Beacon Hill

Beacon Hill view

Behind the golden-domed State House, this is a hill of tree-lined, brick and cobblestoned streets where the seriously rich live in Federal-style homes in a villagey atmosphere.
The smartest and prettiest are Louisburg Square and Mount Vernon Street. Charles Street has the restaurants and speciality shops.

Prudential Centre Skywalk
For an overall view of the city, there’s no better way to get your bearings than from the 50th floor of the Prudential Tower - a 360-degree view plus audio-visuals. Allow for getting side-tracked as you walk through all the glass-walled shopping malls en route.

The Big Dig
A $14 billion construction project that’s moving an interstate highway underground - without closing the road - is the talking point of Boston. It’s making engineering history, creating traffic chaos, and is due to be completed early 2005.

Top Tip
Many museums, hotels, restaurants, theatres and transport companies offer discounts for seniors (usually 65 and over) - but often don’t advertise the fact. It’s always worth asking, and have identification with you that shows your birthdate.

Back Bay
Stretching back from the Charles River, fashionable brownstone buildings on tree-lined streets combine smart apartments, cafes, galleries, restaurants and some serious shopping opportunities on Newbury Street.

Copley Square is famous for the red and gold-stoned Trinity Church, reflected in the towering glass of Hancock Tower. Pop into the Boston Public Library to view its impressive interior, and look for the Tortoise and the Hare sculpture that marks the end of the Boston Marathon

Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Museum's courtyard

Built in the style of a 15th-century Venetian Palace, this former home of a Boston society lady is filled with her eclectic collection of paintings and sculpture - including works by Botticelli, Degas, Matisse, Rembrandt, Rubens, Titian and Whistler - plus furniture and architectural details from many European palaces and churches, all set around a plant-filled, skylit courtyard. The paintings are badly captioned and hung, but the whole place is so atmospheric it’s definitely on the must-see list. Concerts are often held there, too. Art-lovers with time to spend should head for the impressive Museum of Fine Arts. The nearest T stop for both art museums is Museum on Green Line E.

Harvard

Harvard University

Across the Charles River in Cambridge (take the Red line T to Harvard Square), Harvard University’s stately buildings stand among trees and grassy squares. Harvard Yard is a must-see as is the buzzy Harvard Square, packed with book and CD stores, clothes shops, cafes, restaurants and the inevitable souvenirs. Harvard University also boasts three excellent art museums: the Fogg, with 14th- to 20th-century European masterpieces; the German-led Busch-Reisinger; and the Arthur M Sackler Museum, with exquisite collections of Asian and Islamic art. Admission is free on Wednesdays and Saturday mornings.

Book for Sunday brunch at The Original House of Blues, where Gospel meets down-home southern cooking. Or sample the evening jazz and blues music.