Boston Sox it to them

You can visit this most sophisticated of US cities at any time, though winters are cold (as I can testify from my most recent visit last month). In contrast, by late spring, the manicured gardens next to Boston Common come into bloom and the famous swan boat rides begin operating on the lake.

Boston was, of course, where the infamous Tea Party took place: and the history of that period draws millions of visitors.

A while back, some genius had the idea of painting a red line on the pavement (The Freedom Trail) to link the key historic sites of the Revolutionary War.

The trail starts at the visitor centre on Boston Common, in the middle of downtown. An early stop on the walk, close by in Tremont Street, is at the Granary Burying Ground, with its Who's Who of American history (though the headstones have been re-aligned to allow lawnmowers to move between them easily).

Passing Old South Meeting House, you come to the Old State House - close to the concrete modernism of City Hall - where the Declaration of Independence was first read to the citizens of Boston from the balcony.

Follow Congress Street a short way downhill to Faneuil (that's FAN yull' to you) Hall Marketplace, cleverly created out of the abandoned waterfront: as well as the Hall itself, there is the famous Quincy Market which - though utterly touristy - is a must-see (think London's Covent Garden). The trail continues on into the North End and the thriving Italian-American neighbourhood, a great place to eat quite cheaply but well.

A major highlight of the trail, at 19 North Square, is Paul Revere House, the only remaining example of 17th-century architecture in downtown Boston. Revere made his famous ride to Lexington & Concord, to warn of the approaching British, in April 1775. Boston is a very compact city, easy to walk around - or you can take the efficient subway system, the T.

Take the Red Line across the Charles River to Cambridge, home to Harvard University, founded in 1636. Wander the red-brick Georgian buildings of Harvard Yard, then take in Harvard Square, teeming with life at all hours of the day. Elsewhere, the wonderful collection of the Museum of Fine Arts (with its own stop on the T's Green Line) is accessible to even the least practised museum-goer.

A stroll around the red-brick and black-shuttered colonial town-houses of Beacon Hill shows how the other half live; you can probably see most of them when you take a walk west from the Common along Newbury Street, Boston's most fashionable shopping street.

There is much to see further afield: in New England, none of it is far away. Driving is easy, but you can also let the train take the strain.

Catch Amtrak's Downeaster to Portland, Maine, where the Old Port is another successful revitalised warehouse district. Walk along the still-working waterfront and then stroll the cobblestone streets to find boutiques, one-of-a-kind stores (from Papier Gourmet to Condom Sense), and restaurants serving Maine's famous lobster and much more.

Close by, the Portland Art Museum is the uncrowded home to works by great New England artists like Winslow Homer and N C Wyeth, as well as Impressionist giants such as Renoir, Monet and Degas. Or drive to the far end of Cape Cod, past the high dunes of Cape Cod National Seashore.

The roads to Provincetown are impossibly crowded in high summer (this is vacation country for New Englanders of means - the Kennedys still gather at their Compound' in Hyannis) but in January, it's an easy journey.

"P'town" is where the Pilgrim Fathers first landed from the Mayflower in 1620; unable to locate a source of fresh water, they journeyed on. Westernmost Massachusetts has much to offer, too. The foothills of the Taconic and Hoosac ranges and the valley of the Housatonic River make up The Berkshires'.

The Boston Symphony Orchestra has made its summer home here since the days before air-conditioning, when its urban home was too hot: its outdoor concerts, with romantic picnics on the lawn, are the main reason for the region's status today.

A choice of fine inns - many the former country retreats of 19th-century New Yorkers and Bostonians - awaits the visitor, though with prices to match, especially in high summer. I opted for the Red Lion Inn at Stockbridge - where Widow Bingham's Tavern felt just like an English country pub, complete with draught Bass and Guinness.

The Inn features in a famous picture by local' artist Norman Rockwell, whose visions of the common events of the lives of ordinary people graced the cover of the Saturday Evening Post for nearly 50 years to 1963.

Artistic appetites are further whetted at The Clark, the wonderful private collection of European and American painting, silver, porcelain and furniture amassed by Singer sewing machine heir Robert Sterling Clark and his wife Francine. Situated in the idyllic rural setting of Williamstown, its earliest works are from the Italian Renaissance; but it is the 19th-century French and American art that really excels. The best thing about visiting in winter is entry is free!

You can take the leisurely route back to Boston, along the line of the MohawkTrail, the Indian Path used by the early European settlers to travel between the English settlements of Boston and the Dutch settlements in New York. So much to see, so much to do.

As an introduction to the delights of New England, or to explore beyond the obvious tourist sites, Boston and Massachusetts - with the added bonus of the shortest flying time between the UK and US - are a great destination any day of the year HOW MARTIN GOT THERE: He flew (at his own expense) with America Airlines (www.aa.com), staying with friends just off Cape Cod.

Useful wesite addresses: www.cheersboston.com www.thefreedomtrail.org http://www.plimoth.org www.thedowneaster.com www.portlandmaine.com www.nrm.org www.clarkart.edu www.mohawktrail.com Also, check out the Oxford Mail's own reader travel offers to Boston by visiting the website at www.travelscope.co.uk or calling 0870 145 4693