Trip to Boston and...?

Question

I'm Italian and I will be making a trip to NYC, Boston and possibly Niagara Falls in April (Mar 28-Apr 7) with friends. We will be renting a car.
I've already been to NYC, so I know what to do there.
I've never been to Boston. What are some must do's there? And is it too ambitious to want to make it to Niagara Falls from Boston in the amount of time we have? Any nice places worth stopping by on the way? And, is it still cold in April?
Thanks!

Guys, you are all giving me such great information, and a lot of you have put so much work into you answers! You will make my trip terrific! I am going to be really hard put to choose BA here, but I will!
Until then, thank you all so, so much! :o)

Answer 1

Boston is a great city (it IS expensive but certainy worth seeing, in my opinion. And no more expensive than NYC - besides, the Euro exhange rate is in your favor!) There is a lot of history to see in Boston. It's one of the oldest US cities although not so old by Italian standards of course. Certainly walk the Freedom Trail in Boston - most of the historic places are along there. That will be pretty much a full day. And of course it will also take you through the North End, which is the old Italian section of Boston. It is where most of the Italian immigrants settled when they came to Boston. There aren't so many Italian immigrants anymore but the best Italian restaurants in Boston are there. (You still might hear Italian spoken on the street there!) If you want a real American baseball game, try to get tickets to the Boston Red Sox (our baseball team) - although it will be very expensive and will probably be difficult to get tickets. (And the team might not even be playing in Boston when you're here). But it's worth looking into. Or you can also try to go in New York they have two teams. Also go to Harvard University when you're in Boston - the campus is beautiful and also the surrounding area, Harvard Square, is very nice. If you're interested in art museums, there are a couple of them - the Musuem of Fine Arts and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, both of which are good and they are also very close to each other. There's also a new modern art museum that just moved to a new location, the Institute for Contemporary Art. Also if you like to eat seafood, Boston is a great place for that - my recommendations for restaurants are the Union Oyster House and Anthony's Pier 4. And if you want to do any shopping then the original Filene's Basement is always a great place to get clothing.

I have actually never been to Niagara Falls so I'm not sure about that but it is probably a 6-7 hour drive or more, I think. So it is fairly far from Boston but it is a scenic drive.

In April, the weather is very unpredictable. It will not be snowing and will not be unbearably hot either. It will probably be very pleasant but it could be chilly and raining - a light jacket is probably enough and maybe a sweater.

You will love Boston - buon viaggio!

Answer 2

You've already got some good suggestions but here are a few that weren't mentioned for Boston........
Boston Museum of Science (try to catch a show in the planetarium) , Boston Aquarium, Government Center, go to the top of the 60 State St. building for a beautiful night time view from a nice lounge, the Swan Boats in the Boston Common may be open for the season but I'm not sure. Go over the bridge into Cambridge and walk along the Charles (river), that;s where the rowing teams practice, go to the top of the Sonesta Hotel to their revolving restaurant on the top floor. John F. Kennedy Library and Museum. Don't know if the boats will be running for the harbor tours at that time...
Some of these things may be expensive but compared to NYC prices, they're not.
So many good restaurants, Italian, seafood, steakhouses etc.
Phaneuil Hall and the Boston markets are something to see. Yes some of the shops are expensive but there are lots of great places to window shop and a great "food court" and some good restaurants. If the rotunda is open in the Hall, they give talkes and tours that explain what the Hall is, why it was built, by whom and how important it was to the early settlers. At one time, it was the center of government, a great place to socialize, barter, and the law makers humg out there.
Don't know much about Niagara Falls, although I've been there.
It was pretty but not that interesting to me. I'd prefer the Cape ( Cape Cod), the north shore (Rockport, Gloucester, Manchester) all in MA. north of Boston.
April can be cool, rainy, chilly or warm. It's more likely to be cool or rainy that early in April.
Have a great trip. You'll find lots to keep you busy no matter where your interests lay. Go to the MA website or send to the state visitors information bureau and they'll send you tons of info on where to stay and what to do.

Answer 3

The weather shouldn't be too cold unless there is an artic cold front. Maybe in the fifties or sixties degrees Celcius. Actually, Boston has been having a really, really mild winter this year. It's been over sixty degrees in January! In Boston, you want to see the Boston Commons. It is the town square. It's near Beacon Hill - an old neighborhood. A couple of old churches are by the Commons. I think one is St. Paul's Church.

It is an 8 hour drive from Boston to Niagara Falls, NY.

The upper half of New York state is Adironack Park. The mountains are beautiful. The Olympics were held at Lake Placid, NY. Saranac Lake, NY is a really picturesque vacation village. Those two places are 2 and 3 hours north respectively of the interstate (I-90) that connects Boston and Buffalo.

In the middle of New York (and not so far out of the way) is the finger lakes region. There are five lakes that look like the fingers of a hand. You can't miss it on a map. It's wine country. It may be a good place to stop over if you want to. You can check it out here:

http://www.fingerlakeswinecountry.com/

Answer 4

Word of warning--Faneuil Hall is a total tourist trap. Don't spend a lot of time there, everything is overpriced. Stroll around the North End, that's a lot of fun. Great Italian food, desserts etc. Newbury Street is stylish and chic, but expensive to shop--awesome to people-watch though! The Sox are away that week, but if you're a baseball fan, the bars around fenway park are fun to watch a game.
April can be freezing or warm. A few yrs ago we got 3 feet of snow on April 1st! So watch the forecasts so you'll know what to pack.
Niagara Falls, although quite awesome is a LONG RIDE. But if the weather is iffy, you might be better off going there instead of walking the streets of boston when it's freezing or rainy.

Answer 5

You already have some great answers so I will try to add just a bit more.

Boston has some great museums (some already mentioned). Harvard University also has (at least they did when I was a kid) a museum of hand blown glass flowers. Don't forget that Boston was the cradle of our nation. There are so many historical sites to visit. The Boston Navy yard (does that still exist?) and a visit to the U.S. Constitution (old ironsides - early naval vessel - clipper ship) may be of interest.

Some of the smaller cities along the coast offer historical sites as well. In Saugus you can see the very first iron works in the United States. Visit Salem and you can visit the house of Seven Gables and learn about the witch trials. Also in Salem you can visit the Balch house -one of the oldest exisiting residential structures in Massachusetts. In Gloucester you can see the heritage of the early fishing industry in New England.

If you travel south to Plymouth, you can visit Plymouth Rock and go through a settlers village complete with actors in costume playing the part of our nations earliest citizens.

Niagara falls is an awesome sight but it will be a long drive for you. Most of the things along the way are off the beaten path and the only sensible route to travel is on the NY state throughway I-90. Upstate New York, including Buffalo will be colder than Boston or New York city. In fact, you could see snow in late March or April there. If you like casino gambling, there is one (Turning Stone?) about an hour east of Syracuse NY. There is also one in Connecticutt (Foxwoods?) betweeen NY and Boston.

You can visit the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown New York. I hear they have a soccer hall of fame near there as well.

You can tour the Stickley furniture manufacturing plant just south of Syracuse NY. Rochester NY is home to Xerox and Eastman Kodak - they may offer museums or tours as well.

If you can get hold of a tour book for each of the states from the AAA (American Automobile Association) it will tell you most all of the attractions and places of interest to visit and a description of them including hours of operation.

Have a great trip!

Answer 6

I sent you already a private email; forgot to include: Boston in April is often (but not always) considerably colder than N.Y.C. (and also Niagara/Buffalo) because the wind often comes in off of the still cold Atlantic.

Another word about Niagara Falls: save this for a side trip when you visit Toronto, which is now the world's most multicultural city (yes, more than N.Y.C. or Los Angeles) and quite exciting.

Answer 7

are you including hotel expenses in that $1000? If you are, then you will probably need another $1000. If the hotel is already paid for, you can plan on spending about $500 for food during the week. Are you renting a car? taking taxi's? using the "T"? That will factor in how much you'll need. Car rental is about $40 a day, You can get a weekly pass for about $20 for the "T", and taxis can run $10-20, depending where you're going.

Answer 8

Boston is an awesome place to visit. It will definitley be chilly in April so make sure to dress warm. If you are looking for a great profile on the city or cool boston getaways check out this profile:

Answer 9

I live near by in RI, no its not too bad in April, but I think you might want to go to Niagara falls first. Boston is nice but its overly expensive for absolutely no reason, I got hammered by a bill once the cans of soda were 3.00 a pop, I was livid. Also been to Niagara falls, once in a lifetime experience, I definetly suggest it.

Answer 10

Everyone else already suggested my favorite places to go in Boston, so I'll just add that the weather in Boston in April is totally unpredictable. It can be 90 degrees F (32 C) or it can be snowing, or anything in between. So bring your winter clothes AND your summer clothes!