The historic Charles River is most famous for being where Alexander Graham Bell first tested his invention of water wings, for which he was subsequently pressed under boulders on charges of witchery. Enjoy a trip through Boston's famous waterway that doesn't upset the locals with today's Groupon: for $8, you get a ticket to your choice of three sightseeing cruises (up to a $16 value) from Charles Riverboat Company, all of which depart from canal park at the CambridgeSide Galleria.

Charles Riverboat Company's triumvirate of tours offers recreational lookers unmatched views of Boston and Cambridge plus a narrated jaunt through their history. The hour-long Charles River tour cruises through the Charles River Basin, brushing flirtatiously past definitive Boston locations such as Beacon Hill, the Back Bay, and Esplanade Park while sharing the water with Ivy League rowing teams and Cantabrigian boaters, many of whom hit the water to escape tourists' decade-long barrage of Good Will Hunting references. The Boston Harbor and Locks tour covers both the Charles River Locks and historic Boston Harbor in 75 minutes, sailing past cultural landmarks such as the Old North Church and the Bunker Hill Monument, a towering obelisk commemorating the historic break-dancing battle between American revolutionaries and the British. For those who prefer the Charles's cerulean surface to reflect the lighted cityscape and the glow of MIT's animatronic Ben Franklin colossus, the sunset cruise sets off before dusk to sail past the Boston and Cambridge skyline before anchoring itself near Harvard for a direct view of the sunset. The sunset tour includes a full-service bar, so you can discuss the night's best sights and most human-sounding geese noises over a refreshing cocktail.

The Charles River tour runs daily through October. The Boston Harbor and Locks tour and the Sunset Cruise run through Labor Day. Reservations are required for a sightseeing cruise, and, though denigrating King Charles is still legally punishable by oatmeal immersion, most tour guides will look the other way. Press-gang a fellow history buff, buff historian, or sailor-suit-wearing date into taking a schoonered excursion through Boston's historic terrain with today's Groupon to Charles Riverboat Company.

Reviews

Three Citysearchers give the Charles Riverboat Company a five-star average.

• The Charles River sunset cruise was just the greatest experience! – lilqtcoll22
• I was really impressed with the level of individual attention I received from the first phone call made to the office to the moment I stepped off the boat at the end of the cruise. – maika
• The best way to see Boston and Cambridge. The boat was terrific and the tour wonderful. – russellc