Boston calling....need help!

C'mon, Bostonians! This thread's been up for a cuppla hours now. Help Spidergal out. I haven't been back "home" in four or five years so any advice I'd give would be dated at best.

Just bumping this thread up.

Thanks, Lustig! I guess all Bostonians are in the arms of Morpheus right now! I believe it is 2: 00 EST over there.

Welcome to our fair city!

Prices tend to be higher in town but there are ways around that. Thomas goes to I think a B & B in either Cambridge or Somerville. I highly recommend being car-free.

As for places to see, one that is often not on people's itineraries is the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. It is quirky and small and beautiful, and very, very Boston.

Hi, Spidergal! You're in for a treat of a city.

As Jespah said, I like the Morrison House in Somerville. Somerville is a suburb, maybe a 20-minute subway ride west of Boston. It has lots of students in it, which means good ethnic restaurants around its little center. The Morrison House is a bed&breakfast, five walking minutes from the subway. (I second Jespah on being car-free in Boston itself.) It's a pretty wood building, built around 1900 I would say. It has a friendly owner and a shy cat that will eventually let you pet it because it's also curious. Most of the rooms are upstairs.

At $100-170 a room per day, the Morrison House is cheapish for the Boston area, though not for anywhere else in the nation. If you want something real cheap, you may want to look into youth hostels. I have no experience with these.

Only in Boston would $100 for a b&b be considered "cheapish." You can get a hotel room in one of the more seedy establishments in Manhattan for less than that.

Thanks, Jes and Thomas!

Morrison House sounds really cool. I'm totally a B&B person. Will shoot the owner a quick e-mail!

Also, looking at a place called 40 Berkeley. www.40berkeley.com. Anyone know if it's any good?

Cheers,
Spider

All I can tell you about 40Berkely is that the location is fab. You're right in the center of town, just minutes away from everything. I notice their promo says that their rooms are very affordable but they don't actually mention a price.

http://article.wn.com/view/2012/07/13/Back_Bays_Bostons_hottest_commercial_real_estate_spot/#/video

Google reviews says $103.

Thanks, Lustig, for weighing in. It's a hostel, but caters to all ages. A Bostonian friend suggested it.

I'm a stickler about location -- I feel more comfortable in locations that are buzzing with activity (especially in places that are new to me), so I guess 40 Berkeley could work.

They've got some harsh reviews on TripAdvisor, but everyone seems to be complaining about the non availability of air conditioning, and, on a couple of occasions, about breakfast. I guess I won't need AC during fall.

I've been to Boston many times. I walked the Freedom Trail. Loved it. I visited the Museum of Fine Arts. Loved it.

I ate a lotta good food. Sorry. I don't remember where.

For seafood, I recommend the Union Oyster House, right on the Freedom Trail, just down the street from Faneuil Hall. For a short time during the Revolutionary War the building was reportedly George Washington's HQ when he was in town. I have a friend from Cleveland, of all places, who insists on going to the Union Oyster House whenever he happens to be in Boston.

Same neighborhood also has Durgin Park's, a venerable Boston eatery that was reportedly Franklin D. Roosevelt's favorite place in Boston. Good solid New England fare.

For Italian cuisine you have to go to the North End. Some of the old landmarks are either gone or have changed hands and now have different names, but almost anything on Hanover Street or Salem Street is worth a visit. The North End is Boston's version of Little Italy; you're likely to hear more Italian than English spoken on the streets.

...taking notes here!

You sound like you are there for short hours, so I won't push you, but some a2k bostonians are wonderful, and think very well of you. You are probably already booked with your friend. But reach out if you need to.

Thanks, Roberta, for suggestions!

Thanks, Lusting, for suggestions on eating out!

I'm already so fascinated by the Freedom Trail. Going to put that on top of my to do stuff.

I'm probably going to spend one day with her. Keeping my options open for the second day.

Who all are in Boston? Would love to reach out.

RP and I are here, George is, too, and littlek and Monterey Jack.