<p>Stay in Cambridge if you’re only going to visit Tufts. There really isn’t anything in Somerville or Medford. The Hyatt you mentioned is probably a good choice. Just get to a Red Line from there and you’ll be able to get to Tufts. It’s the Davis Sq. exit on the Red Line. You’ll need to walk a little less than a mile from that T stop to the campus. There’s a really nice restaurant in West Medford–northern Italian and quite good. It’s called Bistro Five.</p>
<p>We stayed at the Omni Parker House, and took the T to go see Tufts, MIT, Harvard, BU, and Northeastern. Not a problem at all. Go to Barnes &Noble and get a basic guide to Boston to help with the lay of the land and learning the T. Wherever you stay near the T you can get to all of these schools. Brown is a bit trickier, so research public transportation (we visited Brown as a separate trip but drove and saw schools in CT on the way up from NJ).
Boston is a wonderful city, but the Easter weekend we were there it was colder than we expected (snowing!). I didn’t bring a heavy coat, and it was difficult to go on those campus tours!</p>
<p>Thumper and I are in total agreement about John Jeffries House - great location, great rates. I found it extremely easy to get anywhere in Boston/Cambridge from there.</p>
<p>lol. Drivers in Boston tend to be sort of freeform and, shall we say, “expressive” if not downright anarchistic. A bit like Rome. As a friend of mine who lived in Boston used to say, “Boston: there are no moving violations!” In its own way it’s an art form, but tangling with it is not for the faint of heart. Boston is also laid out in probably the least grid-like way of any major U.S. city, so finding your way around by car is a challenge. You’ll inevitably make a wrong turn (or seven) and find it very difficult to get back on track. </p>
<p>True story: the very first time I drove in Boston was during a Spring Break trip from college (not everyone heads for the beach). We were driving with a native guide, a classmate from the area. We got to one of those uniquely Bostonian high-speed multidirectional intersections where we had at least 5 if not 7 options to choose from. Without skipping a beat our native guide instructed, “Go right but bear left!” To the Bostonian this obviously meant choose the second option from the right. To us Midwesterners it sounded like an oxymoron. We missed the turn and it took a good 10 to 15 minutes to get back on the right road.</p>
<p>Don’t drive in Boston unless you know it well and are fearless.</p>
<p>Also agree with John Jeffries House.Great location and rates.</p>
<p>I defer to everyone else that driving probably isn’t a good idea. Maybe I became fearless in the three years I lived there and didn’t realize it. But I will weigh in on taking the Amtrak to see Brown. We did this from Boston when we did our Boston school tour and it was easy as pie. We left the rental car at the hotel, took the T to the train station in Boston, a cab from the train station in Providence, got the driver’s card, and called to have him pick us up after the tour, and returned to Boston to continue what became known in our house as the “impossible to get into tour.”</p>
<p>John Jeffries - great tip. I’m going to Boston for a track meet in a couple of weeks, so I’ll try it out.</p>
<p>Morandi - the train stations connect with the T, so it’s very easy to get around. Just pick a hotel that is near a T stop. Google maps is very helpful.</p>
<p>For those of you visiting Tufts, there’s an Indian restaurant in Davis Square called Diva that serves a tasty and fast lunch buffet.</p>
<p>Thanks MarinMom. I just looked up John Jeffries, it looks great.</p>
<p>We stayed at this Hampton Inn:
191 Monsignor O’Brien Highway, Cambridge, Massachusetts</p>
<p>Right across the street from the T, and if you’re hardy you can walk to MIT and Harvard</p>
<p>My favorite Thai restaurant is located on Charles Street…just steps away from the John Jeffries House…The King and I. The location is actually very nice. Just walk down Charles Street and you are at Boston Common. The Mass General T stop is right across the street. It’s a great location. If you are stuck with a car, there is parking at the John Jeffries House, but I don’t know how much it costs. There is also a parking garage ($26 for 24 hours) that is right on Charles Street almost near the corner by that T station (on the right).</p>
<p>Try this site for transportation around Boston:</p>
<p>[Boston</a> Subway Station Map](<a href=“http://www.gnik.com/mbta/mbta.html]Boston”>http://www.gnik.com/mbta/mbta.html)</p>
<p>We stayed at the Inn at Harvard Square for the beginning of what we called the Boston to NYC Death March. Very pleasant, walking distance for Harvard and probably not bad for T accessibility otherwise…we had a car for the aforesaid death march.</p>
<p>Driving in Boston is simple once you realize that you need a three-man crew: driver, navigator, tail gunner.</p>
<p>i stayed in the Hilton about a block away from the T station when on visits in Boston and never had transportation problems</p>
<p>We went last year and used Priceline. We wound up at the Copley Plaza Hotel for approx. $130. It is a gorgeous hotel and is close to everything- right by the T and Charles Street. We rented a car to go to Wesleyan, but otherwise took cabs and the T everywhere.</p>
<p>We never seem to stay at the same place twice because I am a deal hunter. I agree with finding a location within an easy walk to the T. No need to drive. I have taken the MBTA train down to Providence for around $12 one way.
The only place I ever stayed that was inconvenient was the DoubleTree out near Umass. I have stayed at Parker House , Park Plaza , two DoubleTrees , Marriott Copley, Kendall , Courtyard on Tremont and also in Cambridge , Bertram Inn in Brookline and a few others.
I am also a fan of Priceline.</p>
<p>just returned from Boston and stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Cambridge. We got a “suite” for $139 - it had a pull out sofa in the main room and a queen size bed in the bedroom - which I think is better than sharing one room or paying for two rooms. The hotel was very convenient - had free parking, free continental breakfast. We drove and had no trouble getting around using a GPS. Driving isn’t that bad - Boston drivers tend to just merge and not yield.</p>
<p>Driving in Boston/Cambridge is not that bad! I don’t live there but have been many times. It is better than NYC and probably better than in parts of LA or even DC. If you live in a metropolitan area, you will be fine. </p>
<p>We stayed in a hotel near Brandeis and also visited BC and BU with little problem. Previous trip to Tufts stayed in Cambridge and again was easy to drive to Tufts. Traffic leaving Boston to Providence can be very tough at rush hours, however, so the train may be a good option (altough pricey for several family members especially if you have to drive back to Boston for a flight). </p>
<p>Taking the T and other public transportation is great. However, depending on the amount of time you have to visit, it may be impossible to do in-depth visits to more than one school in a day if you depend on the T. We had enough trouble at times even with being able to drive.</p>
<p>We also stayed at the Holiday Inn Express when we visited last March. We had a frequent flyer plane ticket on Southwest so flew into Providence and visited Brown first then took the train to the hotel. (Brown was very nice about holding our luggage while we took the tour.) Then we used the train system to visit MIT, Harvard, Tufts, Olin and BC. We passed by a few other colleges as we went around town. There seemed to be a college on every corner. The Holiday Inn staff was very friendly and I like having a free breakfast ready for you.</p>
<p>Other places to stay that are on or near T lines include the Holiday Inn in Brookline (on Beacon Street), the Gryphon B&B in Kenmore Square, Bertram/Sewall Inns (sister inns on a Brookline street where “The Women” was filmed), and the College Club on Commonwealth Avenue (right near Arlington Street and the Public Garden). The last one offers rooms at very affordable spots considering that it’s right around the corner from the Taj Boston (formerly the Ritz Carlton).</p>
<p>For a fun place to eat, Jacob Wirth in the Theatre District offers a sing-along on Friday nights along with great food.</p>
<p>Little Mother- Jacob Wirth sounds fun! Can you bring teens? </p>
<p>Any other restaurant suggestions would also be much appreciated!</p>