Boston Public Garden and the Make Way for Ducklings statues

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Boston Public Garden and the Make Way for Ducklings statues

Photo: Captain-tucker · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

🌷 Garden · Boston

1.5 hours · Free · No reservation needed

age fit
0–1 yr
★ 5.0
1–3 yrs
★ 5.0
3–5 yrs
★ 5.0
5–10 yrs
★ 4.0
  • 🚗
    About 20 min drive
    From Newton · Parking: Green Line to Arlington puts you right there; by car use the Boston Common underground garage (from about $20)
  • 🍼
    Stroller-friendly
    Flat surfaces — bring the stroller
  • 🌳
    Some shade
    Great on sunny days · Good on cool days · Handles heat
  • ⏱️
    Typical visit: 1.5 hours
    Best seasons: Spring · Summer · Fall

America's first public botanical garden and the setting of the picture book Make Way for Ducklings: the bronze mother duck and eight ducklings at the Beacon St corner have been polished shiny by generations of kids riding them, tulips fill the beds in April, willows trail into the lagoon, and from the little suspension bridge you can watch the Swan Boats pass underneath.

💡 Tips
Tulips peak from mid-April to early May, and on Mother's Day there is a parade of kids dressed as ducklings. The statues draw a photo line on weekends, so go early in the morning. The Frog Pond and Swan Boats on Boston Common are right here, two parks in one day.

What this place offers

✓duckling statues
✓tulips
✓footbridge
✓willows
✓swan boats
✓paved path
✓free

Featured in these guides

This weekend's weather in Boston

Forecast at the destination itself (coast and hills often differ from home)

🌦️
Sat 10/17
Showers · 41–64°F · 78% rain
🌤️
Sun 10/18
Partly cloudy · 40–59°F · 1% rain

Location

Boston, Massachusetts

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