receipt face-up on your dashboard. DCR is not accepting cash. The rate goes by your license plate, not where you live, so a Massachusetts resident driving a car registered in another state pays $20.

Mansion tours and DCR programs are free, but the parking fee still applies, as DCR's tour sheet points out.

Passes and Free Parking

• Annual pass: $60 a year, for Massachusetts residents only, sold through Yodel. DCR says it covers parking at most of its parks that charge a fee (DCR annual pass).
• Senior pass: DCR sells a lifetime senior parking pass to Massachusetts residents; see DCR's senior pass page for the age and price.
• Free parking: DCR's Yodel FAQ says vehicles with Disabled Veteran, Purple Heart or disability plates or placards park free.
• Library and recreation passes: some Massachusetts libraries and town recreation departments lend free DCR parking passes. Ask yours.

When the Lot Is Full

DCR's 2017 management plan is blunt about it: on most weekend afternoons from spring through fall, the lots reach capacity by late morning, and at peak times the rangers are fully taken up with emergencies and directing cars to open spaces. When the park reaches capacity, DCR temporarily closes it until parking frees up, and posts updates on its X account, @MassDCR.

Please don't solve it by parking on the street. DCR discourages parking on the shoulder of Massapoag Avenue, and its plan records that after the fee began in 2015, some visitors parked in nearby neighborhoods and cut across private property, an issue Easton's Select Board sent to the town's Traffic Safety Committee. If the main lot is full, come back later, try the small Bay Road lot, or plan a weekday visit.

Best Times to Park

• Weekdays, any time: the easiest by far.
• Weekends: before mid-morning, or late afternoon once the first wave leaves.
• Winter: quieter, but hours are shorter (8 am to 4 pm) and DCR's plow list after a storm covers the entrance road and main lot. See winter.
• Event days: haunted hayride, car show and wedding weekends add traffic; check events before you go.

After Dark

DCR's management plan says both main lots are open during daylight and locked overnight, with hours that change with the length of the day. Check the hours page and be back at your car before closing.