Boston beckons

Boston has always been a place that seems to exist both in the past and the future in equal measure. Its rich history and strong community roots help to keep it grounded while its visionary developers and innovative designers morph its very existence

- ALENTINA VALENTINI

Like many US destinations, Boston has welcomed more domestic tourists than its usual droves of international and group travel. But with the reopening of nonstop transatlantic flights, which had paused during the pandemic, this much-visited north-eastern city is back on track to show European tourists what a warm New England welcome looks like. Hotel occupancy fell to 25 per cent in 2020, down from 82.5 per cent in 2019, but it rebounded to 45 per cent last year and is projected to jump up to 66 per cent for this year.

DISTRICT DEVELOPMENTS

THE EVER-CHANGING SEAPORT DISTRICT

The past two decades have seen a complete transformation for the Seaport District, a section of South Boston's waterfront, home to the infamous Boston Tea Party protest of 1773. As the heyday of maritime commerce dwindled and manufacturing slowed in the 20th century, the seaport became all but an abandoned outpost by the early 2000s. But over the next decade, it quickly transformed into one of the country's hottest real estate markets because of innovative residential and commercial developments, even despite its inherent flood risks.

The Seaport has since become home to most of the city's new hotel inventory, including Aloft, Element, Envoy and Yotel, and, more recently the Hilton Homewood and Hampton Inn dual-branded property Hyatt Place, and the Omni Seaport with its Lifted Pool Bar, an elevated pool deck and bar offering the city skyline as its backdrop.

An artist's impression of Raffles Boston Back Bay Hotel and Residences

It's hard to tell what the Seaport District will look like in 20 years, but it will keep building