Boston T-men need your help

Ok, I am going to propose to my girlfriend on Easter weekend next year. I want to fly to Boston, one of her favorite cities, to celebrate. What are some cool attractions to see, good restaurants (with price ranges), and good hotels. I saw a very nice one, the seaport, and there was a hell of a rate for 110 bucks a night for deluxe room. Anyone know if that is in a good area. I won’t be renting a car, so I would like to stay at a place where I would be close to everything. Thanks a lot

Show some class man. Propose at a Bruins game.

Dan Akroyd’s “House of Blues”
in Harvard Square is great place if you Like Bluesy funked up jazz kind of music and spicy food.

The atmosphere in there is also good. the cieling is made up of 2 foot by 2 foot raised plaster busts of famous musicians. As I recall, dinner for two with drinks and tip was about $75.00. That was back in 95 though, so prices may be higher now.

If you’re going to go all out like this, make sure she’s going to say “Yes!” =-) That said, give me some price ranges with which you’d be comfortable and I can give you lots of suggestions. Be forewarned though: Unless you’re from NYC or California, things here are going to seem expensive.

I would suggest you rent a car

I live 5 miles north of Boston. Your best bet is to get outside the city. There is a great hotel calle the Cape Ann Marina in Gloucester - about 25 miles N of Boston. Cape Ann is, IMO, one of the most beautiful places on earth. The hotal has an indoor pool and it is decent but not ritzy.

There are a million things you can do here. One of the better resturants is The Bay Tower Room. Downtown Boston. A little pricey but it won’t break you ~ 25/entree.

Gardner museum is also very good.

good night clubs are the rack and man ray.

Thanks guys for all the info, it is really appreciated. I am still in college, so I want to spend about 500-800 for hotel, food, activities. I’m underage, so I can’t get a rental. Any of you guys know about the seaport or that area? I didn’t know it would be that high, I’m from Indiana. So yes, everything will be pricey to me. And yes, she will say yes, we’ve been dating for 4 years. Remember, I’ll only be there for a weekend. Thanks for all your help!

Well, in all honesty Boston is not a large city; at least the downtown is relatively concentrated and easily walkable. I’m not certain about the Seaport area to which you’re referring, but it could be down by the World Trade Center, which is kind of out of the way from downtown and the Back Bay (the two areas you would most likely want to walk around).


I’m not an expert on hotels in the area, but the really ritzy ones would probably eat up your budget (The Ritz, the Four Seasons, The Boston Harbor Hotel, etc.). There is a Holiday Inn on Cambridge Street close to Government Center that might be more in your price range, and is relatively well located. Other than that, I would try Priceline or perhaps that Hotels.com site and pick something like the Boston Common or the John Hancock Tower for the proximity finder feature.


Now restaurants are more my speed. Depending on what you want, there are all sorts of options. The other poster recommended The Bay Tower Room, and that is an excellent choice – it’s about 40 stories up in the 60 State Street Tower, so you get a great view with your meal. Another restaurant up in the sky is the Top of the Hub, which is at the top of the Prudential Center. Neither has stellar food in my opinion, but both have good atmosphere. For other restaurants (and also window shopping for her) you almost can’t go wrong just walking down Newbury St. and Boyleston down in the Back Bay.


I also have two personal favorite restaurants to recommend – places with stellar food. The first is Mantra, which is about a block away from the Common on Temple Place. The food there is French with Indian spicing, and it is amazing. The vibe there is definitely funky and interesting. My other recommendation is Sel de la Terre, a seafood/bistro place down by the Aquarium. I think the wine list is more decently priced at Sel de la Terre than at Mantra (the prices for wine there are steep). Neither place is cheap, but neither will break the bank either.


As for something to do, I highly recommend taking a Duck Tour – I think they still operate in the winter time (this is my first winter here). If not, then a trolley tour is also good (I think the orange and green ones are best). You can also walk the Freedom Trail, go to the top of the Prudential Tower or the Custom House (you may also be able to go to the top of the John Hancock tower, but it was closed for awhile after 9/11). The Aquarium is fun, and it has an IMAX theater – another IMAX is at the Museum of Science. For regular museums, the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) and the Isabella Stuart Gardiner Museum are good. There are lots of shows down in the theater district, including the Blue Man group – and it’s easy walking distance there from downtown or the Back Bay. You can get discounted tickets the day of the show by going to a BOSTIX kiosk and seeing what they have left(there are two, located in Copley Plaza and at Quincy Market, respectively) – however, I don’t know if they put a student discount on top of their normal discount.


Of course, there’re always the Bruins or Celtics, but sports events aren’t necessarily considered “romantic” by the fairer sex. I recommend walking around in the Common and in the Public Garden, as well as around Beacon Hill looking at the brownstone apartments (some girls dig that). Also, I forgot to mention as you’re going to be here for awhile, make sure to eat in the North End (old Italian section of town – you’ll go through there when you walk the Freedom Trail) at least once, and go to Mike’s Pastry for cannoli.


OK, I just scratched the surface, but I hope that helps. I need to get back to work. =-) Good luck.

BB, you are a madman, thanks for such detailed descriptions, that was perfect. How long have you been a lawyer? My gf is going to law school in 2 years, and she is concerned over her gpa and LSATs. Anyway, is there a way I could have your email address if I had anymore questions, just so we wouldn’t have to go through the forum. thanks a lot

Another option you might explore is staying in Cambridge, right across the river. it may be a little cheaper than boston proper, is definitely as entertaining as boston and is easy to get around in as well as accessable to boston by mass transit, .75 for buses and $1 for trains.romantic restaurant-the spinnaker lounge at the hyatt regency in cambridge, right on the river, top floor of the hotel and check this, the restaurant revolves so you get a view of cambridge, the river and the boston skyline. the seaport hotel is in south boston in the new waterfront development area, easy access to the airport through the new Ted Williams tunnel however it is seperated from the city proper by the channel, you would have to take a bus, shuttles probably provided by the hotel or a short cab ride to get to the mass transit or where the action is. i love that dirty water, boston your my home.

Harmon –

Technically, I'm not officially a lawyer until next Wednesday, when I'm sworn in to the Bar. I started work at my firm back in September, and I just graduated from law school back in May. BTW, I used to be a Princeton Review LSAT instructor and ran the graduate programs for the San Diego office, so I'd be happy to help answer some questions for you in that respect.

If you'd like to email me, go to my work's homepage www.tht.com and get up my attorney profile -- my name is Chris Schreiber (apparently there are forum rules against posting one's email address, but the info on how to find it is OK).

Again, best of luck with your proposal, and feel free to email queries about law school or Boston.

Hey, I am a student at Boston College, lived in the area my whole life.

a GREAT resturant that isnt too expensive at all is right in downtown boston, its called fire and ice. Its probably about $12-18 per person, but its incredible food.

hope she says yes.

know any value hotels if possible? Starting to realize boston is expensive for me, i’m from Indiana.

I personally like Trattoria Il Panino on295 Franklin Street, good food, nice atmosphere.
Good luck!

I dont know exact prices on hotels, but they are DAMN expensive in the Boston area. Do you have any friends or relatives you could stay with? Boston is a great city, but a REALLY expensive one. There is no way that you could spend 5-800 dollars total, when you include food and hotel and transportation. You can eat fairly nicely for cheap and the T is cheap, but hotels are gonna kill you. Now that I know you’re on a tight budget, another great resturant that isnt too pricey (and right near Fire and Ice) called Border something. Its either the Border Cafe or On the Border, or just Borders, I cant remember, but it too is right in downtown, off the T. (its mexican)

Hey, are you the same Bets that just started the Fat Fast thread on the T/N board? If so, does that mean that Pugs lives in Boston too? If so, where does he lift? He’s a big ol’ powerlifter, yes? I’m curious where the strong folks 'round these parts train.

Yeah, I am the same Bets. Pugs however lives in Maryland and goes to school in North Carolina. I WAS going to school in North Carolina with him, but had to come home for a semester, but we will be reunited in 2 weeks as I am going back to school in NC next semester and will be heading down to Maryland the 26th.

I just read your second post that you will only be there for a weekend, so perhaps I was premature in saying that you couldnt do it for 500-800. Just book the hotel early and you can perhaps get better rates. Consider staying in a not so fabulous hotel/motel in like the somerville area and then taking the T from somerville into the city. (only like a 5 min T ride)

You are still right though, my new goal is 1500 for the weekend. Thanks for the sommerville suggestion, I’ve looked at places like that. Difficult is finding out how long T rides are to different places, so the 5 minutes helps. thanks

You make me sad. I guess all the big, strong people live elsewhere as I originally suspected.

If there are any particular T times/distances you want to know, ask me. I know the city pretty well, and my sister lives in somerville so if I dont know, I am sure she will. Goodluck planning and if there is anything else I can do to help, give a shout.