Heading to Boston and looking for an adventure? You just came to the right place. Here are the best day hikes in the city — and none are taxing to your budget.
The Freedom Trail
Follow the city’s iconic, 2.5-mile red brick line leading to 16 national historic sites — some dating back more than 250 years — from the State House to the scene of the Boston Massacre, the spark that lit revolutionary fervor in the colonies. For more information, call 617-357-8300, email info@thefreedomtrail.org or visit thefreedomtrail.org.
The Black Heritage Trail
Take a 1.6-mile walk through Beacon Hill, home to a once-thriving Black community that organized for equal rights and access to equal education. Many people in the neighborhood championed the abolitionist movement, and some housed former slaves on their journey along the Underground Railroad. The trail consists of 14 sites and begins at the Robert Gould Shaw Memorial on Boston Common, opposite 24 Beacon St. Although most stops along the trail are private homes, the last two — the Abiel Smith School and the African Meeting House — are part of the Museum of African American History. Self-guided tours can be conducted using maps and site brochures that can be obtained at the Abiel Smith School at 46 Joy St. National Park Service Rangers also offer guided tours. For more information, contact the museum at 617-725-0022, or visit maah.org.
Castle Island and Fort Independence
Castle Island is a 22-acre, land-bound island and site of Fort Independence, which was rebuilt after it was abandoned by the British during the Revolutionary War. Both are located at 2010 William J. Day Blvd. and are open from 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. The island offers beautiful views of the Boston Harbor islands and you can follow the shoreline to a series of parks and beaches. For more information, visit nps.gov/places/fort-independence-castle-william.htm.
The Emerald Necklace
Designed by famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted and completed in 1896 after almost 20 years of work, the 1,100-acre park system includes Franklin Park, the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, Jamaica Pond, Olmsted Park, the Riverway, the Back Bay Fens, the Commonwealth Avenue Mall, the Public Garden and Boston Common —each a thing of beauty. Located in Boston’s Jamaica Plain and Roslindale neighborhoods, the arboretum alone is a 281-acre free public park and botanical research institution featuring more than 15,000 plants, three ponds and abundant wildlife. It’s open daily and offers virtual walks and guided tours. Established in 1872, it is the oldest public arboretum in North America. Visit emeraldnecklace.org or emeraldnecklace.org/park-overview/emerald-necklace-map/.
The Charles River Esplanade
The Esplanade stretches for 3 miles one way on the Boston side between the Museum of Science and the Boston University Bridge. It’s home to beautiful waterfront gardens, historical monuments, recently renovated playgrounds, and multiple walking and biking trails. Community Boating offers sailing, kayaking and windsurfing lessons and activities from April 1 to Oct. 31. And when it’s warm, thousands of people head to the Hatch Shell Oval for picnics, Free Friday Flicks and concerts, featuring the Boston Pops and other performers on the Fourth of July, when tens of thousands of people line the Esplanade to watch magnificent fireworks on the Charles River.
