Boston’s Open Newbury Street makes now the perfect time to visit the Back Bay’s famous shopping and dining destination.

It’s hard to imagine improving the most famous shopping, dining, scenic and cultural mecca in Boston’s Back Bay, but the seemingly impossible has happened. If you have only a Sunday to spend in town, Newbury Street is the place to spend it, and now’s the time to go. 

On Sundays through October 15, this eight-block stretch of stroll-through nirvana becomes even more delightful for what isn’t there – namely, cars. Open Newbury Street closes the thoroughfare to through traffic, providing hundreds of locals and tourists who make Newbury Street a must-visit destination some much-welcomed shoulder room to roam and browse freely among its world-class designer, name brand and local boutiques, dine indoors or out on cuisine from around the globe, people-watch, and wander through 20 top international art galleries – all in one of the most picturesque Victorian brownstone districts in the country.

Could Sundays on Newbury Street get any better? Why, yes. Open Newbury Street not only eliminates traffic, but adds special programming to create a giddy, festive, peak-of-summer vibe with special street performances, art installations, live music, one-time-only pop-up shops, games, food trucks, and crafts. 

Open Newbury Street is more than just the best possible way to spend a Sunday with friends or family – it’s a chance to see why one of the most historic streets in the Back Bay also remains one of its most vibrant, lively neighborhoods. And you’re far more likely to connect and engage with your fellow pedestrians to exchange greetings, laughs and tips with locals, shopkeepers, gallerists, and visitors from around the world when you don’t have to dodge traffic, hustle to cross the street before the light changes, or worry about jaywalking (which the Boston PD otherwise tends to be pretty strict about ticketing).

To know when you visit: There are parking garages near Newbury Street in the Copley Square area, but if driving to a no-cars event seems a little, well, contradictory, there are three nearby stops (Arlington, Copley, and Hynes) on the T’s Green Line. You can also reach the T’s Back Bay Station on the Orange Line or by commuter rail, and there are multiple Blue Bikes rental stations adjacent to Newbury Street.

But your best bet is simply to book a room at Newbury Guest House. From here, all you’ll have to do to enjoy Open Newbury Street is open your front door.