BOSTON

GETTING TO BOSTON

Boston is pretty easy to drive to if you live on the East Coast. However, flying into Logan is also easy enough if you’re coming from far away. It’s also pretty simple to get from Logan into the city using either the Logan Express bus or Silver Line. It’s free to take the Silver Line from Logan Airport inbound to South Station. Once you’re in Boston, you can virtually rely on walking or the T to get to most places.

You can hit many attractions in rapid succession in Boston because there are so many free, open tourist attractions that don’t necessarily require tickets or reservations. Faneuil Hall Marketplace is a given. This bricked pedestrian marketplace is lined with stalls, shops and little eateries. On a sunny day, you’ll usually see musicians setting up with their violins to perform for the shoppers and sightseers.

Boston is a place that you’ll love if you enjoy self-guided tours. Make the 2.5-mile trek along the Freedom Trail to take in key sites related to the American Revolution. You can pick up the trail at Boston Common before following the red line to Bunker Hill. You can also choose a guided tour with costumed guides and lively historical reenactments. With history still on your mind, head to the Congress Street Bridge to see the Boston Tea Party Ships and Museum.

The Boston Public Garden is like the Central Park of Bean Town. If you’re looking for the famous bronze ducks, find your way to the corner of Beacon and Charles. Bring a lunch along to relax to views of swan boats and bushy trees as you sit in the garden. When you’re ready to pursue the finer things, Boston has a long list of world-class museums waiting for you. The Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Science, the Boston Public Library and the John F. Kennedy Presidential Museum and Library all deserve good chunks of your time.

I make a point to visit Boston’s North End every time I’m in town. The city’s “Little Italy” takes up most of Hanover Street, where you’ll find what many consider to be the best cannoli in America at Mike’s Pastry. You can dart off of the Freedom Trail after seeing the Paul Revere House and Old North Church to wander into Little Italy for a quick cannoli or pizza slice before resuming your journey.

If you’re okay with exploring outside of downtown, the Samuel Adams Brewery in Jamaica Plain has a fantastic beer garden. You should also consider crossing the Charles River into Cambridge to visit Harvard Square and the campus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Cambridge has its own collection of elite museums that are open to the public. The list includes the Harvard Art Museums (Fogg Museum and Bush-Reisinger Museum), the Harvard Museum of Natural History and the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology.

Boston also happens to be a great launching point for some purely New England excursions. Boats leave from the harbor all day long to carry you to places like Nantucket and Plymouth. There are also bus tours to spots like Salem and the Berkshires.

Boston is a city that “offers it all” because it has so many identities. One of the most exciting things about Boston is that you feel like you can barely walk a few feet without ending up on a college campus! There are 35 colleges and universities interwoven into Boston’s landscape in total. If you enjoy “college” towns, come while school is in session. The city does lose much of its academic population during the summer months. The bottom line is that the cobbled streets of Boston will always lead you to something interesting any time of year!

THE BEST THINGS TO SEE IN BOSTON

ENJOY A METROPOLITAN SLICE OF HISTORY IN BOSTON

MAKE A FRENCH CONNECTION

Québec City

If you’re based in North America, there’s no better way to feel like you flew to a new continent than a trip to Québec City! The French influences here are obvious as are the unexpected culture and quaintness you’ll find. There’s nothing quite like watching ice move slowly over the surface of the St. Lawrence River after a day of shopping at Québec’s winter markets.

While the summer is a beautiful time for cycling along waterway-adjacent paths in Québec, the warmer months don’t necessarily show off the city’s full magic. My suggestion for seeing the best of Québec City is to come just before or after the holidays to tour a wonderland of decorated cathedrals and German Christmas markets. Of course, it’s more than worth making the trip north of the border to sip some legendary Canadian “carnival grog” during the famed pre-Lenten Québec Winter Carnival. Let’s cover the attractions and neighborhoods to hit in Québec City in any season.