Optional Tours

NHLA has contracted with NXTevent, Inc. for three unique tour opportunities during this year’s convention. Please note, when you register for tours you are registering directly with the tour company and not with NHLA.

Boston Revealed
Sponsored by R. J. Williams, Inc.
Friday, October 2, 2009
1:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Cost $42

Referred to as the “Athens of America” and known universally for its role in the shaping of America, Boston represents a colonial cornucopia of sites, sounds and historical significance in its contributions to our nation. Your group will travel through Copley Square and the Back Bay, home of the Boston Public Library and Trinity Church.  Atop Beacon Hill, disembark for a stroll with enchanting view of the Boston Common and Public Garden, offering a verdant and graceful respite from the pace of the city, as well as the State House and the 54th Regiment Memorial.

Guests will be guided past Kings Chapel and the Old Granary Burying Grounds, the final resting place for several original Patriots. View the Old South Meeting House, where planning for the Tea Party “coup” took place, and the Old State House where the Declaration of Independence was recited to Boston residents. Head through the back streets to Charlestown to visit the old navy shipyard and view “Old Ironsides”, better known as the USS Constitution. 

Guests will continue to roam the streets and head to the heartbeat of the Italian community, the North End. Here they will have the option to enjoy an authentic Italian dining experience. After lunch, forge on to Faneuil Hall, known as “the cradle of liberty” for over 240 years. This walking portion includes a unique experience in Boston’s famous Haymarket Square with live vendors. Click here to register for tours.

Boston Duck and Fenway
Friday Tour Sponsored by The UCS Forest Group
Saturday Tour Sponsored by Hardwood Distributor's Association
Friday, October 2 and Saturday, October 3
1:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Cost $84

The Duck and ConDucktor will pick your group up at the hotel. Guests will cruise by the places that make Boston the birthplace of freedom and a city of firsts from the golden-domed State House to Bunker Hill and the Boston Garden; Boston Common and Copley Square to the Big Dig; Government Center to fashionable Newbury Street; Quincy Market to the Prudential Tower; and more.  And just when you think you’ve “quacked” it all . . . the Duck splashes into the Charles River for a breathtaking view of the Boston and Cambridge skyline.

At the conclusion of the Duck Tour, the group will disembark at Fenway Park, home of the 2004 and 2007 World Series Champions the Boston Red Sox. Though generations have come and gone, Fenway Park remains much like it was opening day on April 20, 1912. The park resounds with the echoes of baseball history’s greats, for here is where the Babe pitched, The Kid hit, Yaz dazzled, and Ortiz still thrills young fans today.

Soak up the rich history and hear the echoes of the past. Imagine being one of the "Knights of the Keyboard" as you see the view from the Press Box before strolling around the field. When available, fans may also have the opportunity to walk along the warning track and come face-to-face with the fabled Green Monster. Click here to register for tours.

On the Trail Through Cambridge
Sponsored by Sirianni Hardwoods, Inc.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
12:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Cost $64

Take a ride to Cambridge and be escorted onto charming river boats for a fascinating one hour sightseeing tour. Your guide will point out various points of interest and historical markers along the riverside. After the boat tour, head to Harvard Square, where your guide will accompany you through the historical back roads of Cambridge. Take a walk down Tory Row past George Washington's former home, the Old Blacksmith's Shop; and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow former home. Next up, your guide will take you on a stroll to the Harvard University campus, one of the greatest academic and research facilities in the world. The group will be lead through Civil War Memorial Hall and Sander's Theater, as well as various other points of interest. In addition to architectural and historical perspectives, you will also be treated to a series of long-lived campus stories, popular since the Institution's founding in 1636. Guests may visit the University's Natural History Botanical Museum, home of 3000 glass model flowers created by naturalists and consummate glass artisans Leopold and Rudolph Blaschka. The life-size models include 847 species with remarkably accurate anatomical sections and enlarged flower parts. Click here to register for tours.