Rose Kennedy Greenway

Some of Boston's best shopping happens out in the open. The Greenway Artisan Market transforms the Rose Kennedy Greenway into a weekend marketplace where more than 50 local artists, makers, designers, and small businesses set up shop every Saturday and Sunday throughout the summer. Open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in July and August, it's the kind of place where you'll spot handcrafted ceramics, original artwork, vintage finds, jewelry, and small-batch goods while wandering between food trucks and the city's waterfront parks. There isn't much pressure to buy anything. Half the fun is chatting with the people who made it, discovering a new favorite artist, and enjoying an afternoon on one of Boston's liveliest stretches of green space.

For five Thursday nights each summer, one corner of the Rose Kennedy Greenway becomes Boston's outdoor jazz club. Jazz in the Park is a free concert series that brings acclaimed local musicians and international performers downtown for evenings that stretch from classic jazz to Latin, Afro-Cuban, and contemporary sounds. Every week features a different lineup, giving the series a rhythm of its own and plenty of reasons to come back. Office workers, neighborhood regulars, and curious passersby all end up sharing the same patch of grass as the music carries through the park. It feels wonderfully unpretentious, proving you don't need a ticket or a concert hall to hear some of the city's best live music.