Please help - Boston Fodorites
 

Please help, taking daughter to Brandeis U. in Waltham, MA at the end of August. Will be flying into Providence, RI as this is 50% cheaper than flying into BOS and renting a car for trip duration. Looks to be about a 60-90 minute drive up I-95. any comments on best route other than I-95? Here are a couple of questions:
1. Doubletree Guest Suites in Waltham vs. Holiday Inn in Newton? HI has not received good reviews but is across the street from the MBTA so we could work in a little sightseeing.
2. Planning to spend a day or two buying all her needs in the area rather than sending in advance (potential to get lost). Plus, this way she will be able to tweak list. Where is Target, Container Store, WalMart, Sam’s Club, Costco or other type stores?
3. If we have to drive into Boston, where is a central place (North Station?) that we could inexpensively park? We want to have dinner one night in the North End at Italian seafood restaurant (any suggestions?)
4. Any restaurant suggestions for Waltham/Newton? Will want to take out daughter & roommate to nice place one night? Thanks!!

Congratulations, Brandeis is an excellent school and is convenient to Boston.

TF Green Airport in Providence is a nice, "userfriendly" airport with easy access in and out. I assume you will be renting a car. It is right off I95 just south of Providence. From Providence, take I95N. It becomes Rt 128 around Boston. Brandeis is off I95. Depending on time of day 1-1.5 hrs is right.
Stay in Waltham. There is a Costco and Home Depot nearby. The Burlington Mall is about 5-10 min up Rt 128/I95 with a nearby Bed Bath and Beyond, LinensNThings, etc.

Waltham (along Moody St and Main St) has some of the best and diverse restaurants in Boston. Italian, Tex-Mex, Indian, etc. Elephant Walk on Main St is our favorite. The Tuscan Grill on Moody St is excellent. For upscale, expensive but worth it special place there is Il Capricio on Main St. There are many. There is a Naked Fish near the Doubletree.

To get into Boston, you can drive I95 to Rt 2 East and park at Alewife MBTA station to get into Boston on the T. YOu can also get into Boston from Brandeis on the Commuter Rail line.

I would also suggest takeing the commuter rail into Boston.

Walk around Hanover Street in the North End and enjoy the Cafe Life. I belive the Daily Catch is still there for Fish, Maybe someone else can help with Fish in the North End.

Moody Street in Waltham is about 2 miles from Brandeis. It is the main social area in Waltham. Lizzy's Ice Cream is great, Tom Can Cook for Pan-Asian, Tempo is a modern Hip place. a little pricey, but great steak.

I would choose the Doubletree over the Holiday Inn. The H.I. is looking quite run down these days.

I agree with the others that Moody St. is a great place to go to find good restaurants. We have recently dined at
Marcellino Ristorante and it was very good. It is located just off of Moody St.
http://www.marcellinorist.com/index.html

You'll find Target, WalMart, Costco, Sam's Club, etc., right over the border in sales tax free New Hampshire.

There's a Container Store on Rt. 9 in Chestnut Hill. Rt. 9 in Natick/Framingham is also an excellent place for all of those big box stores (also the Natick Mall). If you hop on 95/128 south, take exit 20, east toward Boston and you get to Chestnut Hill or west toward Framingham/Natick.

Giacomo's in the North End is the best for Italian/seafood.

In Waltham on Moody St there are plenty of good restaurants.

Route I95 is called Route 128 by locals here - so if you get directions from anyone, they are likely to say Route 128. (I won't even get into the part where I93North and Route 95 South are both the same road, also known as Rte 128)

Salem, NH is a good idea - about 35 minutes from Waltham and there is every big box and chain store imaginable. Take Route 128/95 north to Route 93N. Get off at Exit 1, follow loop road around until road ends after about 2 traffic lights, turn right. (You will pass on left Rockingham Mall - also good place)

But Burlington, MA is even closer - so if saving 5% sales tax is not important, go there. From Waltham or Newton, Route 128/95 North to Route 3A exit/Burlington. Take Mall Road to Burlington Mall. Also several big box stores there.

(Sales tax does not apply to food or clothing)

There is a Costco right beside the Doubletree in Waltham.

If you want to drive into Boston, its really not all that difficult. take the Mass Pike in, get off at the Copley Place exit, and park in the giant commuter garage on Chandler St (on top of Back Bay Station). Yes, it costs $24 for all day parking here. But you are in easy walking distance of shopping and dining in Copley and Back Bay area.

You can have excellent Italian food at Via Matta or Davios. you don't necessarily have to go to the North End. It is a little harder to go up there and find parking, thats the only reason I suggest Back Bay. Easy on-off the Mass Pike.

Taking the Communter Rail into town for dinner is not a bad idea, although you should check the train schedule out ahead of time if this is something that interests you. The trains are rather infrequent in the evenings and on the weekend. For the North End, you can park at the Center Plaza parking garage for $8 after 4 p.m. and on weekends. Also, check out http://www.northendboston.com/parking-garages.htm for a list of parking options. Beware, however, that finding parking on a weekend night in the North End can be a complete nightmare! You could also park at the MBTA station in Newton and take the T into town - it runs much more frequently than the Commuter Rail.

If you are set on Italian seafood, I would recommend Giacomo's on Hanover Street. Get there early, as it is small, popular, and does not take reservations. They have another location in the South End that does take reservations (or at least it used to!), so you could go there if you are not set on the North End. If you want a place that takes reservations and definitely want to be in the North End, I would recommend Sage, but it's not strictly a seafood restaurant, although there are usually a couple of fish options. You can check out their menu online and see if it appeals - www.sageboston.com. I would second a vote for Elephant Walk, although I have not been to the one in Waltham. They have a French/Cambodian menu. Very good!

Thanks so much for all the info! Another question - I have found even cheaper airfare into Manchester, NH. This looks to be the same distance as Providence except in a different direction. DJKBooks mentioned sales tax is free in NH and we could load up on stuff before we hit Waltham. Where are these stores in relation to Manchester? Anyone have experience flying into MHT? If I buy my daughter a R/T ticket with the return for 11/22, will she be able to take public transportation from Waltham or Boston to the Manchester airport? Thanks again!

I have flown to Manchester many times prefer it over TH Green.
Vermont transit offers dircet dervice from Boston South Staion Bus station to Manchester Airport see link schedule:
http://tinyurl.com/eu32h
Also Concord Trailways runs hourly from Boston South Stationto Manchester downtown then you would need to taxi to airport .See link forschedule:
http://tinyurl.com/btfa8

Manchester is a bit easier to get out of and on to Waltham, I believe it would take about an hour by car depending on traffic. Both Manchester and Providence have very high car rental taxes of about 50%.

I don't know of public transport from Boston to MHT airport but I would imagine other students will be headed in that direction for the holidays.

Be sure to try some ice cream at Lizzy's in Waltham!

Public transportation to MHT from Waltham will not be fun, but I imagine possible. She would need to get into Boston and then check out bus to MHT - I know there is one, just not sure how to access info on it. The traffic around Boston area around Thanksgiving student exodus is a nightmare - but lots of people do it and she will just need to allow lots of time.

I would guess that if you daughter wishes to fly home 11/22 from the Manchester Airport, there will be others heading there as well and they will be able to work out transportation - such as having a friend drive them (about a one hour drive each way). Also, there are bulletin boards throughout the web. Many folks commute to work daily between Waltham and Manchester and your daughter could easily find a ride.

The Manchester airport is a positive delight (by comparison).

In August, if you fly into Manchester, and rent a car, you could consider staying in Nashua, just north of the "border" (way more economical than anywhere in MA) and driving into Boston (about 45 minutes into Boston, 30 minutes to Waltham).

All the chain stores you mentioned are represented in Nashua, within a few miles of each other - no sales tax.

We often treck into Boston on the commuter rail. Park at the Lowell (a town where lodging is also economical) station. Train ends at North Station, an easy walk to the North End, Faneuil Hall/Quincy Marketplace.

Weekends, we park in the Financial District - either at a meter or at a garage, where the cheap rates offset the taxi fare to wherever...

I'm real curious about "50% sales tax on rental cars in Providence and Manchester"???

If you're planning to rent a car, shop online like the dickens and also check out Priceline and Hotwire.

On the local TV news last night, they announced that Manchester Airport was being renamed -- it will be the Manchester/Boston Airport. Apparently an effort to draw business. It will always be an hour from Boston (and an hour from Waltham, if you're driving) but for residents who live north of Boston it probably has the same advantages that Prov has for those of us who live South of Boston.

Having conducted this very same adventure two years ago (delivering Boston-based daughter to college in another city, flying in, renting car), I would recommend that you not bother even thinking about venturing into Boston. Conserve your time and energy for the moving, shopping, and orientation stuff. I would also advise that unless her budget for school-related furnishings and supplies is Huge, it's not "worth it" to trek to NH to avoid the MA 5% sales tax.

We found that a couple of chains (Linens etc, Bed Bath & Beyond) converted their wedding-registry web pages to college-registry setups in July, and would hold an order for pickup at the store closest to the student's school. Still, we had a ball shopping for everything from laundry baskets to curtains. Rent a vehicle big enough to hold a roomate, carpet, and a mini-fridge as well as the two of you.

If you go with the Holiday Inn, be aware that if the Red Sox are in town the area will be complete gridlock an hour before and after the game. Suburbanites park at the Riverside and Woodland T stops and take the T in to Fenway. And the trains will also be very full before and after game time (worse than shoulder to shoulder, more like spooning!). Even if you don't stay at the HI, if you plan to do sightseeing and take the green line in from the west you should plan around the Red Sox.

Good point about the Red Sox. Fortunately for the OP, who said she'll be here "at the end of August," the Sox are scheduled to be on the road August 22-30.

Well, so far, we have plane tickets from CMH-MHT for $175/rt which is darn good in these times. We have booked the Doubletree in Waltham for 3 nights and still need a hotel near the Manchester airport. Car rental does seem to have very high taxes, will try Priceline and also see what AAA, Entertainment Book and other discounts we can use. Thanks for the suggestions about shopping in NH - we will be sure to bring our shopping list and shop in NH before we get to Waltham. Fortunately, won't need much linens, DD went to college program for 6 weeks last summer and we already have Xtra long sheets, pratically brand new towels, etc. Curious to check out Lizzie's ice cream as we have Graeter's in town (25% butterfat!!), hard to beat. We are flying in Aug 25, staying overnight near MHT, shopping in NH on Aug 26 and driving to Waltham. Move in day is Aug 27. Thanks for the news about the Sox, wouldn't want to get caught in baseball traffic, but sounds like they won't be home. Any breakfast places near Doubletree in Waltham? Want nice place to take DD and new roommate for dinner one night before I leave. Thanks for all the help!