Boston Common
The oldest city park in the United States — 50 acres where Puritan settlers put down roots starting in 1630.
Coming soon on iOS — be first to walk Boston offline.
Free and central, the Common anchors the start of the Emerald Necklace, a chain of parks and parkways running south all the way to Franklin Park. Beyond the open lawn, the Boylston Street edge holds a burying ground with real names attached to real history — an artist, a composer, a Tea Party participant, and one of America's earliest poets, all in a compact corner of downtown Boston.
What to look for
- Central Burying Ground on the Boylston Street side — graves of artist Gilbert Stuart and composer William Billings
- Samuel Sprague's grave — he took part in the Boston Tea Party and fought in the Revolutionary War; his son Charles is buried nearby as one of America's earliest recognized poets
- The visitor center on the Tremont Street side, the city's official orientation point before heading further in
Boston Public Garden sits directly to the west; the city visitor center is on the Tremont Street edge of the park.
Boston Common is one of 31 sights worth the detour in Boston, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the Boston pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in Boston
- Museum of Fine Arts BostonFour hundred and fifty thousand works of art under one roof — one of the most comprehensive collections in the Americas.
- TD GardenThe subway stops underneath it — TD Garden is built directly above MBTA's North Station, so you step off the train and you are already at the door.
- Harvard College ObservatoryOn the night of July 16-17, 1850, astronomers here made the first daguerreotype of a star — Vega — through a telescope that was the largest in North America.
- Fenway ParkThe oldest active ballpark in MLB, where a cramped city block accidentally invented some of baseball's most famous features.
- Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIn 1990, thieves walked out with thirteen works worth $500 million — none have ever come back, and the case is still open.
- Boston Public LibraryJohn Adams' personal 3,800-volume library lives here — and any Massachusetts adult can walk in and access it.