Sea life
Depart from Boston's harbor to watch whales cresting through the water, gulping air in as they break the surface at the Stellwagen Bank Marine Sanctuary. If you’re a little wary of the waves, however, then the marine life at the city’s aquarium lets you keep your feet on solid ground.
Admire the yellow eyebrows of a Fiordland penguin, or the otherworldly suckers of a giant Pacific octopus as it presses its tentacles against the glass. This aquarium is full of the weird and wonderful - from flamboyantly camouflaged lionfish, which protect themselves using venomous spines, to cute balloon fish, which inflate suddenly when spooked. If you’re visiting on a budget, check out the free harbor seal exhibit and you can watch as they loll on their sides by the tank, before rolling into the water and using their streamlined bodies to glide effortlessly through it.
1 Central Wharf, Boston MA 02110.
Parks
One of America's oldest cities is also one of its greenest, and you'll find no shortage of places to slow the pace and unwind outdoors. Dodge fountains in Christopher Columbus Waterfront Park, or come face to face with snarling tigers and striped zebras in Franklin Park Zoo. There's also serenity to be enjoyed at this attraction…
Boston Public Garden
There’s something for everyone at Boston Public Garden, where kids will love watching the noses of squirrels twitching, and stomping through the vibrant foliage. As you’d expect in Boston, there’s plenty of history here too, and this was actually America’s first public botanical garden, having been created in 1837. Lie back on the grass, or take a ride on the glass-smooth surface of the serpentine in one of the swan boats, which have been operating for 130 years.
4 Charles Street, Boston MA 02116.
Hands-on exhibits
Kids learn best when they can get stuck in, rather than watch respectfully at a distance. Boston's kid-friendly museums use the latest technology to engage visitors, with the science museum in particular using touch screens and motion sensing cameras to bring the activities to life. Museum of Science
There’s a lot of history in Boston, so it’s refreshing to look forwards for once, at the Museum of Science. Your clan can use the sun's energy to power a house, as you learn about renewable electricity's role in the future, before listening to Harvard researchers as they explain how they're developing flying robots to pollenate crops instead of bees. Animated robots, a booming IMAX theatre, and an interstellar planetarium all help to make the Museum of Science a futuristic thrill for every sense.
1 Science Park, Boston MA 02114.
Family dining
The fun doesn't have to stop at meal times. Treat the family to towering burgers that they can barely get their mouths around, or introduce them to some healthy but lip-smacking seafood, in your pick of Boston's child-friendly restaurants.
Here’s some history that you can really get your teeth into. Boston's oldest pizza place has been serving the residents freshly-fired pizzas since 1926. While Pizza Regina has now expanded into a chain with locations across the city, nothing beats the creamy mozzarella and slightly spicy tomato sauce at this original pizza joint which sits in the heart of the Italian quarter.
11 1/2 Thacher Street, Boston MA 02113 .
Boston specializes in juicy seafood, and here's a great place to introduce the kids to the fruits of the ocean. Crack lobster claws, slurp salty oysters, and scoop out garlic mussels - all the while watching ships rolling in and out of the harbor. Kids will love the chance to see the jewel-colored fish in the aquarium, and they can choose pizzas or burgers from the kids menu if they’re feeling a little fishy about the seafood options.
255 State Street, Boston MA 02109-2617.
