Summer in Boston
by Kate Thrane
photography courtesy of Amanda Willis
With the fall rapidly approaching, summer’s end is feeling all too near. Take advantage of all a summer spent in Boston has to offer before it’s too late!
1. Rent a bike
Boston has so many bike paths to spend days cycling around. Boston has BlueBikes, which are rentable bikes located all over the city. A single ride is $2.50 and includes 30 minutes of riding with each additional half hour pricing in at $2.50. To rent, download their app online or at a kiosk next to the bikes. Different popular bike paths around Boston include the esplanade, Harvard University in Cambridge, Boston Common and the Rose Kennedy Greenway.
2. Do outdoor yoga
There is free yoga every Thursday at the Frog Pond in Boston Common from 6:00 to 7:15 p.m. The yoga instructors lead the class in moves that can be done by all levels. All participants need to bring their own mat. Yoga in Boston Common is part of the Summer Fitness Series, a series sponsored by The Boston Public Health Commission, the Boston Parks & Recreation Department and Blue Cross Blue Shield MA, and offers free summer fitness classes around parks in Boston. Catch a Zumba class on Mondays in the North End at Christopher Columbus Park at 6 p.m. or a popular HIIT class at 6 p.m. on Wednesdays at Mission Hill Playground. For more information, visit their schedule here.
3. Picnic on the esplanade
The esplanade is located on the Charles River across from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and near BU’s campus. Grab a couple friends, or go solo, and head over to the esplanade for an evening picnic and watch rowers and sailboats on the river. In the evening, there is a beer garden from Wednesdays through Sundays. Or, head over to Community Boating, Inc to rent a kayak, sailboat, canoe or paddle board.
4. Dance at Faneuil Hall Marketplace
Every Thursday in September, Faneuil Hall hosts free outdoor dance lessons for all ages—no partner necessary! Learn to swing dance, salsa and line dance, starting at 6 p.m. and dance to live music beginning at 7 p.m. Get out there and get your groove on! It’s a blast!
5. Go to an outdoor movie
There are lots of places to catch a movie outdoors in Boston! Two of the most convenient for BU students are The Hatch Shell, located on the Esplanade in Back Bay and Frog Pond in Boston Common. Every Friday night in the summer at sunset, the Hatch puts on a movie. The best part? It’s free! For more information, visit their website.
6. Lawn on D
Very popular for Instagram pictures, the Lawn on D is a summer must-do. There are a wide variety of lawn games including ping-pong, bocce ball and Jenga. There’s also a concession stand serving up eclectic cocktails and snacks. The main event, however, is the swings that light up and change color. The one catch? No pets allowed. For more information, visit this their website here.
So, get out there and take advantage of it all! The warm weather will be gone before we know it, so now’s the time to enjoy all the variety of outdoor summer activities Boston has to offer.