Luxury things to do in Boston
Mooncusser, o ya and Pammy's for dinner, Neptune and Select for oysters, Harvard for art.
This is Boston with the throttle fully open: tasting menus that demand a second glass of wine, a shopping afternoon where the bags get heavy fast, and hotel bars that feel like the right place to end things. It suits anyone who wants the city's absolute best and is happy to pay for the privilege of skipping everything else.
Day 1: Back Bay: Mapparium to Mooncusser
The day moves from a slow pastry at Tatte and a raw-bar lunch at Select through luxury shopping at Copley Place to a seafood tasting menu at Mooncusser, closed out with cocktails at Moon Bar downstairs.
- 9:30 AM
Tatte Bakery & Cafe | Back Bay
Airy Back Bay outpost of Boston's beloved bakery chain, grab a pastry and a proper latte to start the day.
Map - 10:15 AM
The Mapparium
Walk across the glass bridge inside a three-storey stained-glass globe from 1935; tours run every 20 minutes.
Map - 12:30 PM
Select Oyster Bar
Select on Gloucester St serves its full raw bar from 11:30: start with crudo, then the lobster roll.
Map - 2:30 PM
Copley Place
Copley Place for Louis Vuitton and the designer floors, then the skybridge across to Saks at the Pru.
Map - 7:30 PM
Mooncusser
Carl Dooley's seafood tasting menu upstairs on Stuart St; book the full run and add the wine pairing.
Map - 9:30 PM
Day 2: Downtown: Oysters, Omakase, Natural Wine
A Freedom Trail detour frames the morning before Neptune Oyster's lobster roll at lunch, the Public Garden, o ya's omakase by night, and haley.henry's natural wine list to close.
- 9:30 AM
Intelligentsia
Espresso at the coffee bar in the old State Street Bank lobby on Post Office Square; closed Sundays.
Map - 10:15 AM
Granary Burying Ground
Granary Burying Ground, historic landmark on the Freedom Trail, a five-minute walk back toward Downtown.
Map - 12:30 PM
Neptune Oyster
Tiny Salem St raw bar with no reservations: get the hot buttered lobster roll and a dozen local oysters.
Map - 2:30 PM
Boston Public Garden
Loop the Public Garden lagoon and the Make Way for Ducklings statues; the Swan Boats run mid-April to early September.
Map - 7:30 PM
o ya
Tim Cushman's omakase in a Leather District firehouse: the fried kumamoto oyster and the foie gras nigiri are the ones.
Map - 9:30 PM
haley.henry
Small Downtown Crossing wine bar with a deep natural list and tinned-fish plates; a ten-minute walk from o ya.
Map
Day 3: Cambridge and the North End
The Harvard Art Museums set a high cultural bar before lunch at Jinjee in Allston, a walk on the Charles, dinner at Pammy's in Cambridge and live jazz at the Regattabar.
- 10:30 AM
Harvard Art Museums
Harvard Art Museums, three world-class collections under one Renzo Piano roof, just a quick ride up from Allston.
Map - 12:30 PM
Jinjee JINJEE (진지)
Dry-aged beef on tabletop grills at Allston's most talked-about new Korean barbecue; lunch is easier to book.
Map - 2:30 PM
Charles River Reservation
Walk the Charles from the Western Ave bridge past the Harvard boathouses; good light later in the afternoon.
Map - 7:30 PM
Pammy's
Trattoria-style tasting menu between Harvard and Central; go for the full prix fixe and the pasta course.
Map - 9:30 PM
Regattabar
Jazz on the third floor of the Charles Hotel, where Sonny Rollins and Herbie Hancock played; check the calendar and book.
Map
Where to stay
Mandarin Oriental, Boston
Mandarin Oriental sits at the heart of Back Bay, steps from Copley Place and a short walk to Mooncusser: the most polished base for this itinerary.
The Newbury Boston
The Newbury Boston puts you on the corner of Newbury Street and the Public Garden, perfectly placed for Day 2's swan boats, Neptune Oyster, and the city's best hotel bar scene.
Make Boston your trip
Swearby drafts the days from places people swear by. Swap any stop, then invite the crew by text, even friends without the app. Vote on dates, track costs as you go, and everyone gets one number at the end.
Get Swearby on the App StoreBefore you go
Book ahead
- Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum: weeks ahead
- Museum of Fine Arts, Boston: weeks ahead
- Fenway Park: weeks ahead
- Institute of Contemporary Art: a few days ahead
- View Boston: a few days ahead
- New England Aquarium: a few days ahead
Skip these
- Quincy Market and Faneuil Hall for food: walk through, then eat in the North End instead.
- Cheers is a souvenir shop with a bar. Photograph the exterior and drink at a real pub.
- Do not pay for two viewpoints, or any viewpoint in fog or rain.
The full Boston travel guide: when to go, safety, getting around