Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Let's Make a Deal
Value
As you plan your sightseeing, consider these money-saving options. Check
their respective websites for info about buying each pass.
If you concentrate on the included attractions, a
CityPass
(
&
888/330-
5008;
www.citypass.com) offers great savings. It's a booklet of tickets (so
you can go straight to the entrance) to the Harvard Museum of Natural His-
tory, the Kennedy Library, the New England Aquarium, the Museum of Fine
Arts, the Museum of Science, and the Prudential Center Skywalk Observa-
tory. If you visit all six, the price gives adults a nearly 50% savings—which
feels like an even better deal on a steamy day when the line at the aquar-
ium is long. At press time, the cost was $44 for adults, $24 for youths 3 to
11, subject to change as admission prices rise. The passes, good for 9 days
from first use (except in the winter, when they're good for up to 3
1
⁄
2
months), also include discounts good at other local businesses.
The main competition for CityPass is the
Go Boston Card
(
&
800/887-
9103;
www.gobostoncard.com). The original Go Boston card includes admis-
sion to more than 60 Boston-area and New England attractions, plus dining
and shopping discounts, a guidebook, and a 2-day trolley pass. If you strate-
gize wisely, this card can be a great value. It costs $55 for 1 day, $85 for 2 days,
$115 for 3 days, $155 for 5 days, and $195 for 7 days, with discounts for chil-
dren and winter travelers (some of the included businesses close in the win-
ter). A spin-off, the Explorer Pass, lets you select three of the nine included
attractions and is good for 30 days. It costs $59 for adults and $39 for chil-
dren—a potentially good deal, but do a little math before committing.
The MBTA's 7-day
LinkPass
(
&
877/927-7277
or 617/222-4545; www.
mbta.com) can be a good deal—but only if you plan to use public transit
often enough. See p. 37.
connects it to the Red Line. To maximize your enjoyment, try to visit these attractions
during relatively slow times. If possible, especially in the summer, sightsee on week-
days; if you're traveling without children, aim for times when school is in session. And
if you're in town on a July or August weekend, resign yourself to lines and crowds.
Faneuil Hall Marketplace
Since Boston's most popular attraction
opened in 1976, cities all over the country have imitated the “festival market” concept.
Each complex of shops, food counters, restaurants, bars, and public spaces reflects its
city, and Faneuil Hall Marketplace is no exception. Its popularity with visitors and
suburbanites is so great that you might understandably think the only Bostonians in
the crowd are employees.
The marketplace includes five buildings—the central three-building complex is on
the National Register of Historic Places—set on brick and stone plazas that teem with
crowds shopping, eating, performing, watching performers, and just people-watching.
In warm weather, it's busy from just after dawn until well past dark.
Quincy Market
(you'll also hear the whole complex called by that name) is the central three-level
Greek revival-style building. It reopened after extensive renovations on August 26,
Kids
