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Boston Globe
07-08-2025
- Boston Globe
Take it from an experienced travel writer: These are the best rest stops in New England. (And one rises to the top.)
I had doubts, but as Nancy Sinatra once crooned, ' Advertisement The fries, drenched in gravy (with what I think were cheese curds), were delicious. But as anyone who has driven through New England knows, this is a rarity. Rest stops are hit-and-miss. Usually miss. You may face the dreaded 'Parking Area, No Facilities' sign or get lucky and hit the charming barn in Guilford, Vt. My job requires a lot of driving, and I've kept a mental inventory of the best and worst of these pit stops. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up For this list, I tried to find the best rest area in each state, which was not always easy (*cough* — Rhode Island). Some states had multiple contenders. Let's hit the road and start the exploration. The rest stop in Hooksett, N.H., is the Boston Globe's pick for best rest stop in New England. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Best rest stop in New England: Hooksett Welcome Center (north and southbound). I don't bestow this honor lightly, but Hooksett comes out on top because it meets all the criteria for a good rest stop and then some. First, there are the practical components. A rest stop should have a clean bathroom, which is probably why 95 percent of motorists pull off the highway. Hooksett's are sparkling and spacious. The rarity of Hooksett is that it covers all the basics, such as restrooms and a service station where you can top off your tank with gas or electricity to continue on your way. It also has a wide variety of local culinary offerings, plus the necessary bric-a-brac and toys to keep ankle-biters happy on long journeys. Advertisement Snowglobes for sale at the Hooksett rest area in New Hampshire. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff This all comes courtesy of New Hampshire hospitality group The big apple at the Johnny Appleseed Visitor Information in Lancaster. The rest stop sells locally made goods, from pink flamingos to Polar soda. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Best in Massachusetts: Tie - Johnny Appleseed Visitors' Center, Lancaster/Ludlow Service Plaza (I-90 eastbound). The rest stops in Massachusetts are (currently) in a sorry state. Your choices are either the ubiquitous and infuriating parking areas, which only offer facilities for dogs, meaning a patch of grass, or the Massachusetts Turnpike structures that have all the charm of a mall food court circa 1992. There are plans afoot to update the I-90 rest stops. The Irish company Applegreen Advertisement A rendering of a highway service plaza redevelopment proposal from Applegreen. Upland Architects These new and improved rest stops are several years, The McDonald's on the eastbound side of I-90 in Ludlow is a charming architectural throwback. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff The westbound Charlton rest stop on I-90 is often called out as one of the best in the state. Its biggest advantage is that it's large and has a Papa Gino's. Other than that, this stop is about as appealing as a bowl of cold Cream of Wheat. The crown jewel of Massachusetts rest areas is in Lancaster, off of Route 2 westbound. Behold the cute-as-a-button Advertisement The Johnny Appleseed Visitor Information Center in Lancaster sells locally made alpaca finger puppets. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff There are plenty of Johnny Appleseed-branded products sold here, plus goods made locally. You can buy pink flamingos (the pink flamingo The rest stop in Guilford, Vt., is one of the most beautiful in New England. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Best in Vermont: Guilford Welcome Center (I-91 northbound). Vermont's rest stops are in a league of their own, putting other states' bland welcome centers to shame. The post-and-beam barn that houses the Guilford rest stop and welcome center was constructed in 1999 and pays tribute to Vermont's agricultural roots. This is one of the most scenic rest stops in New England. The barn has rocking chairs inside with views of the pastoral surroundings. Anything you want to know about the state can be answered by one of the knowledgeable staff members or the hundreds of pamphlets. Rest stop pamphlet surfing is one of my favorite pastimes. The rest stop in Guilford, VT, has a playground for kids needing to stretch their legs during road trips. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Outside, you can relax in Adirondack chairs, have lunch under the covered picnic, view antique farm equipment, and let the kids work out their pent-up road trip energy at the playground. Back inside, there are sparkling restrooms, locally made products for sale, plus an ATM. There's plenty of charm; however, other necessities are absent. The only food to be had is from vending machines, and there's no gas station at the stop. RVs are welcome overnight, and although the hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., motorists can still access the restrooms and vending machines after hours. Advertisement I'm going to add the rest stop in Williston here for good measure (I-89 northbound and southbound), because it offers free coffee and is housed in a beautiful building. The Connecticut welcome center and rest stop in Danbury is basic, but well-maintained. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Best in Connecticut: Connecticut Visitors Center (I-84 eastbound). Connecticut's rest stops serve up a pastiche of eras and services. If you're looking for pit stops that are big and devoid of character, there are plenty to choose from. The Darien stop (I-95 northbound) has all of your food court favorites, such as Cinnabon, Auntie Anne's, Subway, Sbarro, and McDonald's. These service plazas, dotting I-95, Route 15, and I-395, are duller than a Dwayne Johnson film retrospective. My travels tend to take me up and down I-84, where you'll find rest areas straight out of the 1950s. Sure, they lack food courts and gas stations, but they have picnic tables and grills (!) for cooking your own al fresco roadside cuisine. It dates back to 'Mad Men'-era trips when families packed a cooler and picnicked. I've never grilled food at a rest stop, but after checking out the Danbury stop, I'm tempted. Danbury also ranks high because it has a large area for dogs (complete with fire hydrants) and a friendly staff. The last time I dropped in, I asked for an offbeat museum recommendation and was directed to the The Cliff Walk, a national recreation trail in a national historic district of Newport, is home to the 40 stair walk down to the coast line. Heather Diehl/For The Boston Globe Rhode Island: None. Rhode Island is a state you can drive through quickly, but that doesn't excuse its lack of facilities. Aside from a basic truck stop in Richmond, your best bet is pulling off the highway and using the facilities at gas stations, Dunkin', Stop & Shop, Lowes, or Home Depot. Better yet, wait until you hit Massachusetts or Connecticut. Advertisement A sign welcomes motorists to Maine at the Kittery Visitor's Center. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Best in Maine: Maine State Visitor Information Center, Kittery (I-95 northbound). For pure convenience, the Maine rest stop scores high. Also, any stop that has a statue of The Kittery stop is lacking gas and food options (aside from vending machines), but if you're looking for food, you should drive 15 minutes up the road to Christopher Muther can be reached at
Boston Globe
13-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Live tunes at Logan: music to their ears or a grating on their nerves?
Advertisement Jim Farrell Harvard Christopher Muther's commentary set off a spirited debate among Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up What a grump! Boston has always been known as a big music city, so why not show it off? In New Orleans, jazz musicians often play in the airport there to welcome passengers. It gives off the vibe of the city, so why not try it in Boston? (What_Cheer) If you can't deal with 5 minutes of music while waiting for your luggage, you've got problems. Deal with it. (MyThoughtsExactly) As long as they play 'Sweet Caroline' ... at least twice. (timfromvt) If they tapped a keg at baggage claim, they'd really be on to something. (Burncoatgirl) Muther is absolutely correct. Travel is stressful and tiring, and the last thing we need is loud music while we are on our cellphones setting up our rides home and waiting endlessly for the bags to arrive. (Richard D) Advertisement Who doesn't love 'foreground' music? :) (JAGjr) Flew into Colorado Springs a few months ago and they had two therapy dogs at baggage claim. People could pet them. There were a ton of smiles in the crowd. Now that's a way to lighten things up! (10KWords) When will the loud-music-restaurant trend be done? Not any time soon, it seems, with Massport piling on. I love music, but not every kind of music. When you don't give us a choice, it's just another overload the nervous system has to manage in an increasingly noisy, overstimulated world. (BostheBest) Serious overload to anyone with hearing issues who is straining to hear the garbled announcements. I'm thinking of submitting a reasonable accommodations request to Massport to have my luggage delivered to a noise-free carousel. (Threedecker) I have not heard this at Logan yet, but I have passed through Nashville and they have bands spread out over the airport, and I think it works very well. I am not a country and western fan, but I would have to say I love the environment. I hope it can work as well here. (user_4413090) Nashville and Austin have musicians at departure concourses, where travelers are killing time waiting to board their flights. Much different experience than baggage claim. (localjake) Live music seems like the wrong vibe for Logan Airport. No one is expecting warm hospitality from strangers in Boston (not the Boston way). (aksynth) What Logan needs is cats. (GrayAlleyCat)
Boston Globe
09-07-2025
- Boston Globe
The long wait is over. You can leave your shoes on while passing through security.
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Noem said the elimination of the shoe removal policy doesn't mean the end of TSA PreCheck. Advertisement 'I believe PreCheck will still be something that many travelers will want to utilize, because when they have TSA PreCheck, they won't have to take off their belt or their coat or remove things out of their bag, such as laptops or compliant liquids,' Noem said. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that other aspects of the TSA's security process would remain unchanged for most other travelers. That means the TSA's unpopular Advertisement There were promising signs in recent years that the 3-1-1 rule may be phased out. In the UK, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson vowed in 2019 that the rule would be eased at major UK airports by 2022. Rishi Sunak's government then extended that deadline to June 1, 2024. The TSA began using Analogic Computed Tomography (CT) scanners in Logan's Terminal E in winter 2024. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Getting rid of England's 3-1-1 rule depended on airports adopting advanced 3D scanners, called Computed Tomography (CT) units, that can easily determine the difference between liquids. These are similar to medical scanners, which analyze the molecular structure of the contents of a passenger's bag and detect potential threats. The scanners are currently used in several US airports, including international departures in Logan's Terminal E. The original plan required all major UK airports to have the new scanners in place by June 2024, which would allow the elimination of 3-1-1. However, several hubs missed the deadline, prompting the country's Department for Transport (England's version of the Department of Transportation) to extend the rollout to July 2025. So far, only In the United States, there has been little discussion of removing 3-1-1. Last year, Advertisement So it appears that we'll have 15 more years of putting travel-sized bottles in clear plastic bags. Both the liquids rule and the shoe rule came from post-9/11 Al Qaeda plots to bring down planes. On Dec. 22, 2001, Richard Reid boarded American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami Reid, better known as the Shoe Bomber, was sentenced to three life terms plus 110 years in prison without parole. While his name slipped out of the headlines 20 years ago, the shoe rule remained an ever-present part of flying. Christopher Muther can be reached at
Boston Globe
20-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Dear Mike White, look no further. This is where you should film the next season of ‘White Lotus.'
Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up The living room area of a tent at the Mahali Mzuri safari camp. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Advertisement The Sir Richard Branson Mahali Mzuri Virgin Mega Safari Camp features a swimming pool, a bar, and a dining room, where a chef prepares multi-course, restaurant-quality meals for an eclectic mix of guests. Between the unbridled opulence of it all and the mix of guests, I immediately knew that this stylishly-appointed camp is where season four of HBO's 'The White Lotus' should be filmed. Listen carefully, Mike White. I broke my pledge of not working on vacation to tell you that your show needs a safari season, and Sir Richard Branson's quaint camp is the obvious setting. You don't even need to give me creative credit, but I certainly wouldn't refuse it. Advertisement The dining area at the Mahali Mzuri safari camp in Kenya. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff The The mix of guests at Mahali Mzuri during my stay could easily translate to the small screen. I was traveling with a group of seven gay men from Boston (a.k.a. the drama). There was a honeymooning second-marriage couple from South Carolina (cue the Parker Posey accent), a large family from Hawaii celebrating a non-descript and unspoken milestone (suspicious), a solo traveler enjoying her birthday (sad), and a pair of young couples from Southeast Asia who had a wardrobe better suited for Coachella than Kenya. The script writes itself. Heck, I'm happy to help, for a small fee, of course. The pool area at Mahali Mzuri safari camp overlooks a valley where guests can watch animals such as giraffes, elephants, hippos, and baboons stroll through. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff I'll give you an anecdote for free, and you can decide if it works for 'White Lotus Kenya.' My friends and I visited a traditional Maasai village near the camp to see how the locals live, except this village had more handicrafts for sale than residents. Now, picture a group of gay men sitting inside a traditional mud hut listening to a local describe how the huts are constructed. Before he could finish, an elderly woman from the tribe had a question for us: 'Where are your wives?' Advertisement Did I mention that homosexuality is illegal in Kenya? This is comedy gold, Mike White. It's not just the culture that works for 'White Lotus.' There's also room for danger. A month before our arrival, a lion killed a 14-year-old girl at a camp in Kenya, and while we were on a safari, a lion killed a man in Namibia when he stepped out of his tent in the night to use the toilet. On our twice-daily safari rides through the conservancies, we frequently saw lions gnawing on freshly killed prey. Think of the possibilities of killing off a character by mauling. A pair of giraffes keeps watch for predators at the Maasai Mazari National Reserve in Kenya. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff The beautiful locations are part of the 'White Lotus' television-as-travel brochure appeal, and the 580-square-mile Maasai Mara National Reserve, where Sir Richard Branson's Mahali Mzuri Virgin Mega Safari Camp is located, is breathtaking. Each evening, the sunset was like a painting, and the sheer amount of wildlife was impressive. Throughout the trip, our group stayed at three different camps. They were all notable in their own way, but even the wildlife around Mahali Mzuri seemed more extravagant. Were they on Branson's payroll? Are you picking up what I'm putting down here, Mike? I think we've got a hit on our hands. Two of the 12 tents at the luxury Mahali Mzuri safari camp. The tents are stretched over steel supports. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff You can even draw upon our wacky experiences of occasional power outages, an actual spear being used as a 'Do not disturb' sign, and a policy that allows guests to step behind the bar and mix their own drinks if there's no bartender in sight. Those three elements alone can serve as a story arc. Advertisement It may sound surprising that I knew so little about Mahali Mzuri before I arrived, but since my job involves planning travel, I was happy to leave the planning to others for my vacation. I just showed up with a duffle bag of what I thought were appropriate safari clothes and prepared to rough it. Little did I know I'd wind up in such glamorous surroundings. That's my pitch, Mike. I know you're looking at setting the new season Even if you don't use my idea — and you'd be crazy not to — I won't hold it against you. I'll always have the memories of the luxury, the lions, and the local woman asking a large group of gay men why we left our wives at home. Staff prepare the restaurant for diners at the Mahali Mzuri safari camp in Kenya. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff An outdoor table is set for an evening dinner party at the opulent Mahali Mzuri safari camp. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Christopher Muther can be reached at
Boston Globe
30-05-2025
- Boston Globe
The best of Portugal? It's located north of Lisbon.
Advertisement Catastrophe avoided! I'm happy to report that this was the most harrowing moment I faced on a trip to northern Portugal last month. Full disclosure: I fell in love with this region a dozen years ago when I visited for vacation. So when TAP Air Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up At least that was the pitch I used to convince my editor that this was a good idea. I also wanted to spend more time outside of Porto to visit smaller cities I had missed on my last trip. Advertisement First things first: Porto. When I was last here, the city had yet to be scrubbed clean of its industrial leanings. I enjoyed the raw energy and edge. It's now more visitor-friendly, but that comes at a cost. I don't recall the São Bento train station having more sightseers than rail passengers, and I don't remember standing in a sinuous line and paying 10 euros ($11) to go into São Bento train station in Porto sees more tourists than train passengers annually. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff The number of tourists in Porto has yet to reach the same soaring levels as Lisbon, but it is growing significantly. According to the National Statistics Institute, the region saw 7 million visitors in 2024. That's up from 3.7 million in 2019. This is where the obligatory 'But there's a reason why more tourists are flocking to Porto' sentence should go. Usually, I wouldn't write something so trite, but I'm going to do it anyway. Porto indeed has a lot to see, a lot to hear, and, most importantly, a lot to eat and drink. I had an incredible lunch of traditional Portuguese cuisine at At Advertisement While Porto has become a major tourist draw, you can still find neighborhoods that time forgot. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Perhaps my favorite culinary find (bear with me if you've heard this before) is alheira, a sausage that was developed during the 16th century. At the time, the Jewish community in Porto faced pressure to convert to Christianity. To practice their beliefs without fear of questioning from zealots, they created tasty sausages, made from bread, kosher meats, and olive oil. They looked like pork, and their adversaries were fooled. They're so good that they're now a mainstay in Portuguese cuisine. I found my favorites at St. Lawrence Church in Porto looks barren on the outside, but inside the church, the ceilings and columns are coated with gold, and the baroque altars are full of wooden saints. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Speaking of cuisine, let's resume the octopus-laden cooking class in Lamego, where our story began. The tiered vineyards of the Douro Valley dominate northern Portugal. Not only is the region boozy, it's also beautiful. I had my heart set on staying in one of the Much to the chagrin of others in my class, my wine imbibing skills are superior to my cooking skills. However, I did make a killer caprese salad. I found a great hotel nearby. At Advertisement Chef João Faria teaches students how to make a beetroot salad with orange and lime vinagrette in a cooking class at Quinta Da Pacheca in Douro Valley of Portugal. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Many people come to the Douro Valley as a day trip from Porto. I'm here to tell you that you need more than a day. Especially if the weather is cooperating and you want to take a deep breath and relax. Forget Napa; you can vineyard hop here at wineries that date back hundreds of years, and when you've had enough, you can stretch out on a boat and take a lazy cruise on the river. I booked my river cruise through a company called Pinhão, a town north of Porto, is an ideal base for exploring the Douro River Valley. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff If you're not keen on renting a car and tour buses give you hives, this entire region is well-connected by rail. I alternated between Uber drivers and trains to get around. The trains are clean, efficient, and inexpensive. Learn from my mistakes, my friends. If you come here, give yourself time to explore. The cities in northern Portugal may appear small, but they're designed for leisurely exploration. In Porto, you can hit a tidy checklist of sites, but the streets and canals of Aveiro (the Venice of Portugal), Guimarães (the birthplace of Portugal), and Braga (the Rome of Portugal) need to be taken in at a slower pace. Otherwise, you'll miss the best they have to offer. I came across Aveiro by spreading a paper map in front of me and studying the topographical features of Portugal, something I hadn't done since Columbia House was selling 13 records or tapes for $1. But there it was, a curious place with a lagoon and a series of canals that's just as unique as it sounds. In Aveiro, you can cruise the canals in Moliceiro boats (think of them as Portuguese gondolas), which were used for harvesting seaweed in the 19th century. Now, the boats offer views of the city's unique architecture. The colorful boats of Aveiro merit a story all their own. I took a 45-minute tour through a company called Advertisement São Francisco Church and Convent in Guimarães was founded in the early 15th century by King John I. It's an important example of Gothic architecture with Manueline influences. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff I also didn't spend enough time in Guimarães (sensing a theme yet?), whose city center has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site because it's brimming with historically important churches, as well as a medieval castle and a palace. It's often called 'the birthplace of Portugal' because the country's first king was born here. I thought a half-day tour would be enough to see all of Guimarães's highlights. I was wrong. I should know never to underestimate the appeal of beautiful, small European cities. As I walked through the elongated gardens in front of the elaborate, Baroque Santos Passos Church, I made a mental list of the places I'll visit upon my return. The gardens leading up to the architecturally opulent Church of Our Lady of Consolation, in Guimarães. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff My final city to explore was Braga, a municipality of approximately 200,000 residents located about 40 miles north of Porto, and also accessible by train. It's best known for the Sanctuary of Bom Jesus, a hilltop pilgrimage site that can be reached by a 145-year-old funicular. After trekking around Braga, I went back to my hotel, the sleek Advertisement Outside my hotel, people were cheering, waving soccer club scarves, and chanting while cars drove by honking wildly. It looked as if the local team had just won the World Cup. I asked one of the scarf-wavers what was going on, and he explained that Braga had tied with Benfica, a powerhouse team based in Lisbon. Tied? Wasn't this celebration a little over the top for a tie score? Cut to me sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with soccer fans at "Half Rabbit" is a giant sculpture made of trash that can be found in Gaia, Portugal. Christopher Muther/Globe Staff Christopher Muther can be reached at
