MA budget trip questions - Help OT!

[msmama]

OK, I've seen others do it, so I'm going to try, too!

My son and I have some free time towards the end of the summer so I thought we'd do a road trip to Massachuesettes (I don't think I spelled that right so I'm going to stick to abbreviations now).

Anyway, I have a cousin in Lowell that I'll see and I'd like to see the Make Way for Ducklings Statues in Boston. Other than that...I really don't know what to do.

I'd like to spend a day or two on the cape and go to Provincetown, but we're not really beach people (one beach day is our limit) and I don't know if there's stuff to entertain a 4 year old there.

I guess I'm willing to do either a mostly road trip (changing hotels each night) or staying in one place and doing day trips. I KNOW there is TONS to do in Boston (and everytime I ask someone I get long lists) but I don't know how to narrow it down at all!!!

If you have a preschooler (or very smart, very curious kid) what kind of trip would you do?

Any places I should definitely AVOID?

I can't even get myself to narrow things down at all!!

(Oh, starting from Bridgeport, CT (where we'll arrive via ferry) and I can get home via either the same ferry, the Orient Point ferry on the end of Long Island or driving around through the city if that helps at all).

 

[cah5525]

Provincetown is quite a haul up the cape, add the congestion from the tourists and it's not really worth it...save that trip for late spring or early fall. Aside from the beaches and occasional festivals, there's not a whole lot to do on the cape, especially for kids. Tons to do and see in Boston...not only fun things but adventures that will sneak in some educational value, too! Free tours on the USS Constitution!!

 

[no capes darling]

I'd skip the cape if you've only got a day... that's a weekend at minimum, IMO. Boston Children's Museum is great for someone his age. The aquarium is too. So much to do in the city.

 

[HeatherC]

I would suggest the Boston Childrens Museum with your little one followed by lunch and browsing at Faneuil Hall.

Another day I would suggest the Museumof Science for a few hours and then the Boston Duck Tours which leaves right from the museum. Great way to take in the sites and fun for all since they are the amphibious vehicles that go on land and in the water.

The Aquqarium would be great too and they also leave from there too I think.

If you want to do Provincetown, I would not drive....way too far with traffic. But there is a ferry from Boston that will get you there. Perfect for a day trip.

It is such a great city! You will have a ball!

Hope this helps!

 

[lindsmom]

I second (third?) Boston Children's Museum and the aquarium. And try a ducktour. You could do a whale watch out of Boston.

With your son's age, I wouldn't recommend P-Town. There honestly isn't anything there that's interesting to a 4 year old. We live 45 minutes away from P-Town and haven't brought our children there except to go on a whale watch (dd10 has been on a whale watch, ds3 hasn't gone yet). There's a good chance you'll end up spending the whole time answering lots of questions.

Depending on your son's interests, you could think about Plymouth Plantation, Franklin Zoo (where the movie Zookeeper was filmed), Salem MA, ride in the swan boats in Boston Public Gardens (when you see the make way ducks).

I agree that you don't need to head to the Cape just for a day. Honestly, the only stuff we do with our kids is beach, shopping

 

[MichelleinMaine]

Boston- if you're going to see the duck statues, must also do the Swan Boats (also in the Public Garden). Read/re read Make Way For Ducklings just before you go for full effect!

Agree with the duck boats (not to be confused with the swan boats! ) You can also catch those at the Prudential Center, which is fairly close to the Public Garden if you opt to do it same day as the statues.


At that age, my son loved the USS Constitution (it's not one, but he called it the pirate boat). You can go down below and see cannons, etc. He'd also like the USS Constitution museum- the whole second floor is a hands on, how life was on the ship, sort of place. (Sort of a historically themed children's museum)

Childrens' Museum is also very good. Science museum is fun, though I think at 4 Childrens Museum would be better. The aquarium is neat, though nothing overly unique if you have one near where you live.


ETA- for budget purposes- the swan boats are a buck or two to ride. Statues, of course, free! Duck boats are a little pricy but worth it. USS Consitution is free and the museum is by "suggested donation" (I think it was $8, but I had much cash and did deposit less- it's just drop it in the bucket yourself as you go in.) Science Museum and CHildren's aren't cheap either, but if you happen to have a membership for your local science or childrens museum, many do reciprocate with the Boston ones.

 

[java]

I'll second the Children's Museum. It's one of our Favorites! It's walkable from the Aquarium. *small but cute aquarium.

In the summer Fanuiel Hall(spelled that wrong I think?) is hopping. There are tons of street performers. My kids loved the balloon guy. You can walk to the Make way for Ducklings statues from here. I love that Boston is a walkable city.

We stayed at the Omni Parker house- got a great rate and I liked that they offered a cheaper alternative to leaving your car after checkout- It was something like an extra 6 hours for 17? I think. All the other hotels wanted $50 A DAY~ FOR PARKING! I did notice someone walking down the block to a different lot so I think there must be cheaper nearby. The hotel was in a good location for us. Another good one is the Mariott Harbor Court hotel.

You can catch a ferry to the cape I wouldn't drive.

http://www.capecodchamber.org/ferry-schedules

I have a cousin in Lowell too! Say hi to him!

Have a great time. I love Boston and was just there a couple months ago with my older son for the weekend. He's going to go to school there in the fall and I am anxious to go visit again. I love it*I went to college in Boston as well.

 

[nhmomx2]

Up in the Lowell area you can go to the Butterfly Place in Westford (https://butterflyplace-ma.com) and then to Kimball Farm for ice cream (http://www.kimballfarm.com) There is also Canobie Lake Park in Salem, NH -it's a short ride from Lowell (http://www.canobie.com). I.,too, would skip the Cape. If you want a nice beach try Wingaersheek Beach in Ipswich/Gloucester area then you can stop for some Ipswich clams ;-)

 

[jrsmom]

You can also check with your library for passes. They sometimes have free or discounted passes to things like the aquarium.

Sounds silly because we have on in NH, but you can easily spend a couple of hours at Jordans furniture in Reading. They have a Fuddruckers there for lunch and then after you walk around for a bit you can get an ice cream and watch the dancing water/light show.

 

[Kteacher]

Western Ma. has the Eric Carle Museum, Holyoke Children's Museum, Six Flags New England, Butterfly Museum, Basketball Hall of Fame, Yankee Candle Flagship store ( I used to take my kids here when they were little-on a hot day the Christmas village with the snow falling was ).
There are also a lot of great family owned ice cream shops. One summer I did an ice cream tour, where I tried to get to every family owned shop in the area. Cook's Farm has one of the best .

Have fun planning your trip!

 

[lilQueenie]

Boston has a wonderful downtown, where old historical buildings mingle with modern sky-scrapers. If you're in Lowell, you must make a day trip to Faneuil Hall marketplace which is loaded with great shops and food vendors. Also take a tour of the meeting hall and site of the Boston Massacre where Americans plotted the revolution against the Brits. Paul Reverse house is also close by and so is the Aquarium. This makes for a great low-cost day walking trip. If you do want to go to P-Town, I suggest taking the ferry from Boston harbor instead of fighting your way over the bridge and up the cape.

 

[elf]

While I really like P-Town and my kids did also as they got older. I'd say skip it if it's only a day. The traffic could be horrific, it could take over 2 hours depending on traffic. If you do go, go up the monument, whale watching and there's a cool candy shop to the right of town hall if your facing town hall. Wellfleet has a movie drive in which my kids always enjoy since we don't have any around here. Also Arnolds lobster and clam shack on Route 6 Eastham very good. In Chatham I remember a huge playground near the public library (which is very pretty).

We also stayed at the Omni Parker house on a deal. It was great right in the middle of things and beautiful and historic. My kids like the US constitution visit, Loved the Duck Tour (not sure if they all do this but he let all the gets get a turn steering when boat was in the water). And Paul Revere house. The Main Library and Church across the way were incredibly beautiful.

 

[tapplebapple]

If you are going to visit your cousin in Lowell, you should try to get tickets to see the Lowell Spinners. They are a AAA Baseball team, the park is rather new and incredibly family friendly. Even for someone who doesn't love baseball, my daughter and I usually go to 4 games each year to watch all the fun antics they do between innings. And, the best part is that the tickets are very inexpensive and there isn't a bad seat in the park. The food is very reasonably priced also.

 

[MichelleinMaine]

Loved the Duck Tour (not sure if they all do this but he let all the gets get a turn steering when boat was in the water).

I've been on the Boston duck tours 5 or 6 times. Every single one was "driven" down the river by a crew of all the kids on the boat/car.

I wouldn't mention it to a kid ahead of time "just in case", but it is definately the norm.

 

[kat3668]

If you are staying in Boston hop on the train and head up here to the north shore!
I live one town over from Salem and we have tons of fun stuff to do for the day!
Your 4 year old would love the pirate museum!http://www.piratemuseum.com/pirate.html
Take a trolley tour of the city!
Head to the Salem Willows for arcades, food and kiddie rides!
You can also take a whale watch out of the willows too!
Have fun!

 

[ShanLubey]

I'd take a day trip to Newport, RI. You can visit the mansions, do the Cliff Walk and see a beach. Lots of good food and about 1.5 hours away. I live just off the Cape, near RI and I love everything Newport.

This list is great. We also like the Boston Museum of Science. My 5 year old niece loved it when we went.

 

[DebMcDonald]

You can do the Children's museum on Friday nights for $1 or $2 I think that starts on Friday nights at 5:00. The aquarium is OK, I much prefer the aquarium in Mystic, I think it's must nicer and much bigger. The swan boats would be fun and at the same time you can see the ducklings. In Fanuiel Hall there is also a Build A Bear which you can do Boston specific animals (wally the green monster if by chance you are a redsox fan - as you are closer to NY than Boston - you may be a New York fan ). I think the science museum could be really fun as there are lots of dinosaur's. I would definitely not do the cape, you'd hate Rt 3 and could sit on the highway longer than you'd be on the cape. If you really wanted to do P Town, you could take a boat out of Boston, but they can be expensive - check out Groupon -- they have had some deals lately. For the adults dinner in the North End is also very nice, and there's also Mike's Pastry in the North End (Hanover Street), more famous than Modern (same street), but real Bostanian's prefer Modern, but I prefer Mike's if you find that you are needing a sugar high during the day.

 

[Honeybell]

If you're going to Boston check out the City Pass. We used it last year and it was great. For the cost of admission to the Science Museum and the Aquarium you will get five different attractions. The swan boats are nice and have their own part in the Make Way for Ducklings story. A family membership to the National Parks is a good idea. A large part of Lowell is actually a national park and there is lots to do and see. You might enjoy the boat ride through the canals that the park service runs.

Canobie Lake is another great suggestion. We were there on vacation a few weeks ago. It's a beautiful park with a nice mix of classic and new rides. They have tons of kids rides. The park is very well run (when I complemented one of the managers on how clean and well run the park was, she said they get their training from Disney) and the cost was very reasonable. It is a fairly short ride from Boston.

Instead of battling the Cape traffic and hoardes of tourists, you should try on of the Boston Harbor Islands. There's a bunch of them and they all offer different things to do. Two of them have swimming so you would get your beach day. My favorite island is Peddocks but you can't swim there.

The Boston subway system is very easy to use and the city is very walkable. Just remember: Quincy market is not found at any of the Quincy stops.

 

[Riles_and_Gabe]

I agree with Salem. I lived there for 2 years and there is so much for kids to do. Just walking around and looking at the stores is fun. Also my kids love Rockport. They have great shops and restaurants and it is fun for the kids to climb on the rocks. Check out the Cupcake shop. They are so delicious.

 

[okeydokey]

See if yu can get a whale watch from the coast, they are awesome.

Also, the Duck Boats are so much fun!