Harvard University & Cambridge
America's oldest university and its surrounding Cambridge squares — historic Harvard Yard, museums, and bookstores.
The call
Worth it if you are watching the budget and you only have one day.
Why
- 01
Walking through Harvard Yard's ivy and brick, rubbing the lucky John Harvard statue, and browsing Harvard Square's bookshops is a quietly satisfying half-day with real intellectual atmosphere.
Our read - 02
The catch: there's little you can enter without a (worthwhile) student-led tour, the campus is a working university not an attraction, and the squares have gentrified some of the old-Cambridge soul away.
Our read
Is it a fit?
Go if
This is your first trip to Boston
A near-essential Boston-area stop; a student tour makes the closed buildings come alive.
You are watching the budget
Harvard University & Cambridge earns the spend, even on a tight budget.
You only have one day
Short trip or not, keep Harvard University & Cambridge.
You are traveling as a couple
As a couple, Harvard University & Cambridge is an easy yes.
Plan it well
- Cost
- Free; student-led tours ~$15
- Timing
- Daytime during term for campus life; tours run regularly from the Square.
- Booking
- Free or ~$15 student-led tours; reserve popular ones ahead.
- Allow
- Half day
- Accessibility
- The Yard's paths are mostly flat and walkable, with some uneven brick.
- Getting there
- Harvard station on the Red Line opens right onto the Square.
Consider instead
Sources and method (2)
- Founded in 1636 by vote of the Massachusetts Bay Colony's Great and General Court, Harvard is the oldest institution of higher education in the United States. harvard.edu ↗
- The campus centers on Harvard Yard; Massachusetts Hall (built 1718-1720) is the university's oldest surviving building. en.wikipedia.org ↗