Boston question??

[littlejimmy]

sounds like you have your plan. have fun. sounds like a cool trip. I wont try to tell you what to do when you are in boston. sounds like you already know.

 

[LovesTimone]

We visited Boston on a work trip of DH's...

As a tourist,
We did not find the freedom trail well marked, walking around you really have to be careful of how close the sidewalks and cars on the road are...
We did a whale & sightseeing tour... The tour of the harbor, some landmarks, or the boat itself...It was really well done, there was only 1 sighting of a whale, but you expect that you might not see them.... unfortunately all that sticks out was it seemed everyone was sick, and it was not rough at all...
The best thing we did was go to the JFK library... It was so amazing... a true part of history... If you get a chance check it out...

Food wise, there were lots of interesting spots to eat... Mike's Bakery comes to mind... really yummy... Lobster Rolls.. Yes Please...

Have a wonderful time...

 

[luvsvacation]

Thanks again for all the help, I’ll look into riding the T into the city. As for our other day several people have said it’s too much for one day, but we do typically pack a ton in each day on our trips. Looks like from Danvers to Salem is only about 15 minutes. I thought we’d head there in the morning and look around, check out a few of the witch sites. Then it looks like about a 45 minute drive to the Cambridge area so I figured we could head down there and grab some lunch and walk around Harvard. My daughter is not going there btw, just looking around while we’re in town. Looks like another 45 minutes or so to get to the stadium and the concert is at 7. I’m sure it will be crazy busy getting there so we’d plan to leave a couple of hours early but that should still give us a few hours to walk around Harvard/Cambridge.

I appreciate the suggestion of other places to stay but I’m pretty set on the hotel I found due to it being a reasonably priced suite with 2 bedrooms. We will have already spent a full week on the west coast sharing normal hotel rooms and we have a few more stops after Boston so I’m really looking forward to us getting a bit of space. I didn’t set out to pick Danvers, I just happened to like the hotel there.

This probably does seem like a full day but we are pretty used to doing a lot of driving on trip. Last summer we went out west and did an 18 day road trip that was 6,000 miles. Several days would consist of a few hour drive in the morning to get to a new location, sightseeing, and then driving a few more hours to our next stop for the night. We like to see all that we can.

Again thanks for all the replies, especially for the info on train stations and the T!! We will definitely do one of those options rather than drive into the city. Also thanks for the advice on the freedom trail not being well defined. Do you all suggest one of the official tours?

 

[kaytieeldr]

Let me see if I can do a map of some sort for you.

And Danvers is right about where the red line curves next to Salem.

 

[Tattylou]

Salem. Harvard and Gillette in one day is going to be an absolute nightmare of biblical proportions.

This is true! So true. I live 10 miles outside of Boston. Getting from the city to Gillette on a concert night is going to be traffic craziness - I have done it many times...and I will be at that Taylor Swift show too. 45 minutes it is not on a weekday .... "45 minutes" to these places must be with no traffic...it can take more than 45 minutes to get from Cambridge to Braintree (where I live) and Gillette is still a decent ride from here. What day of the week is this? If it is a weekday and you are driving between 7 and 10am or 3 and 7pm - add significantly to those 45 min estimates.

 

[mjkacmom]

This is true! So true. I live 10 miles outside of Boston. Getting from the city to Gillette on a concert night is going to be traffic craziness - I have done it many times...and I will be at that Taylor Swift show too. 45 minutes it is not on a weekday .... "45 minutes" to these places must be with no traffic...it can take more than 45 minutes to get from Cambridge to Braintree (where I live) and Gillette is still a decent ride from here. What day of the week is this? If it is a weekday and you are driving between 7 and 10am or 3 and 7pm - add significantly to those 45 min estimates.

Yes, I live right by NYC, distance isn’t measured by miles, but minutes, miles mean nothing.

 

[Tattylou]

Thanks again for all the help, I’ll look into riding the T into the city. As for our other day several people have said it’s too much for one day, but we do typically pack a ton in each day on our trips. Looks like from Danvers to Salem is only about 15 minutes. I thought we’d head there in the morning and look around, check out a few of the witch sites. Then it looks like about a 45 minute drive to the Cambridge area so I figured we could head down there and grab some lunch and walk around Harvard. My daughter is not going there btw, just looking around while we’re in town. Looks like another 45 minutes or so to get to the stadium and the concert is at 7. I’m sure it will be crazy busy getting there so we’d plan to leave a couple of hours early but that should still give us a few hours to walk around Harvard/Cambridge.

I appreciate the suggestion of other places to stay but I’m pretty set on the hotel I found due to it being a reasonably priced suite with 2 bedrooms. We will have already spent a full week on the west coast sharing normal hotel rooms and we have a few more stops after Boston so I’m really looking forward to us getting a bit of space. I didn’t set out to pick Danvers, I just happened to like the hotel there.

This probably does seem like a full day but we are pretty used to doing a lot of driving on trip. Last summer we went out west and did an 18 day road trip that was 6,000 miles. Several days would consist of a few hour drive in the morning to get to a new location, sightseeing, and then driving a few more hours to our next stop for the night. We like to see all that we can.

Again thanks for all the replies, especially for the info on train stations and the T!! We will definitely do one of those options rather than drive into the city. Also thanks for the advice on the freedom trail not being well defined. Do you all suggest one of the official tours?

My next door neighbor used to give freedom trail tours - you definitely will get more detailed info on a tour than on your own. The trail is pretty obvious - red line on the sidewalk. I'd say do a tour though.

Harvard Square is definitely a fun area to check out - worth doing.

I really love Salem too. House of Seven Gables is pretty cool to tour and some of the witch shops are fun if you like new age kind of stuff. There is a yummy mexican restaurant there called The Howling Wolf - delicious.

 

[skyblue17]

It depends what you are looking for out of the Freedom Trail. I don't agree it's not well-defined, the sidewalk literally has a special red line on it! But I haven't actually taken it to specifically find things, I just use it as a guide (basically, if I'm on it, I will pass by some cool stuff, and am also in a specific area). Make sure you always look UP, it's amazing how many cool things are just smack in the middle of modern day buildings.

If you both like shopping, I suggest visiting Newbury St. as well. It's a beautiful street to walk on even if you aren't interested in the stores there, but there are a few gems! And if you are headed to the harbor/Quincy Market, etc. it's a nice walk along Newbury, to Boston Garden/Common where you can then pick up the Freedom Trail. There are T stations all along the way as well.

 

[luvsvacation]

The concert is on a Friday night. I’m planning to start heading to the concert by 3:30 or 4 and it starts at 7. I figured it will probably be crazy busy. I just looked at 45 minutes as the standard driving tone with no traffic, I know on a concert night it will be insane. I will definitely get the VIP parking. We are going to her concert in LA the week before so I’ll probably have a slightly better idea of how terrible the traffic will be by the time we get to the Boston concert.

Thanks again for the helpful info on the freedom trail, glad to hear others have followed it fairly easily. Boston looks like a beautiful city and very walkable. We’re really excited about our day there!

 

[KBoopaloo]

Depending on the time of day I’d probably double the commute time between Salem and Cambridge. I live 5-6 miles south of Salem and if I drove to work in Cambridge it would take me close to an hour on a weekday. Getting to my house from Salem can take 25 to 45 minutes depending on traffic. There is virtually no way you’ll be able to drive Salem to Harvard Square in 45 minutes especially on a weekday.

And if you are heading south to Gillette on a Friday night, I’d at least double that driving time as well. Friday night traffic here going any direction is horrific but heading south out of Boston/Cambridge on a summer Friday night is particularly bad with so many folks heading towards the Cape. The roads leading to Gillette once you get off the main highway are not really designed for handling then massive traffic that comes with a giant stadium. You might also want to look into booking parking at some lots near the stadium and then walking from there as that can cut down on the traffic getting out at the end of the night.

As I said, I live just south of Salem and commute to Harvard every day and there is no way I would consider Salem sightseeing, getting to Cambridge for Harvard sightseeing and then getting in the car again to drive to Gillette if I really wanted to enjoy the concert. Most museums/sites in Salem likely don’t open until 10 so that would give you basically 9 hours to do all that sightseeing, eat lunch and dinner and all that driving. It would be a lot. You could easily tack a quick trip to Harvard onto your Boston day using public transportation (there is honestly not much to see) and do just Salem and Gillette on concert day.

 

[Tattylou]

@KBoopaloo has a good suggestion...add Harvard to your Boston day - that is very easy to do - and then make the other day Salem and Gillette and give yourself a good 2+ hours to get from Salem to Gillette.

 

[kiddo76]

I was thinking about their staying somewhere near Newton/Waltham on Rt128(95). They could easily hop on the Green Line (Riverside stop) to go into Boston; shoot up 128N > 95 to go to Maine (which is a long ride!); and shoot right down 128/95 to get to Gillette Stadium. Either Newton or Waltham would be a good central location for all of these things. You would also avoid driving in Boston this way, but you would have to drive on 128/95 which isn't too, too bad.

Green Line Riverside Station: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Riverside_station_(MBTA)

One hotel in the area of Riverside @128/95
- Hotel Indigo Newton Riverside
Walk to Riverside Green Line station

More, perhaps better hotels a little further north in Waltham on 128/95
- The Westin Waltham Boston
- Embassy Suites by Hilton Boston Waltham
- Best Western Plus Waltham/Boston
- Hampton Inn and Suites Boston/Waltham
Drive to Riverside Green Line station

Personally, I think staying right in Boston would be best, but since you have these things you want to do while here, I think this might be your best solution. It is a relatively safe area, too.

Let me see if I can do a map of some sort for you.

View attachment 465933

Maine is not a long ride at all. I live in Southern Maine and I just went to the Opera House Thursday night. From the parking garage exit to home was 1.5 hours. Just getting out of Boston took a good chunk of that time up. Once you are on 95N it's a quick ride. I prefer to take the T in from Revere, but DH wanted to drive that night.

Whenever driving in or around Boston, you should plan that the ride will take twice as long and be pleasantly surprised when it's shorter than that. Boston also has a habit of having concerts and games going on at Fenway, the Garden, and Gillette all at the same time, so be mindful of that as well.

 

[dlm]

Or you can look at the residence inn in needham, think you should be able to get a suite of some sort. Just off 128, easy to get to from the airport, much closer to Gilette and need has great commuter rail service to Boston. Stop is probably a mile away from hotel so you could drive, take an uber or maybe the hotel has a shuttle. Leaving from Taylor Swift at Gilette, you do not want to drive all the way back to Danvers. If you stay in Needham or Waltham or Newton as suggested above, you could do Harvard/Cambridge earlier in the day, then go back to your hotel to get to Gillette. Remeber there will be regular commuting traffic as well as people getting to the concert. Please strongly consider cutting Salem out of this day, just too much.

 

[luvsvacation]

Ok it sounds like you guys think we should be able to visit Harvard on out Boston day so I think we’ll try to do that. That will save us from having to drive to Cambridge also. So I’m thinking the new plan will be to spend one full long day exploring Boston as well as Cambridge using public transport. Then the next day we’ll spend the morning/early afternoon in Salem and head back to our hotel for a break and an early dinner (room has a full kitchen) before heading out for the concert. It does look like our hotel is very close to Salem, so I’m thinking that should be pretty doable. I know it’s going to be a long haul sitting in traffic to/from the concert but we’ll be dealing with that the week before in LA too. Thanks for everyone’s input!

 

[disindec]

Ok it sounds like you guys think we should be able to visit Harvard on out Boston day so I think we’ll try to do that. That will save us from having to drive to Cambridge also. So I’m thinking the new plan will be to spend one full long day exploring Boston as well as Cambridge using public transport. Then the next day we’ll spend the morning/early afternoon in Salem and head back to our hotel for a break and an early dinner (room has a full kitchen) before heading out for the concert. It does look like our hotel is very close to Salem, so I’m thinking that should be pretty doable. I know it’s going to be a long haul sitting in traffic to/from the concert but we’ll be dealing with that the week before in LA too. Thanks for everyone’s input!

If you are going to leave from your hotel in Danvers to Gillette on a Friday in the summer for a 7pm concert... you want to leave your hotel no later then 2:30. Traffic on summer Friday are literally insane with just people going to cape cod. Throw in a Taylor Swift concert and it’s going to be very very slow going.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Maine is not a long ride at all. I live in Southern Maine and I just went to the Opera House Thursday night. From the parking garage exit to home was 1.5 hours. Just getting out of Boston took a good chunk of that time up. Once you are on 95N it's a quick ride. I prefer to take the T in from Revere, but DH wanted to drive that night.

Whenever driving in or around Boston, you should plan that the ride will take twice as long and be pleasantly surprised when it's shorter than that. Boston also has a habit of having concerts and games going on at Fenway, the Garden, and Gillette all at the same time, so be mindful of that as well.

I also drive to Maine quite a bit and all around Boston and the Greater Boston area regularly. I was saying it was a good ride from the Newton/Waltham area and squeezed into a day where other things were taking place. That's all I meant, not that Maine is really that far from Boston. Lots here will be dependent on traffic and times, as others have stressed - an hour and a half on paper can somewhat easily turn into two and a half hours (just ask my sibling who lives in NH). Hopefully it won't be too bad, but it just depends. One accident can cause major delays on these roads and in that case, secondary roads will also be clogged.

Friends of ours love Boston and visited from Texas. They wanted to have lobsters in Maine, and they did, lol. I think Maine is definitely worthy or a whole trip or portion of the trip (in other words I'd stay there, even if it was for one night), but I wouldn't leave Boston just to go to Maine for a lobster when there are lots of similar places to have a lobster in beachy settings that are much closer. I know it's not Maine, though, and people want to say they went and saw Maine and had a lobster there!

Luvs, sounds like you have a plan. Hopefully my little map will help someone else reading here, or for future reference when people do a Search.