Selena JonesMy trip started the night prior to our flight from Heathrow to Boston. I stayed at the Radisson Hotel & Conference Centre London Heathrow. In order to get to Heathrow Airport, after taking the train to Euston, I used the Northern Line and the new Elizabeth Line, which is a great quick service and goes to all terminals in Heathrow.
Day 1:
After meeting my fellow group members in the hotel reception, we took a short taxi journey to Heathrow Terminal 2 where JetBlue departs from. Check in was done easily on a machine and then on to the bag drop to hand over our luggage. Our first stop was to Boston, and I was lucky enough to fly out Business Class or as JetBlue call it ‘Mint Class’. It was roomy in the cabin and the seat turned nearly into a flat bed. Whether in Mint Class or Economy, you can order your meals via the TV screens when you board the flight from a selection, a nice touch which I haven’t seen airlines do before for Economy.
On arrival to Boston, our first stop was a visit to the city’s new attraction; The View, where you get 360 degree views of the city. There is also a bar and restaurant that can be visited. On your way around the viewing platform you can scan points of interest that can then be emailed to you at the end, so you can put together an itinerary of things to do.
After lunch we walked around Boston seeing sights such as, the Freedom Trail, Faneuil Hall and the Old State House. We also did a Duck Tour of Boston to end up on the water and see Boston from the other side. When on the water you can even drive the Duck Boat if you wish! The tour guide was really knowledgeable.
Our first hotel was located outside of the city in MetroWest at the Hilton Garden Inn Marlborough as we were continuing our tour into Massachusetts.
Day 2:
After having breakfast at the hotel, we headed out to see the American Heritage Museum which is located in Hudson. It is a thoroughly interesting museum and well worth a visit. It has a wide selection of aeroplanes, tanks and military vehicles from the Revolutionary War until today – it is one of the largest collections in the world! If you have some extra time, you can also do a tank driving experience. The Museum is open from Wednesdays to Sundays, and I would allow at least 2 hours to see most things, but you will definitely be there longer.
After transferring to Westport, we visited the Buzzards Bay Brewery and sampled a few of their offerings – I personally liked the Golden Flounder blend. They also have a winery in the same space if you prefer to visit a vineyard.
We ended the day visiting Battleship Cove in Fall River, which is open 7 days a week. You can visit 5 US Naval ships including USS Massachusetts and USS Joseph P Kennedy JR – you can walk around the ships and explore, as well as visit the Maritime Museum.
The hotel we stayed at this night was the New Bedford Harbour Hotel which included a continental grab and go breakfast which is a good extra to have.
Day 3:
After departing the hotel, our first stop was the Ned’s Point Lighthouse before heading to Plymouth and visiting the Pilgrim Hall Museum – the oldest public museum in the USA in continuous operation and has been open since 1824. The museum tells the story of the Mayflower landing from 1620 and details about how their life would have been. After the visit to the museum, we went to see the Mayflower II which arrived in Plymouth in 1957 and we went onboard for a tour. It is a full-scale reproduction of the original ship. You can also see along the front the Plymouth Rock which is believed to be where the people of the original Mayflower first stood on arrival in 1620 and when the founded the Plymouth Colony.
We had some time to look around Plymouth. It is a lovely town with plenty of places to eat, drink and it is well-worth spending a night there to see all they have to offer.
After our stop in Plymouth, we travelled back to Boston to fly to Orlando with JetBlue. They only offer Economy “Core” Class on the internal flights in the USA but they have plenty of legroom and they still have TV screens to watch a film or a selection of live TV while on board.
On arrival to Orlando, our hotel was The Alfond Inn in Winter Park. They are currently refurbishing the rooms and adding a spa and have an outdoor pool. If you prefer to stay in Orlando but a little outside of the parks with a more relaxed feel to it, The Alfond Inn in Winter Park is a good option. It is about a 30-minute drive to the parks, so a car would be needed as currently there isn’t any public transport available
Day 4:
Our plan for today was a treasure hunt around some of the more unknown areas of Orlando, our first area was Winter Park which has an Amtrak station should anyone be travelling around the USA. Winter Park also has a wide variety of restaurants and shops. On the Saturday we were there they also had a market on. After Winter Park, we went on to Downtown Orlando where there was more to find, and our treasure hunt ended up at Icon Park where there is a great selection of restaurants and rides – we got to try out the Icon Wheel with a view over Orlando.
Day 5:
Our hotel for the previous evening was at the JetBlue University – anyone who works for them go through the University for their training and they have rooms on site which we stayed in. It is located not far from Orlando Airport. We were very lucky as we got to go behind the scenes at the University and view the training facilities and experience the Slide Jump and also go into an aircraft simulator and fly an aeroplane. We also got to see more of what would happen in an emergency and it was really interesting to see what the Cabin Crew and staff have to do.
We flew later on that day from Orlando to Newark with JetBlue and spent the night in New Jersey at the Renaissance Meadowlands Hotel. If you’re looking at attending a game or concert at the MetLife Stadium, this hotel would be a good choice as it is close by.
Day 6:
The first stop this morning was a trip to the American Dream Shopping Mall located in New Jersey, not far from the hotel. It opened back in November 2019 and contains so much for families aside from shopping – there is the Nickelodeon Universe (the biggest indoor theme park in Western Hemisphere), Dreamworks Waterpark (the largest indoor waterpark in Northern America), Blacklight Mini Golf, Angry Birds Mini Golf, Dream Wheel (experience views of the NYC skyline), Mirror Maze, The Rink (indoor ice skating), Big Snow (North America’s first and only Indoor, real snow all year round snow resort!), Sealife, Tilt (3D street chalk museum), Surf School plus a wide selection of shops including Primark, Sephora & Zara through to the more luxury of brands including Hermes and Tiffany.
After the American Dream, we went to Manhattan and spent our last night at the Margaritaville Hotel which is located very close to Times Square.
For our final night of the trip we went the City Cruises by Hornblower cruise which included dinner, it was a lovely evening and we sailed by the Statue of Liberty as well and saw the amazing New York Skyline in the evening – I would definitely recommend this for anyone to do. It was a 3 course dinner and we had the chance to go outside and take photos between courses. Live music was also played onboard with a singer.
Day 7:
On our final morning in New York we packed up and walked around 20 minutes from the hotel to The Edge at Hudson Yards. We were very lucky to be able to see it before it opened to the general public at 10am, as there was a long queue to enter once we left. The Edge had great views across the city and if you are brave enough you can also step onto the glass floor to see the building below!
After the Edge we walked along the Highline to the Whitney Museum of Modern Art, this took around 25 minutes and was a nice way to see New York away from the road! The Whitney Museum contains art works from the 20th and 21st centuries, there is a permanent collection that is there all the time and then other works are exhibited throughout the year.
Before flying home we visited The TWA hotel located at JFK Airport opposite Terminal 2, a 1960s themed hotel with a infinity pool located on the roof overlooking the runway. Even if you’re not staying at the hotel and wanted to use the facilities of the hotel you can pay for use on the day but to be certain just book in advance. They also have a bar next to the pool and also a bar within the hotel.
Once onboard our JetBlue flight back to Heathrow we got to pick our meals (should you wish to have one) for the return flight, I travelled back in Economy Core which had nice legroom to try and sleep!
Although a jammed packed week of activities and adventure, it was good to see outside of Boston City and behind the scenes at the JetBlue University – my favourite part of the trip was the Dinner Cruise and the trip to The Edge in New York.
