# Boston: map, what to do and when to go

Boston is visited on foot, following a red line painted on the ground that connects the sites of American independence. A port founded by Puritans in 1630 and built largely on landfill, it holds the largest cluster of universities and hospitals in the United States.

Canonical: https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/
Language: en. Extended author commentary and itinerary notes may remain in Portuguese. Dates below belong to individual sources; this is not live availability.

## Direct answer
- **Boston: how do you get from Logan Airport to downtown?** The Silver Line SL1 takes about 20 minutes to South Station, free of charge heading into the city.
- **Boston: how do you get to Salem?** Salem is 26 km to the north, 30 to 35 minutes by commuter rail from North Station (Newburyport/Rockport line) or 55 minutes by ferry from Long Wharf, May to October.
- **Boston: does the price tag already include tax?** No: the 6.25% state tax is only added at the register, and at restaurants it rises to 7%.

## The colonial city, on foot, along the red line
Start at Boston Common at 9am and follow the Freedom Trail's red line: State House (free guided tour on weekdays), Park Street Church, and the Granary Burying Ground, where Paul Revere, John Hancock, and Samuel Adams are buried.
- Freedom Trail
- Boston Common and Public Garden
- Massachusetts State House
- Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market
- Old North Church and Paul Revere House
- USS Constitution and Bunker Hill Monument

## The 19th century, the museums, and baseball
Start at Copley Square: Trinity Church (1877) and, across from it, the Boston Public Library's McKim building. Go in to see Bates Hall, the interior courtyard, and Sargent's murals, no ticket needed.
- Fenway Park
- Museum of Fine Arts
- Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
- Boston Public Library and Trinity Church

## Freedom Trail
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-freedom-trail
Massachusetts · One to two hours
A 4 km route marked by a red line of brick and paint on the sidewalk, created in 1951, linking 16 sites between Boston Common and the Bunker Hill monument. Walking it is free; guided tours with period-costume actors cost about $18–20 and last 90 minutes.
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## Boston Common and Public Garden
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-boston-common
Boston · Up to half an hour
The Common dates to 1634, the oldest public park in the United States, and served as common pasture until 1830. Next door, the Public Garden (1837) was the country's first public botanical garden; its pedal-powered Swan Boats have run since 1877, operated by the same Paget family, from April to September, for a few dollars.
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## Massachusetts State House
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-massachusetts-state-house
Boston
Seat of the state government since 1798, designed by Charles Bulfinch on a pasture that had belonged to John Hancock. The dome was covered in copper by Paul Revere in 1802 and gilded in 1874; free guided tours on weekdays, with ID.
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## Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-faneuil-hall
Boston · Up to half an hour
Faneuil Hall was donated by Peter Faneuil in 1742 as a market and meeting hall, and expanded by Bulfinch in 1806; the grasshopper weathervane dates to 1742. Quincy Market, from 1826, was restored in 1976 and became the model copied by dozens of cities: good to look at, pricey to eat at.
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## Old North Church and Paul Revere House
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-old-north-church
Boston · Up to half an hour
The Old North (Christ Church, 1723) is the oldest surviving church in the city and the place from which, on April 18, 1775, the two lanterns that warned of the British advance were hung. Five minutes away, the Paul Revere House, from around 1680, is the oldest residential building downtown; admission about $6.
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## USS Constitution and Bunker Hill Monument
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-uss-constitution
Boston
Launched in 1797 and still in service in the US Navy, the Constitution is the oldest floating warship in the world; the visit is free, with photo ID, at the Charlestown Navy Yard. A few blocks away, the granite Bunker Hill obelisk, completed in 1843, stands 67 m tall with 294 steps to the top, no elevator, no charge.
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## Fenway Park
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-fenway-park
Boston
Opened on April 20, 1912, it's the oldest ballpark still in use in the major leagues, with just over 37,000 seats and the 11.3 m left-field wall known as the Green Monster. Guided tours run nearly every day for about $25–40; a Red Sox game starts at around $30 for bleacher seats.
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## Museum of Fine Arts
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-museum-of-fine-arts
Boston · One to two hours
Founded in 1870 and housed in the Huntington Avenue building since 1909, it holds about 500,000 pieces, with the largest collection of Japanese art outside Japan and a top-tier Impressionist collection. Admission about $32; set aside half a day.
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## Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-isabella-stewart-gardner-museum
Boston
A Venetian-courtyard palace opened in 1903 to house the personal collection of Isabella Stewart Gardner, whose will forbids rearranging the works. On March 18, 1990, thieves made off with 13 pieces valued at about $500 million, including a Vermeer; the empty frames still hang on the wall. Anyone named Isabella gets in free.
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## Boston Public Library and Trinity Church
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/boston/#g-lugar-boston-public-library
Boston · Up to half an hour
The BPL, from 1848, was the first major free municipal library in the US; the 1895 McKim building has the Bates Hall reading room, an interior courtyard, and murals by John Singer Sargent: all open with no ticket. Across Copley Square, H. H. Richardson's Trinity Church (1877) appears reflected in the glass facade of 200 Clarendon (1976), at 240 m the tallest building in New England.
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**Boston: how do you get from Logan Airport to downtown?**
The Silver Line SL1 takes about 20 minutes to South Station, free of charge heading into the city.

**Boston: how do you get to Salem?**
Salem is 26 km to the north, 30 to 35 minutes by commuter rail from North Station (Newburyport/Rockport line) or 55 minutes by ferry from Long Wharf, May to October.

**Boston: does the price tag already include tax?**
No: the 6.25% state tax is only added at the register, and at restaurants it rises to 7%.

**Boston: when is the best time to go?**
The best window runs from mid-September to late October, with days of 15 to 22°C, little rain and dry air. The foliage changes color between early and late October, when the whole region heads out to see the trees, so book ahead.

**Boston: what happens if I go to Fenway wearing Yankees gear?**
No one will lay a hand on you, but the joke lasts nine innings and comes from several rows at once.


## In the Nilo app
- Plan these 2 days on the map: https://nilopelomundo.com/en/app/guide/boston/?utm_source=llm&utm_medium=markdown&utm_content=door-itinerary
- Mark your hotel on the map: https://nilopelomundo.com/en/app/map/boston/?utm_source=llm&utm_medium=markdown&utm_content=door-stay

## Full editorial guide (Portuguese)
https://nilopelomundo.com/llm/boston.md