Tanglewood, the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s summer home in the Berkshire town of Lenox, is the classic New England music pilgrimage — about two and a half hours west of the city. Through the heart of summer, the BSO plays weekend concerts in the open-sided Koussevitzky Music Shed: Friday and Saturday evenings plus Sunday-afternoon matinees, with world-class soloists and conductors cycling through the season.

The move for first-timers is a lawn ticket: pack a picnic, spread a blanket on the grass behind the Shed, and let the orchestra drift out over the trees as the light fades. Shed seats offer the formal concert experience, and Saturday-morning open rehearsals make a more casual side door. It’s a genuine day trip, but for classical fans it’s the essential one on the summer calendar.