Boston - Help Needed Silver/Red Line and Taxi

We will be in Boston this fall on the Royal Princess and wish to visit the Kennedy Library. I've searched for info on how to get there, and found out we could take the Silver Line at the pier to South Station, then pick up the Red Line to JFK/UMass. I also read that the cab fare from Black Falcon cruise port to the Library was $25, but that was back in 2007.

Can anyone give me more info? I haven't been able to figure out if Silver/Red line is referring to a bus or subway. Where is the station I'd get on near the pier? How frequently does service run? How easily do these lines connect? I'm wondering how long I'd have to wait to get onto the Red line after getting off the Silver Line.

One last question - can anyone give me an idea about what the current cab fare might be? I'm sure it's a lot more than it was in 2007. Thanks in advance everyone!

The Silver Line is a bus that runs in its own right of way. There is a station near the port, you can take it to South Station, then get on the Red Line (easy transfer) to JFK. I believe there is a shuttle from the station to JFK. I believe there is service every 10 minutes.

Overview route map and schedules:

http://www.mbta.com/uploadedFiles/Documents/Schedules_and_Maps/Subway/frequency-schedule.pdf

(Although the Silver line is a bus, the MBTA lists it under subways.)

More Silver Line info:

http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_maps/subway/lines/?route=SILVER

More Red Line info:

http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_maps/subway/lines/?route=RED

From the JFK Library website:

"The Library and Museum is easily accessed by public transportation. Take the MBTA Rapid Transit, Red Line (any red line train) to JFK/UMASS Station. There is a free shuttle bus to the Library every 20 minutes beginning at 8:00 a.m. and running until Museum closing. Please take the buses marked ‘JFK.’"

Taxi rates, from the Boston Police Dept website: http://bpdnews.com/taxi-rates

The taxi fare finder says under $20 including tip, so $25 is still a good estimate of the cab fare to the JFK library.

The Silver line bus will stop on the street in front of Black Falcon - just ask where the stop is. You go all the way to South Station where you follow the signs to transfer to the Red Line to Braintree/Matapan. Take any train to the JFK/UMass stop and look for the shuttle bus to the JFK Library/UMass. With the connections this could take up to an hour.

As others mentioned, the Silver Line is a bus, but the MBTA treats it like a subway line for pricing and transfer purposes. It will pick you up right at Black Falcon and then soon enter an underground right-of-way (thus it becomes like a subway once it leaves the lower harbor area). In south station it has a station which looks like a subway station. Just follow the signs there to the red line towards "Ashmont/Braintree" (it will be one level up from the Silver Line). You can board either an Ahsmont or Braintree train as both stop at JFK/UMASS (the stop you want).

The MBTA is significantly cheaper than a cab and is quite efficient (at least the Red and Silver lines are). Those cab prices you found sound about right, althought you may get a slightly lower fare if you use Uber and get the UberX service. The MBTA, though is pretty user friendly and is my suggestion.

Thank you everyone for a lot of great information. This clears up all my questions, and I now feel confident about getting to the Kennedy Library on my own, so I won't feel the need to book a cruise line shore excursion. Thanks again everyone!

Just to be clear about the transfer from the Silver Line to the Red Line at South Station. The Red Line direction sign will definitely say Braintree and either Ashmont or Mattapan. You can take any train. The Red Line Station is downstairs from the Silver Line and there are stairs and an elevator.

Hi Daisy, Here is a tour that you might be interested in:

http://www.partner.viator.com/en/9173/search/JFK%20library%20tour

"Excellent, very well worth it. Our driver was excellent, funny, friendly, patient and explained it all very well. Only thing is if you book this trip, which I would highly recommend, when you print the details where to meet, ignore the instructions as to how to get there, they are very confusing - just make a note of The Seaport Hotel and go to the front door of this hotel" (comments from someone who took tour)

If you can't open the link it is Boston Discovery Guide website, then JFK Library Tour.

I think this might be a good solution for you instead of worrying about taxis or busses. You can walk to Seaport Hotel and get on the trolley there. It will take you to JFK Library and you will have 2 hrs. there. We have been to JFK Library and you can see enough in the two hours. Of course, some people take longer reading/viewing all the exhibits. We found the 2 hrs. sufficient. Tour price is $49. pp and includes admission fees. Here is tour info:

After a short walk from the Boston cruise port to the Seaport Hotel, where your tour departs, your Boston sightseeing shore excursion begins with the main stop at the Kennedy Library and museum. You'll have two hours to relive the powerful story of JFK's life, legacy and leadership. Next, you'll see the sights of Boston aboard the Beantown Trolley. This fully narrated tour will give you insight to Boston's history, while passing various points of interest. Boston is home to a multicultural and ethnic population with its own Chinatown, North End (Little Italy) and open-air markets. There are the many historical landmarks from the revolutionary days, along with famous institutions of higher learning. Harvard and MIT are located just across the Charles River in Cambridge. Additionally, travel past the Public Gardens and Beacon Hill, where the statehouse is located and stop at the Navy Yard in Charlestown for a short visit to view the USS Constitution, known as 'Old Ironsides.' Also a 45 minute harbor cruise.

You would really see Boston, visit JFK Library and other sights on a quick tour. We have also take the trolley tour several times and it is a nice tour.

Good luck. I would make reservations ASAP as Oct. is popular time in Boston.