We are taking a trip to Boston to look at colleges and I just wanted to confirm some things regarding transportation. We are visiting Tufts, MIT, Harvard, and Brown. Our plan was to rely on the subway and Amtrak(to get to Providence) exclusively for transportation. Does this seem like a good plan? I have never been to Boston and this entire plan was hatched by my son.
Is the subway easy to use? Should I buy tickets in Boston or ahead of time?
Are Amtraks usually on time for short trips like this one? I’ve only been on one train and it was a nightmarish experience.
Is this the best method of transportation in Boston?
Are there any other things that could cause problems?
Thank you. I am probably unnecessarily anxious about this. (I hope)
@trc164 We Made that exact trip minus Brown. We stayed at the Boston Marriott Cambridge. It was perfectly located to get to Harvard MIT and Tufts easily. Subway is right there and easy to use. Great restaurants nearby.
The T (subway) is easy to use. You can buy tickets when you arrive. You can take the commuter rail (Purple Line) to Providence from Boston. I am not familiar with Providence geography so don’t know how to get to Brown from the station.
T is very easy to use. You can print out a map of the subway system before you leave. Some mapping apps will give you directions for taking public transportation too. You can buy tickets at the individual stations that you will load with money. I suggest you buy each person in your group a Charlie Card. We had an issue once where we only bought one card for entire group and had to wait so many minutes between uses. Kind of a pain, took us 10 minutes to get everyone though! This may be a non issue now, not sure. Commuter rail is probably cheaper than Amtrack for getting to Providence.
I attended Tufts and Harvard. My daughter attended Brown and MIT. I guess I have it covered…LOL! Also, I now live in Cambridge, MA.
The subway (called the T) in Boston is easy to use and the best way to get between MIT, Harvard and Tufts (all quite close to one another but different stops on the Red Line). You don’t buy tickets in advance. You can get them in each subway station.
Taking a train to Providence is also a great plan. I think you can walk from the train station in Providence to Brown’s campus, but it is also a short cab ride, which may be worth doing. The train should be reliable. The two cities are an hour apart.
If everyone is wearing walking shoes the walk to Brown from the train is a lot of fun- but it’s hilly so not a comfy walk in flip-flops. Anyone downtown (where the train station is located) can point up the hill and show you where the Brown campus is (it overlooks downtown Providence).
Amtrak from Providence to Boston can be as inexpensive as $15 one way and takes 45 minutes to an hour,depending on how many stops there are. I’m not familiar with taking the commuter line as an alternative. If you book Amtrak from Providence into Boston, there are several potential stops in the Boston area on Amtrak. You want to book through to South Station. From South Station you can pick up the Red Line of the “T” which will have stops close to MIT (Kendall), Harvard (Harvard Sq.) and Tufts (Davis Sq.) Have fun! Your son did a good job in his transportation research.
The T (the subway part) doesn’t go all the way to Tufts - it goes nearby. Both googlemaps and the MBTA site show taking a bus from the T. Or you can take a taxi or uber.
You can buy individual ticket for the T, but it’s cheaper to use a Charlie Card, which is reloadable. We’ve never had trouble using a single Charlie Card for multiple people, but you could buy a Charlie Card for each person. The T site provides all the details on the difference between the card and the ticket. You pay a surcharge to use a ticket. http://www.mbta.com/fares_and_passes/charlie/ You can’t get the Charlie card at all stations - check the website for more info.
The T is definitely the best way to get around Boston.
MIT is Kendall stop, also near Central; Harvard is of course Harvard stop; and Tufts is Davis Square stop- all on the Red Line in that order, moving away from downtown Boston (outbound).
I live in Cambridge and still haven’t gotten around to buying a Charlie card. You can buy one, but you can also buy tickets right in the station, at kiosks, and credit cards are fine.
There is sometimes a lot of traffic going down the SE expessway toward Providence, or on 128, depending on the time of day. The train is a good option. It is an uphill walk to Brown from the train (very uphill) but doable and you can explore the campus, Thayer Street, and the historic district on the hill (also RISD) without a car.
The T commuter line is easier and more frequent from Boaton to Providence. No need to book ahead, just buy your tickets in South Station. You want the Providence/Stoughton line and can take any train that goes to Providence. Just check the schedule carefully as some of the trains go to Canton instead of Providence! But you’ll have much more time flexibility by taking the commuter rail rather than Amtrak as you don’t need to make reservations. If you have luggage, a taxi ride up the hill will be easier than walking but Brown students generally walk or get Uber rides to/from the station.
It is closer than I realized. I never go from one to the other - I go to them for separate things. It’s about 3/4 of a mile - not bad at all. Just make sure you have walking directions - Davis Square is not at the Tufts campus, like the MIT and Harvard T stops are.
I was at Tufts University today in fact. I went by car. However, if you take the T to Davis Square and walk to Tufts, it is just 7/10’s of a mile…a 15 min. walk and it is all along College Avenue. Pretty simple.
Good plan to us mass transit in the Boston area. Driving is difficult/slow, and parking is expensive. If you plan long walking stretches, think about having a plan B if it’s pouring rain.
Just returned from Boston University graduation. If it has what your student needs, I would highly recommend it. i would never, ever rent a car in Boston. uber is a piece of cake…we averaged 3 min or less from call to pickup. the Tis a breeze if it goes where you are going.
