If You Have 1 Day--Sample some experiences unique to Boston -- you won't have time to do much, but you can touch on several singular attractions. Follow part of the Freedom Trail on your own from Boston Common to Faneuil Hall Marketplace. Alternatively, National Park Service rangers lead free 90-minute tours from the visitor center at 15 State St. (tel. 617/242-5642; www.nps.gov/bost). The tours start as often as four times a day during busy periods and once daily in the winter. They cover the "heart" of the trail, from the Old South Meeting House to the Old North Church. You don't need a reservation, but call for schedules. Boston By Foot (tel. 617/367-2345; www.bostonbyfoot.com) offers a "Heart of the Freedom Trail" tour at 10am Tuesday through Saturday in warm weather. It starts at the Samuel Adams statue on Congress Street at Faneuil Hall. Tickets are $9, and you don't need reservations.
After your tour, launch a picnic with takeout food from Faneuil Hall Marketplace or the North End. Head to the plaza at the end of Long Wharf (pass the Marriott and keep going) or to Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park (across Atlantic Avenue from the marketplace). If you'd rather eat indoors, stay at the marketplace and have lunch at Durgin-Park, or go across the street to Ye Olde Union Oyster House. In the afternoon, complete your independent Freedom Trail foray in the North End and take a sightseeing cruise from Long Wharf or Rowes Wharf. Or cruise and then explore the New England Aquarium or the Children's Museum. Or skip the afternoon sightseeing altogether and go shopping at Downtown Crossing, home to Filene's Basement, or on Newbury Street. See "Suggested Evening Itineraries" below for more ideas.
One Singular Sensation--On a 1-day visit, consider concentrating on just one or two things you're most excited about (plus a good meal or two). If what really gets you going is the Museum of Fine Arts, the Museum of Science, the Newbury Street art galleries, or even a day trip, you have a built-in excuse for not doing more -- and for a return trip to Boston!
If You Have 2 Days--On the first day, follow the suggestions for 1 day or pick and choose -- you can spend more time along the Freedom Trail, on a longer harbor cruise, or at another destination. On the second day, branch out a little, again letting your preferences be your guide. Spend the morning at the Museum of Fine Arts, and have lunch there or at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Start the afternoon at the Gardner Museum or, if it's a Friday during the season, at the Boston Symphony Orchestra (see chapter 10). If art isn't your passion, start the day at the Museum of Science or the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum, followed by lunch at the Prudential Center and a Duck Tour.
Then take a leisurely trek around the Back Bay or a high-intensity shopping trip to Newbury Street. In warm weather, leave time for a swan boat ride. If you had a light lunch (or skipped it so you could start shopping earlier), have afternoon tea at the Four Seasons or Ritz-Carlton. On summer weekdays, Boston By Foot (tel. 617/367-2345; www.bostonbyfoot.com) conducts a tour of Beacon Hill ($9) that starts at the State House at 5:30pm.
If You Have 3 Days--The options seem to expand to fill the time you have. The suggestions for the first 2 days can easily fill another day, but you'll probably want to branch out. A visit to Cambridge is the logical next step. Ride the MBTA Red Line from downtown or the no. 1 bus from the Back Bay to Harvard Square. Take a walking tour, squeeze in some shopping, or head straight to one of the university's museum complexes. Have lunch in Harvard Square and continue exploring, or visit Mount Auburn Cemetery. You can also venture farther from the city. You might start in Cambridge and have lunch in Concord or Lexington. Spend the afternoon exploring the area, or communing with nature at Walden Pond. Without a car, you can use public transportation to reach Lexington or Concord but not to travel between them; forced to choose, history buffs opt for Lexington, literary types for Concord.
If You Have 4 Days or More--Now you're cooking. Having scratched the surface in the first 3 days, you'll have a better sense of what you want to explore more extensively. Check out other Boston attractions that catch your fancy, perhaps including one or more of the historic house museums, and plan a full day trip -- to Lexington and Concord, to Plymouth, to Marblehead and Salem, or to Gloucester and Rockport. Visit Museum Wharf, where you'll find the Children's Museum and (if it's open) the Boston Tea Party Ship & Museum. Go on a whale watch or make an unstructured visit to a city neighborhood. If you haven't taken a sightseeing cruise or completed the Freedom Trail, visit Charlestown, where you can explore the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill. Take in a large-format film at the Museum of Science or the New England Aquarium, or evaluate Boston's reputation as a great sports town by attending a pro or college event. Then hit one of the restaurants or nightspots that you couldn't fit in earlier, and start planning your next visit to Boston.
Suggested Evening Itineraries--If you're traveling as a family, you might be getting your evening itineraries out of the TV listings. If not -- or if you had the foresight to book a sitter -- here are some suggestions.
Dinner in the North End, and coffee and dessert at a caffè. Afterward, a show at the Comedy Connection at Faneuil Hall or the Improv Asylum, and a drink at the Cheers bar in Quincy Market.
Dinner at the Legal Sea Foods in the Prudential Center, followed by a visit to the 50th-floor Prudential Center Skywalk or a drink in the lounge at Top of the Hub, on the 52nd floor.
Summer only: Assemble a picnic and head to the Hatch Shell for music or a movie, or to Boston Common for a play or concert.
Winter only: A Boston Symphony Orchestra or Boston Ballet performance, then late supper at Brasserie Jo or dessert at Finale.
Dinner at the Sel de la Terre or the State Street Legal Sea Foods, then a stroll to the plaza at the end of Long Wharf, followed by dessert and dancing in the lounge at the Bay Tower, on the 33rd floor of 60 State St.
Dinner at Bob the Chef's Jazz Café and music at Wally's Café.
Dinner at L'Espalier, Aujourd'hui, or Clio, and a nightcap at the Bristol Lounge.
Shopping at the Coop, the Harvard Book Store, or WordsWorth, then dinner at Mr. Bartley's Burger Cottage. Contemplate Harvard Yard from the Widener Library steps, and finish up with ice cream at Herrell's.
Dinner at Rialto and music at the Regattabar or the House of Blues.
Dinner at the Green Street Grill, ice cream at Toscanini's, and music at the Middle East, T.T. the Bear's, or Scullers Jazz Club.
A movie at the Kendall Square Cinema, dinner at the Blue Room or Oleana, then music at the Kendall Café.
Dinner at Redbones or Tu y Yo Mexican Fonda, and a show at Johnny D's or the Somerville Theater.
