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Library Room
Newbury Boston
Contessa Restaurant
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Charles River Waterfront
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Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
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Old North Church
Boston Public Garden
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Faneuil Hall
Acorn Street
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New England Aquarium
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Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
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Newbury Street With eight blocks filled with salons, boutiques, and fabulous dining, Boston’s Newbury Street has something for everyone. As one of Boston’s legendary shopping and dining districts, Newbury Street is a destination in and of itself and provides a variety of unique experiences while you’re on vacation. Here, you’ll find beautiful storefronts, architectural gems and a multitude of choices for a little retail therapy.
1. The Newbury Boston Nestled where Back Bay meets Beacon Hill, the Newbury Boston’s story is as American as Boston itself. Opened by Edward Wyner in 1927 as the nation’s first Ritz-Carlton hotel, the Ritz-Carlton Boston was built taller and grander than anything else in Boston’s Back Bay. Famed for its social scene and hospitality that included cocktails overlooking the Public Garden, the Ritz-Carlton Boston was a regal icon for any Bostonian lucky enough to stay in the hotel. A beloved landmark, a distinctive symbol of Boston’s rich history, and a striking homage to the neighborhood they call home, the Newbury Boston is a timeless emblem of the city’s modern heritage.
2. Library Room The Library at The Newbury represents the mind and soul of the legendary hotel where the curious gather to enjoy exclusive access to a modern lounge. In the Library lounge, guests can enjoy select provisions from The Street Bar, an unmatched selection of contemporary artwork, and shelves of literary reads for every interest. The Library at The Newbury is the perfect place to let your mind roam free, whether in a book or over cocktails and conversation. Curated and sourced in collaboration with the Boston Public Library and Trident Booksellers, the riveting collection spans a wide array of interests and includes fiction, poetry, fashion, history, food, travel, art, and architecture. Readers will find the elegant words of Phillis Wheatley, Longfellow, and Thoreau; the empowering oratory of John F. Kennedy; and current works by Ibram X. Kendi, Dennis Lehane, Nakia Hill, Celeste Ng, Jhumpa Lahiri, Louise Glück, and Ben Mezrich. Each book was carefully selected to celebrate the city and awaken the curious mind to adventure, creativity, history and style.
3. Contessa Restaurant Reigning over Back Bay and The Boston Public Garden, Contessa is the crown jewel of dining atop one of Boston’s most glamorous hotels, The Newbury Boston. Delightfully reimagined, this rooftop destination is inspired by the old-world resorts of Europe and the lasting estates of Italy where classic grand trattoria cuisine awaits. Designed like a conservatory with a glass roof and retractable panels for open air dining, the rooftop space feels like a “garden in the sky” where diners relax in a sun-soaked room for breakfast, lunch, or brunch or take in the sunset and starry skies over cocktails and dinner. Designed by Ken Fulk, Contessa is the latest culinary destination from hospitality powerhouse, Major Food Group, led by founders Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi, and Jeff Zalaznick.
4. Boston Public Garden Established in 1839, the Public Garden was America’s first public botanical garden. Surrounded by a Victorian cast-iron fence, the garden features meandering paths decorated by statues, fountains, various trees and plants, and a six-acre pond with swan boats for visitors to ride. Changing little since the mid-19th century, the Garden offers visitors a retreat from the city’s urban environment. Designed in 1859 by George Meacham, the 24-acre Public Garden features a cast-iron surrounding fence, a suspension bridge spanning the pond, and plantings that included 1,500 trees and 90,000 bedding plants. As one of Boston’s greatest attractions, the Public Garden includes magnificent statues like Make Way for Ducklings, Ether Monument, and George Washington on horseback, as well as beautiful Swan Boats rides around the Garden’s Lagoon.
5. Charles River Considered to be one of Boston’s premier public spaces, the Charles River Basin began its makeover in 1894 with Charles Eliot's plan for it to become the centerpiece of Boston’s regional park system. Eliot’s plan was realized through the riverfront becoming public domain in the 1890s, the Charles River Dam’s completion in 1910, and the Esplanade’s creation in 1926. After the Storrow Drive’s completion in 1949, a new island was developed along the Esplanade that created two lagoons.
In 2002, a Master Plan for the Charles River Basin was developed, creating a vision of the Charles’ parks, parkways, riverbanks, and watershed. Utilizing funds from Boston’s Big Dig, the New Charles River Basin includes the North Point, Nashua Street, and Paul Revere Parks. Today, the basin’s parks include natural areas, recreation fields, playgrounds, wildlife habitats, and paths for cycling, walking, and rollerblading.
Photo by Beyond My Ken
6. Faneuil Hall Built by Peter Faneuil in 1742, Faneuil Hall was both a home for merchants and a platform for the country’s most famous orators. It is where colonists protested the Sugar Act in 1764 and established the doctrine of no taxation without representation, Samuel Adams rallied Bostonians to the cause of independence from Great Britain in the Hall, and George Washington toasted the nation there on its first birthday. Over the years, Faneuil Hall has played host to speakers like Oliver Wendall Holmes, Susan B. Anthony, Bill Clinton, and Ted Kennedy, living up to its nickname, “The Cradle of Liberty.” To better accommodate the merchants and shoppers, Faneuil Hall was expanded in 1826 to include the Greek Revival style Quincy Market. Falling into disrepair by the mid-1900’s, the marketplace was revitalized in the early 1970’s through the efforts of Jim Rouse, Benjamin Thompson, and Mayor Kevin White. Today, historic Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market are still Boston’s central meeting place, offering an unparalleled urban marketplace for over 18 million visitors annually.
Photo by R Boed
7. Beacon Hill / Acorn Street One of Boston’s oldest neighborhoods, Beacon Hill is known for its charming, narrow cobblestone streets, federal style row houses, and gaslit streetlamps. It’s also considered to be one of Boston’s most desirable and expensive residential areas. A visit to Boston isn’t complete without a stop here. Whether to shop, dine or wander about admiring the architecture and numerous historic sites, there are so many things to do in Beacon Hill. When visiting Beacon Hill, make sure to visit Acorn Street, one of the most photographed streets in the city. Acorn Street offers visitors a reminiscent ride back to colonial Boston. Lived in by artisans and trades people in the 19th century, today the row houses within this lovely street are considered to be a most prestigious address.
Photo by Felix Lipov
8. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Founded in 1870, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, stands on the historic homelands of the Massachusett people, a site which has long served as a place of meeting and exchange among different nations. Opened in 1876 on Copley Square, the MFA was then home to 5,600 works of art. Over the next several years, the collection and number of visitors grew exponentially, and in 1909 the Museum moved to its current home on Huntington Avenue. Today, the MFA is one of the world’s most comprehensive art museums with a collection of nearly 500,000 works of art. They welcome over one million visitors each year to experience art from ancient Egyptian to contemporary, special exhibits, and educational programs. The Museum has undergone major expansion and change in recent years; 2010 marked the opening of the Art of the Americas Wing, with four levels of American art from ancient to modern. In 2011, the Museum’s west wing was transformed into the Linde Family Wing for Contemporary Art, with new galleries for contemporary art and social and learning spaces. Improved and new galleries for the MFA collections are always opening.
Interesting things to look out for: 1. Newbury Boston
Enjoy this beloved Boston landmark, where the bustle of the Back Bay is your playground and the idyllic Boston Public Garden your front yard.
2. Library Room
Library at The Newbury is the perfect place to let your mind roam free, whether in a book or over cocktails and conversation.
3. Contessa Restaurant
Dine on fine cuisine on this rooftop "garden in the sky".
4. Boston Public Garden
Riding the swan boats on the Public Garden's beautiful pond is a must for all visitors.
5. Charles River
This beautiful river venue is the perfect place to cycle, jog, stoll and picnic.
6. Faneuil Hall
Take a walking tour through “The Cradle of Liberty”. Enjoy the world-class street performers just outside.
7. Beacon Hill / Acorn Street
Stroll down the cobblestone street lined with Federal-style and Victorian brick row houses lit by antique lanterns
8. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
From ancient artefacts to contemporary masterworks, this massive collection of over half a million pieces is a day trip in itself. Don’t miss the Art of the Americas wing.
9. Old North Church
Visit the steeple where two lanterns signalled that the British were marching to Lexington. Experience this unique and stirring monument to liberty.
10. New England Aquarium
Be mesmerized by the 200,000-gallon Caribbean coral reef exhibit teeming with more than 1,000 marine animals.
11. Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
An untouched oasis in the heart of the city, this museum was built from authentic Italian columns, windows, and more to create a 15th century Venetian palazzo.