Boston Local Attractions
See for yourself why Boston used to be known as the ‘Athens of America’. Starting with our central Boston Copley Plaza location in Back Bay, you’ll find Boston’s best sites, entertainment and activities nearby. We’re just a 15-minute drive from Logan Airport, one block from Amtrak, and an easy walk to Newbury Street boutiques and Beacon Hill’s Colonial cobblestone alleyways. We are also within quick transit access to all of Boston. Treat yourself to a cultured evening at the symphony, afternoon picnicking and watching swans Romeo and Juliet glide along the lagoon at the public garden or jaunt around Boston Common.
Boston Public Library
Not just a grand building with shelves of ancient tomes, the famed Boston Public Library is a celebrated landmark. It’s also right across the street from the hotel. Step through the giant bronze doors of this Italian palazzi-inspired 1852 monument, past murals, marble, ornate lanterns and Renaissance busts, and you’ll appreciate Boston’s moniker the “Athens of America.” Particularly cherished is the Bates Hall Reading Room with its dramatic coffered ceiling soaring 50 feet up. Housing 24 million volumes, the 1848 library is the largest of its kind in the country and home to many firsts. Go to see the paintings of John Singer Sargent, take a free guided tour or just sit and soak in the splendor. All programs and exhibits are gratis.
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Urban Adventours
Modern metropolis meets history in the birthplace of the American Revolution. Learn about our city’s traditions, tales, favorite haunts and 23 distinctive neighborhoods dating back some 400 years. Join one of specialist Urban Adventours’ professionally guided biking round-abouts or request a custom itinerary. Cycle past Boston’s waterways, monuments, Fenway Park, the Charles River and famed districts like Beacon Hill from the North to South End, then stop in at local haunts to sample the food and drink.
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The Freedom Trail
Tenth grade social studies a little foggy? Or perhaps you’re a bona fide history buff. Regardless, you’ll delight in a trip down The Freedom Trail. The 2.5-mile red brick road takes you in and around 16 national sites, museums, parks, burial grounds and historic markers illustrating Boston’s rich Colonial history and pivotal role in the 1775 American Revolution. Purchase an audio tour from our concierge team and make a day or afternoon of it. Don’t miss Paul Revere’s house and the Old Church where patriots hung lanterns to illuminate his famous midnight ride.
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Boston Common
Picture the Puritans strolling along the pastures back in the early 1600s at American’s very first public park. Colonists bought the original 44 acres from European settlers in 1634 to establish downtown’s Boston Common, an icon just a short walk from the hotel, also the start of The Freedom Trail. Today, the green urban oasis is 50-plus acres of lawns and flower beds, fountains and sculptures, sporting fields and playgrounds, a popular spray pool and carousel, plus the beloved Frog Pond. Join locals picnicking in summer where Redcoats once camped during the American Revolution and ice skating on the frozen pond in winter.
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Boston Public Garden
Large and leafy, this beloved community space dates to 1837 as the first public botanical garden in the U.S. Decorative and colorful, romantic and tranquil, with Victorian-style flower bed patterns, vibrant annuals and showy greenhouse-cultivated exotics, this horticultural showpiece is a favorite for Bostonians and visitors in all seasons. Amble along the park’s bucolic pathways, take a Swan Boat out for a spin on the lagoon (a garden tradition) and snap photos by the bronze statues of the Mallard family of Make Way for Ducklings fame, thanks to the Robert McCloskey children’s reading classic.
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Old Town Trolley Tours
Jump onto the long-running, old-time trolley for an engaging bus tour of Boston best hits. You’ll get a compelling mix of trivia, history and entertainment on the live tour of Old Town without needing to walk long distances. Choose from themed options such as the Boston Tea Party or Ghosts and Gravestones nighttime adventure. Forbes calls it “one of the 10 best hop-on-hop-off tours in the world.” Take your time, too, and disembark and re-board at your leisure. Purchase tickets at the Concierge Desk in the Fairmont Copley Plaza main lobby.
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New England Aquarium
Watch the Caribbean lionfish, moray eels, sharks and green sea turtles glide by a cleverly recreated coral reef in the enormous, four-story spiral glass tank at this waterfront wharf aquarium, just a few minutes from the hotel. Some 7,000 marine and land creatures reside here in interactive exhibits showcasing their natural environment, including doe-eyed harbor seals, giant Pacific octopus, Atlantic rays and some 90 penguins, plus exotic Amazon flora and fauna. Take the 1.5-hour whale-watching cruise (April to October) and watch a 3-D show at the IMAX theater, too, at one of the country’s most popular aquariums.
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Boston Duck Tours
See Boston from the water and the land as your amphibious WWII retrofitted bus-boat plunges in and out of the Charles River. Eighty-minute Duck Tours are cheeky and fun — an engaging way to learn about Boston. The live narrated tour hits all the major landmarks, including Bunker Hill, the domed State House, Fleet Center, Newbury Street, Prudential Tower, Government Center and Quincy Market, recounting the pivotal history of this city of firsts, tall tales, local lore, obscure facts and revealing details.
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