Labor Day Weekend at Pinewoods

About the Weekend and Pinewoods Camp

Pinewoods is a traditional dance and music camp, located on 25 hilly acres in a pine forest between Long Pond and Round Pond in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Facilities include four open-sided dance pavilions, an open-sided dining hall overlooking Long Pond, and a fireplaced Camphouse for gatherings. Cozy, screened cabins and rustic cottages nestle among the tall pines. The ponds’ clear waters invite swimmers, canoeists, and kayakers.

Classes and activities

On Saturday, Sunday, and Monday mornings, dance classes are taught by our guest instructors. Separate classes for children are also offered.

The afternoon schedules present instrumental and singing sessions (all instruments and voices are welcome!) and various staff- and camper-led activities, plus the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party on Monday. There are also opportunities for swimming, canoeing, nature walks, volleyball, or relaxing.

The evenings feature dance parties in the main dance pavilion. English country, international, and New England contra dances are led by our dance teachers with music by our expert staff musicians. The Sunday night party has a previously announced theme. After 11 pm, the fun continues in the Camphouse at “after-parties,” including Skit Night or a ceilidh on Sunday.

Accommodations

Campers are housed in a variety of rustic cabins and cottages sprinkled throughout camp. Freestanding, one-room cabins house two campers each. Larger cabins and cottages (many with screened porches) have multiple bedrooms housing one to three campers each. Shared bathrooms are nearby. Pinewoods Camp provides beds, mattresses, and pillows. Campers bring sheets and blankets (or sleeping bags), and towels. Sheets and blankets can be rented for a nominal fee. After you register for Labor Day Weekend at Pinewoods, you may make housing and roommate requests, if you have any, on the camper acceptance form.

Meals

Meals are served family style (lunch and dinner) or cafeteria style (breakfast) in the Dining Hall and accommodate vegetarians as well as omnivores. See the Camper info page for information about special diets. After you register for Labor Day Weekend at Pinewoods, you may indicate dietary restrictions on the camper acceptance form. Two of the cottages have refrigerators and stoves available for camper use. Campers are welcome to bring goodies to share for the evening after-parties.

Camper jobs

To help the sessions run smoothly and keep costs down, campers are given small chores, assigned by age, ability, and preference. After you register for an FAC Pinewoods session, you may indicate any job requests or restrictions on the camper acceptance form.

Shopping

The Pinewoods Camp Store sells snacks, ice cream, and sundries and is open on a self-serve basis throughout the weekend. The Folk Arts Center’s Little Shop of Horas® travels to camp and is available throughout the weekend. The shop sells dance syllabi, CDs, and DVDs from the guest teachers, as well as other recordings of music from around the world, music and song books, and T-shirts.