A traveler's guide to Boston
Walk until the streets curve. That is usually when Boston gets good. Use the river as a reset between neighborhoods.
Boston is small enough to walk and old enough to argue about which street came first. The Freedom Trail is a sketch. The city is the North End in the late afternoon, Cambridge across the river, and a harbor that finally feels like part of town.
When to go
Late spring and early fall are the weeks the city is made for. Summer is humid and full of students. Winter is pretty for a day and hard for a week. Foliage weekends book up.
Neighborhoods
Beacon Hill and the Common for the first hour. The North End for food. The Seaport if you want the new waterfront. Cambridge and Somerville when you want bookstores and a younger dinner.
Eating
Cannoli is not a meal. Chowder, a lobster roll you eat near the water, and an Italian room where the waiter decides you are staying. Legal-looking tourist seafood on the main drag is optional.
If you only remember this
- The T is useful and sometimes stops early.
- Drivers are confident. Cross with the walk sign.
- Book the North End on Friday.
- A day trip to the coast needs an early train, not a casual idea at noon.