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Cityscape of Boston, Massachusetts photo courtesy of Bert Kaufmann on Flickr
After six months of being stuck inside for the long winter, New Englanders bolt for the outdoors at the first hint of spring. The city of Boston comes alive almost immediately after the first 50-degree day and there’s no shortage of things to do outside.
Here are four great springtime activities to do the next time you’re visiting Beantown:
For sports fans: take in a game at Fenway Park
No baseball park in the country is more synonymous with the sport than Boston’s Fenway Park. It’s small, old and, by league standards, outlandishly expensive. But that doesn’t stop the team from selling out almost every game every single season.
To score the cheapest possible tickets, check out a midweek game in the afternoon. If you’re willing to forego a seat entirely, the park offers limited standing room-only tickets that start around $25.
For history buffs: a historic tour just outside the city
Perhaps no American destination can claim a history as rich and fascinating as the area in and around Boston. It played a critical role in the nation’s most important historical moments, including both the Civil War and Revolutionary War.
Take a short trip to the surrounding cities of Concord, Lexington or Cambridge to experience some of the most famous sites in the history of the United States. National Historic Landmarks such as Cambridge Common and Harvard Yard are all nearby, as well as the original homes of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Travelers can of course take a free self-guided tour on their own. A professionally guided American History Tour is another option to fully appreciate the area’s history.
For culture lovers: take a public art tour
Download a free map of the city’s outdoor art installations from the Cambridge Arts Council. This public arts program offers the largest collection of public art in the entire state with more than 170 pieces in total. Visitors are invited to a self-guided walking tour throughout the city to find and appreciate this diverse collection.
For nature lovers: get outdoors
Visitors needn’t look far from downtown to escape to the great outdoors. Not far from Boston’s sprawling urban core, the Audubon Society provides for 51 wildlife sanctuaries totaling more than 34,000 acres of conserved land throughout the state.
Just outside the city, visitors will find Blue Hills Reservation – a 7,000 acre oasis of green for more adventurous travelers. Its 125 miles of trails are open to all and accessible year-round, but the prized hike is up Great Blue Hill. At a towering (by New England standards) 635 feet, it’s the highest in the chain with sweeping views of the entire Boston area.
-Contributed by Mike Richard
