The Rough Guide to Boston 3 (Rough Guide Travel Guides) [Paperback]

David Fagundes (Author)

Book Description

Series: Rough Guide Travel Guides | Publication Date: April 28, 2003

An illustrated guide to one of the USA's most historic cities. The book provides a lively account of every attraction as well as critical reviews of accommodation, restaurants, shops and bars to suit all tastes and budgets. Neighbouring areas such as Cambridge plus excursions to Plymouth, Salem and Provincetown on Cape Code are also included together with heritage and colonial development information. Includes extensive maps and plans.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

David Fagundes and Anthony Grant are both Boston residents. David is a former Let's Go managing editor. Anthony is a former AP stringer and journalist on the Moscow Times and many other publications.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

WHAT TO SEE

The city’s epicenter is Boston Common, a large public green that orients downtown and holds either on or near its grounds many of Boston’s most historic sights, including the Old State House, the Old Granary Burying Ground and the Old South Meeting House. Nothing, however, captures the spirit of the city better than nearby Faneuil Hall, the so-called "Cradle of Liberty," and the always-animated Quincy Market, adjacent to the hall. Due north, an incomparable sense of Boston’s original layout can be found in the cramped Blackstone Block. Boston’s waterfront, on the edge of downtown, offers its fair share of diversions, mostly ideal for traveling families; the action is centered on Long Wharf.

The North End, modern Boston’s Little Italy, occupies the northeast corner of the peninsula, where, until the Big Dig project is completed, it’s cut off from the rest of the city by I-93. The North End is home to a few notable relics, such as Old North Church and the Paul Revere House, but is equally worth visiting for its animated streetlife, fueled, in large part, by the strong cups of espresso proffered by numerous Italian caffes. Just across Boston Inner Harbor from the North End is Charlestown, the quiet berth of the world’s oldest commissioned warship, the USS Constitution, as well as the locus of the Bunker Hill Monument, an obelisk commemorating the famous battle that bolstered American morale in the fight for independence.

North of the common are the vintage gaslights and red-brick Federalist townhouses that line the streets of Beacon Hill, the city’s most exclusive residential neighborhood; it’s anchored by the gold-domed State House, designed, as were numerous area houses, by Charles Bulfinch. Charles Street runs south from the hill and separates Boston Common from the Public Garden, which marks the eastern edge of Back Bay, a similarly well-heeled neighborhood which features opulent rowhouses alongside modern landmarks like the John Hancock Tower, New England’s tallest skyscraper. The neighborhood also hosts some of the city’s best shopping along Newbury Street. Meanwhile, the stylish enclave of the South End, known for its restaurants and streetlife, as well as the ornate ironwork gracing its well-maintained homes, is also worth a visit.

The student domains of Kenmore Square and the Fenway are found west of Back Bay and the South End: the former is largely overrun with college kids from nearby Boston University; the latter spreads west of Massachusetts Avenue and southwest along Huntington Avenue, home to heavyweight local institutions like the Museum of Fine Arts, the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox. Below all these neighborhoods are Boston’s vast southern districts, which hold little of interest besides the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum and the southerly links in Frederick Law Olmsted’s series of parks, known as the Emerald Necklace; it includes the Arnold Arboretum and Franklin Park, setting for the Franklin Zoo. Across the Charles River from Boston is Cambridge, synonymous with venerable Harvard University and tech-savvy MIT, but also boasting some of the area’s best nightlife and a lively café scene, especially around Harvard Square, which spills over into neighboring Somerville to the north.

The waterfront’s Long Wharf doubles as a jumping-off point for escaping the city altogether, on cruises to the idyllic Harbor Islands, or to happening Provincetown, Cape Cod’s foremost destination. Inland, nearby battle sites in Lexington and Concord make for easy day-trips, as does a jaunt up the coast to Salem and its witch sights, or further on to seafaring towns like Gloucester and Rockport.

WHEN TO GO

Boston is at its most enjoyable in the fall (September through early November), when the weather is cooler and the long lines have somewhat abated; and in the spring (April through mid-May), when the magnolia trees blossom along Commonwealth Avenue and the parks spring back to life. Summer, meanwhile, is certainly the most popular time to visit Boston, both for the warmer weather and frequent festivals. However, July and August can be uncomfortably humid, and you’ll have to contend with large student-related influxes around graduation (early June) and the beginning of school (around Labor Day).

At the other end of the spectrum, Boston winters can be harsh affairs: they tend to run from late November through March, but, thanks to the moderating influence of the Atlantic, mild spells often break the monotony of long cold stretches, and snowfall is lighter than in the interior regions of New England. No matter when you go, though, be prepared for sudden changes in the weather in the space of a single day: a December morning snow squall could easily be followed by afternoon sunshine and temperatures in the 50s (Fahrenheit).

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Rough Guides; 3rd edition (April 28, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1843530449
• ISBN-13: 978-1843530442
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,559,333 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best travel guide to Boston, September 22, 2003

By 

Gadgester "No Time, No Money" (Mother Earth) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Rough Guide to Boston 3 (Rough Guide Travel Guides) (Paperback)

So what's guy living in Brooklyn have to say about the guidebook for Boston? Well, I have homes in both, and have lived in Boston on and off for decades, so I do have some familiarity with that city, thank you very much. Now, where in Hahvahd Yahd did I pahk my cah?

Seriously, even though I've lived in Boston for a long time it's still a city I don't feel very familiar with. Its complex street system is one thing I'll never master. It's the same feeling I have about Queens, NY, where I also lived for a while but never felt comfortable with. I guess it's because I prefer organized cities. (The small city I grew up in had just one main street, how nice and easy!)

Thankfully The Rough Guide to Boston is well organized and well written. I've read through two dozen guide books on the city and this is by far the best. The Fodor guide is too wordy and confusing, the Dummies guide too shallow and pretentious, the guide put out by the Hahvahd students totally indecipherable and inaccurate. This volume has the right balance between information and entertainment. It's concise yet complete, small yet immensely useful, and it's printed on nice paper so it'll last a good long time. The "24 things not to miss" are the best "best-of-Boston" list I've seen because it goes beyond the obvious popular tourist spots.

If you plan to visit Boston or go to school there, get this high-quality book.