Welcome to Beantown! There is plenty to see and do, so I won’t waste your time as you seek out a nursing-friendly spot. As you arrive or leave Boston, know that Logan Airport has a Kidport in every terminal, as well as changing stations in family restrooms nearby and rocking chairs throughout the airport to swing and sway to baby’s content. As you travel about the city you, of course, have the right to nurse as you see fit. If you’re on the “T” (MBTA subway), know there are a few stops that offer a slightly more scenic resting spot than others should you choose to stray from transit to nurse.
- South Station (on the subway red line) is a hub of transit in Boston, connecting subways, buses, trains, and and more. With the feel of an old train terminal, the elegant building has coves to offer you space for nursing that is not underground in a dank, dark, spit-out-gum-infested subway stop. First stop is nursing. Next stop is pretty much anywhere in the country you want to go.
- Harvard Square offers you the classic Harvard Square (red line) just a few minutes’ walk from the station and Park Street (red/green line) steps right out to Boston Common. Boston Common has everything from park benches, ponds, and water play areas to the beginning of the Freedom Trail to Shakespeare in the Park (seasonal), leading to the Public Garden at Arlington (green line). Other park areas include the length of the Charles River through the length of Boston. There is also a strip of park that continues out of the Public Garden down a mile of Commonwealth Avenue, just past Newberry Street. Plenty of spots offer you a bench to sit upon with only a statue watching you.
- While in town, Copley Place and Hynes/Prudential Center (all green line) offer a number of spots to stop, kick up your feet, and nurse. They are both a mix of mall, eatery, movies, and hotel. Neiman Marcus in Copley has a 1st floor women’s restroom with lounge and comfortable chairs. In this area are a number of hotels with posh lobbies if you are looking for places to stay for the night as well as nurse. The Prudential Center has a nursing-friendly station as well as both Lord & Taylor and Saks 5th Avenue that offer respectable and comfortable ladies’ lounges.
- If you’re museum bound, upon finishing at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, your tour ends in a sweeping view of Massachusetts Bay. The open stillness of the windowed gallery offers solace and perfect space for a few quiet minutes with babe. There are also a few spots along the way through the museum that offer respite in the midst of history. The Institute of Contemporary Art also has a similar, sweeping view on its fourth floor with plenty of space for a quick session for babe.
- The Children’s Museum, aside from its general awesomeness, offers a nursing lounge on the second floor in the PlaySpace exhibit. The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston near the mid-20th century American galleries offers a nursing room. Last, but not least, The Boston Museum of Science offers a first aid room and nursing room, both with privacy and amenities that are nursing- and pumping-friendly. With all those stops, I’m sure you’ll be concluding your stay in Boston. I’ll leave you with a grand Bostonian huzzah!
Lynette Moran shares her life with her husband and two sons, ages 1 and 3 years. She has cloth diapered both since birth and enjoys all things eco-friendly and mindful living. She’s lived around three major Texas cities as well as a few in the north east, and has nursed in every one of them.