Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
off hours, such as early on weekend
mornings, driving is the slowest way to
get into central Boston. If you must
travel during rush hours or on Sunday
afternoon, allow plenty of extra time or
plan to take the subway or water taxi
(and pack accordingly).
You can get into town by bus, subway,
cab, van, or boat. If you're taking the Sil-
ver Line bus or the subway, look for
MBTA fare kiosks tucked into corners
near the exits closest to the public transit
pick-up area in each terminal.
The Silver Line bus stops at each air-
port terminal and runs directly to South
Station, where you can connect to the Red
Line subway and the commuter rail to the
southern suburbs. It takes about 20 min-
utes, not including waiting time, and costs
just $1.70 (with a pass or CharlieCard) or
$2 (with a CharlieTicket or cash)—a great
deal if your final destination is near South
Station or in Cambridge.
The subway (the T) takes just 10 min-
utes to reach downtown, but first you
have to reach the subway. Free shuttle
buses run from each terminal to the Air-
port station on the Blue Line of the T
from 5:30am to 1am every day, year-
round. The Blue Line stops at Aquarium,
State Street, and Government Center,
downtown points where you can exit or
transfer to the other lines. The fare is
$1.70 (with a pass or CharlieCard) or $2
(with a CharlieTicket or cash).
Just getting into a cab at the airport
costs an appalling $9.75 ($7.50 in fees
plus the initial $2.25 fare). The total fare
to downtown or the Back Bay usually
runs $20 to $35, and may be as high as
$45 in bad traffic. Depending on traffic,
the driver might use the Ted Williams
Tunnel for destinations outside down-
town, such as the Back Bay. On a map,
this doesn't look like the fastest route, but
often it is.
The Logan Airport website (www.
massport.com/logan) lists numerous
companies that operate shuttle-van serv-
ice to local hotels. One-way prices start at
$14 per person and are subject to fuel
surcharges as gas prices fluctuate.
The trip to the downtown waterfront
in a weather-protected boat takes about 7
minutes and costs $10 one-way. Service is
available from early morning through
early evening, with reduced schedules on
weekends; at press time, all four providers
operate year-round. The free no. 66 shut-
tle bus connects the airport terminals to
the Logan ferry dock. Leaving the airport,
ask the shuttle driver to radio ahead for
water-taxi pickup; on the way back, call
ahead for service.
Three on-call water-taxi services serve
the downtown waterfront and other
points around Boston Harbor: City
Water Taxi ( & 617/422-0392; www.
citywatertaxi.com), Rowes Wharf Water
Transport ( & 617/406-8584; www.
roweswharfwatertransport.com), and
Boston Harbor Water Taxi ( & 617/
593-9168; www.bostonharborwatertaxi.
com). The MBTA ( & 800/392-6100 or
617/222-3200; www.mbta.com) con-
tracts out scheduled ferry service to Har-
bor Express, which runs to Long Wharf,
behind the Marriott Long Wharf hotel.
Some hotels have their own shuttles or
limousines; ask about them when you
make your reservation. To arrange private
limo service, call ahead for a reservation,
especially at busy times. Your hotel can
recommend a company, or try Boston
Coach ( & 800/672-7676; www.boston
coach.com), Carey Limousine Boston
( & 800/336-4646 or 617/623-8700;
www.carey.com), or Commonwealth
Limousine Service ( & 800/558-LIMO
or 617/787-1110; www.commonwealth
limo.com).
Unless you need it right away, seriously
consider waiting to pick up your rental
car until you're starting a day trip or
other excursion. You'll avoid airport fees,
Search WWH ::




Custom Search