If you plan to visit a number of tourist sites, purchase a Go Boston Card, which provides entry to seventy top attractions while saving you up to half the cost of individual tickets. Begin your adventure on the Charles River aboard a "Duck," a World War II amphibious vehicle that has been renovated for sightseeing tours that go back and forth from land to water. From your vantage point, you will view such well-known sights as the golden-domed State House, Bunker Hill, Boston Common and Copley Square while learning interesting facts and insights about the city of Boston from your tour guide.
Back on land, hop on and off the double-decker Beantown Trolley, which allows you to disembark and stay for as long as you like at each attraction, then get back on the next trolley that comes along. One popular trolley route includes Haymarket Square, the Old State House and the New England Aquarium. Plan to stop at historic Faneuil Hall, a popular trolley stop, for a quick lunch. Other trolley routes feature Boston Seaport, Old Ironsides and the city's Little Italy section.
Experience the excitement of whale watching aboard a high-speed catamaran as you are whisked away from the Boston waterfront to the Stellwagen Bank Marine Sanctuary, 30 miles east of the city. Have your camera ready as you approach this feeding ground, home to humpback whales, white-sided dolphins and sea birds. Professional researchers onboard will teach you about migration, conservation, whale behavior and ecology to impart an understanding of these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat. You will also learn to identify different species and how scientists deep track of individual whales. You can buy tickets and depart for whale-watching tours at Long Wharf, a block away from Faneuil Hall, making this a convenient day trip for Boston tourists.
Visitors to Boston can be transported back in time by spending part of a day in Salem. Take the Newburyport/Rockport line from North Station in Boston, and in about 30 minutes you will feel as if you are back in the Salem Village of 1692. Keep an open mind as you tour the Salem Witch Museum and learn about witches and the infamous witch hunts that took place here. Set-ups with life-size figures, eye-catching lighting and informative narration highlight this tour.
Another Salem attraction is the Salem Heritage Walks, which are led by costumed guides who focus on the Age of Sail, a time when Salem rose from a small fishing village to a profitable port with merchant families and privateers of the American Revolution.
