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Boston Harbor City Cruises

3.7 (456 reviews)
Closed 9:00 am - 7:00 pm

Services - Boston Harbor City Cruises

Boat charters

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Here's the thoughtful, personalized response I received from City Experiences.
Amy L.

Deeply Disappointed by Lack of Basic Compassion I rarely write reviews these days, but our recent experience with Boston Harbor Cruises left my family and me truly disheartened. We had tickets for the 2:30 PM ferry to Spectacle Island this past Saturday. I arrived at the dock at 2:25 PM--five minutes before departure--and saw hundreds of passengers still boarding. I explained to the gate staff that my husband was just seconds behind me, running with our toddler in a stroller after dealing with traffic and parking delays. I begged them to wait just 20-30 more seconds--as we could all literally see him approaching. The staff, led by Guest Services Manager Nicole Yeager, acknowledged seeing him but still chose to close the gangway at 2:35 PM, five minutes after the scheduled departure. My husband arrived mere seconds later, breathless and confused, only to find the boat still docked. We fully understand the importance of sticking to a schedule. Had the boat left at 2:30 PM sharp, we wouldn't be writing this. But it didn't. And the decision to deny us boarding--when a 30-second grace period would have made no difference to operations--was unnecessarily rigid and frankly inhumane. Because of this, we missed an event we had planned for weeks. Policies are important, but so is discretion and basic empathy. This experience showed none. I hope Boston Harbor Cruises reflects on how small moments of kindness could transform--not ruin--someone's day. ***Update*** Here's the thoughtful, personalized response I received from City Experiences after explaining how their staff closed the gate five minutes late and refused to wait an extra 20 seconds--while watching my husband run toward them with a toddler. No name, no real apology, no explanation, no refund--just a beautifully vague form letter signed "Guest Services." Truly a masterclass in customer care. If their goal was to create an "unforgettable memory," mission accomplished--but probably not in the way they intended. *********** Hello , We are following up on your feedback from your experience. We want to apologize for your experience and thank you for taking the time to provide us with this feedback. It seems that we did not meet your expectations. We strive to provide our guests with an unforgettable memory and while we may have done so, it was not in the positive way we want. We have shared your feedback with our on-board team from that cruise. Thank you again for your feedback and please let us know if you have any additional questions or concerns. Thank you, Your Guest Services Team at City Experiences

The Sunset Narrated Historical cruise was amazing !! Our narrator, David, was hilarious and extremely knowledgeable. Additionally, he was an incredibly nice gentleman. Highly recommend arriving 20-30 minutes prior to boarding time ( depending on how busy it is) . This will allow you to get the best seats available

USS Constitution
Katie D.

We did the sunset cruise and it was amazing. Very knowledgeable narrator, I think his name was Dave. I learned a lot about how Boston came to be. The sunset ceremony at the USS Constitution was amazing and I highly recommend it!

Adri R.

Boston Harbor City Cruises offers a variety of experiences to explore the city's beautiful harbor. I ended up doing a 60-minute narrated tour that covers Boston's history and landmarks, including the USS Constitution and the Old North Church.

View
Dreidy N.

It is an hour trip visiting the harbor of Boston. There is a narrator explaining some interesting facts about Boston. They sell some snacks and drinks. It was a great trip with my family.

Boston skyline from the harbor
Brian B.

We used this company on two separate occasions. The first experience was the Boston Harbor cruise. I had a good time and learned a few things about Boston along the way. David Coffin the guide was hilarious, but educational at the same time. Only complaint was it was cloudy out so the views weren't as spectacular as they could have been on a clear day. We also used this company to take a trip over to Salem a couple of days later. Luckily, it was a much clearer day. My wife and I spent the entire trip on the bow just enjoying the ride and views. There was a guide, but I wasn't really paying too much attention. It was an awesome experience considering I don't get much opportunity to get travel by boat.

Kelly H.

We scheduled our cruise, leaving space for lunch after our flight first, and there was a spot to leave our luggage on the boat, so we could wander about. Check in was a little confusing, but there were plenty of people to ask, who were happy to help. It was an hour around the harbour, with lots of sites pointed out. It was a pretty cool orientation, at least to the shoreline. I'm glad we did this first.

Boston
Jose D.

Got to take the historic tour as it was part of the go city pass. Went on a beautiful day at 4 pm and got great views. Great way to get beautiful angles and pictures of the city and learn about its history. 2 thumbs up

Kristen S.

This was our second time on the Christmas Eve Cocoa and Carols Jazz Cruise. This was a much larger boat than what we were on last year. Music was great and the harbor walk views from the water were stunning under the night sky and lights of the city. I prefer the smaller boat but there really isn't anything that feels more Christmasy than this!

Ken O.

I knew I was going to Salem for a day, I decided to take the ferry for my mode of transportation. I found great a rate of $27 each way via Viator.com with various times for round trip. The dock is very well marked at the harbor. The ferry has two decks, the lower deck is enclosed verses the open upper deck. The day I went, the weather was on the cooler side, so I opted to grab a communal table which a group of six women had joined me. Luckily, the water was very calm. The ship's captain was very informative of points of interests. There's plenty of refreshments available to and from Salem. Overall, the staff was very friendly and helpful. I would recommend taking the ferry to Salem since the ride was so relaxing and I was able to see Boston from the water.

Made our day! Our narrator was amazingly kind to our child and made the tour really fun!!

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Great experience, I got a great time on my birthday. Food was great. Everyone was very friendly.

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Ask the Community - Boston Harbor City Cruises

Where can u park for cheap? Or if u do park in the parking Garage how much is it usually

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Review Highlights - Boston Harbor City Cruises

At the same time our ship was there, a pirate ship was there as well, and fired back at the USS Constitution.

Mentioned in 33 reviews

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Boston Yacht Charters

Boston Yacht Charters

3.4
(8 reviews)

Planning a special event on the water? Don't look any further! Ann at Boston Yacht Charters was…read moreAMAZING in helping me plan a surprise private charter for my boyfriend's bday and our anniversary! Not only did she coordinate an amazing afternoon on the harbor with Captain Don on the Indiscretion, she became my Boston tour guide helping me plan the perfect trip and walked me step by step through transportation, restaurants, neighborhoods, live music venues, etc. She is a true Bostonian, LOVES her city and should be named Boston Ambassador Extraordinaire! Ann made sure we had our favorite snacks, champagne, glasses, etc. and Captain Don had a cooler full of beverages and even offered to cook on the grill for us while on our 3 hour trip around the harbor. We visited Boston over Halloween weekend 2021 which was late in the season to charter a yacht. Ann communicated with me almost daily leading up to the trip and worked with various captains to ensure I would be able to surprise my boyfriend with a special day on the water...we even worked together to move the timing of the charter during our trip ensure we had the best weather for our excursion. Ann met us at the dock, took photos and took care of all the details, making it a wonderful surprise, within our agreed budget and helpful in every way. Huge thanks to Ann for her OUTSTANDING customer service and genuine interest in helping me plan a day that my boyfriend (now fiance) and I will never forget, and a special trip that we will always cherish.

Recently booked a company outing with Ann at Boston Yacht Charters and everything worked out great…read more We booked a 2.5 hour harbor cruise on the Timeless through Ann who coordinated everything for us and worked within our budget. All we had to do was show up at the dock. There was plenty of food and drink (both of which exceeded expectations) and the staff of the Timeless were extremely friendly and accommodating. This was our 3rd time working with BYC and i foresee us returning again.

Boston Harbor City Cruises

Boston Harbor City Cruises

3.4
(14 reviews)

Took my husband on the Spirit of Boston the other day. It was his first time. The boat is huge,…read morethree levels! We arrived right before departure, they are very prompt so make sure you're on time. The buffet was good, lots of options! Certain dishes were bland, just need more seasonings. But overall I was stuffed! Desserts come after dinner is done. It has a full bar and live DJ for some dancing. We had a good time! It's definitely a Must-Do in Boston!! Parking tip - the closet garage is right across from the dock 155 Seaport Blvd.

I recently took my visiting family on a Spirit of Boston Dining Cruise for Dine Out Boston, and the…read morespecial price of $55 per person was an absolute steal! The trip alone is worth more than $55, so the additional food was just a bonus. Based on the menu I saw online, I was expecting a 3-4 course meal, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that the dining experience was buffet style. This meant we got to sample a lot of the delicious food! My favorites were the salmon and the chicken, and for dessert, I really enjoyed the peach cobbler (not pictured) because I couldn't resist devouring it before snapping a photo. When the buffet first opens, people rush to the line and it gets a bit crowded. My tip: let the hungrier people go first to avoid the claustrophobia. We also purchased a margarita for two, which was so huge that the three of us couldn't finish it! We even got a margarita mug with the City Cruises logo as a souvenir. There was a DJ playing cool music while we ate, and the servers were fantastic, bringing us drinks and quickly removing empty plates. The best part was undoubtedly the nearly 3-hour cruise around Boston, where we got to see a lot of landmarks. My family loved it, and it will definitely become a tradition whenever they visit Boston.

Boston Duck Tours

Boston Duck Tours

4.3
(1.2k reviews)

We enjoyed our Boston Duck Tour earlier this month and the tour itself was amazing. Our narrator…read more(The detective?) and the driver were fantastic and our whole family was laughing the entire time. When I took my kids on the tour in 2019, I was so impressed with the professionalism of the attendants who help out beforehand. They were all wearing khakis, had their shirts tucked in, and there were no phones in sight. I remember one lovely young man who was wearing a Vineyard Vines belt and my son was obsessed with it, and he graciously told me what the print was called and I was able to purchase it for him for Christmas that year. This time around, it was shocking to me how opposite our experience was pre-tour. I recall in 2019 receiving a warm welcome walking up to the boarding location, but not this time. They were all huddled in a pile by the umbrella, and no one greeted us. I approached an employee who identified himself as a driver and instead pointed me to an attendant who could "better assist". When I asked which boat to board, we were rudely told to "Just wait here until we announce it", which felt like a big departure from the friendliness of a few years ago. The attendants themselves just looked messy, and it seems the standards went down significantly. We had so much fun on the tour itself, but the end to end of an experience is really what makes or breaks it, and the bad customer service before boarding left a sour taste in our mouths.

Loved, loved, loved this tour! What made the tour was our announcer. Max Marshall Arch provided…read morehistorical information while entertaining us with his humor! If you plan on taking this tour, try to get on his boat - he will not disappoint! Thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend if you are visiting Boston.

Boston Harbor City Cruises - boatcharters - Updated July 2026

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