A park underneath a highway overpass, and “Love” is painted on the overpass.

The best places in the Boston area to break up with someone, mapped

From bustling spots such as South Station and Copley Square to quieter environs such as the Boston Public Library and the Arnold Arboretum, these are the choicest locations for moving on

By April Gardner Updated Feb 5, 2020, 8:39am EST

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By April Gardner Updated Feb 5, 2020, 8:39am EST

Photo by David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

With Valentines Day approaching, what better time to update our exhaustive map of where to leave your lover? Yes, it's the last word in the best Greater Boston spots for having that last word with the one you once loved.

These options range from the cozily intimate to the deliberately public, from places such as libraries, where quiet is a must, to areas such as plazas, where the hustle of the masses will drown out the crying. When in doubt, pick a transit hub such as South Station—easy getaway.

It's not the most pleasant topic, we admit, but such a selection can come in handy.

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Encore Boston Harbor

You lost on love, but the odds are in your favor to find a new attraction: sculptures, spas, restaurants, a carousel, an attractive stranger. You never know.

Open in Google Maps

1 Broadway, Everett, MA 02149

Visit Website

A multistory casino building on a waterfront.

Logan Airport

This is a no-brainer. If one of you has a plane to catch, this is one of the best places to let the world whisk that person away and out of the other's life forever.

Boston Logan International Airport, 1 Harborside Drive, Boston, MA 02128

Visit Website

Aerial view of security lines at Logan Airport.

Also featured in:

The Liberty Hotel

Why wouldn't you break up at a place that has such a poetically appropriate name (and that was once a jail—really)? Free your heart!

215 Charles Street, Boston, MA 02114

Visit Website

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Liberty Hotel Boston (@liberty_hotel) on Jan 27, 2020 at 9:16am PST

Also featured in:

The Hong Kong

After you split that final scorpion bowl, you can go dance with a crowd. Or, more importantly, make sure there's karaoke happening so that you can sing "I Will Survive."

65 Chatham Street, Boston, MA 02109

Visit Website

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Hong Kong Boston, Faneuil Hall (@hongkongboston) on Dec 25, 2019 at 8:22am PST

Also featured in:

Massachusetts State House

Because you need to make it official that it's over, you're going to need the government to back you up.

Open in Google Maps

1 Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 02108

Visit Website

The exterior of the Massachusetts State House. The building is red brick and there is a gold dome. There are white columns on the facade.

Old State House

Make the end a historic one. This place helped with our country's independence, and it can be the stage for yours too.

Open in Google Maps

206 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02109

Mariel

This place rekindles your wanderlust when your lust has wandered from your relationship.

10 Post Office Square #120, Boston, MA 02109

Visit Website

A cozy restaurant with a mural on the wall.

Also featured in:

Boston Common

This place is so expansive, you're bound to find a private spot where you can have a private conversation.

Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02108

Visit Website

Leaves changing along a pathway in Boston Common.

Also featured in:

Four Seasons Hotel Boston

For a heart-to-heart, the lounge is a quiet place to do it with dignity.

Open in Google Maps

200 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

Visit Website

A capacious hotel lounge with several tables and soft lighting.

South Station Bus Terminal

Break up, but not before you check the bus schedule for an approximate idea of when the conversation can end.

Open in Google Maps

700 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02111

Visit Website

A darkened, low-ceilinged bus depot with several doors off it,

South Station

Break up. Catch the next train out. Done.

Open in Google Maps

Visit Website

An aerial view of the floor of a busy train station.

Trinity Church

When you're about to have a deeply emotional moment, sometimes it's best to be in a place that nurtures soul-searching. Regardless of your religious affiliation (or lack thereof), you can keep your head down in a private pew and enjoy the quiet.

Open in Google Maps

206 Clarendon St, Boston, MA 02116

Visit Website

A pedestrian square with a grand church on one side and a modern skyscraper on another.

Boston Public Library

If you don't like scenes, and your soon-to-be-ex-significant-other is a rule follower, head to a place that forbids yelling.

Open in Google Maps

700 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

Visit Website

A long, capacious room with several rows of tables and people sitting quietly at those tables.

Copley Square

This location is a perfect point of departure to head your separate ways—to Newbury Street or the mall for retail therapy, to a salon or a spa for a pick-me-up, to the library for quiet contemplation or down any random street to think.

Open in Google Maps

Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02130

An open public square with buildings around it and people in it.

Sonsie

The steady din and good-looking crowd provide the perfect backdrop for The Talk and The Aftermath. If you're up for it, scope out the most eligible bachelor or bachelorette in the room.

327 Newbury Street, Boston, MA 02115

Visit Website

Diners in an open-window restaurant along a busy street.

Also featured in:

Dunkin' Donuts

If you don't know exactly where the deed needs to be done, don't worry—there's a Dunkin’ on most every corner. Head here for an uncomplicated break-up. Just the way you like it. Get a donut ready for that jolt of sugar to book it outta there.

Open in Google Maps

Boston University, 530 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215

Visit Website

The exterior of a one-story donut shop on a street corner.

Lucky Strike Social Boston

Instead of a pool of tears, just focus on a good game of pool. And check out the scene of many partiers up for a good time.

Open in Google Maps

145 Ipswich St, Boston, MA 02215

Visit Website

A bowling alley with multiple lanes and lighted screens behind the pins.

Harpoon Brewery

You’re going to need that beer afterward (or before).

Open in Google Maps

306 Northern Ave, Boston, MA 02210

Visit Website

The front of a brewery, with a long cylindrical tower with “Harpoon” painted on it.

Time Out Market Boston

You’re gonna need comfort food.

401 Park Dr, Boston, MA 02215

Visit Website

A busy, multi-level food market.

Also featured in:

Arnold Arboretum

What better way to heal thine heart post-breakup than to wander with nature in this 281-acre preserve?

125 Arborway, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

Visit Website

Spring comes to Arnold Arboretum.

Also featured in:

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Encore Boston Harbor

1 Broadway, Everett, MA 02149

You lost on love, but the odds are in your favor to find a new attraction: sculptures, spas, restaurants, a carousel, an attractive stranger. You never know.

Open in Google Maps

1 Broadway, Everett, MA 02149

Visit Website

A multistory casino building on a waterfront.

Logan Airport

Boston Logan International Airport, 1 Harborside Drive, Boston, MA 02128

This is a no-brainer. If one of you has a plane to catch, this is one of the best places to let the world whisk that person away and out of the other's life forever.

Boston Logan International Airport, 1 Harborside Drive, Boston, MA 02128

Visit Website

Aerial view of security lines at Logan Airport.

The Liberty Hotel

215 Charles Street, Boston, MA 02114

Why wouldn't you break up at a place that has such a poetically appropriate name (and that was once a jail—really)? Free your heart!

215 Charles Street, Boston, MA 02114

Visit Website

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Liberty Hotel Boston (@liberty_hotel) on Jan 27, 2020 at 9:16am PST

The Hong Kong

65 Chatham Street, Boston, MA 02109

After you split that final scorpion bowl, you can go dance with a crowd. Or, more importantly, make sure there's karaoke happening so that you can sing "I Will Survive."

65 Chatham Street, Boston, MA 02109

Visit Website

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Hong Kong Boston, Faneuil Hall (@hongkongboston) on Dec 25, 2019 at 8:22am PST

Massachusetts State House

1 Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 02108

Because you need to make it official that it's over, you're going to need the government to back you up.

Open in Google Maps

1 Ashburton Place, Boston, MA 02108

Visit Website

The exterior of the Massachusetts State House. The building is red brick and there is a gold dome. There are white columns on the facade.

Old State House

206 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02109

Make the end a historic one. This place helped with our country's independence, and it can be the stage for yours too.

Open in Google Maps

206 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02109

Mariel

10 Post Office Square #120, Boston, MA 02109

This place rekindles your wanderlust when your lust has wandered from your relationship.

10 Post Office Square #120, Boston, MA 02109

Visit Website

A cozy restaurant with a mural on the wall.

Boston Common

Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02108

This place is so expansive, you're bound to find a private spot where you can have a private conversation.

Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02108

Visit Website

Leaves changing along a pathway in Boston Common.

Four Seasons Hotel Boston

200 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

For a heart-to-heart, the lounge is a quiet place to do it with dignity.

Open in Google Maps

200 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

Visit Website

A capacious hotel lounge with several tables and soft lighting.

South Station Bus Terminal

700 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02111

Break up, but not before you check the bus schedule for an approximate idea of when the conversation can end.

Open in Google Maps

700 Atlantic Avenue, Boston, MA 02111

Visit Website

A darkened, low-ceilinged bus depot with several doors off it,

South Station

Break up. Catch the next train out. Done.

Open in Google Maps

Visit Website

An aerial view of the floor of a busy train station.

Trinity Church

206 Clarendon St, Boston, MA 02116

When you're about to have a deeply emotional moment, sometimes it's best to be in a place that nurtures soul-searching. Regardless of your religious affiliation (or lack thereof), you can keep your head down in a private pew and enjoy the quiet.

Open in Google Maps

206 Clarendon St, Boston, MA 02116

Visit Website

A pedestrian square with a grand church on one side and a modern skyscraper on another.

Boston Public Library

700 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

If you don't like scenes, and your soon-to-be-ex-significant-other is a rule follower, head to a place that forbids yelling.

Open in Google Maps

700 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116

Visit Website

A long, capacious room with several rows of tables and people sitting quietly at those tables.

Copley Square

Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02130

This location is a perfect point of departure to head your separate ways—to Newbury Street or the mall for retail therapy, to a salon or a spa for a pick-me-up, to the library for quiet contemplation or down any random street to think.

Open in Google Maps

Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02130

An open public square with buildings around it and people in it.

Sonsie

327 Newbury Street, Boston, MA 02115

The steady din and good-looking crowd provide the perfect backdrop for The Talk and The Aftermath. If you're up for it, scope out the most eligible bachelor or bachelorette in the room.

327 Newbury Street, Boston, MA 02115

Visit Website

Diners in an open-window restaurant along a busy street.

Dunkin' Donuts

Boston University, 530 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215

If you don't know exactly where the deed needs to be done, don't worry—there's a Dunkin’ on most every corner. Head here for an uncomplicated break-up. Just the way you like it. Get a donut ready for that jolt of sugar to book it outta there.

Open in Google Maps

Boston University, 530 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215

Visit Website

The exterior of a one-story donut shop on a street corner.

Lucky Strike Social Boston

145 Ipswich St, Boston, MA 02215

Instead of a pool of tears, just focus on a good game of pool. And check out the scene of many partiers up for a good time.

Open in Google Maps

145 Ipswich St, Boston, MA 02215

Visit Website

A bowling alley with multiple lanes and lighted screens behind the pins.

Harpoon Brewery

306 Northern Ave, Boston, MA 02210

You’re going to need that beer afterward (or before).

Open in Google Maps

306 Northern Ave, Boston, MA 02210

Visit Website

The front of a brewery, with a long cylindrical tower with “Harpoon” painted on it.

Time Out Market Boston

401 Park Dr, Boston, MA 02215

You’re gonna need comfort food.

401 Park Dr, Boston, MA 02215

Visit Website

A busy, multi-level food market.

Arnold Arboretum

125 Arborway, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

What better way to heal thine heart post-breakup than to wander with nature in this 281-acre preserve?

125 Arborway, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

Visit Website

Spring comes to Arnold Arboretum.