Walking Tours
From May to October, Boston By Foot (tel: (617) 367 2345 or 3766 (recorded information); website: www.bostonbyfoot.com) hosts a variety of 90-minute tours to major city areas, from Copley Square to the North End, using the ‘T' and also exploring one or two of the unused stations. Boston By Little Feet, run by the same company, is a special hour-long version of the Freedom Trail aimed at six-to-12 year olds.

The Literary Trail of New England (tel: (617) 621 4020; website: www.literarytrailofgreaterboston.org) organises walking and bus tours from June to October that leave from the Omni Parker House Hotel, 60 School Street, and take in homes, meeting places and districts popular with the 19th-century literary circle.

Trolley Bus Tours
The oldest and most popular trolley bus tour is the two-hour Beantown Trolley/Brush Hill Tours (tel: (781) 986 6100 or 1 800 343 1328; website: www.brushhilltours.com). Old Town Trolley Tours (tel: 1 800 868 7482; website: www.trolleytours.com/boston) operates two-hour general city tours as well as ‘theme' tours, such as Boston Chocolate Tour and Ghosts and Gravestones (prices vary). Other options include Cityview Luxury Trolley Tours (tel: (617) 363 7899; website: www.cityviewtrolleys.com) and Discover Boston Multilingual Trolley Tours (tel: (617) 742 1469: website: www.discoverbostontours.com).

Boat Tours
City Water Taxi (tel: (617) 422 0392; website: www.citywatertaxi.com) runs the hourly boat shuttles up the river between various points in Boston Harbor. Massachusetts Bay Lines (tel: (617) 542 8000; website: www.massbaylines.com) runs a variety of tours including historic, whale-watching and music cruises. The Charles Riverboat Company (tel: (617) 621 3001; website: www.charlesriverboat.com) operates narrated cruises on the river and the harbour. Lunchtime and dinner cruises with cabaret-style entertainment are provided by Spirit of Boston (tel: (617) 748 1499 or 1 866 310 2469; website: www.spiritcitycruises.com). Boston Harbor Cruises (tel: (617) 227 4321 or 1 877 733 9425/SEE WHALE; website: www.bostonharborcruises.com) operates cruises to the offshore Harbor Islands - the Inner Harbor Cruise and the Outer Harbor Cruise. Boston Harbor Tours (tel: (617) 223 8666; website: www.bostonislands.com) also runs boat trips to the islands (see Further Distractions).

The season for whale watching is April to October. The New England Aquarium (tel: (617) 973 5200 or 5277 for recorded information; website: www.neaq.org) offers trips, as do Boston Harbor Cruises and Massachusetts Bay Lines (see above).

Other Tours
One of the more popular transport tours is Boston Duck Tours (tel: (617) 267 3825/DUCK; website: www.bostonducktours.com). Tours are in refurbished WWII amphibious vehicles - called ‘ducks', which cruise the land and the Charles River. Tours depart every 30 to 60 minutes from the Prudential Center, 101 Huntington Avenue in front of Shaw's Supermarket and from the Museum of Science, Science Park at Charles River Dam from April through November. Another unique tour, Innovation Odyssey (tel: (617) 350 0358; website: www.bostoninnovation.org) explores the past 400 years of Boston's invention and discoveries.

North End Market Tour (tel: (617) 523 6032; website: www.northendmarkettours.com) is a unique three-hour walking tour around Boston's Italian neighbourhood. It combines American-Italian history with culinary origins. There are stops at small speciality shops, such as bakery, wine, produce and spice shops, plus handouts and samples.

Audissey Guides (tel: (617) 418 7214; website: www.audisseyguides.com) brings the history of the city to life with sound effects and drama. It is an individual two-hour walking tour to different sites with a CD or MP3 (visitor's own equipment) which can be purchased online or at the Boston Visitor Center. See where scenes from hit movies and TV shows, like The Firm, Good Will Hunting and Cheers, were shot on Boston Movie Tours (tel: 1 866 668 4345; website: www.bostonmovietours.net).

Boston Private Tours (tel: (978) 771 4471 or 1 800 620 1136; website: www.bostonprivatetours.com) will go where the tour buses do not tread. Tours are customised to fit your needs, whether it be within Boston or to Lexington, Concord, Cambridge or Salem. Guides are teachers or former teachers.

PhotoWalks (tel: (617) 851 2273; website: www.photowalks.com) combines historic commentary with instruction on photo composition. You will come away a better photographer when Saba Alhati leads you around Beacon Hill, Back Bay, the waterfront, the Public Garden the Freedom Trail or the North End.