Going to Boston in June - Need Travel Advice!
May 18, 2016 10:18 AM Subscribe
Granddad and grandson (age 25) going to Boston in June, and want to show grandson the sights. Probable itinerary includes Fenway for a game and tour, Freedom Trail, cruise to Constitution, and Sam Adams Brewery tour. Flying into and out of Logan. Need a place to stay in the $100± per night range. No car so near the T needed for lodging.
I'm familiar with the Green Line and have a family member out that way so some hotel somewhere along it would be ideal. However, any good ideas anywhere on the T routes would be great to hear. Grandson is picky so can't be a dump! Thanks!
I'm familiar with the Green Line and have a family member out that way so some hotel somewhere along it would be ideal. However, any good ideas anywhere on the T routes would be great to hear. Grandson is picky so can't be a dump! Thanks!
At that price, I think you're going to have to expand from "T access" to "commuter rail access." The Waltham Hilton Garden Inn has a shuttle to the Waltham commuter rail stop. Not terribly convenient if you need to go back to the room in the middle of the day, but if you're planning on being out and about the whole time, probably manageable. Just keep an eye on when the trains end. (If you end up missing one, an Uber will still probably run you less than the cost of staying closer in.)
Enjoy Boston! It's a great town to visit.
posted by praemunire at 10:32 AM on May 18, 2016
Enjoy Boston! It's a great town to visit.
posted by praemunire at 10:32 AM on May 18, 2016
On the Green Line in that price range is going to be *tough*. Do you have a more specific date range? (Graduation season can book up hotels quickly.)
posted by maryr at 10:34 AM on May 18, 2016
posted by maryr at 10:34 AM on May 18, 2016
The Holiday Inn in Sullivan Square is... well it's not super nice as a hotel but it's ~$150 and less than 10 minutes walk from the Orange Line stop. The area looks gritty but is very safe.
posted by Hypatia at 10:58 AM on May 18, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Hypatia at 10:58 AM on May 18, 2016 [1 favorite]
"On the Green Line". "~$100/night." "Not a dump."
You can pick two of those. I'm not even sure you can reliably get two of those, in June.
Re: Sam Adams Tour: I live around the corner from the brewery, and will definitely bring first-time visitors there for the tour, but only if they're down in my part of town to start with. It's not their main production facility, so you're just going to get a 10-minute "this is how you make beer" lesson, and then half an hour in the tasting room with 3x5-oz. pours. It is very much not a full-afternoon kind of thing, unless you're planning to take the trolley from there to Doyle's for a couple of pints afterwards. (If you want to spend the day in JP, though, I'm happy to give you some places to check out!) If you're looking for beer tourism, I'd go for bars over breweries: try Row 34 in Fort Point, or Worden Hall by the Broadway stop on the Red Line.
posted by Mayor West at 10:58 AM on May 18, 2016 [1 favorite]
You can pick two of those. I'm not even sure you can reliably get two of those, in June.
Re: Sam Adams Tour: I live around the corner from the brewery, and will definitely bring first-time visitors there for the tour, but only if they're down in my part of town to start with. It's not their main production facility, so you're just going to get a 10-minute "this is how you make beer" lesson, and then half an hour in the tasting room with 3x5-oz. pours. It is very much not a full-afternoon kind of thing, unless you're planning to take the trolley from there to Doyle's for a couple of pints afterwards. (If you want to spend the day in JP, though, I'm happy to give you some places to check out!) If you're looking for beer tourism, I'd go for bars over breweries: try Row 34 in Fort Point, or Worden Hall by the Broadway stop on the Red Line.
posted by Mayor West at 10:58 AM on May 18, 2016 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thank you praemunire for your suggestion to include commuter rail access, so if this helps out with some lodging ideas, I'd like to hear them! It sounds like my criteria might be too strict but I'm still hoping. The actual dates are not set in stone , but from Tuesday June 21 to Saturday June 25 is most likely. Also, I forgot all about graduation and how that is going to affect things.
posted by Rad_Boy at 11:11 AM on May 18, 2016
posted by Rad_Boy at 11:11 AM on May 18, 2016
For that price, I think Airbnb is your only option.
posted by femmegrrr at 11:13 AM on May 18, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by femmegrrr at 11:13 AM on May 18, 2016 [4 favorites]
I liked the Harpoon Brewery tour better than the Sam Adams brewery tour. Both are set up very similarly, but the Harpoon one had more interesting beers, had very friendly and informative tour guides, and we ate awesome pretzels made in house. Also, there are some really lovely bars that have been in operation for 100+ years along the Freedom Trail route. We took a midway break at one of them, and it was super nice, even when all I got was a soda.
We stayed at a nice, reasonably-priced hotel, but: a) it was still about $170 a night, and b) it looks like it's totally booked through most of June. You're probably going to have to look outside of Boston proper, and/or on Air B&B at this late date. You might want to maybe compromise and do 2-3 nights in a cheap-ish hotel out in the burbs, then maybe splurge on a nice hotel near the city center proper for a night or two (especially if the thought of an hour or more on transit after a late baseball game doesn't sound thrilling).
posted by PearlRose at 11:30 AM on May 18, 2016 [2 favorites]
We stayed at a nice, reasonably-priced hotel, but: a) it was still about $170 a night, and b) it looks like it's totally booked through most of June. You're probably going to have to look outside of Boston proper, and/or on Air B&B at this late date. You might want to maybe compromise and do 2-3 nights in a cheap-ish hotel out in the burbs, then maybe splurge on a nice hotel near the city center proper for a night or two (especially if the thought of an hour or more on transit after a late baseball game doesn't sound thrilling).
posted by PearlRose at 11:30 AM on May 18, 2016 [2 favorites]
Friends of mine just stayed at Hotel Indigo in Newton which is right near the Riverside stop on the Green line. I'm pretty sure you can stay there for under $200 in June. Also not a dump!
posted by jdl at 12:22 PM on May 18, 2016
posted by jdl at 12:22 PM on May 18, 2016
Airbnb, hands down, lots of options- look in Jamaica Plain for some very good options in your price range.
posted by momochan at 6:13 PM on May 18, 2016
posted by momochan at 6:13 PM on May 18, 2016
The HI hostel (http://www.hiusa.org/boston) in Chinatown is very well located close to the orange line and not terribly far from the red and green lines... Definitely on the cheaper end. Can't vouch for how nice it is...
posted by noonday at 6:27 PM on May 18, 2016
posted by noonday at 6:27 PM on May 18, 2016
June is tough because so many colleges and universities have graduation ceremonies. This year the "season" ends June 18.
For your price range, I recommend Airbnb. If you are far from the city, you spend more money (and time) commuting. I think there are deals to be had for T-accessible airbnbs.
Some tourist recommendations:
- 2nding PearlRose's suggestion of Harpoon over Sam Adams. The seaport area around Harpoon is more interesting than the area of JP around Sam Adams
- I think Hubway is a great way to see Boston, Cambridge and Somerville.
- The Lower Depths is a great bar near Fenway. Good food, good beer list. I love that place.
- The MIT Museum is cheap and interesting if granddad and grandson are into technology, robots, etc.
- The Mapparium is pretty cool and one-of-a-kind
- Duck boats are super-touristy, but they are an interesting way to see the city
- My parents got their money's worth from one of the hop-on-hop-off bus tours. You can usually find discounts online.
I moved to Boston from Canada for grad school. I have lived in Boston, Cambridge and now Somerville. I think I've done all the super and not-so-touristy stuff MeMail me if you have questions about specific neighbourhoods, attractions, etc.
posted by KevCed at 1:02 PM on May 19, 2016
For your price range, I recommend Airbnb. If you are far from the city, you spend more money (and time) commuting. I think there are deals to be had for T-accessible airbnbs.
Some tourist recommendations:
- 2nding PearlRose's suggestion of Harpoon over Sam Adams. The seaport area around Harpoon is more interesting than the area of JP around Sam Adams
- I think Hubway is a great way to see Boston, Cambridge and Somerville.
- The Lower Depths is a great bar near Fenway. Good food, good beer list. I love that place.
- The MIT Museum is cheap and interesting if granddad and grandson are into technology, robots, etc.
- The Mapparium is pretty cool and one-of-a-kind
- Duck boats are super-touristy, but they are an interesting way to see the city
- My parents got their money's worth from one of the hop-on-hop-off bus tours. You can usually find discounts online.
I moved to Boston from Canada for grad school. I have lived in Boston, Cambridge and now Somerville. I think I've done all the super and not-so-touristy stuff MeMail me if you have questions about specific neighbourhoods, attractions, etc.
posted by KevCed at 1:02 PM on May 19, 2016
Boston hotels are insanely expensive in June. I stayed at around the same time last year and I scoured the internet to find a reasonable rate. I ended up at the Holiday Inn Express (69 Boston St but the rates are really high at this point) in South Boston.
South Boston is where I see some of the deals when I look right now. It's a bit wearying to stay in South Boston and go do all the normal tourist stuff (locals could better tell you whether it's preferable to go suburbs on the commuter line) but it does have the virtues of being cheap and safe.
I don't know anything about the West Broadway Quarters, by the way, but at $135/night unless the locals tell you that's where the axe murderers hang out, I'd book it with a quickness.
posted by librarylis at 9:43 AM on May 21, 2016
South Boston is where I see some of the deals when I look right now. It's a bit wearying to stay in South Boston and go do all the normal tourist stuff (locals could better tell you whether it's preferable to go suburbs on the commuter line) but it does have the virtues of being cheap and safe.
I don't know anything about the West Broadway Quarters, by the way, but at $135/night unless the locals tell you that's where the axe murderers hang out, I'd book it with a quickness.
posted by librarylis at 9:43 AM on May 21, 2016
« Older Partner hit by a car, help with insurance... | Social security...consultant? Lawyer? What am I... Newer »
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by backseatpilot at 10:21 AM on May 18, 2016