Day 1
Boston Arrival
Depart London Heathrow – 11:05
Arrive Boston – 13:10
Journey Time – 7 hours
On arrival we recommend that you DO NOT collect your car but rather take one of the metered cabs (your approx fare will be $25 – this is not included in your prepaid holiday cost) from the airport to your hotel. We recommend this as you will be tired and will only pay high fees to park the vehicle during your 3 days in the city. Of course if you do prefer to collect your vehicle on arrival or would like us to arrange private transportation for you to your hotel, this can be done for an additional cost.
Famous for everything from the Red Sox and Paul Revere to Cheers and clam “Chowdah” Boston is part history lesson, part modern metropolis, a city filled with a multitude of interesting things to see and do. The Freedom Trail, a well preserved pedestrian path that weaves in and out of historic neighbourhoods, is the highlight of Boston for visitors. The 2.5 mile red brick walking trail leads you to 16 nationally significant historic sites, every one an authentic American treasure. Preserved and dedicated by the citizens of Boston in 1958, when the wrecking ball threatened several important places, the Freedom Trail today is a unique collection of museums, churches, meeting houses, burying grounds, parks, the historic ship Constitution (know as Old Ironsides), and historic markers that tell the story of the American Revolution. You can take a self-guided tour or one of the many tours available through the National Park Service. Tours begin every half hour from the park visitor centre at 15 State Street opposite the Old State House. If you prefer to ride, you can take a trolley tour, which is an unofficial guided tour, but does include many of t
he most important sites along the Trail including Old Ironsides, the Paul Revere House and the Old North Church. Plan to stop and eat at Faneuil Hall, once the primary meeting place for America’s revolutionaries and now a bustling market of restaurants and shops.
Overnight – Boston
Day 2
Boston
If you experienced the Freedom Trail yesterday, today a myriad of possibilities for exploring await. There are always a variety of exhibits at the Boston Museum of Science. Cheers, of the famous television show of the same name, is located on Beacon Hill. The Sam Adams Brewery is a recent addition, founded in 1984. The Boston Museum of Arts, founded in 1876, has an outstanding, world-renowned collection that includes some 450,000 items. Nearby is the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, designed as a fifteenth century Italian palazzo, to house a collection of European art. Within the palace is a courtyard garden that has the character of a small Italian garden with a mosaic design in the middle of the courtyard. The New England Aquarium is one of the best in the country and not far away is the North End where you can imagine yourself in Italy and enjoy a delicious authentic Italian meal. There’s also the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library, Newbury Street, with some of the best antiquing in America, and public transport is readily available to Cambridge, just across the River Charles, which is home to famous Harvard University and lively Harvard Square.
Overnight – Boston
Day 3
Boston
Since there is so much to see and do in Boston, you may want to explore the city with a Go Boston Card in hand which provides admission to a whopping 33 attractions in Boston proper and many more in the region. In town the pass includes a Two-Day Beantown Trolley Tour Pass on the big red trolley that takes you all over town with 19 stops near more than 100 sites, Boston Duck Tours, New England Aquarium, Museum of Fine Arts, Liberty Fleet Tall Ships Adventure, Charles River Boat Tours, the Old North Church and more. A 3 day pass also includes admissions to the House of Seven Gables, Salem Witch Museum and the Salem Heritage Walk, all on your way to Cape Ann tomorrow.
Overnight – Boston
Day 4
Boston to Cape Ann
33 Miles
Pick up your car in the morning in Boston then travel along the Essex Coastal Scenic Byway to experience the best of coastal New England – rocky shorelines, working seaports, vibrant cities, quaint villages, colonial era farms, and a wealth of period architecture ranging from First Period houses to Gilded-Age mansions. At Salem visit the Salem Witch Museum which tells the true story behind the Salem witch trials of 1692 and provides context for understanding the phenomenon of “witch hunts” and witchcraft in general from the Middle Ages to modern times. At the historic fishing port of Gloucester view the Fisherman’s Memorial Statue which is symbolic of the rugged Gloucester fishermen of whom more than 10,000 have lost their lives out of Gloucester waters.
Overnight – Cape Ann
Day 5
Cape Ann
A relaxing day to explore the area, visit picturesque Rockport, once a fishing village and now a popular art colony. Take a stroll along Bearskin Neck, a jut of land with a walking street lined with fishing shacks that have now been converted to art galleries, restaurants and smart shops. It’s a short drive inland to Essex where alongside the Essex River the Shipbuilding Museum celebrates the days when Essex “ruled the seas” with wooden, two masted schooners. The town is also considered by many to be America’s Antique Capital with more than thirty antique shops within a mile of each other making it a collector’s paradise. Another historic town is Newburyport, birthplace of the United States Coast Guard, where the harbor is still a vital and important part of the community. A Coast Guard station remains a part of the town to this day and there are numerous shops offering items that are sometimes unique to the area.
Overnight – Cape Ann
Day 6
Cape Ann to the Berkshires
201 Miles
Leave the coast this morning and drive to western Massachusetts, stopping at tiny Deerfield whose fascinating history dates back to the late 1600’s when it was frontier outpost subject to attacks by the local Pocumtuck Indians. Not so much a ghost town as a ghost of a town where the houses are in their original location on a mile-long thoroughfare called simply “The Street” along which you can walk to view the historic homes and yards. From Shelburne westwards you follow the Mohawk Trail tracing the tracks of the Mohawk tribe that marched this route to destroy the Pocumtucks in a fierce battle in earlier times. This is one of the oldest roads in the nation and best of all parts of the ancient path still exist and are available for visitors to hike. The byway also has over 100 attractions to see, ranging from old pilgrim churches, to the beautiful statue “Hail to the Sunrise,” to the gorgeous one-of-a-kind Bridge of Flowers. At the western end of the trail, nestled in a hollow, is the pretty town of Williamstown where the Sterling & Francine Clark Art Institute is well worth a visit. This fine art museum has outstanding collections of French Impressionists, Old Master, and American paintings set amid park-like grounds dotted with walking trails and picnic tables. Home for the next two nights will be Lenox in the heart of the Berkshires, a region of serene and natural beauty.
Overnight – The Berkshires
Day 7
The Berkshires
Within a natural barricade of mountains, the Taconic range to the west and the Hoosac Range and Berkshire Hills to the east, the Berkshire Valley remained remote and unsettled for more than a century after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth. The remoteness of the area attracted Mother Lee’s Shakers, who saw it as a personal wilderness in which to follow their journey to find and serve God, they were followed by writers such as Hawthorne and Melville who wrote Moby Dick while staying here. Later the Berkshires became not only a refuge and inspiration but a playground for those who suddenly found themselves millionaires in the late 19th century. The twin legacies of culture and leisure are yours to enjoy and you should not miss a visit to the Hancock Shaker Village to marvel at their simple life and the elegance and simplicity of their furniture and artifacts that are preserved here. Another “must see” is the lovely village of Stockbridge that started as an Indian mission and now is home to the Norman Rockwell Museum containing a large collection of America’s famous illustrator and painter.
Overnight – The Berkshires
Day 8
The Berkshires to Chatham
203 Miles
An early start this morning heading back to the coast with the option to stop at Old Sturbridge Village, an authentic recreation of a rural New England community in the early 1800’s. The village is comprised of homes, shops, a General Store, schoolhouse, bank and tavern while craftsmen in period costume recreate the life of that time by demonstrating spinning, weaving, smithing and animal tending. Later the smell of the salt sea air greets you as you cross the Sagamore Bridge on to Cape Cod, the famous peninsular that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean. The Cape has some of the best beaches and warmest waters on the east coast as well as some of the prettie
st villages and you’ll have time to explore over the next few days. The next four nights will be in Chatham, the quintessential Cape Cod village by the sea which stands at the Cape’s knobby elbow surrounded by water on three sides with its famous light house guarding the headland with wonderful views of the ocean.
Overnight – Chatham
Day 9
Excursion to Provincetown & Whale Watch Cruise
This morning drive to the colorful and fascinating little town of Provincetown at the very tip of Cape Cod. Whaling ships ruled the harbor in the 1800’s and it’s still a fishing port today, but now the fishing fleet goes as far as the Grand Banks for cod and haddock. Being surrounded by water on three sides Provincetown has the perfect light so favored by artists and the town is renowned for its vibrant art community and has attracted a wide spectrum of people who have made it their home. Tolerance is the rule here and Bohemian lifestyles intertwine with classic New England morals. Artists live side by side with traditional fisherman and during the summer Commercial Street is filled with the most cosmopolitan mix of people, exploring the art galleries, tiny seafood restaurants, shops, narrow streets and pretty gardens. During the morning explore the town, then after lunch enjoy an included a whale watch cruise (weather permitting) for an exciting adventure to view these majestic marine mammals. Your cruise is guided by an expert naturalist, humpback whales are normally seen and you’ll never forget your first sighting of a whale blowing after a deep sea dive. Return to Chatham in time for dinner after an interesting and exciting day.
Overnight – Chatham
Day 10
Chatham
A leisurely day to explore the Cape with its pretty villages and abundant attractions, including the Cape Cod National Seashore with 40 miles of pristine sandy beach, marshes, ponds and diverse birdlife. Chatham center, just a few minutes from the hotel, is probably Cape Cod at its picturesque best with smart shops, inns, small restaurants, crooked lanes lined with grey-shingled houses and some typically colonial-style white churches. The town was made for leisurely walking and the faint wisp of crisp sea air makes this an enjoyable diversion.
Overnight – Chatham
Day 11
Nantucket Island Excursion
An early start this morning for the drive to Hyannis (car parking fee) and the 09:10 am high speed ferry to pretty Nantucket Island. With its cobblestone Main Street shaded by giant elm trees; its magnificent homes of merchants and ship captains it is one of the best preserved towns in New England. A fully narrated tour offers a truly interesting view of America’s most scenic little island. In just over an hour, become acquainted with the “Little Grey Lady,” famous as the world’s foremost whaling port in the 18th century. Included are The Old Mill, “Sconset” Village with its rose-covered cottages, Low Beach, Sankaty Head Lighthouse, Cranberry bogs and Nantucket moors. After lunch take the late afternoon high speed ferry to Hyannis, return to your car for the short drive back to Chatham.
Overnight – Chatham
Day 12
Chatham to Martha’s Vineyard
65 Miles
Leave this morning for Martha’s Vineyard with time to explore Sandwich, the Cape’s oldest village (founded 1637) with its working grist mill and the Sandwich Glass factory where exquisite glass has been made since the mid 19th century. Nearby are the Heritage Museums & Gardens offering 100 spectacular acres of trees and shrubs, designed gardens, exquisite flowers and sweeping lawns. En-route you can also visit the pretty town of Falmouth, typically American with a little bit of everything, before driving to Woods Hole for the short ferry ride to the lovely island of Martha’s Vineyard (round-trip ferry tickets for you and your car are included).
Overnight – Martha’s Vineyard
Day 13/14
Martha’s Vineyard
Two days to relax on the island, a Mecca for summer visitors, that has played host to the rich and famous, including film stars and American Presidents. Tour the Vineyard to see the gingerbread cottages of Oak Bluffs, the handsome old mansions and tree-shaded streets of Edgartown and Gay Head cliffs in scenic Aquinnah. The interior of the island, with moors and farms, is as lovely as the shoreline and there are miles of bicycle paths connecting the main towns.
Overnight – Martha’s Vineyard
Day 15
Martha’s Vineyard to Boston and home
88 Miles
A last leisurely morning on the island and then drive to the ferry and continue to Logan Airport for your flight home. If you leave shortly after breakfast you have the possibility to visit Plymouth to see the Mayflower a replica of the ship that brought the Pilgrims here in 1620 and Plimoth Plantation, a living history museum where costumed interpreters speaking 17th century English depict life in a 1627 pilgrim village.
Depart Boston – 21:30
Arrive London Heathrow – 08:05 (Next Day)
Journey time – 6 hours 35 minutes
