Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum

Visit the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum and go back in time to perhaps the world’s most famous tea party. On December 16, 1773 a group of colonists dumped 342 chests of tea into the Boston Harbor to protest Britain’s unfair taxes. Their rebellion was the catalyst for the Revolutionary War and ultimately America’s independence from England.

Retrace the colonists’ steps aboard three ships docked in the harbor: the Beaver, the Dartmouth and the Eleanor. Both the Beaver and the Eleanor were actually anchored in the harbor on the eve of the Boston Tea Party. Don’t miss the Robinson Half Chest, only one of two chests that survived that fateful day. You can even have your own modern Boston Tea Party and throw tea into the harbor.

Entertain yourself at the museum’s many interactive exhibits. At the holographic Tea Party Encounter, you are immersed in a 3-D experience with colonists and British soldiers arguing all around you. See history reenacted before you at the Minuteman Theater. Its massive wraparound screen seemingly envelops you in the events of the American Revolution.

Interact with costumed patriots and colonial-era folks at Griffin’s Wharf. The Boston Tea Party unfolded here. Take impressive photos of the tall ships with Boston Harbor in the background.

Although it was once a contentious issue, tea is back on the menu in Boston. Enjoy a pot of tea or a light snack at Abigail’s Tea Room. Take home a souvenir from colonial America. Choose from the wide variety of memorabilia in the gift shop, from American flags to vintage crafts.

Purchase a ticket for admission to all of the site’s exhibits and activities. Visit any day throughout the year.

The Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum has no designated parking, but you can choose from several nearby garages. Walk to the museum from the popular Boston sites of Faneuil Hall, Boston Common and the New England Aquarium, each less than 1 mile (0.6 kilometers) away.