About Boston
Before we get started giving you all the Boston highlights, you should know that Boston is walkable. Nothing is that far, and if it is far, the public transportation system (the T) is easy to understand (mostly, we'll explain). There is no need for a car. If you rent a car, you will most likely pay to park it the whole time you are in the city. We urge you to walk, take the T, take a pedicab (bicycle cab), or take a real cab. Driving in Boston is a challenge, and that is being kind. That said, while you're walking you will notice that you can't go far in this town without a seeing a watering hole of some kind. If you like pubs, this is the place for you! Also, one more thing, you should know that unlike New York, Boston closes. The T shuts down at around midnight, and bars close at 2am (1am in Cambridge). If you get hungry in the middle of the night (after 2am) you'll be hard pressed to find anything, including a convenience store, that is open. On to the city highlights:
- First of all, there is the Freedom Trail, which is a "trail" of red bricks along the sidewalk that you can follow, leading you to all the historical landmarks throughout the city (Boston is nothing if not historic) and, conveniently, back to the hotel if you get lost! :) Along the trail you can see the Old State House, Old City Hall, Paul Revere's house, some historical churches the founding fathers attended (and the Kennedys as well), very old cemeteries where all your famous revolutionaries are buried, the site of the Boston Massacre, the U.S.S. Constitution ("Old Ironsides"), Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market, and plenty of other monuments. When we were kids our dads made us do this trail probably 15 times.. .okay maybe we're exaggerating! It's pretty cool, plus there are a ton of other things to do and see along the way, since the trail basically takes you through the entire downtown area. (Boston is super walkable; you can walk the whole darn thing in a few hours for sure.) You can also bar hop along this trail! 
- As you're walking around the city following the yellow (oh, wait... red) brick road, you may also stumble upon Cheers - the bar made famous by the television show of the same name. The real bar (the exterior filmed in the show) is on Beacon Street on the north side of the Boston Common, at the foot of Beacon Hill. It's within walking distance from the hotel (like everything else!), and is quite a nice pub. While during the day it is packed, PACKED with tourists, at night it is actually a local pub with your average Joe-Boston sitting around having a few pints. In fact, it's only a few blocks from our apartment, and we've been known to frequent it from time to time! The bar is technically named the Bull and Finch Pub, but the Cheers sign hangs outside just like in the TV show. The interior looks nothing like the one on TV, so the owners opened another bar named Cheers in touristy Faneuil Hall, and designed it to be a replica of the show's set.
- Fenway park... you need to see it. It's a beautiful park for sure (no worries, New Yorkers, Gina still roots for the Yankees!), and the oldest ballpark in America. They have tours of the park that are supposed to be great- often they let you inside the famous Green Monster, home to one of the last hand-operated scoreboards in the big leagues, as well as signatures and graffiti from dozens of AL ballplayers past and present. As for getting tickets to a game, it's nearly impossible. They sold out months ago, if you can believe it! However, you can sometimes get decently priced seats from a scalper ($10-$20 over face value is pretty fair) on the day of a game, particularly if it's the Tampa Bay Devil Rays or some other middling franchise. (The Orioles are in town the weekend of our wedding, with games on Friday night and Sunday afternoon. If you want to try getting tickets to either game, email Jon and he'll give you the lowdown on scalpers, craigslist, etc.)- The New England Aquarium is super awesome, with its giant sea turtles, 4-story Giant Ocean Tank, penguins and more. If you're a fan of aquariums, we'd say check it out! Once again, it is within walking distance of the hotel.
- Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market This is the hot spot for shopping, dining, drinking pints, and watching street performers. Faneuil Hall (the actual building) was a meeting house dating back to Revolutionary times, while Quincy Market was built in the early 1800s as an indoor pavillion for vendor stalls selling produce, meats, cheeses, and such. In the 1970s, Boston reopened the marketplace for retail use and it now features a variety of different food stalls with every type of food you can imagine. There are also a number of bars and plenty of shopping in the cobblestone pedestrian mall on either side. In the summer all sorts of street performers are out, and it is lots of fun to spend the day drinking and eating on one of the many outdoor patios, watching the performers or hoards of tourists walking by! It is a must see. Again, just down the road from the Omni Parker House. (One of Boston's big-name comedy clubs, The Comedy Connection, is upstairs in Quincy Market; if you want to get tickets, let us know and we can get you some information!)
- Duck Tours If you want a real professional tour of the city these Duck Boats are the way to go - plus they are amphibious, so at the end of your tour your bus drives right into the Charles River for a scenic boat ride! Tours depart from the Prudential building and Cambridge. They book up fast, so go early or call ahead!
- Speaking of waterfowl, the Swan Boats are another attraction. In the Boston Public Garden (just across from the Common), you can take a ride on a Swan Boat for a mere $3 (translation: a college kid peddling a long boat, with a giant swan in the back, around a pond. Kids love it... as an adult, maybe not so much!- The North End This quaint Italian section is one of the only places where you'll find Yankee fans in the entire city! It's a great neighborhood of narrow streets filled with little gellato stands, cafes, restaurants, and old men sitting outside playing accordians. Very cute, and worth a stroll.
- Harvard University You know, that little college that people talk about! Hehe...it's just across the river (a 15 minute T ride) in Cambridge. You can walk around the historic campus grounds, and hang out in Harvard Square (beware of all the homeless people and crazy liberals!). It used to be a very unique, independent neighborhood with the most bookstores in the country per capita. It still retains some of this vibe, but many local hangouts have been replaced with the Gap and large banks, etc.
- The Colleges There are upwards of 80 colleges and universities in the greater Boston area. Many of the campuses are beautiful, many are not. If you are interested in seeing any of these colleges, let us know and we can get you information- the biggies include Harvard, MIT, Boston College, Boston University, Northeastern, Emerson, Tufts... ok, there are too many to list. If you have teenagers trying to decide what to do post-high school, there are plenty of colleges to scope out!
- Boston Common We can just spend all day lazing around in this park, the oldest public city park in America; it's quite beautiful. If you want to pet some friendly pooches, there's a dog running area near the corner of Beacon and Charles Streets; there is a playground and tennis courts near Park St.; and there is a frong pond in the center of the Common where kids can splash in summer and couples go ice skating in the winter. Across the street is the Public Garden, which is even prettier, especially in summertime. There are other parks in town as well; they are all connected, and are called the Emerald Necklace (designed by Olmstead, architect of NYC's Central Park).
- The Museum of Fine Arts (and the college associated with it), The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, The Museum of Science, and the John F. Kennedy Library are all great places to visit; lots of good stuff! Also, The Boston Childrens Museum is a great place if you have kids. You can obtain free or discounted passes to most of these museums (and the aquarium, actually) at the Boston Public Library, and many of them have free (donation requested) afternoons or evenings. Again, if you are interested, email or call us and we can get you more information.
- Speaking of the Boston Public Library, it's a beautiful building and the first public library in the United States (sounds like a broken record, doesn't it? "The first this, the oldest that..."). Tours are available but it's easy enough to wander around the halls checking out the exhibits, gorgeous architecture, and large collection of murals and John Singer Sargent paintings. There is also a cafe and a tranquil courtyard to relax in if you find a book you like. :)- The Christian Science Center/Mary Baker Eddy Library is another big attraction. The Church of Christian Science, started by Mary Baker Eddy, has its world headquarters in Boston; the Mother Church, as the complex is called, is nothing less than magnificent. Located in the middle of the Fenway, the Christian Science campus covers 14 acres of land, which is comprised of the church building, a reflecting pool, a reading room, the Mary Baker Eddy Library for the Betterment of Humanity (a museum including the Hall of Ideas, colorful and stunning Mapparium, and Quest Gallery), and the offices of the Christian Science Monitor. The church itself is a magnificent Romanesque building with a bell tower, stained glass windows, and a 13,290-pipe organ. (Can you tell we totally lifted this information, or did you think we were really into Christian Science?!)
- Some other things to do: You can take a tasting tour of the Sam Adams Brewery or the Harpoon Brewery, catch a "Free Friday Flick" or a free concert outdoors at the Hatch Shell (along the Charles River Esplanade, pictured at right), or enjoy the "Movies by Moonlight" series of free classic films shown along the waterfront at the Boston Harbor Hotel on summer Friday nights. 
Outside the CityIf you're here for more than a few days and want to mix things up with a day trip, there's plenty to see within a 30-45 minute drive (or commuter train ride). You can see Henry David Thoreau's old digs at Walden Pond in Concord, MA (there's a nice walking path around the pond, and you can swim there as well); Nathaniel Hawthorne's House of Seven Gables and the site of the Salem Witch Trials in Salem, MA (a 25 min train ride from North Station); multiple beaches (our favorite being Singing Beach in Manchester-by-the-Sea, off Rte 128 North or a 45 min train ride from North Station); or Plimoth Plantation in Plymouth (Rte 3 South), a living museum where character actors pretend to be pilgrims from the 1600s.
Lastly, feel free to contact us if you want any more info or have any questions about what to do in town, and we hope you enjoy the city!!
