So many ways to see the city, so little time
There's more to Boston than Fenway Park (or so we're told). Here are a few more interesting ways to experience the city.
Food tours
The Chocolate Tour
Boston is known for the part it has played in American history, but few outside the hard-core chocophile crowd know that the Hub also played a central role in the history of chocolate consumption. For instance, did you know chocolate chip cookies first made an appearance on the culinary scene at the Toll House Inn near Whitman in the 1930s? The three-hour tour takes visitors to several stops, including the Omni Parker House hotel, where the Boston cream pie got its start, and the Langham Hotel, home of the Chocolate Bar buffet.
North End Market Tour and Chinatown Tour northendmarkettours.com
Longtime North End resident and chef Michele Topor is doing her best to keep some of the authentic Italian feel of the neighborhood intact with her tours of the North End's Italian markets, wine shops, coffee shops, and other food purveyors. The tour takes participants through the cobblestone streets as they sample Italian meats, cheeses, and desserts. Topor also offers a similar tour of Chinatown's markets and food shops, which includes a dim sum lunch and instruction on how to order and eat without making a fool of yourself.
Active tours
Urban AdvenTours Bike Tour urbanadventours.com
If you're looking for a truly unique way to see the city, check out the view from a bike as you wind your way through the Back Bay, Beacon Hill, Cambridge, or the Greenway. The Art and Architecture tour highlights Boston's landmark buildings, and the Minuteman Bikeway tour takes riders out to the 'burbs for a look at some of the historical spots along the Minuteman Trail.
Boston by Foot bostonbyfoot.org
Maybe bikes aren't your thing. You can still get your exercise and learn something at the same time with one of the Boston by Foot walking tours. The most intriguing one may be the Boston Underfoot tour, which explores the history of the endless engineering projects that have made Boston the city it is today, from the creation of Back Bay to the elimination of the West End to the Big Dig.
Offbeat tours
Ghosts and Gravestones ghostsandgravestones.com/boston.htm
Not only will you get an inside look on this tour at two of the city's oldest cemeteries, Copp's Hill and Granary Burying Ground, you'll also get a creepy tale of Boston's long line of serial killers. You'll also delve into the symbolism and imagery often found in graveyards, which always makes good dinner party conversation.
Boston Movie Tour
You've been to Cheers, and you've had a beer at the L Street Tavern. But any true Boston movie buff knows there are many other cool locales that have been featured on-screen. On this bus tour, you can check out the building where Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio have it out at the end of "The Departed," ponder the meaning of life from the bench where Robin Williams and Damon sat in "Good Will Hunting," and see where Ally McBeal and her neuroses dwelt.
