Boston Luggage Lockers

Wondering where to find luggage lockers to store your bags at the Flynn Cruise Terminal, Boston's "CruisePort"?

The logical place to find luggage storage lockers would be at the Cruise Terminal where your cruise ship departs and arrives, right?

Well, the good news is that you can store your bags short-term at the CruisePort - but only on the day of your cruise's departure.

After receiving several questions about luggage storage at the Flynn Cruise Terminal and not being able to reach anyone there by phone, Boston Discovery Guide went into investigative reporter mode. We stopped by the terminal, located in the South Boston Waterfront neighborhood, to check out storage locker options ourselves. A longshoreman gave us the scoop.

"No public lockers," he told me, " . . . but no worries if your cruise leaves later in the day. Just bring your bags to the bag check area at the terminal at 10:30am or later, and we'll put them in a storage holding area until time to load them onto your cruise ship."

So in other words, although the Cruise Terminal does not provide luggage storage lockers due to security concerns, you can check in early with your bags. Once you've completed that process, your bags will be held for loading.

That solution leaves you free to explore Boston bag-free until you check in again for your cruise departure.

But . . . what if you arrive from a cruise in the morning, have a flight or train later in the day, and want to store your bags somewhere while you explore the city?

More good news. Although neither the CruisePort nor Boston Logan Airport has any public storage lockers available, you can choose from three other reasonably convenient options.

If you're arriving at Boston Logan Airport, you can find information about luggage storage convenient to the airport here.

Top photo: Sign pointing to the luggage check area at Flynn (Black Falcon) Cruise Terminal in Boston, (c) Boston Discovery Guide

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3 Short-Term Luggage Storage Options for CruisePort Passengers

1. Store Your Bags with Amtrak at South Station

Waiting area inside South Station — Entrance to Boston's South Station

Amtrak's Parcel Check Room at South Station provides a convenient place to store luggage near the Flynn Cruise Terminal, especially if you plan to travel on Amtrak for the next leg of your journey. You can easily and cheaply reach the station by taking the Silver Line SL 2 bus, which is actually part of the Boston subway system because part of its route goes underground.

You can catch the Silver Line SL2 bus at the Cruise Terminal), and you will arrive at South Station in about 20 minutes.

Pay the driver for the fare in cash as you board the bus (check for the current one-way fare) and you'll see the Silver Line stop to the left as you exit the terminal.

Alternately, you could take an Uber, Lyft, or other shared ride service to South Station. If you are traveling with others, the fare may not cost much more on a per-person basis than taking the Silver Line. If you have too much luggage to manage easily on your own, this will be your best choice.

Once you reach South Station, look for the sign for the Amtrak Parcel Check service.

If you will be taking an Amtrak train from South Station at some later time and have a valid ticket, you can store your luggage for up to 24 hours for $10 per bag in the Amtrak Parcel Check Room.

If you don't have an Amtrak ticket, you can still store your bags there, but the charge will be $20 per item for up to 24 hours. You'll also need a valid photo ID.

You can find more information here.

But there's a small catch: Boston's Amtrak Parcel Check service at South Station does NOT operate 24x7, and although the station's waiting room is open between 5am and 12 midnight, the Parcel Check service usually closes at 9pm (but to be sure, confirm the time when you leave your luggage).

From South Station, you can easily walk up the Rose Kennedy Greenway to Faneuil Hall Marketplace or the North End, stroll into Chinatown for Dim Sum and then explore the nearby Theatre District, or take the subway to, perhaps, Beacon Hill (Red Line/Charles-MGH) for a day of exploring the antique shops and galleries in Beacon Hill.

If you need to go to the airport later, pick up your bags at South Station and call a Boston water taxi for pick up at the InterContinental Hotel (Stop 13) just a couple of minutes' walk from South Station. The trip to the airport takes 10 minutes or less, which is much faster than taking the subway or an Uber. (Check here for tips about Logan Airport baggage storage.)

2. Boston Water Taxi Luggage Storage Options

Entrance to Boston Water Taxi at Rowes Wharf Ferry Terminal

If you're departing from Logan Airport later in the day after your cruise returns to Boston, the easiest and most stress-free way to find a temporary home for your bags (and transportation for yourself) is to book Boston Water Taxi's Cruise Ship Special.

When you book this package, a Boston water taxi meets you close to your cruise ship, and whisks you and your bags across the Harbor to their Downtown Boston office on Rowes Wharf next to the Boston Harbor Hotel.

Boston Water Taxi stores your bags in their office while you explore Boston.

The Rowes Wharf Terminal is located on Boston's Harborwalk, which winds around the waterfront if you want to explore. Alternately, head over to Historic Downtown Boston, just a few blocks away, where you can walk along the Freedom Trail for more sightseeing.

Once you're ready to head to Logan for your flight, a water taxi takes you and your bags across the Harbor to their dock at Logan. From there, you'll hop on the free airport shuttle to get to your terminal.

You can book this package online, but before you do, be sure to read all the details at the bottom of the booking page. As the company points out, this may not be a good option if you have any significant mobility issues, because you do need to walk (with your luggage) about a third of a mile (so a 6-8 minute walk, depending on how much your bags slow you down) to reach their dock at Cruiseport.

As they point out, you'll be walking on a flat terrain (this whole area of the city is as flat as a pancake and just inches above the water level) and assuming that your luggage has good wheels, rolling it along shouldn't be a problem, but the pitch of the (short) ramp from the dock to the boat does vary with the tide.

Keep in mind that Boston Water Taxi also offers a variety of other transport services that you may want to check out. The water taxi is almost always the fastest way to reach any points along the Harbor, and while it's not as cheap as the subway, it's always a pleasanter right - proving yet again, you get what you pay for!

3. Luggage Storage at a Hotel

Do you have "road warrior" status with any of the big hotel chains? If neither of the other luggage storage options work for you, a third possibility is find out how much you're valued as a frequent guest by seeing if you can store your bags with them for the day.

Your best bet is to call the hotel directly, explain that you have "frequent guest" status in their preferred traveler plan, and make your pitch. Make sure you have cash for a good tip.

If you're not a member of their preferred traveler plan, it's worth calling anyway - some hotels will store anyone's bag for a fee.

A good place to start with the South Boston Waterfront hotels located near the Cruise Terminal.

Hotels in several other locations may also be convenient, depending on where you're going:

Of course, if you're staying overnight before or after your cruise in a hotel in Boston, you're well positioned to ask that they hold your bags for you before check-in or after check-out time.

One more "hack" that you can try: depending on what time of day you get off your cruise ship, head over to one of the nearby hotels for a meal in their restaurant and ask them to hold your luggage for a few hours.

Since Boston's big Convention Center is also nearby, this is a fairly routine request, and most hotels will say "yes." (But do remember to tip!)

Please note: Although BostonDiscoveryGuide.com does its best to make sure all information is accurate, we can't guarantee it - especially pertaining to any luggage options at Flynn Cruise Terminal, where all luggage is subject to security precautions.

Please do confirm all information that's important to you, and always have a "Plan B" in case things change.

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Questions & Answers about Luggage Storage in Boston

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