Things to Do in Boston
Our hotel: We chose Hilton Boston Downtown because it's
close to everything we have scheduled and you could book connecting rooms. This
was really important to my sister's family.
My family arrived. We chose Mr. Dooley's for dinner right next door to get
the Boston Irish Pub experience.
Day Two - Freedom Trail
The Freedom Trail was a must do for the family. We decided
to book a private guide through Tours by Locals. I like that you can learn
about the guides. I chose a guide who worked in schools. The tour was three and
a half hours. We got to see 14 / 16 monuments along the Freedom Trail. It was
hot and everyone was a bit tired and drained by the end, but it was a great way
to cover a lot of ground. Legal Sea Foods Long Wharf is another great stop while in
Boston. We chose the Waterfront location.
Day Three - Whale Watch
The main reason we picked Boston was the whale watch. We went through the whole list of places close to the USA that humpback whales visit: Alaska, Hawaii, Los Cabos, Dominican Republic, Boston, and Maine. Boston worked best for our family.
We went on the Aquarium's whale watch tour. We had an incredible fin whale sighting. He just hung out next to the boat for about twenty minutes. We also saw several humpback whales. After the whale watch, we visited the Aquarium. We stayed about two hours and saw everything. The highlight was the large tank in the middle and the touch tank to the left as you enter the Aquarium.
Bostonia Public House was a great choice for diner:
close to the Aquarium, great food, and I could make a reservation for eight
people easily.
Day Four - Franklin Park Zoo
Franklin Park Zoo is a bit rough around the edges, but the
red panda experience was very good. It didn't help we went in the back
entrance. We went to Warehouse for lunch near the Hilton. We took a rest. This
was the moment when I wished the Hilton had a pool. It would have been nice to
cool off. For dinner, we headed to the
North End - La Famiglia Giorginios- for
a classic Boston Italian dinner. A stop at Modern Pastry Shop and then back to the
hotel.
Day Five - Fairmont Copley Plaza
At this point, my family went back home. We switched to the Fairmont Copley Plaza around noon. We were in our new room by about 1:45 pm. We switched hotels because we wanted to be closer to Fenway and explore different restaurants.
We headed up Boylston street. We had a nice lunch at the bar at Atlantic Fish Company and then visited Bukowski Tavern.
We also walked through Eataly. It's amazing. It's a huge food market with fresh made pasta and cheeses, a butcher shop, and several restaurants and wine bars.
Day Six - Red Sox Game at Fenway
We had a great day at Fenway. We at at Sweet Cheeks Q barbeque
for lunch. So delicious. Don't miss the biscuits with the hot honey. We had
great seats along left field. The seats at Fenway are a little tight, but the
options along the third base line in the outfield in Field Box 82 have a little
more legroom because they are angled. We were in the shade the whole time. The
game was pretty brutal for the Red Sox with the exception of a fun rally at the
bottom of the 7th. We walked back to the hotel. We got back around 9 pm.
Day Seven - Newberry Street
Newberry Street is a great street to explore - especially on
a Sunday. You have a great mix of shops and restaurants. We enjoyed walking up
and down the street. Be sure to swing into J.P. Lick's. I loved how they have
classic and inventive ice cream flavors I tried their take on Golden Milk with
Turmeric.
That ended our time in Boston. We headed to Provincetown on Cape Cod for a few days to end the trip.