Back Bay is perhaps Boston's swankiest neighborhood. It contains not only some of the city's most expensive real estate, but some of its most notable, including temples both civic and religious.

Consequently, there is a lot to see in Back Bay. How to take it all in when you don't have all day or when you have other plans (like, say, touring the North End, Beacon Hill, or Charlestown)?

Here's how! The Curbed Boston Two-Hour Guide to Back Bay takes visitors to the essential spots in the former tidal basin. These must-see sites are close enough together geographically to make them doable in 120 minutes, tops. We promise.

• Charlestown in Two Hours: What to See When You Don't Have All Day [Curbed Boston]
• The North End in Two Hours: What to See When You Don't Have All Day [Curbed Boston]
• Beacon Hill in Two Hours: What to See When You Don't Have All Day [Curbed Boston]
• Boston's Physical Landscape: Four Huge Decisions That Shaped It [Curbed Boston]