BOSTON -- The Boston Police Department is hoping that there will be no whiskey-induced brawls on the streets of Boston this St. Patrick's Day.

The BPD said it will be cracking down on revelers this year in the quest to change St. Patrick's Day from a drinking holiday to a family holiday.

There will be increased police presence in South Boston, along parade routes and near bars to ensure the safety of Boston residents and visitors, as ordered by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. The BPD will crack down on public drinking, fighting, drunken driving and underage drinking in order to ensure that the celebrations are family-friendly.

"We applaud the many parade-goers who always act responsibly," wrote Menino in a press release. " Our intent is to encourage people to celebrate responsibly while strictly adhering to all alcohol laws."

The South Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade, one of the oldest St. Patrick's Day celebrations in America, will be held this year on March 14 at 1 p.m.

The event is expected to attract about 20,000 revelers, winding from West Broadway to Andrew Square. Police said towing along the route would start around 8 a.m.

Menino asked residents to call the Boston Police "Party Line" at 617-343-5500 if they have complaints of a loud gathering.

This year, locals and visitors can celebrate Boston's rich Irish heritage away from the crowded parade route on the Irish Heritage Trail.

The trail weaves it's way from the Rose Kennedy Garden on the Boston waterfront to different historical sites around Boston, all the way to the Green Monster at Fenway Park, which was built by Irish immigrant Charles Logue in 1912.

Visitors can receive information and a map for this self-guided trail at visitor's centers on the Boston Common, in the Prudential Center or online at IrishHeritageTrail.com.

St. Patrick's Day Celebrations in the Boston area were recognized by a travel Web site, which ranked Boston fourth on a list of Top Ten Worldwide St. Patrick's Day Celebrations.

The Lenox Hotel was chosen by HotelsCombined.com as the place to stay for Boston celebrations because of its new twist on being "green" for the holiday.

The other hotels on HotelsCombined.com's Top Ten Worldwide St. Patrick's Day Celebrations are located everywhere from Dublin, with Ireland's largest celebration, to the most unlikely of cities: Tokyo, Japan.

Others include Montserrat in the Caribbean, where there is a week long St. Patrick's Day celebration in what is considered the "Emerald Isle of the Caribbean" because of its Afro-Irish culture, and Hot Springs, Ark., where what's dubbed the World's Shortest St. Patrick's Day Parade includes Irish belly dancers and the Irish Order of Elvis Impersonators.