What's on in Boston, United States through the year

Peak crowds — First Night, Winter / Christmas break in United States

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Nor'easter season (1 Dec – 15 Mar (usually)), First Night (31 Dec – 1 Jan)

Quiet — one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Nor'easter season (1 Dec – 15 Mar (usually))

Busy — Spring break in United States

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Nor'easter season (1 Dec – 15 Mar (usually))

Busy — Boston Marathon

• Festival

  Boston Marathon

  14–21 Apr · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedClosuresBook early

  Run on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April, when the state takes a holiday and the whole route from Hopkinton to Boylston Street is lined. Hotels near the finish go a year out. Source ↗

• Nature

  Whales on Stellwagen Bank

  15 Apr – 20 Oct · usuallyWhale season

  Humpbacks and finbacks feed on the bank an hour out of the harbour from mid-April to late October, and the boats stop for the winter. July and August are the reliable months.

Busy — Commencement season

• Season

  Commencement season

  8–25 May · usuallySchool holidaysCrowdedBook early

  Dozens of colleges graduate within a fortnight in May and every family in America books a room. It is quietly the most expensive stretch of the Boston year outside the marathon. Source ↗

Still on: Whales on Stellwagen Bank (15 Apr – 20 Oct (usually))

Busy — Summer break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Whales on Stellwagen Bank (15 Apr – 20 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Boston Pops on the Esplanade, Summer break in United States

• Festival

  Boston Pops on the Esplanade

  4 JulMajor festivalCrowded

  The Pops play the Hatch Shell on the Charles on the Fourth and the fireworks follow at dusk. The Esplanade lawn is claimed by mid-morning and the bridges close. Source ↗

Still on: Whales on Stellwagen Bank (15 Apr – 20 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Student move-in weekend, Summer break in United States

• Season

  Student move-in weekend

  28 Aug – 4 Sep · usuallySchool holidaysCrowdedClosures

  Most student leases turn over on 1 September, known locally as "Allston Christmas": every U-Haul in New England is double-parked in Allston and Brighton, and curbs fill with discarded furniture. Locals plan around it; visitors should too. Source ↗

Still on: Whales on Stellwagen Bank (15 Apr – 20 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Student move-in weekend, Summer break in United States

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Whales on Stellwagen Bank (15 Apr – 20 Oct (usually)), Student move-in weekend (28 Aug – 4 Sep (usually))

Peak crowds — Fall colour, Head of the Charles Regatta

• Nature

  Fall colour

  5–28 Oct · usuallyAutumn colourCrowded

  The city itself turns in the third week of October; the Berkshires and southern Vermont peak a week or two earlier, which is what the leaf-peeping traffic is heading for.

• Festival

  Head of the Charles Regatta

  14–22 Oct · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedBook early

  The largest three-day rowing regatta anywhere, over a weekend in the third week of October, with the banks and every bridge from the Basin to Newton full. It coincides with peak foliage and peak room rates. Source ↗

Still on: Whales on Stellwagen Bank (15 Apr – 20 Oct (usually))

Busy — Thanksgiving break in United States

Nothing new starts in November.

Peak crowds — First Night, Winter / Christmas break in United States

• Hazard

  Nor'easter season

  1 Dec – 15 Mar · usuallyWind seasonClosures

  One or two coastal storms a winter shut Logan and the T for a day and pile snow onto streets that were narrow before it. The rest of the winter is simply cold and clear. Source ↗

• Festival

  First Night

  31 Dec – 1 JanChristmas & New YearCrowded

  The original American New Year's Eve arts festival, running across Boston Common and Copley Square from late morning to midnight. Free, outdoors, and reliably freezing. Source ↗