The Christian Science Plaza is the location of the First Church of Christ, Scientist, one of the largest churches in New England. The plaza consists of 14 spacious and serene acres, paved in brick and granite, with orderly rows of trees, buildings, stone benches, a large reflecting pool and a circular fountain. The Mother Church, built in 1894, consists of a Romanesque Church Edifice with a bell tower and stained glass windows, and the larger Church Extension, added in 1906, is a mix of Renaissance and Byzantine architecture.

The Mapparium, part of the Mary Baker Eddy Library, is a three-story, stained-glass globe with a thirty-foot glass bridge passing through the center. Travel to the center of the world and experience the three-dimensional 1935 map, with a presentation including words, music, and LED lights to illustrate the development of ideas over time. The Monitor & Quest Galleries, the Hall of Ideas, and interactive exhibits are also open to the public.

Approximate Time to Allow: 1 hr

The Symphony Hall in Boston, Massachusetts is considered one of the top concert halls in the world because of its impressive acoustics. The Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Pops share the hall. The Symphony Hall was designed through a collaboration of architects McKim, Mead and White and assistant professor of physics at Harvard University, Wallace Clement Sabine. Sixteen Greek and Roman statue replicas line the walls of the hall and Beethoven’s name is inscribed over the stage. The Symphony Hall’s organ, a 4,800 pipe Aeolian-Skinner, is also considered to be one of the best in the world. It was installed in 1949 and is autographed by Albert Schweitzer.

Approximate Time to Allow: 30 min.

The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston is one of the largest museums in the U.S., housing the second largest permanent museum collection in the Western Hemisphere. The museum is affiliated with the School of the Museum of Fine Arts and the sister museum, the Nagoya/boston Museum of Fine Arts, in Nagoya, Japan. The Museum of Fine Arts offers a fine permanent collection from the masters of American painting as well as a vast selection of works of art from all important periods; it also hosts special exhibits on loan from around the world.

Approximate Time to Allow: Over 1 hr

Isabella Stewart Gardner, a patron of the arts, established the museum in 1903 when her own property on Beacon Hill became too small for her growing collection. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum was designed as a replica of the 15th century Venetian style palazzo. Because Gardner disliked the cold, impersonal experience that museums usually offer, she chose the palazzo-style, a design which provides natural light and garden views, for the building. The museum, a must-see Boston attraction, features three floors of galleries surrounding a garden courtyard. The collection includes paintings, sculpture, tapestries, furniture, and decorative arts spanning 300 years, from locations around the world.

Approximate Time to Allow: 1 hr