Boston in the Fall

[tobyw]

Hi,
Im thinking of taking a weeks holiday in the Boston area this coming October. (Travelling from Shannon, Ireland)
I would appreciate any help in planning what to do and where to go in Massachusetts. I will probably hire a car. I want to see Boston and Cape Cod and any other interesting places.
Any ideas on accommodation etc?
Perhaps someone who has visited the area might help.
Many thanks,
Toby W

[jg96]

Bostons a great city walk the freedom trail would advise on picking up the hire car when leaving the city its traffic is horrendous and parking the same.I imagine Cape Cod will be quiet in October we were there at beginning of last September. Stayed in Chatham lovely little place plenty of hotels.Visited Newport Rhode Island and also took the ferry to Marthas Vineyard where they filmed Jaws by the way though fortunately they don't make a big deal of it

[dr b]

Agree that renting a car in Boston is not advisable. A good place to stay if you want to be centrally located is the Copley Square area (google copley square hotels). From there you can easily walk to Boston Commons, Freedom Trail, etc. OR it is a very short cab or metro ride to just about any part of Boston (they call their metro "the T"). Boston cabbies are not as insane as New York ones so the cab rides are OK.

Boston attractions also include Museum of Fine Arts, Aquarium, Fanueil Hall, the North End. See Blue Man Group if you can get tickets. Go to a Boston Celtics game if they are in town. If the Boston Red Sox are in the World Series, stay FAR AWAY from Fenway Park. Those guys are nuts. Or, if you are nuts, try to get tickets.

If you are interested in Revolutionary War history (no hard feelings after all this time?) visit Lexington and Concord. You can walk part of the route of Paul Revere's ride and stop at various historic points along the way. You can also visit Louisa May Alcott's house in Concord if you are of a literary bent or are traveling with any fans of Little Women.

(My daughter attends college in Boston, if you are interested in my trip adviser credentials!)

[tobyw]

Thank you very much. You are very helpful.
What should I do about visiting Cape Cod and Marthas Vineyard? Will I need to change hotel from Boston? I have no idea of distances involved.
TobyW

[dr b]

Martha's Vineyard and Cape Cod are right next to each other, so you would want to spend at least one night in that area. Boston to Cape Cod is only 71 miles, so either spot is a very doable day trip from Boston, but you could not see both in one day.

Since you really don't want to do too much driving in Boston, maybe one way to go is to see the Boston area, then rent your car & drive to Cape Cod at the end of your stay. A night or two there, then drive back directly to Boston Logan Airport and either catch your flight or spend a last night in an airport hotel before a next-morning flight.

[MWB]

Boston being in the New England area, leaf peeping is a must. So get out in the countryside to wooded areas & hills. The colour will be glorious!

[dr b]

Yeah, but in Boston it's "color"! :-)

[MWB]

Pedant!

Lol.

[Clanad]

Boston and New England is one of our favorite places in all the U.S. We live in the western U.S. so it's probably the charm of something being older an dhaving more history than just 1880 or so.

At any rate, all of the good places have been mentioned... The Freedom Trail is walkable and very interesting... Old North church, Paul Revere's home and more. The Trail is well marked. It's actually a 2 foot wide red brick inset in the sidewalk. (Seen here: http://www.cityofboston.gov/freedomtrail/ )
As already metinoned... start your tour at Faneuil Hall... seen here: http://www.faneuilhallmarketplace.com/

If you have time, it would be a great idea to pick up a rental car (ya'll call it car hire, no?) and take the easy, extremely invigorating drive up to Portland, Maine, about a 2 hour drive on Interstate 95, and just a few miles more on Interstate 295 to Freeport, Maine. It'll take 3 or 4 hours to tour L.L. Bean's home store. While there, be sure to eat lunch at Harraseeket Lunch & Lobster... try the lobster chowder (or as they call it lobsta chowda in Down East Maine-speak).

If it's any date after September 15 or so, the colors (colours?) will have begun with the maple trees.

There are numerous Light Houses (or Lights, as they are called locally) to see and the rugged Maine coast is a rare pleasure. The most widely known is Portland Head Light (seen here: http://lighthousegetaway.com/lights/maine2.htm l )

At any rate, welcome to the U.S. (You'll be well received in Boston if you have an Irish accent!)

[jno]

this is high, high season and staying in Boston is very expensive. I tried it a couple of years ago and ended up avoiding Boston altogether, apart from the airport - just hired a car and drove round New England staying at motels. Good whale watching trips off Provincetown on Cape Cod. The scenery in the country all over the region is spectacular - gorgeous colours. Here are some of my photos

http://i21.tinypic.com/28mv0h.jpg

http://i20.tinypic.com/20u1ljr.jpg

http://i24.tinypic.com/2vuh46t.jpg

http://i24.tinypic.com/10eefwm.jpg

[tobyw]

You all make it sound great. I cant wait to get there. Think I'll spend some time looking around Boston and then hire a car and go to Cape Cod.
Clanad I'll take your advice and look at Maine. I take it you have Irish connections with a name like that.
My daughter is getting married in Sept so my wife and I will need a good break afterwards.
Thanks everyone

[thugulike]

We did this a few years ago and had a great time.
Fly to Boston and take the T from the airport. We stayed at the Harborside (I think) The staff were charmless but the location was great, just outside the T station. We had a few days in Boston then went back to the airport and picked up a hire car. Drove to Cape Cod via Plymouth. Stayed at the Nauset House and would highly recommend it. Visited all the lighthouses, walked all the beaches and went to Provincetown. Then we went to Rhode Island, had a mooch around and visited The Breakers before going on the Mystic in Connecticut. Had a few days there and drove to Springfield for the Big E which is the State Fair for the New England States. Drove up to Stowe in Vermont, past all the trees and saw a black bear on a backroad. Dont' forget to visit Ben & Jerrys on the way. From Stowe there was a great drive across to North Conway from where you can drive up Mount Washington. Then over to Maine. We stayed in Boothbay Harbour at the Topside Inn. Strongly recommended. Then on to Salem, We dropped the car at the airport on the way back and had some more time in Boston. Try the Duck tour, good fun. I'd love to do it al over again.

[tobyw]

sounds great.
Looking forward to trip