One of my closest friends, someone I have known since early childhood, and I have a common love for the fall season; something we don't really have in Texas. So it came as no surprise when she called me up a few months ago to discuss a potential trip to Massachusetts in peak season, October. I said yes immediately and we quickly started to plan our five day weekend getaway. This was my third time visiting Boston and second time to see Salem; however, each time were in off seasons in January where it was very cold and not everything was open.

We decided to stay in Marblehead at The Hotel Marblehead really close to Salem and under an hour drive from Boston. We both did some reading and prep-work before hand on what to expect during one of the busiest times in Boston/Salem. Items included car rentals, limited parking, expected delays getting in and out of Salem during peak times, and reservations. We saw a lot and got to do to almost everything on our to-do lists. I'll share some of the attractions we saw during our trip and some tips on planning and potential issues to avoid.

Day 1 - Marblehead, MA

We arrived mid afternoon into Boston, picked up our rental and went straight to our hotel in Marblehead. We initially looked into staying in Salem, but hotel rooms were either limited, very expensive, or had no parking available. Because we were traveling into Salem everything we read said to arrive before 8 am to find parking in the garages. The rest of that afternoon was eating and relaxing in Marblehead.

Day 2 and 3 - Salem, MA

We decided to go during the week, on a Thursday, figuring it would be one of the least crowded days and arrived early enough to find parking; we did get there before 8 am and had no trouble getting a parking spot. Side note I am glad we did most of our stuff on Thursday in Salem because it was less crowded, we didn't have issues getting into the city and we heard that on Saturday that traffic was so bad people were missing their booked reservations because they couldn't get into the city or of major delays. Most businesses, museums, and tours don't open/begin until 10 am. So we walked around, grabbed coffee, and viewed places that didn't require tickets, like the Ropes Garden. We pre-booked dinner reservations at Ledger restaurant (highly recommend), a night tour of Salem, and a fall foliage/ghost boat ride. We bought tickets when we were in town to the Peabody museum and other tours in Boston with no issues; however, touring The Witch House and other museums required early bookings. I thought we wouldn't have issues getting into these places since the tours happen so frequently, but apparently in October during their busiest time you need to almost pre-book everything. There was still a lot to see and do without having to reserve tickets, like spiritual readings, tarot card readings, visiting the Salem witch memorial and graveyards, shopping, and exploring the local gardens and Georgian style homes; which we did all of those things and more.

The Hotel Marblehead

Courtyard at The Hotel Marblehead

The Witch House

Salem Witch Memorial

Salem Graveyard, one of the oldest in the country

The Bewitched Statue

One of my favorite places to visit was the Ropes garden. We still had time to kill before everything opened and we stumbled upon this garden open to the public. The house was stunning a Georgian style home, my favorite architectural style, and the flowers were breathtaking. It was a gorgeous day and we couldn't have asked for better weather and prettier scenes.

The Ropes House and Gardens

Ropes House and Garden

Day 3 - Marblehead, MA

Since all day Thursday and the evening of Friday was reserved for Salem we decided to spend Friday morning exploring Marblehead. My friend's sister mentioned that there was an historic house, the Jeremiah Lee Mansion, that is well known in Marblehead and globally for having hand painted wall-paper, the oldest known wallpaper hung in it's original place. This house was stunning, from the history, the millwork, the details, the grounds, and the lovely tour guide who gave us very interesting facts and the origins of common phrases such as "sleep tight" came from using items from the home. This was another highlight of my trip and highly recommend visiting this home.

Day 4 - Boston, MA

Be prepared to do a lot of walking, like a lot. My friend and I decided to walk the whole freedom trail. I am glad we did it, but I would probably never do it again, her mom and sister did the hop on hop off bus so if you don't want to walk that is the way to go. You start in the park, make your way to the Old South Meeting House, the State House, several churches and gravesites, North end, and Paul Revere's home and park. We paid for a tour of the Old South Meeting House and the State House and we saw a reenactment play in the Old South Meeting House that was pretty cool. Quincy market is always a must to visit with tons of places to eat and shop or even stop to watch street performers and people watch. I always have to stop at the Commonwealth book shop, one of the coolest book stores. We ended the evening on a haunted bus tour and ate in North end at a great Italian place. So another packed day full of lots of site seeing and exploring, but I wouldn't have it any other way.