<p>I would more than appreciate some help deciphering bus/T schedules. S has his Berklee audition Mar 1st and we are so country Jeff Foxworthy can't even make a joke about us. On the other hand, I've been able to whip my way through the Atlanta airport since I was 11, even with no adult supervision. :D
PM me or leave some advice if you can help. We're staying a couple miles away... had to find a cheap place! The hotel does have a free shuttle to/from the airport that claims to also take to JFK Subway station, but some reviews said good luck with that.... so I'd like to know we could maneuver on our own if we had to.</p>
<p>My son and I were in Boston for the first time in early December. The Bus and T was really quite easy. You can find maps and schedules on the mbta.com website. We stayed in the Seaport District, which is outside the main part of the town. No hotel shuttle from the airport, but it was a quick and easy (and free) bus ride (Silver Line) from the terminal to the Seaport District, then a 2 minute walk to our hotel (free breakfast and a full kitchen in our room - would definitely stay there again!). Back to the bus stop and it was a quick ride (one stop) to South Station where we could catch the T to anything else we needed. We were only there for a couple of days, so we did the Charlie Ticket rather than the card. If you’re planning to get the card, be aware of the locations where it is sold. The tickets were available in machines in every station we were in and could be reloaded when needed. Using the T is easy - the lines are color coded and you’ll need to know which direction you’re heading (noted by the end station) Watch for your connecting stations to change to other lines. Use the Trip Planner (under Rider Tools) on the mbta website to figure out which lines and exits you need to take. Boston is very walkable. Don’t forget to see all the lovely history while you’re there! Oh, and watch where you’re walking. Boston pedestrians tend to step out in the road even when cars are coming. So, even when everyone else is going, look before stepping off a curb.</p>
<p>Thank you. I think I found out what I was doing. First of all, when I was trying to use the Trip Plannerl for some reason it wouldn’t let me change the time or day. Not sure what that was about. And on the Google route thingy, I didn’t change the time and evidently the bus doesn’t stop there at midnight. lol ---- All that being said, I had picked the Comfort Inn on Morrissey, which is about 6 miles away. But my MIL wants us to stay at the Midtown as it’s closer. I’m a frugal sort so the free breakfast and wifi at Comfort appealed to me. I was somewhat stunned that there’s a 10 dollar charge a day for wifi at Midtown… and we don’t have smart phones or any other kinda phones. So Son wanted the wifi to study and practice on Friday before his audition… Anyway, all things considered, is it worth breakfast/wifi to have to take the T and bus? Also, we’ll be flying in. Comfort allegedly has an airport shuttle… some reviews have been negative about that, though. Midtown doesn’t, does it?</p>
<p>Oh my goodness. I also just realized I have to somehow get us from our hotel to Logan for our 6am flight. Yes, my father in law scheduled me for a 6 am flight. Who does that!!!?!?!?!? It doesn’t look as though any of the shuttles/buses operate that early. I will no doubt have to find a cab? </p>
<p>shellybean, Glassharmonica and I both posted comments on the Midtown hotel on p.7 under the “Tell Us About Your Audition Day”–might be helpful for you. As far as 6 am–my guess is taxi, but others might have more info. </p>
<p>We stayed at the Residence Inn Boston Seaport. It was very handy for airport and city travel and came with all the free goodies you want (plus a kitchen!) and was reasonably priced compared to midtown. However, I’m pretty sure the Silver Line doesn’t run as early as you will need for our outbound trip. Looks like you’ll be taking a taxi. Edited to add: They don’t have rooms with two beds, but the living room did have a pull out bed my son said was nice and comfy, plus he liked having his own space.</p>
<p>We used cabs to and from the auditions and walked most of the time. A Tip about taking cab in Boston or anywhere for that matter…ask for expected fair when you call to reserve. I had a situation where driver took “the scenic route”. Going to boston conservatory from our hotel was $5, coming back was $14??? I realized there were lots of one way streets but that was ridiculous. Afterwards I did the expected fair trick and it went much smoother. </p>
<p>As a side note we stayed at the beacon street guest house for an absolute steal! There’s no elevator or breakfast but there is free wifi, a mini frig and microwave. Berkelee, boco and boston university are within walking distance (under a mile in my book). There are several other guest houses nearby that are also budget and student friendly. </p>
<p>Sguti40 not that I trust any Boston cab. I have had my share of issues with cabs in this town. But the cab driver might not have done that drive on purpose. I have been driving in and out of Boston for years. And still I screw up with the one-way streets….especially because I can’t trust my GPS. It is not unusual for me or even my DH (who is a much better driver than me) to find ourselves taking an accidental detour that takes us on an extra 10-15 minutes circle to repair our mistake. This is especially true these days where there are closed bridges and unmarked detours.</p>
<p><a href=“Hotels in the Area”>http://www.berklee.edu/boston-campus/hotels</a> Hotels that offer discounts to Berklee visitors.</p>
<p>shellybean I live around 45min from Boston. I actually had lunch today across the street from Berklee If you have a flight that early, I would suggest you stay in a hotel near/at the airport. They will likely be a lot less expensive and no cab fare. You can get on the T from the airport and get very close to Berklee. If you want to stay in town and looking for budget but good location stay at the Midtown. Personally I think it is better to stay at hotels at the airport than on Morrissey (not a very good neighborhood). Within a 1/2 block of the Midtown is the Coply/prudential mall with food court, starbucks, barnes and noble and lot’s of free wifi places. </p>
<p>The T is one of the best things about Boston-- it’s really excellent public transit. I wish every city had one.</p>
<p>The T has gotten better but it is still far from what it should be….especially the Green Line. All the equipment needs upgrades and I hold my breath every time I take the Redline over the river knowing what I know about the state of bridges and infrastructure. </p>
<p>Also many music students in Boston depend on Amtrak and various bus services for going between New York and Boston. Those services practically grinded to a halt this winter with the extreme weather and cold. </p>
<p>Oh well, it may leave something to be desired, but it’s a huge improvement over the public transit in my city. 
We also are on the Amtrak corridor. The worst thing is that the Bolt and Megabus lines have moved their New York depot to a very remote spot near the river. (Used to land right by Penn Station.)</p>
<p>Funny how different one’s perspective can be depending on context!</p>
<p>We’ve ridden the T for many years whenever we visit Boston, which is fairly frequently - we have relatives there. We have never had a problem in 27 years.</p>
<p>Thank you for all the comments/suggestions and thank you to those who messaged. We got a place next to the airport with 24 hour free shuttle. They also say they’ll drop off at the T, etc. So our plan is to take the T to Berklee (which we were already very excited about) Like I say, we don’t get out much! lol The most transportation action we see is the occasional tractor doing more than 3 miles an hour.</p>
<p>So excited for you and your son Shellybean. Hope you enjoy Boston. And good luck to your son with his Berklee Audition. I hope he nails it!!! </p>
<p>MaineLongorm No T problem!!! Wow that is impressive. I wish I could say the same for myself. Still I agree it is a nice system and I choose to take the T rather than drive into Boston if I can. It is funny because DH grew up overseas and he always complains about the MBTA especially compared to the city where he spent his HS years. And we adore the transportation infrastructure in London and use it all the time when we visit, but I know locals complain about it all the time.</p>
<p>My biggest complaint about the MBTA is that it shuts down so early. My college-post college age kids have had to call a cab or walk long distances home after they have left concerts that ended just after the T shut down. </p>
<p>ShellyBean-
You will be fine on the T, Boston is a pretty nice place in general, and getting to Berklee is not hard. Boston is a city, but it also isn’t as overwhelming as let’s say NYC can be. The area around Berklee is nice, symphony hall is up the road a bit, NEC is up the road, and so forth. </p>
<p>As far as transit goes, everyone tends to complain about their local transit system but seem to love others. People complain about the NYC subway but the fact that it is 24/7 and that it can get you where you need to go kind of gets lost…:). Last I heard, the British underground is going 24/7, and it makes a big difference having that. </p>
<p>So we are Here! In Boston. This is great. We’ve loved the T. Only thing that is a drawback is the bus we wanted to take to Kelly’s (wanted to try the Roast Beef! lol) stopped running before we got there. Thank you everyone. We have truly enjoyed our Berklee trip. And son felt like everything went really well, too!</p>
<p>Thanks for the update!</p>
<p>Good luck to you and your son, Shellybean!</p>