NEWBURY STREET

Visitors shouldn't think of leaving Boston without devoting at least a few hours to one of the city's thriving attractions, the premiere hot-spot Newbury Street. There is no street in America quite like it. Elegant boutiques, art galleries and coffee houses are housed in 19th-century townhouses and tiny white lights adorn the tree-lined sidewalks and storefronts. Positively no better way to experience the cosmopolitan flavor of Boston, Newbury Street is a posh Mecca of power brokers, people-watchers and trendsetters.

Hailed as Boston's equivalent of Rodeo Drive, it is more user-friendly than Fifth Avenue, yet just as designer-driven. Akras, the famed Swiss clothier, recently chose Newbury Street over Manhattan to open its first American store - where you'll find the country's highest-priced, off-the-rack suit for a mere $6,000. But it's not just another upscale area. Bargains
can be had with Gen-X prices on the often-overlooked second floors. Salons, day spas, body-piercing studios, second-hand and vintage fashions and other funky stores are a few of the hidden gems ranging in price from reasonable to eye-rolling. A residential street until the 1920s, the Ritz-Carlton was the catalyst for change, believing a European style would improve commerce. And that it did. Beginning adjacent to the Ritz and the historic Public Gardens, Newbury Street spans eight blocks to Massachusetts Avenue and encompasses high-end
glamour at one end, and a pop-culture atmosphere toward the other. But you don't have to be a king to stay on Newbury Street. The Newbury Guest House is located five blocks from the Ritz with nightly rates in the $125 range, including breakfast.
Newbury is a street always in change, but always fashionable - sort of a condensed version of New York. Among the residents who live on the upper floors above the pricey boutiques and cafes, you'll see the international crowd and Eurokids from Boston University, known as the real spenders.
You'll see power-women, trophy wives, and rock and movie stars, who like the anonymity and cutting-edge design of Boston shopping. You'll see skateboarders and inline skaters, who take their mode of transportation to an extreme sport level. Home to 600 businesses, many more intimate than grand, there truly is something for everyone. It's a perpetual fashion runway best seen from the outdoor dining areas. Newbury's cuisine is sophisticated and has a decidedly L.A. feel.  Traffic congestion a chronic problem, Newbury Street is best on foot to take in the sights, sounds and smells. Considered an important place where all the "beautiful people" flock, it is so trendy that Boston Magazine recently assigned a columnist devoted exclusively to covering the scene and its stock market-like fluctuations, specifically what's hot and who's wearing it. No more conservative Bostonian!


More Information
Greater Boston Cenvention and Visitors Bureau, (800) 733-2678

Newbury Guest House
261 Newbury Street
Boston, Massachusetts
(617) 437-7666
32 rooms, each with private bath. Average nightly rate $125, breakfast
included.