Boston-Where to stay?

[cheshyrkat]

I need recommendations for one hotel room (1 king or 2 queen beds) for two nights (5/1-5/3) and two adults in Boston. I'd like to keep the budget under $350-400/night. I wouldn't object to spending less, but I understand that hotels in Boston tend to be expensive.

 

We will be staying in Boston after our New Orleans-Boston repo on the Dawn. We want to do touristy things and we aren't going to use public transit to get from the pier or to the airport.

 

I've looked at Omni Parker House, Fifteen Beacon and Onyx and they all look like they'd be nice, but I wanted to get recommendations from the experts here before I got my heart set on anything!

 

I appreciate your help!

[138east]

This is tough because unlike many others you have an ample budget for Boston but specific bed requirements, so you're going to have to read reviews and do some digging to make sure you can get exactly what you want for a bed configuration.

 

I have no problems with the hotels you are looking at. I have stayed at the Omni Parker house. It is physically an older style property and the rooms can be oddly shaped. The Onyx sounds like it could be physically similar.

 

The first question you need to decide on is what area you want to stay in. Typically we recommend that, for stays of more than one night, folks try to stay in Back Bay. This is a couple of T stops from the historical attractions, but it is an area that is more comfortable for evening activities like interesting restaurants, walking, and shopping. The downtown areas like the Theater District, Boston Common, Financial District, and Faneuil Hall are more deserted at night (with the exception of Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market itself) and you might feel less comfortable wandering around even though the area is very safe.

 

Please post back with your thoughts.

[cheshyrkat]

Thanks for the reply!

 

The room itself doesn't need special configuration...It's me and another person. We just need a room that can hold 2 people. I don't care if we have to share a bed or not. I was trying to give you enough detail for a good recommendation but maybe I gave too much! :)

 

Can you recommend any hotels in the Back Bay area that we should consider? We plan to see the sights during the day...I didn't know whether it would be better to stay in the areas near the historical attractions and venture farther out for dinner at night? I was thinking I might want to have the hotel convenient to us during the day so we can easily come and go as we please, but maybe I'm not considering everything I need to. I suppose a hotel that has access to good restaurants AND historical sites isn't that easy to come by.

 

All I know is that we'll be on the final leg of a 2 week long vacation and we might be getting a little bit lazy by then. We've had this planned for a long time, but now, as I try to hammer down the details, the closer it gets the more overwhelmed I am becoming. :o:eek: So I am truly grateful for anything you can suggest that might make our visit to Boston work well for us!

[138east]

With your budget you will find the best deals on Hotwire. For May 1-3 I'm seeing a 4.5* Copley Back Bay hotel for 3 people for $318/night tax included ($262 base price). If you put in 3 people, then you will get two beds and don't have to worry about bed size. Unfortunately, I can't give you a good guess as to which hotel this would be, but as a 4.5* hotel in that area, it will be very nice for sure.

 

If that doesn't suit, try to refine your criteria and post back.

Edited February 16, 2015 by 138east

[Pony Player]

If you don't want to play the Hotwire game, I'll make some specific recommendations:

The Courtyard Boston Copley Square, it's a Courtyard, which means it isn't as fancy as some, but the property was converted into a hotel a year or 2 ago, so it is relatively "fresh".

The Lenox, older building, but beautiful and well maintained. Right in the middle of things.

And the "Grande Dame of the Back Bay", the Fairmont Copley Plaza, our "favorite hotel we can't afford to stay at" -- we've stayed there when we were attending a charity event (and got rooms on the cheap), wonderful hotel, but pricey -- although if you can afford 15 Beacon, the Fairmont isn't that much more expensive.

[138east]

It is more difficult to play the Hotwire game, but none of the hotels that are 3.5*+ hotels are bad in Boston. Coming back from a cruise two weeks ago I hotwired a room because of the snow and got the Sheraton in Back Bay for $99 plus tax. Needless to say I was super happy with that since I could easily access it almost 100% indoors from the Back Bay Amtrak station. The vast indoor complex of Copley Place and the Prudential shops can be a lifesaver in poor weather.

 

Boston is a small city with easy T transportation downtown. If you save enough money on a hotel, you can afford to hop a cab if you like.

[Got2Cruise]

A hotel in the Back Bay has easy access to both restaurants and historical sites. You can catch the sight seeing trolley in the Back Bay in front of the Sheraton Hotel. Attached to this hotel is the Convention Center with a T stop that goes directly or connects to the other lines to get you anywhere you want to be in Boston. Back Bay has a plethora of restaurants and shopping. We always stayed at the Hilton Back Bay for the easy access to BU

[Nitemare]

If you don't want to play the Hotwire game, I'll make some specific recommendations:

The Courtyard Boston Copley Square, it's a Courtyard, which means it isn't as fancy as some, but the property was converted into a hotel a year or 2 ago, so it is relatively "fresh".

The Lenox, older building, but beautiful and well maintained. Right in the middle of things.

And the "Grande Dame of the Back Bay", the Fairmont Copley Plaza, our "favorite hotel we can't afford to stay at" -- we've stayed there when we were attending a charity event (and got rooms on the cheap), wonderful hotel, but pricey -- although if you can afford 15 Beacon, the Fairmont isn't that much more expensive.

 

The Courtyard Copley Square actually came into existence closer to 10 years ago. I worked on Exeter street until 2008 and my company used it for visitors for at least 3 years prior to my leaving. It is nice, but it is a Courtyard, and as opposed to some the other properties listed, it isn't attached to the Copley Place mall, but it is close by.

[Pony Player]

The Courtyard Copley Square actually came into existence closer to 10 years ago. I worked on Exeter street until 2008 and my company used it for visitors for at least 3 years prior to my leaving. It is nice, but it is a Courtyard, and as opposed to some the other properties listed, it isn't attached to the Copley Place mall, but it is close by.

Really? I thought I saw (but I can't find it now) on the hotel's data sheet that it had been converted in 2011. Maybe it was renovated then, when we stayed there in 2012, all the furnishings seemed pretty new.

[Blue Mudshark]

Courtyard by Marriott Copley Square opened in the spring of 2004.

[candygirl27540]

Just did the Hotwire thing. Ames Hotel 4.5 stars,2 rooms, May 21 2015 $200 each.

Looks nice.

Edited February 18, 2015 by candygirl27540

[138east]

Just did the Hotwire thing. Ames Hotel 4.5 stars,2 rooms, May 21 2015 $200 each.

Looks nice.

 

Great score, particularly during graduation season. You can walk to

Faneuil Hall and will be right by a major T stop. Enjoy!

[JPV072900]

My advice: there's a residence inn by marriott on congress street that's only a mile from the cruise port. It's only a year or two old, and the rooms are gorgeous! They are like little studio apartments. Free breakfast!

 

IF you sign up for a marriott credit card, then you can get a free night!!!! We stayed there last year before our cruise on the Dawn

 

 

Sent from my iPod touch using Forums

[138east]

I like that idea! The Residence Inn is the newest hotel in the Waterfront/seaport area, but it rarely shows up on any discount site. No one has ever mentioned getting it on Hotwire. It is within walking distance of the Courthouse Siver Line stop. Another Marriott choice in the area would be the Reanaissance, which is close to the World Trade Center Silver line stop. Both would be super choices if they are free with points.

[cheshyrkat]

We finally booked the Taj. I found a good deal on a suite there (stay 2 nights in a suite, get the second half off) that actually seems to offer the best price for the square footage. We'll be coming off a long cruise in a suite and I don't know what we'd do with all our luggage in a 210 sq ft room lol. I hope it's nice! Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Any recommendations for not-to-be-missed places to eat, things to see/do near there?

[Nitemare]

We finally booked the Taj. I found a good deal on a suite there (stay 2 nights in a suite, get the second half off) that actually seems to offer the best price for the square footage. We'll be coming off a long cruise in a suite and I don't know what we'd do with all our luggage in a 210 sq ft room lol. I hope it's nice! Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Any recommendations for not-to-be-missed places to eat, things to see/do near there?

 

The Taj is right across the street from the Public Gardens, with the famous Swan Boats, and is on Boston's fanciest shopping street, Newbury Street.

 

You're close to all Back Bay and downtown activities, including the Freedom Trail, and the location used for exterior shots of "Cheers".

 

Anything you want to do in Boston you can do from there.

[cheshyrkat]

That sounds like what we are looking for! Thanks for all the advice!!