24 hours in Boston

Ending our 5-week road trip with a day in Boston, MA

After 5 weeks on the road, it was time to say goodbye to our trusty hire car. Pulling up at the Alamo terminus at Boston Logan International Airport, we scrambled to get everything we needed from the various compartments of our vehicle before making our way to catch the free shuttle from the car rental centre to the main terminals.

Swan Boats docked for the evening in Boston Public Gardens

Then we hopped on to the Silver Line bus to shuttle us into the city. With it being early evening, traffic into the city was heavy but we eventually made it to Boston’s South Station, transferring here onto the Red Line to reach our Back Bay area hotel.

All checked in and not wanting to completely waste the evening, we went for a walk finding ourselves in the Boston Common-adjacent Boston Public Gardens.

George Washington statue in Boston Public Gardens

The sun was starting to set and the sky was a beautiful red colour as we wandered through the grounds past the Swan Boats all docked for the evening and then out of the park past the George Washington statue. We then walked along Newbury Street down to Copley Place stopping to grab a drink and a snack before looping back round to our hotel.

The next day, we had a late night flight out of the city back to the UK meaning we had the full day to enjoy in the city. Having both been to Boston before – this was my third stay in the city – we’d seen a lot of the main sights before. So, wanting to do something a bit different, we had pre-booked a whale watching trip with Boston Harbor Cruises.

The Boston skyline disappearing in the distance

Getting up and out early, we made a pit stop at a Starbucks for breakfast then walked through the city past Boston Common following the Freedom Trail markers down to Boston Harbour. Arriving at the harbour area a little are than needed, we took a stroll along the waterfront until it was time to check in for our tour and board our boat.

It was a large boat and we took a seat inside by the window, staying put for the first few minutes as we left the harbour, a commentary from one of the crew members explaining to us all how the morning would run and a little about what we could see looking back at the Boston skyline.

We soon decided to make the most of the beautiful weather and head up to the open deck where we could move about more freely and enjoy the skyline views unobstructed.

Everyone trying to get a glimpse of our first whale.

As we moved further and further away from the city, our guide continued to give us information on our surroundings and we when far enough out to sea, we eventually slowed to begin our search for whales. Even without the excitement of spotting some marine life, it was the perfect weather for just cruising out at sea watching the World go by. But as it turned out, we didn’t have long to wait before our first whale spotting.

Suddenly everyone onboard seemed to be out on the top deck as we all tried to find a space to get a look at our first whale of the day! Luckily, it was the first of many sightings and we even came across a pod of whales floating at the surface as they enjoyed the sunshine before seemingly showing off to us waving their fins and splashing around!

After spending some time watching these magnificent creatures, it was time to turn around and make our way back to Boston harbour. It had been a really exciting way to spend the morning though and we were really glad we’d decided to book the activity.

With a few more hours to spare, we walked to Boston’s Hard Rock Cafe for a late lunch then followed the Freedom Trail markers back towards Boston Common stopping to look around in Quincy Market and passing Boston landmarks including Faneuil Hall and the Old State House.

Whales trying to impress their captive audience!

Finally finding ourselves back at Boston Common, we enjoyed the last bit of sunshine before walking back to our hotel to collect our luggage and making our way back to Logan Airport ready to fly back to the UK.

It didn’t feel like 5 weeks had gone since we arrived in Miami.

Since then we’d certainly had a lot of adventures – my first ever trip to Walt Disney World, exploring Savannah, visiting Charleston and Congaree National Park in South Carolina state, learning about the history of Coca Cola in Atlanta, line dancing the night away in Nashville, encountering black bears in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, enjoying the beautiful views along Blue Ridge Parkway, segwaying in Washington DC, visiting Baltimore city, returning to New York, enjoying a sunset sail in Rhode Island, becoming a Junior Range at Acadia National Park in Maine, visiting New Hampshire’s White Mountains and learning all about ice cream production at the Ben & Jerry’s Factory Tour in Vermont to name just a few.

While I was sad to say goodbye for now, with a few more States still to tick off and plenty more to see, I knew it wouldn’t be long until I returned for another epic trip.

A New England Road Trip

Travelling through New York state and Connecticut to Newport, RI then on through Massachusetts

We were on the last leg of an epic road trip through the USA.

Starting weeks earlier in Florida with a few nights in Miami and a visit to Walt Disney World, we had then travelled on through Georgia to the city of Savannah, up into South Carolina to visit Charleston and Congaree National Park, back across into Georgia passing through the city of Atlanta, through Alabama and into Tennessee returning to the city of Nashville and Great Smoky Mountains National Park, into North Carolina and Virginia where we drove along the Blue Ridge Parkway and into Shenandoah National Park, across to Washington DC and then up to Baltimore in Maryland and through Delaware and New Jersey to New York City.

After a busy few days in the city, we were now departing our New Jersey motel and driving north to Rhode Island. Our journey took us briefly through New York state and then into Connecticut, a state my only previous experience of was stopping at a couple of stations while travelling by train from Boston to New York many years ago!

We had plans to make a couple of stops in Connecticut, including one at Yale University to tour the campus grounds, but, as often happens on our road trips, time got away from us and with a sunset cruise to make in Rhode Island that evening, we had to cut down our itinerary.

We did at least manage a quick stop at a Connecticut roadside attraction – the Pez Visitor Centre. The centre was a like a museum dedicated to the character candy dispensers with displays showing hundreds of dispensers from over the years organised by character or theme. There was also a chance to peer into the factory to see the PEZ candies being made.

Collections of PEZ dispensers on display

After a quick stop at the Cracker Barrel for lunch, we continued on to Rhode Island where we’d be staying overnight in Newport.

The Breakers, one of the Newport Mansions

After checking into our motel on the outskirts of town, we decided to use the rest of the afternoon to visit one of the historic mansions in the area. We had pre-booked a two-house ticket which gave us a choice of a few of the mansions in the area and aimed to tour one this afternoon and another before leaving Newport the following morning.

We decided to start with The Breakers, a huge mansion built in the late 1800s as a summer residence for members of the Vanderbilt family. Upon entry to the house, we were given audio guides to listen to and guide us around. It was interesting to explore the house with its opulent furnishings and reminded us of visiting National Trust properties in the UK.

After touring the mansion, we drove down towards Newport’s pretty waterfront area and spent some time looking around before our sunset cruise was due to depart. It was a beautiful evening and Bowen’s Wharf was bustling with visitors sat outside at the bars and restaurants, enjoying the sunshine.

Taking a champagne sunset sail in Newport, RI

Above, and below, a perfect evening for a sunset cruise

The rest of our evening was spent enjoying a Champagne Sunset Sail through Newport Harbour and Narragansett Bay on board Schooner Madeleine, a sailing yacht. It was the perfect weather for the cruise, the sunset was really beautiful and it was nice to chat to the other passenger and the staff on board.

Rosecliffe, another of the historic Newport Mansions

The next morning, we went to visit another of the Newport Mansions. We had done some research to see if we could find a house that contrasted a bit with The Breakers and had decided to visit the smaller but equally beautiful Rosecliffe, a mansion which has also been used in a number of films.

Touring the house and grounds took us longer than planned and we therefore had to abandon our plans to take a stroll along the Newport cliff walk so we could get back on the road towards Boston, Massachusetts and fit in as many of the stops we’d planned along the way as possible!

Newport – and from what we’d see, Rhode Island in general – had been a really pretty place to visit and we felt we could have easily spent more time exploring there but maybe we can return one day in the future to see what else the smallest state in the USA has to offer!

Leaving Newport late morning, we then began our drive out towards Cape Cod. We’d predicted we’d hit some traffic but were delayed more than we expected and arrived in Hyannis, which we’d planned to be our first of a few stops along the coast, much later than we’d have liked.

Finding somewhere to park, we began our wander around the pretty town along Main Street lined with its many gift stores, cafes and restaurants. Hungry, we chose one of the cafes to sit in and grab a BLT for lunch then continued to look around the town, grabbing an ice cream and walking down to the harbour.

If we’d had more time, we’d have liked to have visited the JFK Museum but unfortunately, we had to cut our visit to Hyannis short if we were to make our destination at a reasonable time and fit in a few more stops along the way.

A small gallery nar the harnour in Hyannis

The portico containing Plymouth Rock along the sea front

Instead of continuing along the peninsula to the Cape Cod National Seashore Visitor’s Centre as originally planned, we turned around and began our drive up to the town of Plymouth. This pretty coast town is where settlers first arrived in America and the famous Plymouth Rock marks the place where the Mayflower ship is said to have landed on the shore.

We walked along the sea front towards the huge stone portico surrounding the rock. The tide was out so the large boulder sat on the sand in the middle of its walled compound. It was a lot smaller than I expected it to be!

Enjoying a chocolate chip cookies at the birthplace of chocolate chip cookies!

From Plymouth, we continued towards Boston making one final stop to stretch our legs in Whitman, where a historic marker shows the place where The Toll House Inn once stood, said to be the place chocolate chip cookies were first invented!

We neared the city of Boston towards the end of rush hour but still found ourselves caught in traffic with our Sat Nav directing us to a ridiculously busy tunnel that seemed to run directly under the city. Finally making it out, we continued north of the city to Wakefield where our motel for the night was situated.

It had been a busy couple of days and tomorrow we’d be heading towards one of the most anticipated stops of our road trip – Acadia National Park in Maine.

Boston

Boston is one of my favourite cities to visit in the USA and one I take every opportunity to return to. Here’s my guide to this charming New England city!

Where to stay

Massachusetts state, home to the city of Boston

My first trip to the city, we had very little idea about the best area to stay in and left it to fate winning a 4* hotel on Priceline’s Name You Own Price feature near the Old Statehouse. The location turned out to be perfect, close to the Freedom Trail and nearby shops, in walking distance of the waterfront and Boston Common. When returning to the city a few years later, I booked a more budget hotel in a similar area only to be contacted by the travel company a few weeks before our departure to say they’d double booked and cancelling our reservation. We were offered a similar priced hotel but it was on the outskirts of the city with very little in the way of transport connections nearby and therefore not at all convenient to our needs. With it being Easter weekend, Patriots Day and the Boston Marathon while we were there, we struggled to find any available rooms in our price range, eventually grabbing a last minute cancellation just slightly above our budget in Boston’s South End. While not quite as conveniently located as our original choice of hotel, the area still made for a good base to explore the city and in walking distance of many of the city’s attractions. On my last visit to the city, I stayed close to Boston Common, again putting us in walking distance of many of the city’s attractions and the ‘T’, Boston’s metro system.

Getting around

Having twice found ourselves trying to navigate our way through or around the city of Boston in a car, I really do not recommend it! The city is extremely walkable and the ‘T’ subway system is easy to navigate if you’re heading to anywhere slightly outside of the city centre.

I’ve mainly used taxi’s to get to and from the airport, only once attempting to use public transport, using the airport link bus to the main station in the city and the subway from there to the hotel. While doable, it wasn’t the easiest way to get our luggage across the city and with us arriving at rush hour, we spent a lot of time stuck in traffic.

On my first visit to the city, we made use of the city’s hop on/off trolley to do some sightseeing, mainly as it was included in the Go Boston sightseeing card we had purchased. This was a good way to get our bearings in an unfamiliar city and to learn about about the city as well as meaning we could mainly avoid using the subway system.

Boston Common and Public Gardens

Above, Washington sculpture in the Public Gardens, and below, visiting Boston Common and the Public Gardens

Boston Common is a great place to start any trip to Boston. As well as being at the start of the historic Freedom Trail, it provides easy access to other areas of the city including Beacon Hill and Newbury Street. The common is right next to the beautiful Boston Public Gardens where as well as wandering past the colourful flower beds, for a few dollars you can take a ride on one of the famous swan boats around the lake.

The Freedom Trail

The Freedom Trail, a 2.5 mile marked trail around historic places around the city of Boston, was top of my to do list on my first visit to the city. Seeing a walking tour of the start of the trail included on our Go Boston tourist card, we booked a space, meeting our historically-dressed guide in Boston Common. The tour took us past the Park Street Church and into the adjacent burial ground and then down towards the Old South Meeting House and the Old Statehouse where, after hearing the story of the 1770 Boston Massacre, we were left to continue the trail ourselves.

Boston City Hall overlooking Boston Common

We opted to visit the Old South Meeting House and then the museum at the Old Statehouse before following the trail down to Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market. After using our Go Boston passes to take a narrated harbour boat-tour, we continued to follow the waymarkers to follow the Freedom Trail through Boston’s North End.

Here, we used our passes to visit the Paul Revere House and then made our way to Old North Church.

Looking towards Park Street Chruch from Boston Common

As it was already early evening, we turned around and made our way back to our hotel at that point and it wasn’t until my next visit to the city that I completed the Freedom Trail, taking a tour of City Hall whose golden dome looms over Boston Common before revisiting some of the sites along the trail and continuing on past the Old North Church to see the USS Constitution, an old warship, and then walking to the Bunker Hill Monument where we climbed the almost 300 steps to the top to see the views over the city.

Following the Freedom Trail is a really great way to see the city of Boston and learn about America’s history!

City views

View from the top of the Bunker Hill Monument

If you can make it to the end of the Freedom Trail and have enough energy left to climb the hill to the base and then the 294 steps to the top, then the Bunker Hill Monument offers pretty views of the city in the distance.

Above, and below, enjoying the views from the Skywalk Observatory in the Prudential Tower

For more close up views of the city, the Skywalk Observatory on the 50th floor of the Prudential Tower is situated close to Copley Place, right in the centre of the city and offers sweeping views in every direction. It was a beautiful, clear day when we visited and the views over the Charles River in one direction and across South Boston and Cape Cod Bay in the other direction were amazing.

Museums

With Boston being one of America’s most historically rich cities, there are plenty of museums offering opportunities to learn about its past.

Many of the museums are housed in buildings of historical importance such as the Old South Meeting House and Old State House, both on the Freedom Trail and contain a variety of artefacts and interactive exhibits to explore.

Throwing ‘tea’ overboard on the Boston Tea Party Museum’s ship

Down on the waterfront, as well as the Boston Aquarium and the Children’s Museum, is the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum, an interactive exhibition where you get to board a full-size replica of an 18th century vessel and throw ‘tea’ into the harbour like its 1773. While I found the interactive elements of the museum aimed more at children, it was still interesting to learn about such a famous event and the tea-throwing was especially fun.

Above, the view across the bay from the grounds of the JFK Museum, and below, visiting the JFK Museum

Boston is also home to the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Slightly out of the city in the Dorchester neighbourhood, the museum is easily reachable via the ‘T’ subway system and a courtesy bus from the UMass station.

The museum has exhibits on the life of Kennedy, his presidency, assassination and legacy and we spent a good few hours exploring its collections. Situated right on the waterfront, the museum grounds also offers beautiful views over the bay.

As well as history museums, Boston is also the home of a range of art galleries including the Museum of Fine Arts

Beacon Hill

Beacon Hill is one of the most picturesque neighbourhoods of Boston to walk through with its cobbled streets and red brick buildings.

On the northside of Boston Common, the area is great place to visit if you’re looking for boutique shops, small art galleries and antiques stores. It is also home to the famous, and now only, ‘Cheers’ bar in Boston. Formally, there was a themed bar based on the layout of the bar in the popular 80s US sitcom in Quincy Market, but now this has closed leaving just the Beacon Hill bar. While the interior of this bar is not very reminiscent of the bar in the show, the outside, with the steps leading down to the entrance, is instantly recognisable. As well as serving food and drinks, the bar has a store selling Cheers themed merchandise.

North End

As well as being home to some of the stops along Boston’s Freedom Trail, the North End – Boston’s Italian district – is also worth a stroll through to visit one of its many Italian bakeries where you can grab a delicious cannoli. If you’re looking for somewhere to eat out in the evening, you’ll also find plenty of options here with some top class Italian and seafood restaurants.

Fenway Park

Fenway Park is the baseball stadium famously home to the Boston Red Sox team and the oldest baseball stadium in the US that’s currently still in use.

I decided to take a tour of the grounds when it was included on my Go Boston tourist card during my first visit to the city and, while not a baseball fan at all, or a fan of any sports for that matter, I still found it to be really interesting finding out about the ground’s – and team’s – history.

Watching a baseball game at Fenway Park, and below, spending time at Fenway Park

On my next visit to the city, I found out the Red Sox would be playing against New York’s equally famous Yankees team while I was in the city so I couldn’t resist going one step further and booking tickets to actually watch a game at Fenway Park one evening. It was certainly an experience and while it was fun for a while, mainly before the game started with the crowd atmosphere and mass singalongs, I had no idea what was going on once the game started and found it to be very stop start and left way before it drew to a close!

Boat Trips

There are plenty of ways to get out on the water in Boston from the Codzilla speed boat to the more sedate dinner cruises and even a tea party cruise on a tall ship.

I took a historic harbour cruise and over the 90-minutes on board, a commentary told us about some of the areas history while we looked out across beautiful views of the city’s skyline in the distance.

Another really fun way to get out on the water is to take a whale watching cruise.

Above, and below, out at sea on a whale watching day trip

This was a really amazing experience as we sailed out to sea, watching the city views fade into nothing before witnessing the amazing sight of huge whales basking on the surface of the water and swimming past us just under the surface.

We swapped the habour for the Charles River on a Boston Duck Tour.

Starting on land with a madcap commentary as we toured the city, we then set sail along the Charles River for some beautiful views of the city.

Harvard

Above and below, visiting the campus at Harvard University

Across the river, in the district of Cambridge, lies the World famous Harvard University. We took the ‘T’ subway out to have a look around, taking a student-lead tour of the campus. While it is possible to just wander around the grounds without a taking a tour, we found it interesting to learn a bit of the university’s history and the tour also gave us access to a couple of buildings we wouldn’t have otherwise gone inside!

Shopping

There are plenty of opportunities to shop in Boston, with something for everyone from the high street stores of Downtown Crossing – they even have a Primark! – to the more exclusive boutique stores of Beacon Hill and the eclectic stalls of Quincy market.

Newbury Street is probably the most well known of Boston’s shopping districts. Running along 8 blocks from the west side of the Public Gardens, it is home to a mixture of both internationally renowned designer boutiques, high street brands and local one of a kind boutique stores, all housed in huge Victorian red-brick buildings.

For more high street stores as well as large department stores and more high end fashion houses, the Prudential Centre and Copley Place are also great places to shop in the city.

Venturing out of the city

There are plenty of opportunities to get out of the city of Boston and visit the surrounding area.

Visiting the Witch Dungeon Museum in Salem

A witch trial recreated at the Witch Dungeon Museum

We took a train north to the town of Salem, infamous for the 17th century Salem Witch Trials. There were plenty of museums and attractions on offer here to find out about the history of the town and the witch trials but we found many of them to be on the tacky side, the ‘museum’ we chose to visit, consisting of being lead around a series of crude wax figures by a guide dressed up in as a 17th century Salemite retelling the story of what happened and another giving us the opportunity to sit through a reenactment of one of the trials.