Crusing in 17 - planning now

Doing a fall Canada and NE cruise in Sept/Oct '17 NCL Dawn 14 day Boston to Boston.

I am starting with Boston the cruise leaves on Fri we are flying in from Portland OR - the flight will take a full day so we have to fly at least one day prior to the cruise. We have also never been to Boston and would like to see some sights before the cruise. We have limited vacation time and budget so I am currently thinking of flying in on Wed, touring Thur, and getting to the ship on Fri.

SO I have noticed that there are lots of various historical sights to see in central Boston - It looks like various HOHO bus/trollies run the same loop around these sights - Which is better - or should we try to do both. I am thinking we would also like to visit Lexington and Concord - is it worth it?

I have also considered looking at some of the private tour companies. Any recommendations ???

Any other ideas for three history buffs???

I also have not decided on where to stay either - north or south (can't afford downtown) Also looking for free shuttles from airport and to the cruise terminal. We are also flying home Fri so we have a weekend to recover :).

Personally, with only one day to tour Boston, I would not go out to Lexington and Concord. Mileage wise, it isn't that far but traffic wise, you will easily lose two hours getting there and back, if not more.

I would walk the Freedom Trail.

http://www.thefreedomtrail.org/

There are enough historic sites on that trail to keep even the biggest history buff happy.

Personally, with only one day to tour Boston, I would not go out to Lexington and Concord. Mileage wise, it isn't that far but traffic wise, you will easily lose two hours getting there and back, if not more.

 

I would walk the Freedom Trail.

 

http://www.thefreedomtrail.org/

 

There are enough historic sites on that trail to keep even the biggest history buff happy.

Given your time limits I have to agree with this advice (even though having grown up in Lexington I am partial to the Lexington and Concord trip :p).

Given your time limits I have to agree with this advice (even though having grown up in Lexington I am partial to the Lexington and Concord trip :p).

LOL My DH grew up in Lexington and agrees with both of us.:p

OOPS I forgot to mention that we will be traveling with an 80yr old with a bad ankle. She can walk fine, just not far or fast.

We might be able to squeeze a second day - I noticed that based on this year, we could save even more if we fly on Tue over Wed - almost enough to cover the extra hotel night - hmmmm

We are cruising next year 2016 - somehow got a mental headspace error this morning :rolleyes:

The Freedom Trail was well worth it. Also walked along a section of the FT from Boston Common to Faneuil Marketplace at dusk, it was beautiful.

Also really enjoyed the JFK Museum and Library.

We enjoyed the HOHO (we used Old Town Trolley) when we were there the first time. We decided just to stay on the trolley to see the most sites we could, then we walked the Freedom Trail.

I fly BOS-PDX several times a year. I'm sure you have discovered that Alaska Airlines and Jet Blue offer non stops. I was just there this week.

What are your exact dates? Hotels are expensive and there are certain weekends that have big events. Since the Dawn sails on Friday, you might do better flying in Thursday and planning to do your Boston sightseeing after the cruise. Hotwire often has good weekend deals on downtown hotels.

How many people are you and what kind of bed configuration do you need?

If you fly in one day ahead, look at the Best Western in Quincy to get an airport and Cruiseport shuttle. If you decide to come in several days ahead, look at the John Jeffries House in Boston, which is a B&B hotel in Beacon Hill. They are close to the downtown sights and the Red Line MGH station. I know they offer different bed configurations. If this is of interest, don't delay in making a reservation because they book up quickly. IMO you will be much happier staying in town traveling with an 80 year old. The airport hotels north of town are isolated with few services and in sketchy neighbrhoods.

Carol, thanks for the flight info - both my boss and TA suggested the AK flight - boss did it last year when he went to Cape Cod for his vacation.

The cruise will leave Sept 23rd - we are looking at doing all of our touring pre cruise flying in on either Tue or Wed after 14 days of cruising we will be more than ready to head for home. :D

Still at odds on the hotel. I am used to the mass transit here in PDX with the MAX trains - how do they compare? Trying to decide if being close to a station is going to be a good thing.

Carol, thanks for the flight info - both my boss and TA suggested the AK flight - boss did it last year when he went to Cape Cod for his vacation.

 

The cruise will leave Sept 23rd - we are looking at doing all of our touring pre cruise flying in on either Tue or Wed after 14 days of cruising we will be more than ready to head for home. :D

 

Still at odds on the hotel. I am used to the mass transit here in PDX with the MAX trains - how do they compare? Trying to decide if being close to a station is going to be a good thing.

There is no comparison. The MAX is what we call a light rail on the east coast - a 21st century trolley. The Boston T is one of the oldest systems in the US. Basically the Red Line, Blue Line, and Orange line are subways that run underground in central Boston. The Green line is trolleys - the new cars are similar to the MAX cars. The Silver Line is articulated buses that run underground on road right of ways as well as independently on the street. The Purple Line is commuter trains. http://Www.mbta.com

If you are traveling with someone with mobility issues, being near a T station is a really good thing. The places you are looking at outside downtown Boston can be deceptive. Many of them will offer shuttles to a T station but it will be at their convenience, not your convenience. You might find yourselves in a more remote Blue Line or Red Line Station hanging out waiting for transportation at night. IMO the potential Blue Line hotels are in sketchier areas than the Red Line hotels. Chances are that in these hotels there would be few services at or close by to the hotel.

You didn't mention how many people you are and the bed configuration you require. Please call the John Jeffries to see what they can offer you. It's not a fancy hotel, but neither are the other options you are looking at. It is close to the Charles River and on the edge of Beacon Hill, which is one of the poshiest areas in downtown Boston.

Can you manage your luggage? If so, you can take the Silver Line (free from the airport stopping on the baggage claim level at every terminal) to South Station where you transfer to the Red Line direction Alewife to go three stops to Charles/MGH. This is an accessible station and the hotel is close by. To get to the port you can reverse the route to South Station on the Red Line and transfer to the Silver Line SL2 bus, which will drop you off in front of the Black Falson Terminal. The most you will have to do is to lift your luggage up one step onto the bus - no worse than a rental car shuttle bus.

Carol, we will be a party of three - two 60 yr olds and one 80 yr old (husband, wife and wife's mother).

Technically we all have some sort of medical issues that limit what we can do. I had a heart attack 3 yrs ago and it has slowed me down a bit - however I can easily walk 3-4 miles without trouble. DW has some breathing issues as well a ankle problems - one the right day she could probably walk it. My MIL is the one who we need to watch - she has an ankle joint that was fused many years ago. She does not do well on walking adventures. She is not in a power chair yet, but I see the day coming when she will- and it could happen in the next 400 days before the cruise.

As far as luggage goes, I am not sure how much we will have - on our last cruise together for 7 days she had a carry on and one medium bag - we each had a carry on and one big bag between us. This is going to be a 14 day cruise - so we are debating as to whether to pack for 7 and take a laundry day/have the cruise line do it or pack enough for all 14 days. We are gold on NCL (will be platinum after this cruise) so we get a discount on laundry - plus at the end of the first leg we could probably take advantage of the fill the bag special they offer. The last cruises we were hauled from hotel to port and the luggage was all handled for us - MIL flew in on her own but we arranged an airport transfer which took care of her luggage. I guess it is more a matter of wanting to handle our luggage vs being able to handle it.

I don't think your party will do well in a hotel in the fringe areas outside of downtown Boston. You need to have good access to transportation and that includes both public transit and affordable cab rides. You are not going to get that in Chelsea, Revere, Saugus, Dorchester, or Quincy.

What is your hotel budget? I'm assuming the three of you will share a room. You might also want to look at the Constitution Inn in Charlestown next to the Constitution.

Another option coming from Logan Airport is to take the free Silver line to South Station and then grab a cab to your hotel. This avoids the Logan cab surcharge and the tunnel toll and the meter rate for a few miles and the result is a much cheaper taxi cost.

I also think you are good candidates for the Hoho trolley. Many people walk downtown Boston, but it is an area of narrow streets and often uneven surfaces with cobblestones.

We are just in the process of establishing budgets. I know that things are going to be more expensive than what we get around here - but perhaps with AARP or AAA discounts we can get a good deal. I was hoping to keep it around 200.00/night - but I think I will need to adjust it upward to around 300.00.

You are right that we will share a room - two queens will work just fine for us.

Two doubles would be more the norm in Boston. You can find two queens, but you may pay dearly for it.

OK - Done a bit of research - The Beantown Trolley offers a pickup and delivery to this and other outlying hotels. At the moment, the John Adams appears to be the nicest of the possible hotels in the area - others are Comfort Inn and the Holiday Inn and Suites. They all have transfers to the airport and cruise terminal.

The JA has an onsite restaurant which is a plus for us.

Since it is sold out for our date range this year ( a good sign?) - I suspect that I will need to make reservations early - probably about the same time I book the flights.

Fly PDX to BOS on Wed - stay in the John Adams Inn in Quincy - Thurs use the Beantown Trolley HOHO to tour downtown, Walking a few places of the Freedom Trail. There is also a water front tour as part of this.

Fri - head to the cruise ship.

The only other possibility would be to fly in on Tue and book an extra trolley day for 1/2 price. Depends on if the flight savings is equal to the extra motel night.

OK - Done a bit of research - The Beantown Trolley offers a pickup and delivery to this and other outlying hotels. At the moment, the John Adams appears to be the nicest of the possible hotels in the area - others are Comfort Inn and the Holiday Inn and Suites. They all have transfers to the airport and cruise terminal.

 

The JA has an onsite restaurant which is a plus for us.

Since it is sold out for our date range this year ( a good sign?) - I suspect that I will need to make reservations early - probably about the same time I book the flights.

 

Fly PDX to BOS on Wed - stay in the John Adams Inn in Quincy - Thurs use the Beantown Trolley HOHO to tour downtown, Walking a few places of the Freedom Trail. There is also a water front tour as part of this.

Fri - head to the cruise ship.

 

The only other possibility would be to fly in on Tue and book an extra trolley day for 1/2 price. Depends on if the flight savings is equal to the extra motel night.

That sounds like a reasonable plan. Just be sure you understand you would be staying in Quincy, Mass, not downtown Boston, Mass. To give you a comparison, it would be like the difference between staying in Beaverton, OR and downtown Portland, OR.

Carol,

Thanks for the PDX reference - that is not a problem - we live in Hillsboro:D

Even if we have to take a cab to downtown I think we will be fine.

But the trolley is supposed to pick us up at the hotel - probably with a bus - they are run by Grey Line - and taken to downtown.

I am hoping we three can agree on which sights are must sees and those we would like to see and what we could care less about. That way we (I) can map out the combination of HOHO and walking on the Freedom Trail.

I might try to book the hotel later this year - I know the earliest I can book flights is 330 days out. However I know that any flight schedule changes usually happen around April.

I think I will let my TA handle this.:)