Boston Holidays, Hotels & Travel Guide

Travel guide to hotels & holidays in Boston - Boston Holiday Package Deals

Boston Holidays Overview

A guide to holidays in Boston - As one of the oldest settlements in the USA and the largest city in New England, Boston has plenty of historic culture. Yet with over 50 colleges and universities situated in the greater Boston area there is a youthful vibrancy that adds a different dimension to the historic charm of the city.

Cambridge lies across the Charles River and is the largest college town in the world, synonymous with Harvard University founded in 1638. The neat ivy-covered brick buildings of the university grounds, as well as the labyrinth of twisting streets in Boston centre and the historical buildings in the old-world neighbourhoods are best explored on foot. Boston refers to itself as the 'Walking City' and is a remarkably compact city that is centred on the country's oldest public park, Boston Common. The Information Centre in Boston Common is the starting point for two of the city's main attractions, which are in fact walking tours. The Freedom Trail explores the city's revolutionary past and the birth of the modern American Republic, while the Black Heritage Trail highlights Boston's place in black American history and its role in anti-slavery.

Boston is an easy blend of historic charm and modern conveniences with a busy street life and beautiful architecture, green parks and gardens, skyscrapers and modern freeways, museums, galleries and colonial churches. Boston is home to the first public library, the first public school and the first subway system; it is the site of the Boston Tea Party that started the Revolutionary War, and is the location of the Cheers bar, made famous by the popular TV sitcom Cheers. Boston is also the city from whence both planes that crashed into the World Trade Centre on 11 September 2001 originated, and many of those who died were local residents, a tragedy that thus hit the city particularly hard.

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Boston holidays - Top Places To Go

 

1. Freedom Trail The trail starts from the Visitor Information Center on Boston Common www.thefreedomtrail.org	What is it? The 2.5-mile (4km) Freedom Trail follows a line of red bricks or a painted red line on the pavement linking 16 historic sights associated with the early struggle for freedom from British control and the events leading up to the revolution. Markers identify the stops and provide information from downtown to the North End to Charlestown and Bunker Hill Monument. Sights along the way include the Paul Revere House, Boston's oldest surviving house that was home to the famous revolutionary, and the nearby Old North Church where two lanterns were hung in the belfry to warn the revolutionaries of the British movements while Revere went on his famous horse ride to warn of imminent British attack. The elegant Old State House was the seat of British colonial government and where the Declaration of Independence was read in 1776. There is a museum of Boston history inside. At the Old South Meeting House Samuel Adams addressed the revolutionaries in the significant meeting prior to the Boston Tea Party and a circle of cobblestones marks the site of the Boston Massacre. In Charlestown the USS Constitution, known as 'Old Ironsides' is the oldest warship still afloat and was named after the sinking of the British frigate, HMS Guerriere during the war of 1812. Bunker Hill Monument is the site of the first formal battle of the America Revolution that was fought in 1775. Also along the trail is the beautiful white steeple of Park Street Church, the site of several important anti-slavery speeches, the Old Granary Burying Ground where a number of revolutionaries are buried, and the Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall that once was the meeting place for revolutionaries as well as a bustling marketplace. Although a complete self-guided trail, the National Park Service also conducts free tours with guides in historic costumes that cover some of the trail's highlights. Hours of Operation: Most sites along the trail are open daily from 9am to 5pm (10am to 4pm in winter) Phone:(617) 357 8300
2. Black Heritage Trail The trail starts from the Visitor Information Center on Boston Common or at the Museum of Afro-American History at 14 Beacon Street, Suite 719 www.afroammuseum.org	What is it? Today Beacon Hill brings to mind images of affluence and luxurious living, yet until the end of the 19th century it contained a community of free blacks and escaped slaves from the southern states who owned businesses, built houses and schools, and worshipped together in the churches. Although the black community has since shifted to other parts of Boston, the Black Heritage Trail covers 14 sites that are part of the local black history. Massachusetts was the first state to abolish slavery in 1783 due in part to the black participation in the Revolution. Beginning at the Boston Common there is a memorial to slave abolitionist Robert Shaw who led the first black regiment recruited during the Civil War. Various sites on Beacon Hill include homes of famous citizens, the city's first racially integrated public school with exhibits portraying the struggle for equal school rights, and a house that was part of the famous 'Underground Railroad', sheltering runaway slaves from their pursuers. The African Meeting House, part of the Museum of Afro-American History, is one of the most interesting sights and was the first black church in the United States, known as 'Black Faneuil Hall' during the anti-slavery campaign. It was here that famous abolitionist speeches were made and black people were called to take up arms in the Civil War. There is an informative audiovisual presentation in the gallery. Although this is a complete self-guided trail with brochures and maps provided by the Museum of Afro-American History, park rangers also give free daily two-hour tours, which start at the National Park Service Visitor Center. Hours of Operation: Monday to Saturday 10am to 4pm; guided tours by appointment year round and 10am, 12pm, and 2pm (July and August) Phone:(617) 725 0022 (Museum of Afro-American History), or (617) 742 5415 (guided tours)
3. Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum www.bostonteapartyship.com	What is it? Moored to the bridge is the Beaver II, known as the Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum, and one of the three ships stormed by patriots in 1773 as an act of rebellion against British rule and in particular against the new tax laws imposed on tea. A group of revolutionaries disguised as Mohawk Indians burst from the South Meeting House and boarded the ships that were loaded with tea. They emptied the crate contents into the harbour, an event that became known as the Boston Tea Party. The Beaver II is an exact replica of the original Beaver I and visitors can learn about the event on board the ship. *Note: The Boston Tea Party Ship and Museum is currently closed for renovations and plans to open again in mid-2007.* Hours of Operation: Phone:(617) 269 7150

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