Fenway Park Tours

Fenway Park opened on 20 April 1912 and is the oldest active ballpark in Major League Baseball. Home of the Boston Red Sox, it sits on Jersey Street and Lansdowne Street in the Kenmore Square area, and a tour is a good way to understand the city's sporting culture even if you never catch a game.

The standard public tour lasts about an hour and covers the team, the ballpark and the players who made their names here. Look out for the Green Monster, the left-field wall that stands about 37 feet high, Pesky's Pole, the right-field foul pole named after Johnny Pesky, and the single red seat in the right-field bleachers that marks Ted Williams's longest home run at Fenway, measured at 502 feet in 1946. Some premium tours add time on the warning track, a chance to sit in the oldest seats in use, dating from 1934, and a seat on top of the Green Monster. A short Fenway in Fifteen visit runs on some game days and weekends in season.

Tours run all year. From 1 April to 31 October they leave on the hour from 9am to 5pm, with the last tour three hours before the first pitch on game days, and from 1 November to 31 March they run from 10am to 5pm. Tickets can be bought online up to 180 days ahead, and children aged 3 to 12 pay a reduced rate. All visitors pass a security screening, and bags must be single-compartment and no larger than 12 by 12 by 6 inches; backpacks are not allowed, apart from exceptions for medical and nappy bags.

Tours are wheelchair accessible, and the Red Sox publish a disability access guide. Allow about 90 minutes including time in the area. The tour suits families, sports fans and groups, with group and school rates available. If you can, combine it with a game, and check the Red Sox schedule before you book, since game days change the tour timetable.

Kenmore station on the Green Line B, C and D branches is the usual stop, and Fenway station on the D branch and Lansdowne commuter rail station are also close. The Bleacher Bar under the centre-field bleachers on Lansdowne Street has a window onto the outfield.