A day in Boston (no car, public transportation ONLY)
 

Hello everyone,

We have a transit in Boston on our way to Europe. We arrive in Boston around 7-ish (am), and our next flight departs around 10 pm that day.

What sights would you recommend we could "feasibly" do during that day using public transportation? I am also looking for breakfast, lunch, and coffee recommendations (would include dinner, but don't think we'd have time for that in the city - not a fan of airport food).

Please send any and all suggestions my way. Would love if you could even plan the itinerary for me (just kidding, well sort of)

Thanks, everyone!

Will your luggage be checked through? Or do you need to deal with it during this stopover?

Exactly what I was thinking - luggage. Itinerary is easy if you don't have to haul luggage around. And if you can sleep on the red eye flight you arrive on! Walk the Freedom Trail - a marked historical self-tour through a small, but main area of Boston. Good place to start is Park Street/Boston Common where there is info booth and maps - but you will not get lost, since it is marked with paint or bricks. There are all sorts of places to stop and see historical sights. Old North Church of Paul Revere fame. African American Heritage Museum. At least 1 old cemetery. Along the way assorted coffee spots. But it also goes to the North End, the Italian area of Boston where there are many, many Italian restaurants. Have a big late lunch or early dinner and you won't be forced to eat airport food prior to your flight.

If your energy level fades, take a Duck Tour. Origination points are Prudential Center/Copley or Museum of Science - either is easy on public transit. MBTA.com gives you good mapping option - where you can enter origination and destination and they will route you. Take subway instead of any bus as your public transit option.

Depending on season and preference you could take a Boston Harbor Cruise - Google website. Varying lengths and interesting and comfortable. There are also 2 Boston food tours - which cover a good amount of history. bostonfoodtours.com. There is one of North End and one of Chinatown. Take the North End one. You will get enough to eat to call it lunch and stop in a few places you might want to return to for early dinner.

Or if you are really exhausted from flight from wherever you are originating, take a Grey Line day bus tour or hop on/off trolley and you can spend a good part of the time sitting while getting a narrative about history.

These are my itineraries, in order of preference. I am sure you will get more suggestions here. Some other things often recommended for Boston that I would skip based on the amount of time you have (come back sometime and see them) are Harvard, Museum of Fine Arts, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, JFK Library and Museum - and any of the Revolutionary War outside Boston sites such as Lexington/Concord.

Enjoy your brief visit. I really hope you can check your luggage through as there are no luggage storage facilities at Logan (or in Boston that I know of). The airport is very close to this part of Boston - just the other side of the Harbor. In a taxi it should take 20 minutes maybe and depending on your level of flight nervousness, you could safely leave downtown at 6:30 or a bit later and easily make your flight (and pick up some airport food).

Good point about how tired you will be. Can you sleep on a red-eye flight? (I sadly can't!)

https://www.boston-discovery-guide.c...a-layover.html

Not sure how current that is but it gives a starting point if you can't check your luggage to your final destination.

This seems like a good plan.
www.bostonteapartyship.com/boston-in-1-day

If you like food tours, I second Gail's suggestion of the North End. You will go around one of Boston's old "neighborhoods" and there will be plenty to eat. You can go back later to buy something. From the airport, you can take the Silver Line to South Station. Sorry, I think it's a bus but is part of the MBTA "subway" line. From South Station it's an easy walk to Boston's Chinatown and/or you can connect to other parts of Boston. Double check the airport's suggested arrival time before a flight because I think Boston is 2 hours which you will need if it's a busy time. South Station contains a small food court but you should be able to find a decent breakfast place in Boston at that time of day.

If you are museum goers, I think the JFK Library would be my choice even though it's on the outskirts.

For a lot of breakfast options, I would head to the Copley Square area. The Boston Public Library doesn't open until 9am but perhaps it would be a good place for a rest. They also have public tours (art and architecture).

Thanks, guys! Much to look forward to!

P.S. Red-eye to Iceland is 5 hours, and I always manage to catch some sleep on overnight flights.

From Logan, take Silver Line(bus, free) to South Station to connect to the T all over city.