Visiting Boston for 4 days next week! (Cambridge, Salem: house, transfer to, neighborhood)

[Chinolala]

I have a few questions for the locals....

1) If we wanted to take the train to Gloucester, spend a couple hours there and head back, how long would that take? Is the train 1 hour each way?

2) The North End...how large of an area is it? Could we get a feel for the neighborhood by walking around for a couple of hours? And how close via train is it from Cambridge? Are these 2 areas good to see in one day?

3) We're having dinner at the Union Oyster House on Saturday night and want to hit a few bars afterwards. Not dance clubs, but more casual places to drink beers and talk. Some place that is at least crowded enough to seem lively and ideally, not a complete touristy place (even though that's what we are, lol)

4) We're going to a Red Sox game (Monday night). Any suggestions of good places to grab a bite and some beers before the game?

5) How long is the taxi ride from Logan to the Back Bay area. Are the taxis straight fares or meter from the airport? Any idea roughly on the cost?

6) Does the Orange Line run 24/7? If we're out late at night, can we get back to the Back Bay stop after 2 a.m., for instance?

That's it for now. I appreciate anyone's suggestions. Very excited to visit your city!!! The Red Sox are my favorite baseball team (after the White Sox) and going to Fenway is a thrill even though our seats are awful.

[joeposh45]

There are plenty of bars around Fenway. Game On, Boston Beer Works, Cask n Flagon

Orange Line stops around midnight

[Chinolala]

Thanks, Joe.

[Cart24]

- The North End is a very compact and densely populated area, so in a couple hours you will get a very good feel of the neighborhood. If you are not planning on sitting down and eating in the area you should at the very least stop off at Modern Pastry for something sweet or grab a cappuccino at Paradiso.

Modern Pastry: bakeries, italian specialties, nougats | Modern Pastry | Boston, MA
Cafe Paradiso: Caffe Paradiso

In order to get to Cambridge you would have to take the Red Line on the subway. From the North End take the Orange line from Haymarket to Downtown Crossing and then transfer to the Red Line towards Alewife to head towards cambridge.

- Union Oyster House is in one of the more touristy places in the city (Faneuil Hall) but it is still a good area to bar hop because of the amount of Pubs and Bars near by. If you want something non touristy I would head downtown into the Theatre District and start off at Jacob Wirth (Great Beer selection) then onto Intermission Tavern and The Tam. The Tam especially is a dive, but has cheap beer and alot of "character" Then if you are hungry afterwards Chinatown is right next door for some late night eats.

Jacob Wirth: Jacob Wirth Restaurant
The Tam: The Tam - Boston, MA
Intermission Tavern: http://www.intermissiontavern.com/

Another Drinking recommendation is trying out Drink in Fort Point. Esquire magazine named this one of the 5 best cocktail bars in the country.

Drink: Drink

- My favorite places to eat before a sox game are:

Eastern Standard (American/French): Eastern Standard Kitchen & Drinks :: Al Fresco Dining in Kenmore Square, Boston :: American Brasserie Restaurant
India Quality (Indian): India Quality Restaurant
Trattoria Toscana (Tuscan): Trattoria Toscana - Fenway - Boston, MA
La Verdad (Mexican): Ken Oringer’s new taqueria, La Verdad, Best Margaritas, Best Mexican Food, Authentic Mexican Restaurant

- The taxis are metered and usually when I take one from Logan to where I live Downtown it costs about $25 w/Tip. The ride should take you anywhere from 15-25 minutes depending on traffic.

- The Orange line closes down around 12:45. If you are out later I would just grab a cab and it shouldnt cost you too much to get to Back Bay from basically anywhere in the city.


Have a great trip, a game at Fenway is a wonderful experience. Try one of the new Fenway Franks as well at the game!

[lrfox]

1) I'm not sure about the train, but I think you could make a decent afternoon out of that. It can't be more than 1.5 hours, but if you check MBTA.com > Official Website for Greater Boston's Public Transportation System and use their trip planner, you may get a better idea.

2) The North End is the ideal neighborhood to walk around and get a feel for. The streets are narrow and small and the buildings densely packed. You can walk from one end to another in about 20 minutes but I would suggest walking up and down the side streets too. North Square is very nice, and Hanover and Salem streets are the primary business streets in the neighborhood. That doesn't mean there are some good finds off of those streets though. If you DO sit down, my favorite spot over there is Terramia . Cambridge isn't far... as has been mentioned, it's east to take the Orange Line to DTX and transfer to a Northbound (Alewife) Red Line train to Kendall, Central, Harvard or Porter in Cambridge (Harvard Square has the most going on). The Green Line from Gov't Center or North Station will get you to Cambridge via Science Park (at the Museum of Science) or Lechemere (at the Cambridge Side Galleria), but to get to where the action is, take the Red Line.

3) The Union Oyster House is really smack in the middle of the Faneuil Hall/ Blackstone Block pub scene. Places like the Green Dragon, Bell in Hand, Purple Shamrock are all popular and there are many more. As has already been mentioned, these places can get roudy and loud later on as it's VERY touristy there, but you can get a good beer. Near that, I enjoy Ned Divine's (http://www.neddevinesboston.com/neddevines/ - broken link) (again, touristy but fun), Black Rose (http://www.irishconnection.com/blackrose.html - broken link)(my favorite in that area), and Mcfadden's which are all right there. I would, however, suggest that you follow mattncind's suggestion of heading over near the Theatre District and checking out Jacob Wirth. I also REALLY like Kennedy's on Province St.(lunch or dinner across the street at Marliave isn't a bad idea either).

4) Depends on what you want to eat/ do. Mattncind's suggestions are good. If you want some place to take in a little bit more of the game's atmosphere, McGreevy's - worth clicking the link for the music-(owned by a member of the Dropkick Murphy's) on Boylston is a good bet and around Fenway you have plenty of options of Lansdowne Street. Bleacher Bar is REALLY cool as it has windows out onto Center Field at Fenway, Game On! is tacky but enjoyable, Boston Beer Works has a great selection and Copperfields can be entertaining. The Cask'n Flagon is also a famous Fenway Haunt. Just walking around will give you an idea. Sometimes the street food (italian Sausages) are best before you go into a bar for a drink.

5) A taxi ride from Logan to Back Bay depends on traffic (time of day). It usually costs me about $20-25 and can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 1/2 hour if traffic is bad enough.

6) The Orange Line closes just before 1am (before last call... dumb, I know). If you're out on Lansdowne (which is where they party after the Sox), you can really walk back to the Back Bay area (where are you staying?) or pay $10 or so for a cab. No big deal. If you don't want to risk it, there are some nice pubs along Boylston (near McGreevy's) that are IN the Back Bay just minutes from the Back Bay stop by walking. No matter where you are, a taxi to Back Bay isn't too pricey. I wouldn't be concerned.

Have fun at the game. Fenway is quirky to say the least. It's small enough so you shouldn't feel a mile away, but some of the seats are uncomfortable (that's what the alcohol is for). Enjoy!

[Chinolala]

Originally Posted by mattncind

- The North End is a very compact and densely populated area, so in a couple hours you will get a very good feel of the neighborhood. If you are not planning on sitting down and eating in the area you should at the very least stop off at Modern Pastry for something sweet or grab a cappuccino at Paradiso.

Modern Pastry: bakeries, italian specialties, nougats | Modern Pastry | Boston, MA
Cafe Paradiso: Caffe Paradiso

In order to get to Cambridge you would have to take the Red Line on the subway. From the North End take the Orange line from Haymarket to Downtown Crossing and then transfer to the Red Line towards Alewife to head towards cambridge.

- Union Oyster House is in one of the more touristy places in the city (Faneuil Hall) but it is still a good area to bar hop because of the amount of Pubs and Bars near by. If you want something non touristy I would head downtown into the Theatre District and start off at Jacob Wirth (Great Beer selection) then onto Intermission Tavern and The Tam. The Tam especially is a dive, but has cheap beer and alot of "character" Then if you are hungry afterwards Chinatown is right next door for some late night eats.

Jacob Wirth: Jacob Wirth Restaurant
The Tam: The Tam - Boston, MA
Intermission Tavern: http://www.intermissiontavern.com/

Another Drinking recommendation is trying out Drink in Fort Point. Esquire magazine named this one of the 5 best cocktail bars in the country.

Drink: Drink

- My favorite places to eat before a sox game are:

Eastern Standard (American/French): Eastern Standard Kitchen & Drinks :: Al Fresco Dining in Kenmore Square, Boston :: American Brasserie Restaurant
India Quality (Indian): India Quality Restaurant
Trattoria Toscana (Tuscan): Trattoria Toscana - Fenway - Boston, MA
La Verdad (Mexican): Ken Oringer’s new taqueria, La Verdad, Best Margaritas, Best Mexican Food, Authentic Mexican Restaurant

- The taxis are metered and usually when I take one from Logan to where I live Downtown it costs about $25 w/Tip. The ride should take you anywhere from 15-25 minutes depending on traffic.

- The Orange line closes down around 12:45. If you are out later I would just grab a cab and it shouldnt cost you too much to get to Back Bay from basically anywhere in the city.


Have a great trip, a game at Fenway is a wonderful experience. Try one of the new Fenway Franks as well at the game!

Thanks so much for the wealth of information! We leave tomorrow (sat) morning.

[Chinolala]

Originally Posted by lrfox

1) I'm not sure about the train, but I think you could make a decent afternoon out of that. It can't be more than 1.5 hours, but if you check MBTA.com > Official Website for Greater Boston's Public Transportation System and use their trip planner, you may get a better idea.

2) The North End is the ideal neighborhood to walk around and get a feel for. The streets are narrow and small and the buildings densely packed. You can walk from one end to another in about 20 minutes but I would suggest walking up and down the side streets too. North Square is very nice, and Hanover and Salem streets are the primary business streets in the neighborhood. That doesn't mean there are some good finds off of those streets though. If you DO sit down, my favorite spot over there is Terramia . Cambridge isn't far... as has been mentioned, it's east to take the Orange Line to DTX and transfer to a Northbound (Alewife) Red Line train to Kendall, Central, Harvard or Porter in Cambridge (Harvard Square has the most going on). The Green Line from Gov't Center or North Station will get you to Cambridge via Science Park (at the Museum of Science) or Lechemere (at the Cambridge Side Galleria), but to get to where the action is, take the Red Line.

3) The Union Oyster House is really smack in the middle of the Faneuil Hall/ Blackstone Block pub scene. Places like the Green Dragon, Bell in Hand, Purple Shamrock are all popular and there are many more. As has already been mentioned, these places can get roudy and loud later on as it's VERY touristy there, but you can get a good beer. Near that, I enjoy Ned Divine's (http://www.neddevinesboston.com/neddevines/ - broken link) (again, touristy but fun), Black Rose (http://www.irishconnection.com/blackrose.html - broken link)(my favorite in that area), and Mcfadden's which are all right there. I would, however, suggest that you follow mattncind's suggestion of heading over near the Theatre District and checking out Jacob Wirth. I also REALLY like Kennedy's on Province St.(lunch or dinner across the street at Marliave isn't a bad idea either).

4) Depends on what you want to eat/ do. Mattncind's suggestions are good. If you want some place to take in a little bit more of the game's atmosphere, McGreevy's - worth clicking the link for the music-(owned by a member of the Dropkick Murphy's) on Boylston is a good bet and around Fenway you have plenty of options of Lansdowne Street. Bleacher Bar is REALLY cool as it has windows out onto Center Field at Fenway, Game On! is tacky but enjoyable, Boston Beer Works has a great selection and Copperfields can be entertaining. The Cask'n Flagon is also a famous Fenway Haunt. Just walking around will give you an idea. Sometimes the street food (italian Sausages) are best before you go into a bar for a drink.

5) A taxi ride from Logan to Back Bay depends on traffic (time of day). It usually costs me about $20-25 and can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 1/2 hour if traffic is bad enough.

6) The Orange Line closes just before 1am (before last call... dumb, I know). If you're out on Lansdowne (which is where they party after the Sox), you can really walk back to the Back Bay area (where are you staying?) or pay $10 or so for a cab. No big deal. If you don't want to risk it, there are some nice pubs along Boylston (near McGreevy's) that are IN the Back Bay just minutes from the Back Bay stop by walking. No matter where you are, a taxi to Back Bay isn't too pricey. I wouldn't be concerned.

Have fun at the game. Fenway is quirky to say the least. It's small enough so you shouldn't feel a mile away, but some of the seats are uncomfortable (that's what the alcohol is for). Enjoy!

Thanks so much for your informative post! I wish we had more time in Boston! Just for Monday ONLY, hope that the White Sox win? LOL

[BostonTaxiCab]

Cab rides from Logan to Back bay yes are around 22-25. Any other cab questions feel free to ask.