Canterbury Shaker Village

A little pricey for admission, but a nice stop in the middle of nowhere. Grounds and buildings are well maintained. Staff is super friendly. If you get a chance,chat with Charles in the print shop. Shakers were an interesting people. Worth a stop.

Beautiful landscape in the spring and autumn especially. Most of the buildings were closed but I love visiting the dwelling house. Perfect for hiking easy trails and learning about Shaker history.

This is such a beautiful place to walk through a small piece of history while enjoying the scenery and architecture of an old community farmstead.

My wife and I visited to learn about what the Shaker community actually was, because we had heard that so many others found it interesting. We were not disappointed. We had a very educational tour and visit. The whole Shaker concept is fascinating.

Great guide through 3 buildings with lots of information. Several other buildings and trails available for self tour.

Tour was interesting and detailed. Enjoyed the stories and the fact that these are authentic buildings and fixtures.

An unexpected highlight to our trip to New Hampshire. Staff were incredibly kind and helpful. Learned a lot about the printing process and history. Was surprised and how influential the Shaker community was to our society.

Pretty interesting spot. All original buildings on grounds and well kept. We went into a couple of buildings. But then again we were there at a time when things weren't happening. They also have a quaint gift shop that offers Shaker period-type gifts the tour was a self-guided one so we didn't have any formal tour but there are plenty of placards that explain as you go along. Beautiful spot.

I enjoyed the Hancock Shaker Village more, but this one was not bad at all, especially when the trees display their magnificent colors. The idyllic hills and surrounding trees make this a lovely walk. The tour guide was informative and fairly friendly. The staff kinda led us a little stray from the tour when we arrived, but they figured things out. The museum itself seems a lot more low-key than Hancock Shaker, the latter being a more vast museum and includes more exhibits and things to see, such as farm animals. With this museum, you'll get a good sense of Shaker living and see some of their aspects of their lives. However, the tour guide will give you a richer sense of what they did and why. The Shakers are an intriguing and interesting people and definitely worth a look. The gift shop offers various Shaker crafts and books. Plus there's a video in the back on the village that you can watch for free. You can go into some of the individual buildings, but many of them were closed, which was a little discouraging and felt limiting. So while I do think this was a good visit and still worth it, Hancock Shaker is a better place to go to learn about the people. (I haven't been to Sabbathday Shaker in Maine yet)

This was one of our best stops in New Hampshire. The Canterbury Shaker village is the only Shaker Community that became a museum while residents stilled lived there. The Shakers were not like the Amish in that they embraced technology and were one of the first villages in New Hampshire to use electricity. (The Shakers and the Quakers were also totally different groups.) The buildings are original, as is most of the furnishings. I HIGHLY recommend you take advantage of the free guide, who will take you into many of the buildings and explain how and why the Shakers were so successful. As you may know, the Shakers were celibate and it seems inevitable that they would die out. However, many people joined the group because of their views about peace and harmony. Also, they willingly adopted orphaned children. These children grew up in the village and frequently stayed, so that the number of people actually increased for over 200 years. This village is well worth the stop and I very much highly recommend this excellent experience.

This was such a fun, unexpected pit stop on the way to the airport for us! We loved getting to know more about the Shakers and their way of life here. Plus, the fall views were BEAUTIFUL! They had tours going a few times a day so that was awesome to hear some more history.

Amazing history, and stunning property that you can spend many hours touring. This is a destination worth visiting.

Great museum in an idyllic setting. I must confess that my knowledge of the Shakers was limited (and apparently somewhat incorrect). So I was glad to visit this place that is so well preserved and learn about the people who lived here. Out guide (Dick?) was very knowledgeable and took us thru several buildings that are not accessible outside a tour. So the tour was definitely worth it ($20 I think it was). We went to the Meeting House and learned of their "governance" (that might be a strong term for how they ran things) and their worship. We saw the kitchen/dining facilities and were amazed how so few people could feed so many so efficiently! And we went to the laundry and saw how this function evolved over time and learned how progressive they were. There were a few buildings we could not access. Perhaps they are included on other tours? I would have liked to see the infirmary just because I have a background in healthcare. But our guide did talk about it at least. There are also trails you can walk. Unfortunately there was a heat wave when we were there and just walking the immediate grounds to see all the buildings was all we could manage.

We were visiting last October and had the best time! Nancy was our tour guide and did a fabulous job sharing the history with us. Definitely recommend this tour, as it's fun and informative.

We took the tour before attending Best Of NH function and found it very enjoyable and informative. There are about 25 buildings and the docents( Dick our guide) are extremely knowledgeable. Unfortunately our tour lasted only an hour so we only spent time in two buildings. I hope to return to learn more. Bring water and wear comfortable shoes because on hot days (like today), you get parched and most paths are dirt or grass.

Quite the historical place. It's nice how they've preserved the buildings. When we were there the cafe was not open. Thought $20 was a tad much for a guided tour, so we just walked the grounds. You cannot access the buildings without a guided tour. Would be nice if there was an option for self-guided tour. I didn't go inside the museum, but others in the group did and found it informative.

Excellent tour by Bill. Highly recommend this tour . Well worth a day trip if you are in the area. So glad we decided to do tour. Bill was very informative, fun and detailed about history of village.

Worth the visit. Your admission is a donation to the village for maintenance and upkeep. I believe it was $19 per person. Private parking lot and a very interesting visit, particularly if you are a history buff. You can take a self guided tour or go on the guided tour that is offered at 10am and 2pm daily. Was a very interesting visit where you learn so much about the Shakers, and where the name came from. These people were originally Quakers and the story goes that these people loved to dance, not the Quakers. So they called themselves Shakers. Very much on top of technology also. A shaker women invented the first metal steel blade for cutting wood and they also invented to wooden clothes pin. They always were ahead of their time with inventions. To make their lives easier, they would invent new things. It would have been very interesting to see how they would have adapted to today's technology if they continued to grow. A lot of the people were recruited into the religion way of life from in and around the US. Was very interesting moving from house to house to learn of the history in each. Plus the overview of the land was incredible. There are only two living Shakers remaining at the plantation in Maine, one male over 60 and one female over 80. I certainly recommend you stop in for a visit. I have been told it is quite a display at Christmas time

Great place to visit even better in the fall rich with history and scenic views. Covid safe.

Attended a wedding today as a part of the bridal party. Awful experience. The grounds themselves are GORGEOUS and the buildings are BEAUTIFUL, BUT the actual organization is what made it awful. Don't get me wrong, the wedding coordinator has nothing to do with this bad review. Not one bit. It's the Village's management that is awful. Not the staff, but the management. My friend wanted her wedding reception to be two things--wheelchair accessible and air conditioned for those of us who have medical issues to be comfortable. She chose the Hubbard building because it was both of these things. She made clear from the get go that these were the TWO THINGS that needed to happen. We arrived this morning, and the fire alarm went off in the Hubbard building. A freak accident, sure? It's an old building and things happen, but it ended up being the HVAC system. Maybe it was the first turn on of the season -- but that should have been squared away before the day of the wedding. At the last minute, we had to plan to use the horse barn next door. It's a beautiful building, but cramped and not wheelchair accessible or air conditioned. ALSO, was not equipped with a sound system, or bathrooms. Luckily one of the groomsmen lived nearby and could grab a speaker, but what if that wasn't an option ? There should always be a contingency plan at venues, and there wasn't here. Things happen. But not only was there no back up plan, but there was an attitude from management. The Village is historic and we'll preserved, but management will watch you with a hawkseye to make sure there are no cups, pens, pencils, anything on any surface. And they're nasty about it. I was afraid to pretty much touch it be anywhere without asking if it was ok. Again, this wasn't from staff, who were pleasant, but management. We went to the chapel for the ceremony, and AGAIN, watched like a hawk. We were in a small room and then photographer started taking flash photos, and was scolded. There were *no antiques or pictures/paintings in that room.* As we started to leave to get to the reception across the road, we stepped on the grass because the bride was starting to feel faint and we needed to get her seated ASAP. Again, stern words from management. It is a beautiful place, but not well equipped for weddings. I would have given it one star but there was an adorable barn cat and the grounds are beautiful. Think long and hard if this is where you wish to be married, and make sure there's a contingency plan.

This place was really very nice to visit. Our tour guide, Lois, was very informative and answered all questions we had. The tour is 1 hour 15 minutes but she went 15 minutes over due to being so detailed on her guide. The gift shop had lots of cute little things and they have furniture on the 2nd floor that the Shakers made from back in the day. Really cool to see with all the great detail. Definitely not a place for little ones, as the grounds are uneven, lots of walking and lots of things you can't touch.

SHOCKED! Two notes of caution. First, the hours are listed incorrectly online--they don't open at 9 a.m., but at 10:30 a.m. Second, and more importantly, DO NOT TOUCH THE GARDEN FENCE! I learned the hard way that it is electric, as there is no warning sign around it. Still can feel the results from the shock a half hour later.

Like stepping into the past. I knew next to nothing about the Shakers, then to visit this place, where they were early 200 years, living by their principles. Just seeing buildings of this age is very impressive--the schoolhouse, the dwelling house, the infirmary. One of the most impressive sites is a building not there, the cow barn foundation, two huge rams of granite maybe 100 yards apart. The volunteers we talked to most knowledgeable and friendly, An amazing experience--we self-guided.

Set along rolling hills this old Shaker community has a lot to offer for a day trip. There are several festivals and events that occur throughout the year. When we visited Canterbury Shaker Village we attended Wool Day, an annual event that is focused on on sheep, alpacas, and the yarn works derived from them. While the village takes you back in time, this event takes you even further back. During a typical visit you can see how they make their signature brooms by hand. Demonstrations like that give you a glimpse into the day to day lives of the Shakers that used to live there. If you visit in the summer, be sure to take a break and sit in the Adirondack chairs under the trees. Watching the sunflowers swaying in the wind helps you relax further. Don't miss out visiting the onsite restaurant for fantastic food either.

This is a glimpse into a way of life that required a different kind of discipline and commitment than most care to investigate or even imagine today. From their website: "The Shakers believed in equality for all people, the importance of community, stewardship of the land, and carefully crafting material things in a way that mimicked the divine." I always smile when I think of this place now since last year a woman at the register asked my daughter and I if we were sisters. Do you think we are???? lol! Well, she did have thick glasses, but it still makes me chuckle. It's a pretty drive any time of year.

this is a rip... at $12 adult ticket, overrated, especially since museum is closed due to covid. few craftsmen.

Plac is sooo cool! Unusual piece of American history. Beautiful views, great tour guides. A very unique and educational experience!

Really liked my visit and wish I'd had longer to explore. I wasn't able to take the full tour, so I did a self guided tour. I hope to return and complete a full tour.

Wow! What a pleasant surprise. Seeing and experiencing history. I love living museums. Our tour guide was amazing and she was patient with all my questions. I took my wife here as a surprise and I was the one who was surprised at how wonderful the whole experience was. If you are in the area, you have to stop by and check this little gem of jewel. It's a piece of history.

Fall is a beautiful time of year to visit this historic site. You can either walk around the buildings yourself or take a tour. I particularly liked the print shop, where letterpress printers are still in use. Loved the gift shop with lots of NH craft items.

Waste of money. Went the Sunday after Labor Day and expected to see artisans at work. We were Only allow to go into two builds with the guide the others were all locked up. The infirmary was not open to our guide, there was a big mixup with schedules on what was to be open. I would Never pay that amount again to see half of what the brochure offered. When you go in make sure your getting what your paying for. We feel we should have been told, or the price reduced. Don't waste your time.