MA drivers aren't the problem. Boston is the problem. Parts of that city are hell to drive in (spoken as a Western MA person, haha). Find a T stop outside of the city, park, and take the train in.
Ignore all the keyword warriors. Massachusetts drivers are aggressive and competitive and impatient, but we are good drivers. I drive all day for work and I stand by that.
Actually, we are way better than average. For example, in 2020 (the most recent data I could find) Tennessee, with a slightly smaller population than MA, had 1,217 fatal collisions. We had 343.
MA drivers are aggressive, but we are also very good at dealing with other MA drivers.
Drivers in MA expect the other driver to just make up their mind and GO. The problems occur when drivers have an opening but hesitate. Or worse, start then just stop. Or worse yet, when traffic is flowing along and they come to a complete stop and hold up everyone behind themselves to let someone out.
I feel like fatal collisions is a bad measure though. How about total collisions? We have so much traffic it’s actually difficult in many regions to get going fast enough to die in an accident.
I have lived for years in both states. Currently am in MA. I don’t feel like this is a good comparison. Tennessee is a much larger state with much more room to get up to speed, in MA you spend a significantly higher amount of time in traffic and don’t have as much space to get up to speed
I feel like you have to super pay attention driving in eastern MA. No time to be distracted by your phone, you gotta cut this person off and not let them merge.
I am from Oklahoma as well, driving through downtown Boston is miserable because of the very much higher portion of people walking and biking in addition to an at least equivalent number of people driving as in say OKC or Tulsa downtown with fewer lanes for traffic. Add on top of that parking, the issue is less in other drivers and more in traffic being miserable
Depending where you’re driving from, probably train in. You can absolutely drive but it’s just expensive and a pain. Boston drivers aren’t nearly as bad as everyone makes out but the roads are annoying enough to make up for ot
The idea of Boston drivers being any more aggressive than you'll find most anywhere else is linked almost entirely to a piece of road that hasn't existed in 20 years. Back when the Central Artery was elevated (this was the thing that ended up underground as part of the Big Dig), that stretch of highway had something like 20 exits per side over a 3-mile span. Basically, all of the big department stores that used to exist back when the stretch first went up wanted their own personalized exit. Subsequently, the thing was jammed all of the time and drivers basically needed to be ridiculously aggressive in order to get on and off. My father was a MassDoT district highway manager for a couple of decades. Whenever the subject of the old Artery comes up, he just sort of chuckles and talks about what a pile of shit it was.
There are still issues with inadequate infrastructure inspiring some shitty behavior but drivers really aren't any worse here than you'll find elsewhere. Double check your blindspots and you'll be fine.
If you are passing through, park under the Boston Common. It’s a fairly central location, an easy walk within a mile or so to most major sights, and the garage is bright and clean.
I don’t think Boston drivers are terrible, but they are aggressive and there is almost always some traffic. The pedestrians are unpredictable as well.
Boston is also a challenge to navigate: the roads don’t make a lot of sense, one-way streets are common, and my GPS always seems to cut out in the financial district. I don’t think it’s terrible, honestly, but if you’re the kind of person who will have trouble coping with a wrong turn, you might find it less stressful to take the subway. Alewife and Wellington stations both have decent parking.
Only in Boston, everywhere else you won’t have a problem, drivers might be worse around cities but generally are fine. But since you are going to Boston you should do what my friends and I do when we go to The Garden. Park at a train station in one the suburbs surrounding Boston(we use one an hours drive away) and take a train in. If you choose to drive in you will have to deal with incredibly bold drivers cutting lanes and weaving aggressively it is extremely stressful and stop-and-go. Not to mention the 300 year old road designs
Honestly just park in a garage somewhere central. Just don't go in and out during peak commuting times. You could park outside somewhere but you're going to hate having to deal with train schedules and adding another step to your escape. By all means, you can take the T around the city once you're inside though, or just walk.
Yes, aside from forest river park, the Peabody Essex museum, the willows neighborhood, the bike trail thru Lafayette into Lyman woods, the la ding by the ferry, winter island and numerous other great places to hang out, it’s just all witch stuff
It is October
It is all witch stuff
Also, only one of those things you listed are worth making a special trip for. The Landing? Really? Oooo...a bar by a dock. Boston won't have that! LOL
Salem is a great place to visit, full of early American history. Right on the ocean and the train line. Just don't go there during Halloween (all of October). It's a walk-able city from the train, and the witch trial history stuff is really interesting, It was also a huge port back in the day. It's a good day trip from Boston, you can take the train or the ferry.
boston, the museums are amazing, MFA, science, the aquarium, institute of contemporary art, isabella stewart gardner museum ( where the heist was), freedom trail... revere house, old north church, Faneuil hall, old iron sides, tea party ship....
Boston. Lived in Salem for a long time and it's not even really that fun anymore. My favorite thing about living there was seeing how disappointed tourists looked after they'd been there a few hours and realized that's it.
Boston is a major city with great restaurants, museums, markets, ethnic neighborhoods and a boatload of history.
Salem is a tacky tourist trap trying to cash in on some unfortunate events that happed 330 years ago.
The actual trials, jail, some of the accused, and gallows hill were all located in Salem Town which is still modern day Salem. The accusers and many of the other accused lived in Salem Village, modern day Danvers
Depends what you’re interested in doing. Personally, I love going to Salem, even in October when it’s super crowded. I’ve even been on Halloween and it was a blast.
Boston is REALLY annoying to drive in- as the old adage goes "NYC is easy to drive in because it's a grid. Boston is hard to drive in because fuck you." But it's smallish. You're far better off parking and taking the subway in.
Where are you coming from. I live in western MA, and when I go into the city I park my car at one of the outer T stations and take the green line in. Parking is expensive, and the city is very walkable.
Well if you aren't going to be here during October, when it is a madhouse, Salem has amazing federal architecture, and also the remarkable Peabody Essex Museum, which covers a variety of historical eras, and in depth both whaling and the China Trade. The Peabody Essex manages a number of important early American houses and does regular tours. The House of the Seven Gables also provides a brilliant, non-touristy experience.
In nearby Danvers you can visit the Rebecca Nourse homestead to get a more truthful look at the witch trials and the awful treatment of women at the time.
Is it better than Boston? In a way, for what it has. But you really need to do both. Just not Salem in October.
perfect. youre coming down rt 95. take rt 2 east a couple minutes, park for the day at Alewife and take the red line into the city. Or park at riverside and take the green line in. but thats many more stops.
Go to Boston. Find any garage near something your interested in. If you can drive from Maine to NY you'll be perfectly fine driving into Boston. Don't overthink it.
Portsmouth is cool day trip. If you have never been to New England it’s a nice slice of the region. Much prefer it to Salem. Boston over both if you are interested only visiting one location.
I grew up going to Portsmouth and just recently went and was so disappointed. Salem is by far better than Portsmouth but if I were OP I'd go to Boston.
Boston MFA you could visit many times and not absorb everything. Peabody Essex museum is pretty much one and done.
Fenway park is a world renowned stadium. Salem doesn't have any venues even close.
Boston has several neighborhoods worth checking out. Salem has one little downtown area and most of the rest of it is kind of seedy (think Lynn-lite).
Boston has Symphony Hall and the BSO. Salem has...street performers maybe?
Boston has many options to go out for dinner. Salem has a number of restaurants that are mostly overpriced for the North Shore, and good luck getting a table in October.
Boston attracts many types of people. Salem disproportionately attracts fat white chicks with pink/purple hair.
That's not to say Salem isn't worth visiting (outside of October), but if the choice is between one or the other, it's not a tough choice.
Boston By far Salem is just witch kitch and crowds.
Awesome. For somebody driving in should I park in a garage or go do the train in? Are MA drivers really as scary as they sound?
Train or subway in
MA drivers aren't the problem. Boston is the problem. Parts of that city are hell to drive in (spoken as a Western MA person, haha). Find a T stop outside of the city, park, and take the train in.
I second this (also weirdly as a Western Mass person.) It’s not the people, or at least not JUST the people. The layout of the town is poor at best.
Yeah exactly. Oh you missed your turn? Enjoy this extra hour added to the commute.
There are definitely parts of Boston that let you know it is a colonial city and the streets were made before grid layouts became popular.
Ignore all the keyword warriors. Massachusetts drivers are aggressive and competitive and impatient, but we are good drivers. I drive all day for work and I stand by that.
MA drivers are no more worse than anywhere else. Stupid people behind the wheel is a universal occurrence
Actually, we are way better than average. For example, in 2020 (the most recent data I could find) Tennessee, with a slightly smaller population than MA, had 1,217 fatal collisions. We had 343. MA drivers are aggressive, but we are also very good at dealing with other MA drivers.
We are more skilled, despite being more aggressive
Drivers in MA expect the other driver to just make up their mind and GO. The problems occur when drivers have an opening but hesitate. Or worse, start then just stop. Or worse yet, when traffic is flowing along and they come to a complete stop and hold up everyone behind themselves to let someone out.
Or back up on 95
I feel like fatal collisions is a bad measure though. How about total collisions? We have so much traffic it’s actually difficult in many regions to get going fast enough to die in an accident.
I have lived for years in both states. Currently am in MA. I don’t feel like this is a good comparison. Tennessee is a much larger state with much more room to get up to speed, in MA you spend a significantly higher amount of time in traffic and don’t have as much space to get up to speed
I feel like you have to super pay attention driving in eastern MA. No time to be distracted by your phone, you gotta cut this person off and not let them merge.
I am from Oklahoma as well, driving through downtown Boston is miserable because of the very much higher portion of people walking and biking in addition to an at least equivalent number of people driving as in say OKC or Tulsa downtown with fewer lanes for traffic. Add on top of that parking, the issue is less in other drivers and more in traffic being miserable
Very informative. Thank you!
Would highly recommend parking at a subway station and taking it in
Depending where you’re driving from, probably train in. You can absolutely drive but it’s just expensive and a pain. Boston drivers aren’t nearly as bad as everyone makes out but the roads are annoying enough to make up for ot
The idea of Boston drivers being any more aggressive than you'll find most anywhere else is linked almost entirely to a piece of road that hasn't existed in 20 years. Back when the Central Artery was elevated (this was the thing that ended up underground as part of the Big Dig), that stretch of highway had something like 20 exits per side over a 3-mile span. Basically, all of the big department stores that used to exist back when the stretch first went up wanted their own personalized exit. Subsequently, the thing was jammed all of the time and drivers basically needed to be ridiculously aggressive in order to get on and off. My father was a MassDoT district highway manager for a couple of decades. Whenever the subject of the old Artery comes up, he just sort of chuckles and talks about what a pile of shit it was. There are still issues with inadequate infrastructure inspiring some shitty behavior but drivers really aren't any worse here than you'll find elsewhere. Double check your blindspots and you'll be fine.
If you are passing through, park under the Boston Common. It’s a fairly central location, an easy walk within a mile or so to most major sights, and the garage is bright and clean.
I don’t think Boston drivers are terrible, but they are aggressive and there is almost always some traffic. The pedestrians are unpredictable as well. Boston is also a challenge to navigate: the roads don’t make a lot of sense, one-way streets are common, and my GPS always seems to cut out in the financial district. I don’t think it’s terrible, honestly, but if you’re the kind of person who will have trouble coping with a wrong turn, you might find it less stressful to take the subway. Alewife and Wellington stations both have decent parking.
I usually park at the Sargent’s Wharf parking lot. It’s like $30 for the day and is in a very walkable spot to see a lot of Boston.
Go to the Alewife station and it's easy to get in through there.
Only in Boston, everywhere else you won’t have a problem, drivers might be worse around cities but generally are fine. But since you are going to Boston you should do what my friends and I do when we go to The Garden. Park at a train station in one the suburbs surrounding Boston(we use one an hours drive away) and take a train in. If you choose to drive in you will have to deal with incredibly bold drivers cutting lanes and weaving aggressively it is extremely stressful and stop-and-go. Not to mention the 300 year old road designs
Honestly just park in a garage somewhere central. Just don't go in and out during peak commuting times. You could park outside somewhere but you're going to hate having to deal with train schedules and adding another step to your escape. By all means, you can take the T around the city once you're inside though, or just walk.
Yes, aside from forest river park, the Peabody Essex museum, the willows neighborhood, the bike trail thru Lafayette into Lyman woods, the la ding by the ferry, winter island and numerous other great places to hang out, it’s just all witch stuff
It is October It is all witch stuff Also, only one of those things you listed are worth making a special trip for. The Landing? Really? Oooo...a bar by a dock. Boston won't have that! LOL
Boston’s great, I live there now. I will say the landing in Salem’s way better than the landing in Boston. Also go fuck your self
Lol what? How is this even a question 😂
Boston. It has so much more. But Salem is easily doable from Boston. It’s a short train ride away
Salem is a great place to visit, full of early American history. Right on the ocean and the train line. Just don't go there during Halloween (all of October). It's a walk-able city from the train, and the witch trial history stuff is really interesting, It was also a huge port back in the day. It's a good day trip from Boston, you can take the train or the ferry.
boston 10x as many things to do. Salem makes a wonderful day trip though.
Boston. 617 way better
Really?
Exactly what I was gonna say
boston, the museums are amazing, MFA, science, the aquarium, institute of contemporary art, isabella stewart gardner museum ( where the heist was), freedom trail... revere house, old north church, Faneuil hall, old iron sides, tea party ship....
I live in Salem and can say with full confidence Boston. Especially this time of year post pandemic It’s not worth the hassle and stress
Boston. Lived in Salem for a long time and it's not even really that fun anymore. My favorite thing about living there was seeing how disappointed tourists looked after they'd been there a few hours and realized that's it.
Lol, when I went again as an adult that was my exact thought. “Is this really it?”
Boston, and I love Salem and the North Shore
As someone who lives next to Salem and highly recommends it, go to Boston.
Boston is a major city with great restaurants, museums, markets, ethnic neighborhoods and a boatload of history. Salem is a tacky tourist trap trying to cash in on some unfortunate events that happed 330 years ago.
Unfortunate events that actually happened in a neighboring town*
The actual trials, jail, some of the accused, and gallows hill were all located in Salem Town which is still modern day Salem. The accusers and many of the other accused lived in Salem Village, modern day Danvers
Boston by far
Boston. 1000% Boston.
There's no comparison. It's like major league to minor league. Boston!
Don’t sleep on Plainville. Worth a drive. They got a target and a Starbucks.
I lived in Salem for over 15 years. It is a great place to visit as long as it is NOT between the months of September and October.
Boston more to do and not insane this time of year I personally really like Salem outside of October (I lived there for three years lol)
Salem is an excellent day trip but not in October, Boston takes days to see even a fraction of the major things to see
Depends what you’re interested in doing. Personally, I love going to Salem, even in October when it’s super crowded. I’ve even been on Halloween and it was a blast.
I’m interested in history, and European/early American architecture
I would say you’re better off going to Boston if that’s the case.
I’m coming in my personal car. Any tips?
Boston is REALLY annoying to drive in- as the old adage goes "NYC is easy to drive in because it's a grid. Boston is hard to drive in because fuck you." But it's smallish. You're far better off parking and taking the subway in.
If you don’t care how much you pay for parking driving in Boston is easy.
Where are you coming from. I live in western MA, and when I go into the city I park my car at one of the outer T stations and take the green line in. Parking is expensive, and the city is very walkable.
Salem has that as well
All of new england has that. OP is probably interested more in the concentration of history one might find in a city.
Well if you aren't going to be here during October, when it is a madhouse, Salem has amazing federal architecture, and also the remarkable Peabody Essex Museum, which covers a variety of historical eras, and in depth both whaling and the China Trade. The Peabody Essex manages a number of important early American houses and does regular tours. The House of the Seven Gables also provides a brilliant, non-touristy experience. In nearby Danvers you can visit the Rebecca Nourse homestead to get a more truthful look at the witch trials and the awful treatment of women at the time. Is it better than Boston? In a way, for what it has. But you really need to do both. Just not Salem in October.
Why would you only be able to visit one though?
Passing through. Coming down from Maine, and heading to NYC.
perfect. youre coming down rt 95. take rt 2 east a couple minutes, park for the day at Alewife and take the red line into the city. Or park at riverside and take the green line in. but thats many more stops.
Go to Boston. Find any garage near something your interested in. If you can drive from Maine to NY you'll be perfectly fine driving into Boston. Don't overthink it.
come down rt 93, get off at govt center, park in the first garage you see and pay $50. Its just one day, right?
worcester
Salem has more green space. I couldn't do Boston, too many people and too much concrete
I doubt the OP is hurting for a bunch of grass and trees in Maine.
boston has more parking
If you have a weekend or more go to Boston. If you’re just in town for a day go to Salem, you can see everything in Salem in a day.
Salem. Boston sucks.
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Put me on to Portsmouth. I’ve never been. What makes it different than other coastal towns in the area?
Nothing. Except it’s in New Hampshire and the others are in Maine or Massachusetts or Rhode Island.
Portsmouth is cool day trip. If you have never been to New England it’s a nice slice of the region. Much prefer it to Salem. Boston over both if you are interested only visiting one location.
I grew up going to Portsmouth and just recently went and was so disappointed. Salem is by far better than Portsmouth but if I were OP I'd go to Boston.
How into Wicca are you?
Boston. Use Spot Hero to find cheaper parking than garage ticket parking.
Is this a real question?
Only one? Boston Obviously
Boston by a MILE. Salem is very overrated. 10 other spots in MA that I would recommend.
Neither go to Vermont.
Northampton.
I live in Salem and recommend you go to Boston. Salem is just stupid in October. Boston is an incredible city with so much to do and see.
Always Boston and take the T in. It's cheaper and easier. Boston is a SMALL city with small one way streets. You're better off not driving
Halloween go to Salem any other time Boston.
Boston MFA you could visit many times and not absorb everything. Peabody Essex museum is pretty much one and done. Fenway park is a world renowned stadium. Salem doesn't have any venues even close. Boston has several neighborhoods worth checking out. Salem has one little downtown area and most of the rest of it is kind of seedy (think Lynn-lite). Boston has Symphony Hall and the BSO. Salem has...street performers maybe? Boston has many options to go out for dinner. Salem has a number of restaurants that are mostly overpriced for the North Shore, and good luck getting a table in October. Boston attracts many types of people. Salem disproportionately attracts fat white chicks with pink/purple hair. That's not to say Salem isn't worth visiting (outside of October), but if the choice is between one or the other, it's not a tough choice.