Help me plan a trip to Boston, PLEASE!!!

[Desnik]

I thought I would ask you wonderful DIS'ers for help. My sister is graduating from 8th grade. She is more like my kid. We are 17 years apart(same parents)and we are really close. I want to do something special for her because she is a great kid and has gotten really great grades. Instead of giving her a gift, (she is one of those kids who has everything)DH and I thought we would take her somewhere special. She has been talking about wanting to go to a couple of places, but only one of them seems doable. She wants to go to Boston. DH and I have been there before but that was a few years ago and we did it as a side trip when we went to Salem. This time I would like to stay closer to or in Boston but would like a nice, but less than $300 a night hotel. Is this possible in Boston or do I have to look outside the city? Also what places should we take her to to get a good feel for the place? Any places we should eat? Any good Italian restaurants? What tours should we do? Any help would be appreciated or any tips on when to go. The only thing is we can't go in Aug, unless it's the last week because our dad is taking her to Atlantis.(I know, lucky kid!!)
TIA!!!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Here is a website to help you get started. http://www.bostonkids.net/

Think about walking the Freedom Trail (if it's not too hot) and doing a Duck Tour. Stroll through the Boston Common and take a ride on the Swan Boats across the street at the Public Garden. Be sure to visit Faniuel Hall, good for snacking or dessert, be sure to go in the historic hall itself.

Swing through the North End for good Italian food - La Famiglia Giorgio will give you a good feel for the neighborhood, is kid friendly and will not break the bank. The New England Aquarium has an Omni Theatre. All within walking distance.

I'm sure you'll get lots of good ideas here. Have a good time. She's a lucky girl!!

 

[Sherri]

My sister and I went on a weekend trip to Boston in October.
We stayed at the Boston Park Plaza hotel. It was beautiful. We had not read all great reviews so we became very weary. What we found was a brilliant lobby that would make anyone feel like royalty and a very spacious room with two double beds and nice down comforters. It was beyone anything we could have hoped for. The location was unbeatable.
Good luck with whatever you decide. You will have fun.

 

[kelleigh1]

Many of the hotels within the city are quite pricey, but if you do some homework, you may be able to find something much more reasonable.

Another option is staying outside the city, but with easy access to the T. The Quincy or Braintree area may be an option with close proximity to the Red Line. There's also a Holiday Inn literally a stone's throw from the Green Line station in Newton.

The Duck Tours and Trolley Tours are quite popular in the city. There are also Fenway Park tours.

What time of year are you thinking of coming in?

 

[Stephanie218]

Don't want to hijack the thread, but I'm interested also. My friend is flying into CT from Phoenix, and hasn't really been north of Georgia on the east coast. She'd really like to go to Boston.

I spent a year at Stonehill College south of Boston, but only went into the city a few times, so I'm not sure how far apart different things are.

I was looking at doing a duck tour, as we'll probably just spend the day in boson, and then head down and get a hotel in Newport for the next day. How long are the duck tours? I couldn't find that information on their webpage.

Thanks!

 

[Desnik]

Thanks for all the info so far!!!
We will be driving in from NY and hope to do the trip on a weekend in the summer.
My mother said she would watch one or both of my kids. They are 3 and 8. Should I leave the 3yo with my mom? Will my 8yo be bored?

What are not to miss attractions?

 

[bekkiz]

This is restaurant is every girls fantasy We ate there twice (once after a show, once just for fun)

http://www.finaledesserts.com/

I also highly recommend Blue Man Group for a neat show that's not too expensive (around $50/ticket or so)
http://www.blueman.com/ticketinfo/index.shtml
All three of you will get a huge kick out of it, and the theater is really small, so you really feel part of the show Plus it's just right around the corner from Finale

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Will my 8yo be bored?

I really doubt it. I have 8yo twins, and we do the things I listed above on a regular basis. They love it! They are at a great age, in fact, because they're learning about American History, and this is where it all began! You might want to brush up a bit on some of the historical characters and things you might see ahead of time so she understands even more.

 

[kelleigh1]

Your boys may enjoy the Duck Tour too...and the Aquarium is great for that age. But since this is a trip for your sister, you'll probably want to gear it more toward her and not the boys.

Personally, I haven't done the Duck Tours, but I have heard that they are a lot of fun. Walking through the North End is always nice too. That's where you'll find some great Italian food and be sure to stop at either Mike's or Modern Pastry for some of the best Italian pastry around.

She's at that in-between age where she may also enjoy a trip down Newbury Street for some window shopping. (I say "window" instead of actual shopping simply because you can break the bank quite easily on Newbury Street.) Copley is also good for some shopping.

There are also walking tours of Boston, but in the summer heat, I think the Duck Tour or the trolley tours will be more enjoyable. With the trolley tours, you can get on and off at various places throughout the city. For the Duck Tours, they 'launch' near Copley. The trolley tours (all 3 companies) have on and off points around the city, but they all seem to have their main starting point near the Aquarium.

August can get pretty hot and humid in Boston. July usually isn't quite as bad, but the weather is always unpredictable.

We also have the Museum of Science or the Museum of Fine Arts, both of which can be enjoyable if you enjoy museums. (I'm sure there are plenty more that I'm not thinking of off the top of my head.)

And this summer, we have Cows on Parade. Throughout the city there are all these decorated wooden cows. They are fun to look at. Apparently they will be "grazing" around the city until September and then will be auctioned off for charity.

When I'm out walking at lunch, I'll try to come up with other ideas and things that might be of interest.

 

[golfgal]

I don't think your 8 year old will be bored but having an 8 year old might limit some of the things you want to do, shopping, fancy dinner, etc. Since you have someone to watch them, the trip might mean more to her if she went without anyone else.

My advice is to find a place to park your car and take public transportation the rest of the visit. Driving in Boston is a nightmare. A stroll around the Harvard Campus might be fun for her as well as taking care of a "college visit" for her for future use.

 

[kelleigh1]

Here's an area within the Boston.com website that may help you with some ideas. It should also include info on any special events happening around the city this summer which could help you to decide on when exactly to visit.

http://www.explorenewengland.com/travel?state_name=massachusetts&town_name=boston

 

[MNT568]

You could take a tour of Fenway Park. They are offered daily in the am when the team is playing and when they are out of town the tours go later into the day. It is really cool being in the park when there is no one there but the tour group.

There are also harbor cruises. They leave from the dock near the aquarium. I am not sure if they still have the lunch cruises, they go out for about an hour at lunchtime.

There is also the mystery trolly tour. It might not be good for young kids. But it is cool. It leaves at sunset and visits famous Boston mystery sites like the Brinks job, Sacco & Venzeti (sp), the boston strangler, etc.

 

[kelleigh1]

There are also harbor cruises. They leave from the dock near the aquarium. I am not sure if they still have the lunch cruises, they go out for about an hour at lunchtime.

I went by that way at lunch the other day and it looked like they were still doing the lunchtime cruises.

There is also the mystery trolly tour. It might not be good for young kids. But it is cool. It leaves at sunset and visits famous Boston mystery sites like the Brinks job, Sacco & Venzeti (sp), the boston strangler, etc.

Is this the Ghosts and Graveyards tour run by Olde Town Trolley or is this a different one? My husband would probably love that tour.

 

[Desnik]

Thanks for the great ideas, keep them coming!!
Any ghost tours or mystery tours we would all really be interested in. We all love that kind of stuff. My sister is 14 and she likes stuff like this and wouldn't be bored by it. Also, I wanted to clear up that my 8yo is a girl and the 3yo is a boy. Still debating on bringing DD.
Anyone know of any hotels?

 

[kelleigh1]

Check out www.lastminutetravel.com You may find some good rates there.

I work right on the Boston harbor. There is the Boston Harbor Hotel right here at my office, but that is in the $300 range. In the downtown area, there is Marriott Long Wharf, the Millenium hotel, Hilton (which used to be the Wyndham), the Langham. Those are all probably relatively pricey. I can't think of any that are more reasonably priced within the downtown area.

Near the Copley area is the Colonnade and the Westin which are probably in the same range. And I'm probably missing some over there. I think there is a Sheraton over there too.

There is a Holiday Inn Express in the South Boston area right off the expressway. I'm not too familiar with the area or the quality of the hotel though.

There is a Hyatt at the airport.

I'm still trying to think of others.

 

[kelleigh1]

The Comfort Inn at the airport is showing at around $135 (I put in a random weekend in July for dates). That may not be bad because you have easy access to the subway system right from the airport so you can get just about anywhere in the city.

If you do look for hotels through that link, just make sure you read the descriptions and then feel free to ask me. Some of them say Boston, but they're not actually in the city.

 

[MNT568]

Ghosts and Graveyards, that is it. I couldn't remember the name of it. My friend did it and she loved it.

What about the Parker House on School Street. Isn't there a hotel near the new convention center, I think it is called the Seaport.

 

[Linda/MA]

Another great Boston-thing to do is to ride the Swan Boats. They are located in the Public Gardens and have been there forever. It's a nice spot to take a stroll.

The Lenox Hotel didn't look too expensive. Check that out. I can't vouch for it but it's in a good location. Maybe someone else has stayed there.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I saw this when I was looking for something else. Good pictures and explanations of some of the stops along the Freedom Trail. http://www.walkingboston.com/tour/#11

 

[Lynn CC]

Our 2 most favorite hotels to stay in are both on Tremont Street and right in the center of everything that everyone is talking about in previous posts.
Nine Zero www.ninezero.com
or Omni Parker House www.omniehotels.com.

You can call and give them your date and ask if they have any special rate for that evening. It works for us! I just called NineZero and told them that I would love to stay at their hotel, but the prices were too high on the internet. So they gave me a fantastic rate, well below the $300 range.
It's a great hotel that is really modern. They treated us like royalty just to be sure we liked it!
Omni Parker is more traditional, you can call for a discount, but they are kind of stingy with them LOL

Here are 2 other posts about Boston!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1083684&page=1&pp=15
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=976115&page=1&pp=15

Have Fun Planning!