Boston's Best Places To Entertain Your Grandparents On A Budget
All Boston Tours
(702) 749-5656
www.allbostontours.com
All Boston Tours offers various different types of city tours of Boston. "The Total Boston Experience Tour", is a seven-hour bus tour that covers all the historic ground of Beantown at the lowest price. There is no senior citizen discount because the company guarantees the lowest prices of any of its competitors and even offers a refund of the difference if a lower-priced, comparable tour is operating by a competitor. The tour itself includes a guided, 90-minute jaunt to Lexington with historical bits about Captain Parker's Minutemen thrown in by a professional guide. See the very streets where Paul Revere made his famous ride, proclaiming "The British Are Coming!." Check out the Old North Bridge where "the shot heard 'round the world" was fired. Visits to Harvard Square and a stop at the U.S.S. Constitution are also included. Luxury motor coach, handicapped accessible.
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
280 The Fenway
Boston, MA 02115
(617) 278-5156
www.gardnermuseum.org
Price: $15 Adults/$12 Seniors 65 and up/$5 College Students with current ID/Free visitors under 18 or Members
Hours: Weds-Mon, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Thurs until 9 p.m.; closed Tues.
Senior citizens 65 years of age or older enjoy a discounted entrance fee of just $12 at the world-famous Gardner Museum. The museum boasts one of the most valued collections in the world, originally gathered by its namesake Isabella Stewart Gardner. Included in the building, which was modeled after a 15th-century Venetian palace, are over 2500 pieces including sculptures, paintings, rare books and manuscripts, photos and letters spanning all of the great art periods from ancient and medieval periods through the Renaissance and even reaching into Asia, the Middle East, 19th-century Europe and, of course, America. Wheelchairs, canes and other assistance devices are available for use at the museum, which is handicapped-accessible.
Turner Fisheries
10 Huntington Ave
Boston, MA 02116
(617) 424-7425
www.turnersboston.com
After garnering Boston Magazine's "Best Clam Chowder" award, the Boston's People's Choice Award for "Best Seafood Restaurant" and a Diners' Choice award, Turner Fisheries has certainly made a splash. The restaurant offers fresh, high-quality seafood, expertly prepared by Chef Armand Toutaint, in a trendy Back Bay/Copley Square location. The restaurant offers daily deals including its one-dollar Friday oyster special, Tuesday's "Ocean to Table Series", Wednesday's diners can enjoy a 2-pound lobster for just $35, and more. Valet parking and wheelchair access available.
Related: Boston's Best Offbeat Places To Take Visiting Family Members
3850 Mystic Valley Parkway
Medford, MA 02155
(781) 395-6001
www.kohls.com
Hours: Mon-Thurs 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Fri to 11 p.m.; Sat 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sun 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
All Kohl's department stores offer wheelchairs for assistance as well as handicapped-equipped restrooms. The Medford location is the closest to Boston – just under four miles away. Senior citizens get a 15% discount on Wednesdays. Kohl's carries all the big brand names like Hanes, Levi, Skechers, Hoover, Fisher Price and others. All major credit cards are accepted, and some locations include a snack bar.
New England Aquarium
1 Central Wharf
Boston, MA 02110
(617) 973-5200
www.neaq.org
Prices: $17.95 Adults/$15.95 Child 3-11/$15.95 Senior 60+/Free Child under 3/Free Aquarium Members
Hours: Mon-Fri 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.; Sat - Sun 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. Subject to change.
Whether you're a Boston resident or a visitor, don't miss the New England Aquarium. The site is being renovated at this time, with completion expected in the summer of 2013, but exhibits are open and the aquarium has cleverly included a visitor challenge to locate 10 specific creatures while navigating through the construction site. Wheelchair users get free admission to the New England Aquarium and enjoy full access to the entire facility by way of elevators and ramps. The entire building, including the IMAX Theatre, gift shop, cafe and rest rooms are fully equipped for wheelchair access including eye-level features for viewing as well as at the ticket booth. Seniors 60 and older and not using a wheelchair get five dollars off the regular admission price, and a two-dollar discount at the IMAX Theatre. Discounted "construction pricing" applies until the renovation is completed. Aquarium tickets, IMAX Theatre tickets, combination aquarium/IMAX tickets and Whale Watch tickets are all available.
Kathleen Mueller moved to Massachusetts as a toddler and has lived in many communities throughout the Bay State. Currently splitting her time between Worcester county and Cape Cod, she enjoys spending time at the beach with her dogs, reading, and taking scenic drives in New England. Kathleen is a frequent contributor to examiner.com check her out at Examiner.com.
