Find a program / Camps / Massachusetts
Massachusetts camps
Summer camps in Massachusetts: state rules
Massachusetts doesn't publish a statewide camp list, so we have no camp listings here yet. This page explains the state's camp rule and links to the official sources.
Massachusetts camp rules
Day and overnight camps need a camp license or permit. Recreational camps for children (day, residential, sports, travel or trip camps serving 5 or more children, operating any time from June 1 to September 30 or fewer than 15 business days at other times) must be licensed each year by the local board of health under DPH rules; any program that advertises itself as a camp must be licensed (105 CMR 430.020, 430.050). Not covered unless advertised as a camp: single-purpose classes or clinics run by municipal recreation departments, drop-in programs, and classroom-based instruction without high-risk activities. EEC-licensed child care programs running a summer camp in their licensed space are exempt from the camp rules (105 CMR 430.010).
Official sources: 105 CMR 430.010 scope and exemptions (LII mirror) · 105 CMR 430.020 definitions (LII mirror) · 105 CMR 430.050 license required (LII mirror) · 105 CMR 430.000 (Mass.gov, eff. March 1, 2024)
All Massachusetts rules for child care and camps · Camp license rules in every state · Checked October 2026. General information, not legal advice.
More for Massachusetts families
- Child care and after-school programs in Massachusetts
- Free summer meals for kids in Massachusetts: USDA meal sites. These are not camps.
- Youth, sports and camp nonprofits in Massachusetts, from IRS data. Being listed there doesn't mean a camp is licensed.
Camp not listed?
If you run a camp in Massachusetts that isn't here, send us its details. It's free. A person at BackPR reviews every submission before anything is published, and not every camp gets listed.