Boston over New Year period

We are travelling to Boston to see in the New Year but never actually stopped to question which attractions, restaurants shops ect are open or shut, especially 1st - 2nd January.

Is it a ghost town or is it business as usual US of A style!

Boston over New Year period

Most places are open on New Years%26#39; - stores and restaurants might have different hours, but for the most part there is little interruption. New Years%26#39; Day tends to be quiet in town as most people are nursing hangovers from the night before or staying put in front of the TV to watch college football.

Since New Years%26#39; Day is on a Sunday, the T will be running on a Sunday schedule, government offices will be closed, and some small specialty shops might be closed. Other than that, big department stores will be opening early for sales. Check the websites for closures for museums and such. They may have late openings due to the holiday.Newbury Street might be quiet - hair salons and galleries will probably be closed.

www.mos.org - Museum of Science

www.mfa.org - Museum of Fine Arts

www.ica.org - Institute of Contemporary Art

Boston over New Year period

Hi Mister,

On New Year%26#39;s Eve, Boston has a huge arts/culture celebration called First Night. There are Ice sculptures, parades, concerts, plays, performance art, etc., at venues all over the city.

http://www.firstnight.org/Index.cfm

They haven%26#39;t posted the information yet for this year, but check on it in about a month.

Most of the restaurants in town have special New Year%26#39;s Eve Fixed-Price menus, which are different from the normal fare. All of the stores will be closing earlier than usual (usually 6pm instead of 8-9pm) that night, but many stores seem to be open on New Year%26#39;s Day now. It%26#39;s not like Thanksgiving or Christmas where everything is shut tight. As you implied, here in the US, holidays generally mean it%26#39;s time to shop :)

Also, as Beans mentioned, New Year%26#39;s Day is a Sunday this year. That means that the official state holiday falls on Monday, so January 2, 2006 is a holiday in MA, and the T will be on a weekend schedule, banks will be closed, and schools/offices as well. But, most of the stores should be open for business. Some museums might be closed, or have reduced hours on those days. You%26#39;d need to check the websites or email/call them to find out.