Waterfront /​ Fort Point

The Fort Point/Waterfront area lies roughly between Downtown and South Boston – “Southie” to natives, not to be confused with the South End.

Named after the Fort Point channel, Fort Point is primarily a commercial strip of land that runs alongside The Charles River – Boston’s central waterway that cuts through much of the city before meeting the Atlantic Ocean.

Traditionally home to working-class Irish families, the adjacent South Boston Waterfront gained popular attention following the release of movies like Good Will Hunting, Gone Baby Gone, and The Departed, though the district has been undergoing a slow gentrification for years which, while slightly diminishing the neighborhood’s heritage, has made it more appealing as a residential option.

The area’s proximity to both the oceanfront and to Downtown have attracted more young professionals, and with them have come new beachside bars, cafés, and restaurants, sometimes to the chagrin of longtime residents who face rising housing prices and an influx of outsiders.