Parking to get to Fenway?

July 10, 2008 8:38 PM

FenwayParkParkingFilter: Driving from southern NH to go to tomorrow night's Fenway game. I think I should park somewhere and take the T in. Where do I park?

I'm traveling with family. We're all from the NH/MA area, but it'll be a first for all of us, so I want to make sure this goes off without a hitch.

The following qualities in a parking lot / T ride are important:
- A legal parking spot. (We don't want to chance it in some random shop's parking lot, and risk finding our car towed when we get back.)
- Close to the T. (Short walk from car to T.)
- Not overcrowded: the suggestion's no good if we get there and the parking lot is full! (But we don't want to be the only car in the lot, either...)
- Easy to find. (Hurf durf, city driving...)
- Preferably, cheap, but paying for quality is within reason.
- Not a sketchy place. 4 years of college in the 'burbs taught me that there are places in Boston you don't go at night, but I don't know my way around well enough to know where they are.

The bare essentials from that list: safe, convenient.

Super-bonus points for a route avoiding changing lines (the least important factor, though), telling me the T fare to expect (we don't have Charlie cards and I hear the rates have changed since I was a student), and pointing out anything else that Fenway n00bs should know.

posted by fogster to sports, hobbies, & recreation (13 comments total)

Riverside T station. Parking right at the T station, right off 128, and the D line takes you right to Fenway.
posted by JakeWalker at 8:40 PM on July 10

Riverside T Station. Park right at the T station, which is right off 128. D Line takes you right to Fenway. Less than $4 to park, and $2 to ride in.
posted by JakeWalker at 8:42 PM on July 10

The MBTA site is trying to tell me to get off at Kenmore. Is "Fenway" not the best stop to take to get to, err, Fenway?

Do I want the Inbound train?
posted by fogster at 8:51 PM on July 10

Fenway is a lot easier to get to from Kenmore if your not from the city, so you should get off there and follow the crowds, the Fenway station is a little further away and set back a little bit. Yes you want the inbound train, its about a 1/2 hour- 45min ride in.
posted by lilkeith07 at 9:10 PM on July 10

Keep in mind that, when you leave, you will be joined by thousands of other people also wanting to get on the train. Not much you can do about it if you don't know the area well enough to walk to another station (which is what I used to do when I lived there and went to a game), but something you ought to keep in mind.

What my wife and I used to do, since we were coming from the North as you are, is park at Oak Grove station in Malden, which isn't far from I-93 and is pretty easy to get to with Google Maps directions. You can then take the Orange line into the city and change to the Green at Haymarket (you can change at North Station, too, but it's more of a hassle), then take the Green line to Kenmore. After a game, we would typically walk down Comm. Ave. into the Back Bay and then usually walk down Mass. Ave. to the Mass Ave station, which is Orange line (that's not the most direct route, but it is really almost impossible to get lost). IIRC there used to be a bus between Fenway Park and the Ruggles T station, too, which is also Orange line.
posted by cerebus19 at 10:18 PM on July 10

(Malden Center station would work, too, and might be easier to get to for someone unfamiliar with Malden.)
posted by cerebus19 at 10:20 PM on July 10

I would third Riverside...wicked easy in and out. But if the game is not a close one, leave a little early to avoid the crowded train back to the station.
posted by krisptoria at 11:02 PM on July 10

Fogster, Riverside is the terminus for the D line, so you can only go inbound. Getting off at Fenway is a bit trickier (but not impossible), and a bit more of a walk than Kenmore. I'd get off Kenmore because you can't go wrong that way. Fenway puts you out by the shopping center, and you'd have to walk up the street a bit to get to the park. It's not impossible, but it's probably easier to just get off at Kenmore.
posted by JakeWalker at 11:17 PM on July 10

Kenmore Square is the correct station. Fenway is near the Fens and the shopping mall, not the ballpark. Further away, and across a confusing array of streets.

Or, it wouldn't be a terrible idea to park at Alewife and take the red line to the green line. Just take 95 down to state route 2 to the Alewife station. I realize it's a transfer, but it's MUCH closer, mileage-wise, and is actually fewer stops than riding all the way in on the D. Also, akin to cerebus19's orange line suggestion, you can walk back to Charles/MGH or Park St after the game, if you're not in a hurry, instead of fighting with green line traffic. Or, catch the 1 bus at Mass Ave and take it up to Central Square and re-board the red line.

Ah, Fenway in the summer...
posted by rkent at 11:56 PM on July 10

Um... after looking more closely at a map, I might have to retract my assertion that Alewife is "much" closer than Riverside, but it is fewer stops, and probably not a whole lot slower, if at all.
posted by rkent at 11:58 PM on July 10

What JakeWalker said. Take the D-line to Kenmore Square and follow the crowds for the authentic Fenway Park experience.

Plan to arrive early. Lots of people take the T to the game, and the train cars will be packed. If your family includes small children, plan to get to the park an hour before game time for maximum enjoyment. Watch some dudes drum on the sidewalk, watch the pitchers warming up in the bullpen, check out the street carnival atmosphere, etc..

Also what krisptoria said. Getting out of Fenway can be a beast, especially when you have to take the green line. Tons of fans, either ecstatic or morose, drunk either way, crushed onto train cars.

On a soft summer evening following a Red Sox game, nothing beats the walk up Comm. Ave to Mass. Ave towards Cambridge. It's a beautiful way to experience the city, and you could follow any number of rkent's suggestions to get you back to the green line.
posted by Seppaku at 1:32 AM on July 11

IIRC there used to be a bus between Fenway Park and the Ruggles T station, too, which is also Orange line.
There still is and it's wonderfully convenient though I've only used it before games so I can't speak to the ease of use post game. "Service back to Ruggles Station from Gate B begins at the start of the seventh inning and ends one hour after the end of the game. Four buses operate before and after all Red Sox home games. There will be some service during the game for fans arriving late or needing to get home early."
link to more shuttle info

I think all things considered the Riverside idea is probably the easiest. Just make sure to get on a D outbound train after the game. Also, if it's a particularly long or extra inning game keep an eye on the clock and don't forget that the last train out is 12:47. Again, this shouldn't be close to an issue, but you never know.

If you can't buy a round trip fare at Riverside (I've always had a monthly pass so I don't know if you can or not) there are also fare vending kiosks at Fenway. (I don't know if you need a Charlie Card to use these or not.) I'd highly encourage this, it'll allow you to bypass all people buying fares at Kenmore. Kind of like using FastPass to cruise past all the people stopping to pay their $0.50 on the pike. An even better idea might be to plan on spending 30-45 minutes or so in the souvenir shop after the game to let the hordes of people clear out of Kenmore.
posted by bowmaniac at 8:43 AM on July 11

Also, just for informational porpoises, this weekend is the annual Sox for socks drive. In the past they've had player's wives and an assortment of ex-Sox players and front office people randomly manning the tables and giving out baseball cards or photos or little things like that to people (especially kids) who donate socks.
posted by bowmaniac at 8:48 AM on July 11