princeton123211

If you are considering places to stay in Montreal take a look at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth. Its not the least expensive (but it isn't close to the most either) but the real benefit when arriving by train is the hotel is directly on top of the train station, Gare Centrale. There is slightly hidden elevator that will take you directly to the hotel's lobby.

Quite easy-- essentially the Gare du Palais is within walking distance of the main dock in Quebec City (15 min on mostly flat surface) or quick taxi/Uber. Multiple daily trains to Montreal running every couple hours. Do make sure to spend at least a day in Quebec City though too.

Toronto is a nice town-- sort of the Chicago of Canada. If you do have a few extra days flying into Toronto for a night or two, taking VIA Rail to Montreal for a night, and then the quick train up to Quebec City is a ton of fun and gives you a chance to see three very different major Canadian cities.

You are presenting your very narrow opinion as fact here which is not fair to other folks who read these threads for information. I think that's what we're taking umbrage with. It is perfectly fine if you are uncomfortable being in large cities-- I get it. But saying that one of the most historically significant cities in North America is a giant, unwalkable tourist trap is patently false. Comparing the traffic in Boston to that of India is preposterous hyperbole. But you bring up the good point that there is no need to rent a car to see Boston proper. It is much better done on foot. You are making large assumptions about what people want to see and do based on your preferences. Most folks that come to Boston for a cruise have limited time are interested in seeing Boston and not taking day trips out into the countryside. I lived in Beacon Hill in Boston for a number of years, have been to all of these places you're describing and would never recommend someone with only 2-3 days in town to spend money renting a car to go out and see them unless they specifically asked about them. The purpose of travel is to learn and expand your horizons. This can be done in a dense, historic, urban environment or it can be done in the suburbs. To say one is superior to the other just because it has more people is silly and based only on personal opinion. Hear hear!

Agreed but usually the only time you run into that is at an outstation location where the airline only has a few flights a day and only bring their staff on to conduct check in 4 hours before that flight departs. Aer Lingus is a good example at my home airport of PHL-- they operate once a day to Dublin at 8:30pm. Their check in desk isn't staffed til 4:30pm. Air Canada runs frequently throughout the day from SFO so there will be AC staff there from morning til night. They could always throw the book at you but generally they should be fine checking luggage earlier than the 4 hour cutoff.

Your ship docks at the Royal Naval Dockyard which is where the big ships are relegated in Bermuda. There are a few options in the Dockyard you can book online. The electric vehicles they rent are more like the size of a golf cart than a car. Some have seating one in front of the other like a motorcycle and some are a tight squeeze side by side. While renting full size cars to tourists is not allowed on Bermuda, these provide a much better and safer alternative to the motor scooters which were the only options for decades. Keep in mind you will be driving on the left which will take a little adjustment. And the locals drive quite fast and you'll be on the road with busses that don't really care that you're in front of them. We rented a Twizy one time at the Hamilton Princess for a day and frankly it was more of a hindrance than a help. They're expensive enough that using the ferry system with a few strategically placed taxi rides can also get the job done and frees you up to have a few extra Rum Swizzles...

They are codeshare so what we're talking about here happens every day-- bags being transferred from a United flight onto an Air Canada flight for a connecting passenger. It's just a matter of getting in front of the right person. Did you ask to escalate when you were talking to them to speak to a supervisor? This is why I said earlier to try and do this now because at airport check in the day of you don't have the time to escalate. Obviously this isn't the ideal way to do this-- that would have been booking this as one ticket. But that being said you should be able to accomplish this by getting to the right person. You had also mentioned you were thinking about going to downtown SF during the layover. If that's still the case this is all moot-- you can just quickly check the bag when you exit the airside area. If you plan on staying at the airport I would keep calling and escalate until you get someone who can help.

I don't think price was the issue here-- it was the assertion that downtown Boston is "not particularly nice" by the previous poster.

And what wasn't particularly nice? 1 night has two corresponding days on either side of it and 2 nights has three days front, middie and on the end. Also 98% of all cruises board in the early to mid afternoon. Some piers may open at 10:30-11 but boarding doesn't usually begin that early for most folks and you certainly have the option of using that day for touring a city and boarding on the backend of the process. The port is so close to most of the nicer tourist areas like Copley, Beacon Hill, downtown, Back Bay, and the Seaport that you could absolutely tour in the morning and still comfortably board your ship in the afternoon.

When was the last time you were in downtown Boston? Easily one of the nicest large city downtowns in the US with its connection to the water, cleaner than a lot of cities, abundance of restaurants, historic sites, and extremely easy walkability. I'm genuinely curious what you're basing this on. Salem, Lexington, Concord are tiny suburban towns and Springfield is a backwater city thats over 2 hours drive from Boston where they're sailing from. Like its fine if you have an aversion to large cities but it's sort of misleading advice for someone considering a 1-2 night stay there ahead of a sailing from Boston.

I would say that the USS Constitution is a highlight-- very impressive and the oldest actively commissioned warship still afloat. I typically will skip Bunker Hill. When going to the Constitution I will either walk or take a quick Uber and then take the small ferry from Charlestown Naval Yard back to the Boston waterfront. Essentially a cheap harbor cruise.

Where it's nicer than what? I spend a lot of time these days in Boston and would much rather be downtown than Lexington, Concord, Quincy, or other suburbs. Way more to see, eat, drink, and walk around. Folks stay out there sometimes to save money but the OP should be able to find something reasonable in their budget. 2-3 days is enough to see a decent amount of Boston proper at a leisurely pace but not really enough to go running around the countryside needlessly. While more walkable and compact than most Boston is still a large city. Lexington and Concord can be visited if you have a deep interest in the Revolutionary War but there is plenty of similar history in Boston itself. Salem and especially Springfield would only be worth it, in the context of a 2-3 day visit, if you were driving past anyway.

Just take a walk along Commonwealth Ave and explore a little and get lost from there. I wouldn't call them Victorian in the sense that most people refer to with turrets etc-- the historic homes there are mainly brownstone and brick townhouses.

It's possible but to be honest $300 a night is on the low side for Boston-- it can be very expensive. 3-4 star hotels are regularly in the $400-600 range and top end like the Four Seasons are in the $900-1200 range a night. You can however find something for around $300 thats a nice place in a good location if you hit it right. One of my favorites in the city is the Fairmont Copley Plaza-- a grande dame hotel that can be in the $500 range but you can get it for the low $300s with some planning and luck. Location cant be beat for touring on foot and it's a Boston landmark in itself. The hop on hop offs go all over the city-- mainly shadowing something called the Freedom Trail which is a prescribed walk around the city that covers it's (mainly) colonial history. Frankly you don't need a bus tour of Boston-- it is so compact and easily walkable for all those except who have a physical impediment. I wouldn't stay in the Seaport area if you want to tour historic Boston-- it's full of mainly new developments with chain restaurants, luxury high rises, and corporate hotels. Just take an Uber to the pier the day you are departing.

I've found Uber or Lyft to be more reliable there than taxis-- especially early in the morning. There are significantly less taxis than there used to be.