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Boston Travel/Transportation
InscrutableGamer
IDLE ACCOUNTRegistered User regular
IDLE ACCOUNTRegistered User regular
So, now that passes for PAX East 2014 are sold out, and I was lucky enough to snag a few for the first time in years (Friday and Sunday), I thought it was only fair that I do my part to help people coming to PAX this year, especially those coming for the first time. I am a native of the Greater Boston area, and I've been planning obsessively for how I am going to get to and from PAX - I know the entire transit system like the back of my hand. While the MBTA may not be as confusing as systems in other cities (I'm looking at you, London) it can be very intimidating for someone unfamiliar with it. I will be covering how to get to PAX based on plane travel, train from the south, and train from the north - from the perspective of Bostonians, "north" refers to Maine and Canada.
First, a note: your ultimate destination as a waypoint to get to PAX is South Station. South Station is essentially Boston's equivalent of Grand Central, and is only a 5 to 10 minute walk to the BCEC. However, due to the convention taking place in early April, you may opt for an even shorter taxi ride. South Station offers plenty of food, ranging from the quality of McDonald's to an Au Bon Paine. There are also various newsstands. You may want to consider using South Station as a jumping point to get to PAX, your hotel, or to anything else in Boston you want to see.
FLYING IN
If you live so far away from Boston that a plane is the only logical way to get there, you may want to take a few moments prior to your flight in order to understand the layout of Boston Logan International Airport - its complexity rivals that of the entire transit system, and explaining the layout of the airport would be another thread in and of itself. That being said, once you've obtained your luggage and (hopefully) your bearings, you're going to want to look for signs that point to the MBTA or, as we call it, the "T" - the logo is literally a solid black T on a white square. The Airport subway station is not on the grounds of the airport; however, the Department of Transportation has regular shuttles between the terminals of the airport and the station. Once you get to the station, you'll want to get on a Blue Line train headed for Bowdoin. Get off the train at State, and proceed to the Orange Line platform. From there, get on an Orange Line train headed for Forest Hills, and get off one stop later at Downtown Crossing. Finally, switch to the Red Line and get on a train headed for Braintree. Take it one stop forward, and get off at South Station.
TRAIN FROM THE NORTH
You will most likely come in to North Station, which is (appropriately) in the northern part of the city. From North Station, take an Orange Line train headed for Forest Hills to Downtown Crossing, and from there take a Red Line Braintree train to South Station.
TRAIN FROM THE SOUTH
95% of trains from "south" of Boston come into South Station to begin with, but if you're in that other 5%, you may end up in this not-so-nice place called Back Bay. In all honesty, the station is pretty nice, but for our purposes, it is not where we want to be. From Back Bay, there are two ways to South Station: the expensive and nice way, or the slightly cheaper and slightly less nice way. The "nice" way is grabbing a Commuter Rail schedule (that's the local surface rail) and figuring out when a train will come along to take you to South Station. Because Back Bay and South Station are in Transit Zone 1A, fare should only be $2 (careful though! - the price is higher if you buy the ticket on board!). The Commuter Rail is a nice option if you just want a nice, quiet, warm ride just to collect yourself for maybe ten minutes before entering the chaos that is South Station. In fact, the Commuter Rail trains are probably quieter and smoother than the Amtrak or Acela train you took in the first place! The "less than nice" way is to get on an Orange Line train headed for Oak Grove, and get off at Downtown Crossing. From Downtown Crossing, switch to a Red Line train headed for Braintree, and then get off at South Station.
THE LAYOUT OF SOUTH STATION, AND GETTING FROM THERE TO BCEC
As I said earlier, South Station is Boston's equivalent of Grand Central. However, it's about a million times less chaotic and, if you happen to live in NYC and are familiar with Grand Central, will probably be a breath of fresh air. There are plenty of seats and tables, and as I said earlier, newsstands and various kiosks dot the mezzanine floor. The mezzanine and food court is shaped almost like a funnel, with the wide end opening to the Commuter Rail and Amtrak platforms, and the narrow end leading to a single exit. Assuming you're facing the wide end, most of the food establishments will be in a cluster at the rightmost edge of the mezzanine; the leftmost edge has ticket kiosks and various information booths, both about the MBTA and about Boston. The exit at the narrow end opens up to Summer Street. Summer Street is a fairly busy street, so it's important to be careful and exercise any and all street safety precautions. However, MassDOT has been kind enough to provide us with some sidewalks. To get to BCEC, you're gonna need to turn right onto Summer Street and.....walk. Literally, just walk. You should cross a bridge over the water within 100 to 200 yards, and to the left at the far end of the bridge should be the Boston Children's Museum, recognizable by a giant freaking Hood milk bottle. Just keep walking, and eventually BCEC will tower over you on the right. Look up some pictures of it - you literally cannot miss it. Because Boston is pretty popular with tourists, taxi and bus drivers have an uncanny knowledge of where a lot of things are. So, if you end up in (increasingly) likely scenario that April in Boston is cold, dark, and snowy, simply hail a cab and let them know you're heading to "BCEC". DO NOT JUST SAY "THE CONVENTION CENTER"!! If you hail the cab on Summer Street, they'll probably know what you mean, but it's easier to specify because Boston has so many convention centers. I have no knowledge of any bus or shuttle routes from South Station to BCEC, but if they exist, by all means use them.
If we end up with a warm, sunny, and lovely April in Boston, the walk to BCEC is actually rather pleasant.
OTHER IMPORTANT TIPS
To make sure your experience of getting around Boston is just as enjoyable as the convention itself, here are some helpful tips that I did not include above:
-Boston has some pretty spectacular rush hours - spectacularly awful. The MBTA runs subway trains every 9 minutes instead of every 15 minutes during peak times, which are 7 to 10AM and 4-7ishPM. For those of you taking the Red Line, be sure to look for cars that are labelled "Big Red High Capacity Car." These cars have considerably fewer seats than other cars, but can accommodate many more people and (hopefully) their videogame-related luggage.
-It saddens me that I have to say this, but FOR THE LOVE OF ROBERT KHOO BE POLITE AND RESPECTFUL. It just takes one jerk on a train to ruin EVERYONE's day; do not be that jerk. You could easily wind up in the arms of the Transit Police at the next stop, not to mention giving all of the other PAXers in the system a reputation of being jerks. If you were lucky enough to get a seat, be prepared to give it up for people who are disabled, elderly, sick, pregnant, those with children or strollers, or those with heavy bags or luggage. There is no specific ritual to do this; you don't even need to say anything. Just politely smile, and get up. The world will thank you.
-South Station can be full of scuzzy people, particularly in the evening and early morning. If someone who looks suspicious comes up and asks for money to "buy a train ticket", your first reaction should be, naturally, suspicion. Of course, if you have two or three dollars to spare, you can be a good little noodle and hand it over if you really really want to. Otherwise, politely say "I don't have any money" or "I'm sorry; I can't." Usually, this will make them leave you alone. If they continue harassing you, though, or if they turn aggressive or hostile, find a Transit Police officer or even some random employee. They'll fix the problem, and the people sitting around you in the mezzanine will probably be thankful.
-If you're from out of town, and people begin asking you questions about where you're from or why you're here, tell them! I mean, if they look creepy and stalker-ish, don't tell them and try to go find a Transit Police officer - but if they look nice enough, they are nice enough! We Bostonians take genuine interest in tourists, so feel free to brag about how you flew in from Alaska and how you killed a polar bear with nothing but a stick and a beer bottle. We'll be happy to listen.
-All MBTA stations have a full map of the entire system, so if you get confused or if you want to get to a tourist attraction that you looked up online, just look for the map or ask an employee!
Well, that about settles it. Also, if you will need any of this information in the future, MAKE SURE YOU REMEMBER THIS THREAD!!!!!
If you have any specific questions about this topic or about Boston in general prior to PAX, feel free to shoot me a message; I'll help you out as best I can.
I'll try to put out some other relevant help threads as PAX approaches.
Ok, time to go have a heart attack from anticipation.
~Inscrutable~
First, a note: your ultimate destination as a waypoint to get to PAX is South Station. South Station is essentially Boston's equivalent of Grand Central, and is only a 5 to 10 minute walk to the BCEC. However, due to the convention taking place in early April, you may opt for an even shorter taxi ride. South Station offers plenty of food, ranging from the quality of McDonald's to an Au Bon Paine. There are also various newsstands. You may want to consider using South Station as a jumping point to get to PAX, your hotel, or to anything else in Boston you want to see.
FLYING IN
If you live so far away from Boston that a plane is the only logical way to get there, you may want to take a few moments prior to your flight in order to understand the layout of Boston Logan International Airport - its complexity rivals that of the entire transit system, and explaining the layout of the airport would be another thread in and of itself. That being said, once you've obtained your luggage and (hopefully) your bearings, you're going to want to look for signs that point to the MBTA or, as we call it, the "T" - the logo is literally a solid black T on a white square. The Airport subway station is not on the grounds of the airport; however, the Department of Transportation has regular shuttles between the terminals of the airport and the station. Once you get to the station, you'll want to get on a Blue Line train headed for Bowdoin. Get off the train at State, and proceed to the Orange Line platform. From there, get on an Orange Line train headed for Forest Hills, and get off one stop later at Downtown Crossing. Finally, switch to the Red Line and get on a train headed for Braintree. Take it one stop forward, and get off at South Station.
TRAIN FROM THE NORTH
You will most likely come in to North Station, which is (appropriately) in the northern part of the city. From North Station, take an Orange Line train headed for Forest Hills to Downtown Crossing, and from there take a Red Line Braintree train to South Station.
TRAIN FROM THE SOUTH
95% of trains from "south" of Boston come into South Station to begin with, but if you're in that other 5%, you may end up in this not-so-nice place called Back Bay. In all honesty, the station is pretty nice, but for our purposes, it is not where we want to be. From Back Bay, there are two ways to South Station: the expensive and nice way, or the slightly cheaper and slightly less nice way. The "nice" way is grabbing a Commuter Rail schedule (that's the local surface rail) and figuring out when a train will come along to take you to South Station. Because Back Bay and South Station are in Transit Zone 1A, fare should only be $2 (careful though! - the price is higher if you buy the ticket on board!). The Commuter Rail is a nice option if you just want a nice, quiet, warm ride just to collect yourself for maybe ten minutes before entering the chaos that is South Station. In fact, the Commuter Rail trains are probably quieter and smoother than the Amtrak or Acela train you took in the first place! The "less than nice" way is to get on an Orange Line train headed for Oak Grove, and get off at Downtown Crossing. From Downtown Crossing, switch to a Red Line train headed for Braintree, and then get off at South Station.
THE LAYOUT OF SOUTH STATION, AND GETTING FROM THERE TO BCEC
As I said earlier, South Station is Boston's equivalent of Grand Central. However, it's about a million times less chaotic and, if you happen to live in NYC and are familiar with Grand Central, will probably be a breath of fresh air. There are plenty of seats and tables, and as I said earlier, newsstands and various kiosks dot the mezzanine floor. The mezzanine and food court is shaped almost like a funnel, with the wide end opening to the Commuter Rail and Amtrak platforms, and the narrow end leading to a single exit. Assuming you're facing the wide end, most of the food establishments will be in a cluster at the rightmost edge of the mezzanine; the leftmost edge has ticket kiosks and various information booths, both about the MBTA and about Boston. The exit at the narrow end opens up to Summer Street. Summer Street is a fairly busy street, so it's important to be careful and exercise any and all street safety precautions. However, MassDOT has been kind enough to provide us with some sidewalks. To get to BCEC, you're gonna need to turn right onto Summer Street and.....walk. Literally, just walk. You should cross a bridge over the water within 100 to 200 yards, and to the left at the far end of the bridge should be the Boston Children's Museum, recognizable by a giant freaking Hood milk bottle. Just keep walking, and eventually BCEC will tower over you on the right. Look up some pictures of it - you literally cannot miss it. Because Boston is pretty popular with tourists, taxi and bus drivers have an uncanny knowledge of where a lot of things are. So, if you end up in (increasingly) likely scenario that April in Boston is cold, dark, and snowy, simply hail a cab and let them know you're heading to "BCEC". DO NOT JUST SAY "THE CONVENTION CENTER"!! If you hail the cab on Summer Street, they'll probably know what you mean, but it's easier to specify because Boston has so many convention centers. I have no knowledge of any bus or shuttle routes from South Station to BCEC, but if they exist, by all means use them.
If we end up with a warm, sunny, and lovely April in Boston, the walk to BCEC is actually rather pleasant.
OTHER IMPORTANT TIPS
To make sure your experience of getting around Boston is just as enjoyable as the convention itself, here are some helpful tips that I did not include above:
-Boston has some pretty spectacular rush hours - spectacularly awful. The MBTA runs subway trains every 9 minutes instead of every 15 minutes during peak times, which are 7 to 10AM and 4-7ishPM. For those of you taking the Red Line, be sure to look for cars that are labelled "Big Red High Capacity Car." These cars have considerably fewer seats than other cars, but can accommodate many more people and (hopefully) their videogame-related luggage.
-It saddens me that I have to say this, but FOR THE LOVE OF ROBERT KHOO BE POLITE AND RESPECTFUL. It just takes one jerk on a train to ruin EVERYONE's day; do not be that jerk. You could easily wind up in the arms of the Transit Police at the next stop, not to mention giving all of the other PAXers in the system a reputation of being jerks. If you were lucky enough to get a seat, be prepared to give it up for people who are disabled, elderly, sick, pregnant, those with children or strollers, or those with heavy bags or luggage. There is no specific ritual to do this; you don't even need to say anything. Just politely smile, and get up. The world will thank you.
-South Station can be full of scuzzy people, particularly in the evening and early morning. If someone who looks suspicious comes up and asks for money to "buy a train ticket", your first reaction should be, naturally, suspicion. Of course, if you have two or three dollars to spare, you can be a good little noodle and hand it over if you really really want to. Otherwise, politely say "I don't have any money" or "I'm sorry; I can't." Usually, this will make them leave you alone. If they continue harassing you, though, or if they turn aggressive or hostile, find a Transit Police officer or even some random employee. They'll fix the problem, and the people sitting around you in the mezzanine will probably be thankful.
-If you're from out of town, and people begin asking you questions about where you're from or why you're here, tell them! I mean, if they look creepy and stalker-ish, don't tell them and try to go find a Transit Police officer - but if they look nice enough, they are nice enough! We Bostonians take genuine interest in tourists, so feel free to brag about how you flew in from Alaska and how you killed a polar bear with nothing but a stick and a beer bottle. We'll be happy to listen.
-All MBTA stations have a full map of the entire system, so if you get confused or if you want to get to a tourist attraction that you looked up online, just look for the map or ask an employee!
Well, that about settles it. Also, if you will need any of this information in the future, MAKE SURE YOU REMEMBER THIS THREAD!!!!!
If you have any specific questions about this topic or about Boston in general prior to PAX, feel free to shoot me a message; I'll help you out as best I can.
I'll try to put out some other relevant help threads as PAX approaches.
Ok, time to go have a heart attack from anticipation.
~Inscrutable~
PAX East 2015: Passes For All Days [X] -- Free Time [X] -- Pass For Girlfriend [X] -- Hype [X]
PAX EAST 2015 IS A GO!
PAX EAST 2015 IS A GO!
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Starting this thread now since I have a question on this topic. What is the bus line that goes near the Boston Convention center from the airport? Is it silver, purple? I don't remember
The metro area where I current live has approximately one million people and is a major transportation hub (so, lots of trucks.) The largest city in which I have ever lived as an adult was Austin, Texas where the metro population at the time was 1.4 million. While neither are in the four-million-plus population ranges of the truly large cities, it's not exactly driving in the boonies, either. Both Philly and New York are day trips, though, and I drive to/in both several times a year. I don't think it's the population that's the problem, or rather, not just the population.
I believe it was on these forums where I saw a photo with aerial views of Manhattan and Boston (with descriptive captions.) To imagine the roads in Manhattan, you can think of a grid. To imagine the roads in Boston, you can think of a clump of spaghetti dropped on the floor. Navigation is not intuitive. I'm usually pretty good at finding my way around strange cities, and even in Boston I was able to guide a friend from Faneuil Hall back to the BCEC after only having taken the T to the area twice, but it was not an easy task. The multiple highways and poor signage in the area don't help.
Another factor is that having recently moved to the Mid Atlantic, I've noticed something about the highway system in this region that I think can give people from other areas trouble similar to what I've encountered. The roads are much older overall, so often the on-ramps are shorter and the lanes are narrower than in other parts of the country. I can only base this on my own experiences of course, but having driven in Jacksonville, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, etc., I can say that driving on those highways is a completely different experience than what I experienced in Boston.
Finally, whether or not driving in Boston is difficult will naturally be completely objective. Since you live in an city which not only qualifies as a "major city" but is actually the fourth largest city in North America, it's completely understandable that you would not see it as problematic. However, I would hold that even among major cities there is a difference between places like New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Chicago at the top end and (at random) Austin, Memphis, and Baltimore which are still considered major, but have populations that are fractions of the largest cities.
and short on/offramps cheese me off, they're fairly decent here for the highways, but the only thing saving me in Boston is my GPS telling me ahead of time what lane i need to be in.
In general though, I was looking to semi-recreate last years thread on advice for those coming in to the city, there are going to be a number of people driving in or looking to use transit/shuttles, so covering all bases with advice. I'll dig up the link to last years thread when i get a moment...
As for the "Masshole" driving, you just need to be confident when you are driving. Bostonian drivers can smell your fear! Just kidding, but seriously drive with confidence and awareness and you will be alright driving in!
Also, yeah, it wasn't intent for this thread but speculation on the other thread. What Sfford2008 said about confidence and alertness is how I drive here in TO and I do fine, but my rural Iowa-borne wife would rather walk than deal with driving here, i've found a lot of people not used to that type of driving gets overwhelmed easy.
If your hotel is near a Green Line station, I'd recommend parking at Riverside or Woodland, the last two stops on the D branch of the Green Line. Both are very close to the 128/95 and Mass Pike interchange. Riverside is $6/day and I think only takes cash; Woodland is $7/day and they take credit cards. Also, Woodland has a covered garage while Riverside may not - it's been years since I've been to Riverside, can anyone confirm if it's just a regular lot or a garage now? From there you can take the Green Line to whatever station is closest to your hotel.
If your hotel is near a Red Line station, I'd recommend parking at Alewife, Braintree, or Quincy Adams. Again, where to park depends on where you're coming from, so check the map to see which one is on your way. Each is $8 per night, and I'm not sure if they take cards (it doesn't specify on the website like Woodland does). From there you can take the Red Line to whatever station is closest to your hotel.
If your hotel is near the Silver Line, I'd recommend doing the above for the Red Line and transferring to the Silver Line at South Station. If you're staying at the Westin, it's about 3/4 of a mile walk from South Station to the hotel, so if you're up for it and the weather is okay, it's not a bad walk (I did it last year).
There may be additional options with the Orange and Blue Lines, but I've rarely taken those so I can't provide any advice there.
Riverside does not have a garage, but your car will be fine there.
I can confirm from personal experience that Woodland and Alewife both do overnight parking. Note that Woodland station is rather "hidden", if you're arriving at night, it may be hard to find, look it up beforehand, you basically turn into + drive past a condo complex. Other stations do have overnight parking as well, here is a complete list (although I would strongly recommend looking up further details of which station you pick to park at, some may have odd rules or pricing and the MBTA's site isn't always right for privately managed stations): http://www.mbta.com/riding_the_t/parking/default.asp?id=25317
I would not recommend parking out on the Commuter Rail unless you plan it out in advance, weekend/off-peak service is quite limited on most lines.
As far as other advice goes, if you ARE parking at the convention daily, it's often much quicker to just come across the northern edge of South Boston, and then come up by the Marine Industrial Park...right into the parking decks on the docks without the hassle.
However, parking is expensive and unless you're cramming seven people in a van, I'd say it's more cost-effective to just ride the T. A week pass is less than $20 and the T is way easier to navigate than Boston streets.
The T is easy to navigate but remember the trains will stop after 1am. But that's where the PAX shuttles come in. You should at least know how to get to the Con via T since sometimes catching the Shuttle in the morning doesn't work.
Never once caught the morning shuttle (bus was full or late and it was cold) but caught it every night back.
I drove a few times. I took the train last year. I'm never driving again.
That having been said, if you are just coming into Boston by flight or train or boat or bus and aren't planning on a lot of traveling OUTSIDE the city, then I'd really suggest not bothering with a car. There are very few areas you can't get to on the subway (mostly the north end) and even those you can jump on a bus. Travel to and from both South Station and Logan is done easily on the Silver line to the convention area. PAX in the past has offered busses for many of the hotels outside the local convention center.
Please note: These answers only apply to Boston-based cabs.
What are the rates like?
Meter Rates
Per Mile and Tolls: First 1/7 Mile: $2.60. Each 1/7 Mile thereafter $0.40. Tolls Additional
Idling/Waiting Time: $28.00 Per Hour
Passenger pays $2.75 toll for all trips from Boston proper to Logan Airport and North Shore Communities.
Passenger pays no toll from Boston proper to East Boston, not including Logan Airport.
Meter Rate Communities
The listed communities are not considered Flat Rate Communities and the fares to these cities and towns shall be recorded on the meter.
All Boston neighborhoods.
Cities and Towns
Acton Hull Sharon
Andover Lexington Sherborn
Arlington Lincoln Somerville
Ashland Lynn Stoneham
Avon Lynnfield Stoughton
Bedford Malden Sudbury
Belmont Manchester Swampscott
Beverly Marblehead Tewksbury
Billerica Marshfield Topsfield
Boston Maynard Wakefield
Boxford Medfield Walpole
Braintree Medford Waltham
Brockton Melrose Watertown
Brookline Middleton Wayland
Burlington Millis Wellesley
Cambridge Milton Wenham
Canton Nahant Weston
Carlisle Natick Westwood
Chelmsford Needham Weymouth
Chelsea Newton Whitman
Cohasset Norfolk Wilmington
Concord Norwell Winchester
Danvers No. Andover Winthrop
Dedham No. Reading Woburn
Dover Norwell
Easton Peabody
Everett Quincy
Foxboro Randolph
Framingham Reading
Hamilton Revere
Hanover Rockland
Hingham Salem
Holbrook Saugus
Flat Rates
For areas outside of the Meter Rate Communities, flat rates are listed in the Official Flat Rate Handbook.
Also, you can use this online calulator to get a good estimate of your fare. For reference, the address of the BCEC is 415 Summer Street, Boston, MA 02210
Do the cabs take Debit and/or Credit cards?
Yes, per BPD Rule 403, Section III, Paragraph x:
See that Hot Line Number? Keep it in your phone. If the cabbie says the card machine isn't working, start calling that number and let the cabbie know you are calling the BPD Hackney unit. Watch how quickly and miraculously that machine gets fixed.
Is Uber in Boston?
Yes
WTF is Uber?
A service to connect people easier to idle livery cars and cabs, with the livery rates very competitive with taxi services. You do have to sign up and use their app (https://www.uber.com/). I used UberSUV to get myself, my friends and our computers back to our hotel after East '13 and it was easier, less frustrating, and more comfortable than a cab, and the driver was very friendly and helpful (moreso than most Boston cabbies that I have dealt with).
If you follow them on twitter, they also give out a bunch of promo codes to save $10 here and there.
PAX Prime 2014 Preparations Complete
I threw this out last year, and I'll toss it out again. There is a parking garage just a couple of walking minutes from South Station that is pretty clear for Saturday and Sunday, and it's pretty cheap too ($10-$20 for the day). Don't even attempt Friday unless you plan to be there around 6:00 am, as it fills up pretty damn quick for the regular business folk.
Winthrop Square Parking Garage (240 Devonshire Street). It's usually never full on the weekends. I have parked the car over-night and it was only $20. It's at the edge of the financial district and away from all the tourist traps, hence the low weekend fee.
South Station: Bus or Walk
This is honestly a toss up. A lot of people ask if they should take the bus or walk. If you're you don't want to or can't walk or the weather is disagreeable to your liking, take the bus; might have to wait a bit for it. If you feel like walking and meeting some fellow PAXers at the same time, walk 10 minutes to the BCEC. There were some people last year freaking out because they couldn't decide, but it honestly doesn't matter. The walk is not through a bad part of town and the bus is pretty frequent.
To me, walking is like taking a slight detour because I don't want to wait at the light: yeah, it's probably a bit longer, but I'm continuously making progress.
T Times:
If you plan on using the T, keep in mind that you can't stay in the Table Top area all night or may have to leave before the concerts are fully over. It's always a safe bet to make sure you are at the T stop by 12:15am. This way, you know you can make it and also avoid the possibility of being on the last T, which is just terrible; you end up stopping at each stop for about 10-15 minutes, especially if you go inbound, which translates to a most dreadful trip back.
Extra Cab Fares:
Just to add on to the above, if for some reason you will be staying around the airport (or anywhere off the Blue Line outbound of Aquarium) and you take a cab, be prepared for a couple of things: 1) you may get denied a late night trip; 2) you may need to pay the return toll.
While both of these are technically illegal, most cabbies won't give you a ride into East Boston with some assurance that you'll cover the return toll. I lived there for 4-5 years and it's a royal pain in the butt to deal with, but it's just a part of the Eastie lifestyle.
Not too bad at all, really. It's a 15 minute stroll at worst.
Also, the bridge connecting to the convention center is free parking on Sunday too. So you can avoid paying for the convention parking and still have your car a minute walking distance away.
I can not stress how good of an option this is, avg daily parking in Boston is $40 a night. Also if your military you may contact the coast guard station and ask what their over night policy is for the weekends. I know you can day park there fri-sun.
i've lived in cambridge, literally five blocks from boston's west end for eight years. i've probably driven into boston with the intention of going somewhere once. the streets are a nightmare, the drivers are dangerous and impatient and parking is impossible and expensive. (full disclosure: i do occasionally take a motorscooter into boston since i know my way around by this point and can park on sidewalks)
the T is cheap and convenient. cabs are not as plentiful or cheap as NYC but they're a viable option. Uber works great.
also, if the weather behaves, you can walk anywhere you'll want to go - from the north end or faneuil hall or the prudential center or the south end to the fort point/ convention area in probably 25 minutes. boston refers to itself (sometimes) as "the walking city" and it really is a great city to walk in.
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for https://hailocab.com/boston are the rates similar to or the same as other standard cabs?