Boston Duck Tour

After living in Boston for 10 years and watching the old World War II amphibious ducks driving the streets and swimming the Charles I brought a friend home and we gave it a go. Seeing Boston from the river was great and the guide was even better. Hearing all of the bits of history in one concise tour was a great way to explore Boston for tourists and locals. The price is a little steep at $30+, but there is a lot of value. Book online in advance to ensure you get the tour/time you want.

We started at the Museum of Science (your other option is by the supermarket in Copley square). The tour took us down a bit of Storrow Drive, Charles Street, past the Cheers pub, alongside the Public Garden, through Copley Square, alongside the Common, over Beacon Hill up Atlantic Ave and finally into the Charles River for a drive down to the sailboat launch area and back to the museum.

There was only 4 of us on my tour, it was the second day of the new touring year (March 26, 2009) and still a bit cold. They had blankets for us and saw in the back of the duck where you get the best panoramic views. Arrive early in queue up during busy season if you want these seats as they are very popular.

I don't think you'll need a program that they sell because the tour guide will speak to everything you see and you can ask questions all you like. Since Boston is on the small side, take notes on the tour of where you'd like to go back to and then start walking once you return.

Hopefully you get as good a guide as we did and you'll enjoy it whilst learning about one of America's first cities.

Since it was such early season and not many on the tour our guide let me drive the boat through most of the river portion (not complicated, but cool to do). I don't imagine you get this experience on full tours, but maybe you do...be sure to volunteer if asked!

I had been living in Boston for about 2 years when my friends from back
home came to visit me. They really wanted to see all of Boston and the
surrounding areas, so I got to try the whole "Tourist" boston with
them. They bought three 3-day Go Boston Cards and we got admission to the Boston Duck Tour
with them. (TIP: These cards were super easy to use on this tour. We
just showed our cards at the prudential center and got on the next
Duck.). All the people on the Duck Tour
were pretty quiet and calm when we got on because it was so early in
the morning but the narrator was happy-go-lucky enough to get
everyone's energy up. Despite the fact I teased my friends all morning
for wanting to take a "DUCK" around the city, I can understand why this
attraction is one of the most popular in Boston. The Duck takes you
around the city, and the narrator tells jokes, stories and annecdotes
about the city, some that I didn't even know. It's completely
entertaining. It's also the only tour in the city that goes by land and
in the water. Fantastic way to start a summer day--on the Charles.

The duck tour will show you arround the Boston downtown area, part of
the Freedom trail sites and the skyline from Charles river. 3/4 of its
tour is on the ground.