365 Things to Do in Boston - New Tips Daily

Continuing our theme of patriotic events for the 4th, take a free 60-minute walking tour led by National Park Service Rangers along the heart of Boston's Freedom Trail and discover Boston's role in the American Revolution! It's not every day you get to hang out with a ranger for free (you can't tell me you don't think their uniforms are hott...I'd probably pay to hang out with them to be honest!).

Tours of the Freedom Trail® Schedule offered daily at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., noon, 1 p.m., 2 p.m., 3 p.m.

And hey, if that doesn't grab your attention you may like the Park Ranger guided tours of The USS Cassin and the USS Constitution. 

Get over to Boston Harborfest today and thru the Fourth of July.  This year's Harbor Fest is going to be the best yet!

The award-winning festival strives to honor and remember the past, celebrate the present, and educate the future with reenactments, concerts, historical tours and much, much more. Over 200 Daily Events during the Festival are concentrated in Boston's historic downtown and waterfront districts, with sponsored Main Events on Boston's City Hall Plaza.

Grab your bottled water - or apple juice - or really whatever it is you want to drink, and prepare yourself for a sunny week of fun at the largest patriotic celebration in the nation! This festivity is no joke, I'm tellin' ya, so don't be the only person in town not to show up. Seriously. 

Find more details and a schedule of events here.

Grab your sun hats and strap em' on tight, for you are in for some strong breeze! This weekend, tall ships and naval vessels from across the world will be coming to Boston to mark the bicentennial of the War of 1812 and the role of the USS Constitution in the conflict. A fleet of 120 ships have been invited to be in Boston from June 30 to July 6, 2012. This is a great opportunity to get your Boston history fix. Here are just a few things that will be going on:

Boston Tea Party Reenactment Sail $35/24
Sail back in history. Hear how the Sons of Liberty took three British ships, how John Hancock's sloop Liberty pestered the British and how Dutch tea was smuggled into Boston. Throw tea in the Harbor! Fire the cannons!

Boston Harbor Sail $30/19
Come aboard our Tall Ship for a Boston Harbor cruise and relive the days of Boston's Tall Ships. Explore Boston Harbor for an afternoon sail. Take the wheel! Set the sails! Or just sit back and enjoy the experience on our Boston Harbor cruises.

Sunset and Tall Ships Sail $40/30
View the visiting Tall Ships at anchor in style. Join us for cocktails at sunset aboard a majestic schooner sailing in the Harbor.

Rum, Revolution and Tall Ships Sail $35
Celebrate the Tall Ships and the old Sailors favorite Rum! Sail back in time as hilarious characters in colonial dress tell you the amazing story of how Rum helped to start the Revolution. They will have you singing sea shanty work songs and dancing the sailor’s hornpipe on the main deck with their fiddles and concertinas! Experience Rum and Port wine drinks from our bar.

Grab your tickets here.

Don't just take it to the house, take it to The State House!  Go big or go home right? Well don't feel intimidated, the Massachusetts Legislature doesn't bite - or take your money. Yeah, you heard me right. This State House tour is completely free and perfect for group "field trips" or riding solo.

Tours last approximately 30-45 minutes and include an overview of the history and architecture of the State Capitol. Visitors can see the House and Senate Chambers, learn about the Ladybug (our state insect) and about the "Sacred Cod".

So what are you waiting for? Know where you live and believe in it. Learn, breathe, and embrace Boston (and Massachusetts). Just take it to the house already! The tours are given weekdays year-round from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

The State House is at the corner of Beacon and Park Streets.  It is accessible by MBTA via the Red or Green lines at the Park Street Station. 

Who doesn't like block parties?

On Friday, June 29, join thousands of residents and visitors of Cambridge who will gather on Massachusetts Avenue (in front of Cambridge City Hall, 795 Mass. Ave. between Inman and Bigelow) for the City’s annual Dance Party. This portion of the street, at the heart of Central Square, will be closed to traffic from 7-11 p.m., but open for dancing!!

It was originally conceived in 1996 as part of the 150th anniversary celebration of Cambridge, the Dance Party returns each year attracting young and old to join in the festivities! The event is free and open to the public - aka make sure to mark it in your calendar.

So now is the time...grab your friends and your best pair of dancing shoes, cause this block will be poppin" (I feel like I heard that in a rap song?) This event is filled with tradition- and some interesting dance moves- so bring your cameras. Hey, you may find me remixing dance dance revolution.

Graduation, Mardi Gras, prom, weddings - or hey, maybe even your parent's or grandparent's 50th Anniversary - all things that may have potentially landed you in a limousine. Although luxury limo cruising during those nights and days were memorable events, twenty-first century limos may just need to take a step back (or maybe a roll back?) and make room for their ancestors. 

This Boston Antique Limousine Tour is an event to experience. See Boston up close and personal while the fully dressed-for-the-part drivers narrate Boston's history as they drive down Boston's narrow side streets. You will get your own personal, historic view of Boston's freedom trail and everything in between.    

(Just don't mess with these guys or you may end up in the trunk)

Here are all of the cool tours!  Click here for more details!

Boston's Freedom Tour -  1 1/2 hours.  This tour gets right in front of all 16 historic sites on Boston's Freedom Trail and everything in between.

Boston PlusTour - 2 1/2 hours. Includes Boston's Freedom Tour - PLUS an extra hour which goes outside of Boston to Harvard University, Boston's Fenway Baseball Park, the Boston Marathon Finish Line, and other sites in between.

Customized Tours - Our customized tours can take you to any part of Massachusetts including Lexington/Concord, Cape Cod, and Salem - or any other points of interest in New England that you personally may have. 

If you are a Zumba virgin it is your time to shine, or I guess, redefine your workout! 

Join Erica Bornstein, one of Boston's BEST Zumba instructors, as she dances you through an hour-long beach party-themed workout on Saturday June 30th at Clery's. This isn't just ANY Zumba class though... it is complete with beach-themed decorations, goodies, and music! So what are you waiting for? Go have some fun, get healthy, and dance yourself into your more desired beach-body form! 

Never heard of Zumba? Well it's pretty simple...

Zumba fuses latin rhythms and easy to follow moves to create a dynamic fitness program where you will not only burn calories, but you will also have fun! Imagine that! Erica’s extensive dance training makes her choreography unique and extremely high energy, so come prepared to WORK, smile and sweat. 

But hey, that's not all! Once your done dancing you will go upstairs and enjoy a cocktail hour with one round of drinks provided by Eventbrite Boston and Vita Coco Coconut Water!

Get Your Tickets Here!

 “Stroll. Sample. Savor. Repeat.”

Skip breakfast, grab your appetite, and head over for a food extravaganza today starting at 12:15pm (or almost any Saturday) at the Back Bay and Beacon Hill food tour. The Beacon Hill/Back Bay Food Tour is one of Boston's most popular food tours. On this tour, you'll explore two of Boston’s historic neighborhoods. Featuring everything from celebrity chef restaurants and cheese and wine shops to hidden gems and food trucks, this is one 5 hour tour that you need to be on.

Don't miss the restaurant of one of the country’s “Coolest” “Top 10 Bad-ass Female Chefs”, whose lobster pizza was recently voted as one of the top ten pizzas in Massachusetts by Food Network magazine and Zagat. Recent celebrity sightings at this restaurant include Matt Damon, Tom Hanks and Lionel Richie. (If you see me standing across the street it's because i'm stalking!) And this is just one of many hip places you will visit on this tour. And before you part, you'll enjoy some of Boston’s best desserts, perhaps the creations of award-winning or celebrity chefs. Maybe even a Top Chef! Take advantage of the summer weather and stroll over for the tour today. Your belly is begging you.... (Get Your Tickets Here)

Popcorn isn't the only thing poppin' at this distinguished Boston area Landmark in Cambridge. 

Since 1953 The Brattle Theatre has shown the best in classic, cutting-edge, foreign, and art-house films. They also show first-run films and new releases of classic films, but their specialty is a repertory programming format consisting of films from a particular director, genre, or subject shown over the course of a week.

After a remodel prior to 9/11 things slowed down, but since the non-profit Brattle Film Foundation has operated the Brattle Theatre beginning in 2001, the Brattle House has consistently had quite the crowd.

Check out the Brattle House schedule and buy your tickets today. Be forewarned though - it is tucked away in a barn-shaped brick building in Harvard Square, its entrance buried down a flight of stairs off Brattle Street - and what ever you do, leave your 3-D glasses behind because this theater will thrill you with more than just things flying at your face! (I don't know why we torture ourself with those glasses anyways?)

It's not every day you can set sail without the wind blowing away a few dollar bills. This Saturday you should definitely take advantage of the Boston Sailing Center's Open House on Lewis Wharf on the North End Waterfront. Chart new waters by exploring the Boston Harbor. Show up for a FREE sailing tour of Boston and discover a different side of the city. Every boat is skippered by an experienced sailor for you to relax and enjoy the scenery or take a turn on the helm yourself....sounds like a vacation to me!

So what are you waiting for? Go for a sail on one of their awesome boats...which by the way range from 24 to 40 feet. And whatever you do, don't forget to wear your wet suit.

Okay, that is a joke. Please don't show up in a wet suit. 

Free Sailing at the Boston Sailing Center Open House on Saturday, June 23rd 1pm-4pm