Need Boston information, including driving directions

[SnowshoeCat]

This has nothing to do with cruising, but this board has become a great source of information. My mother and I are going to Boston next month for a few days. I haven't been there in about 20 years, since before I-93 came down and the Rose Kennedy Greenway went up.

 

So, I need some "T" information. We'll be staying at a Suburban hotel near a T stop, so I can park my car, and we'll have it available for some local visiting. I figure we'll only take 3 or 4 trips a day, so what is the best (or only?) way to pay? My mother is a senior. Do we have to get a card, or is cash still accepted?

 

Also, what is the preferred driving route back to the NYC area? (again, not cruising) When I lived on Cape Cod, the only choice was I-95. From Boston, there is the Mass Pike/I-84/Merritt/Hutch route, which is only a few miles more. The Hutch used to be a nice drive, but last time I was on it (long time ago) it seemed a little cramped in my compact car with all those monster SUV's around. And I-95 is just, well, I-95 ;)

 

Thanks so much - happy cruising!

[138east]

What hotel are you staying at?

[SnowshoeCat]

Right now we have a reservation at a Best Western in Quincy. I'm keeping my eyes open for deals, though.

[chengkp75]

This has nothing to do with cruising, but this board has become a great source of information. My mother and I are going to Boston next month for a few days. I haven't been there in about 20 years, since before I-93 came down and the Rose Kennedy Greenway went up.

 

So, I need some "T" information. We'll be staying at a Suburban hotel near a T stop, so I can park my car, and we'll have it available for some local visiting. I figure we'll only take 3 or 4 trips a day, so what is the best (or only?) way to pay? My mother is a senior. Do we have to get a card, or is cash still accepted?

 

Also, what is the preferred driving route back to the NYC area? (again, not cruising) When I lived on Cape Cod, the only choice was I-95. From Boston, there is the Mass Pike/I-84/Merritt/Hutch route, which is only a few miles more. The Hutch used to be a nice drive, but last time I was on it (long time ago) it seemed a little cramped in my compact car with all those monster SUV's around. And I-95 is just, well, I-95 ;)

 

Thanks so much - happy cruising!

 

I've done both routes. One son lives in Boston, one in NYC. I-95 isn't too bad depending on time of day. The other route, through Hartford, is good for most of the way, but the Merritt/Hutch parkways at times feels like the Watkins Glen road race with the short entrance ramps and stop signs. I've developed a hybrid route that goes Mass Pike, I-84, I-95. Of course, we use I-495 around Boston when coming from Maine. I was in Boston a couple of weeks ago, and the Mass Pike around the I-93 area was under construction, with one lane both ways. Not sure if it is still that way.

[138east]

More questions. What days of the week will you be at the Best Western? Do you need to be on the South Shore in order to visit people?

 

The good thing about that Best Western is that the hotel shuttle will drop you off at the T. You have to get a Charlie Card or a Charlie ticket. With the card fares are $2.00 and with the ticket $2.50. You can use cash or credit card in the machine to buy tickets. You have to look around for a T employee to get a card.

 

I'm not sure if you can get a senior ticket from the ticket machines. I have a senior Charlie card and I had to go to Downtown Crossing to get it.

[SnowshoeCat]

Is the Charlie ticket just a fancy name for a plain ol' ticket? Can I put a certain amount on it (say $10) and just refill as necessary (like in New York and Washington)? I did check their website, honest.

 

We chose the Best Western for a few reasons. One was cost. It's certainly not cheap, but it seems to be a good deal. Free parking, free breakfast, and we want to see the Adams sites and JFK library. The T is nearby. And when we leave to go back to NY, we'll be that much closer than if we were on the north shore.

 

We'll be there Sunday through Thursday.

 

Thanks for the info.

[138east]

Is the Charlie ticket just a fancy name for a plain ol' ticket? Can I put a certain amount on it (say $10) and just refill as necessary (like in New York and Washington)? I did check their website, honest.

 

We chose the Best Western for a few reasons. One was cost. It's certainly not cheap, but it seems to be a good deal. Free parking, free breakfast, and we want to see the Adams sites and JFK library. The T is nearby. And when we leave to go back to NY, we'll be that much closer than if we were on the north shore.

 

We'll be there Sunday through Thursday.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

Ok so you want to do stuff in that area and you will be there not on a weekend. The Charlie Ticket is a paper ticket and you can out money on it. The Charlie card is a plastic card and you can put money on it. You can put all the fares on a single ticket/card.

 

From Quincy I would take I95 back to NY and cut over to the Merritt in Milford CT. If you have a small car I would imagine the trucks would be much more annoying on a weekday on I95 than the larger cars on the Merritt. We just drove northbound a week ago Sunday and decided to try I95. Ultimately we had to cut over to the Merritt in Stamford because of the awful weekend traffic.

[SnowshoeCat]

It's funny. For some reason trucks don't bother me too much, unless I'm boxed in or just happen to line up with one that we're always passing each other up and down hills.

 

We'll probably take I-95 to start, in case my mother wants to visit a friend in Rhode Island. Then we'll just see how things are as we get closer to the city.

 

Thank you both. Carole, I just want to add another vote for your info about Bayonne. I had no problems when I went down a few weeks ago.

 

And chengkp75, I love your posts with all the technical and procedural information. Really. I love learning how things work, and find it all very interesting.