I was excited to stay the weekend at this hotel, it would normally be out of my price range, but I got a good deal from someone who could not use the room and could not get his money back.
The room itself did not disappoint. It was a nice room, the bed was extremely comfortable—the “heavenly bed,” the “heavenly shower,” was also quite nice, I was a little disappointed in the cleanliness of the bath, I expected at an upscale hotel that I would feel comfortable actually taking a bath; I did not.
Being on a budget I was unhappy with the number of extra fees. The worst one was $31 a day to park your car in the garage. In that area of Boston there is no street parking, and with the cheapest room being around $300/night I think they could have included parking with the room rate. Another fee that I was surprised to find was the fee to connect to the Wi-Fi. I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express (which was about $100 a night) a couple months ago, and free Wi-Fi in ever room. Again, it is an amenity that is advertised on their website to attract customers, but there is a huge charge for the service. In room movies were $9 each, again, at the Holiday Inn they were around $5 or $6.
Maybe, it’s just because I am used to travelling on a budget and if you have big bucks you don’t mind spending them…but I was just disappointed, I thought that for a higher price more amenities would be included, not less.
I did not find the staff particularly helpful, the front desk person would not give me the cost of certain services, but said I had to come down and get a list from the “host” (concierge). I often got transferred around on the phone line trying to figure out who I needed to talk to get an answer about certain questions I had…and I feel as if the woman who checked me in was just plain snobby. No one offered to help me with my bags or get a baggage cart; they said that they only offer that if you pay for the valet parking.
I enjoyed the large hotel and the comfortable room, it was a long walk to the garage to get your car, but it’s a difficult part of Boston to navigate anyway. I am originally from about 20 miles north of there, but I got lost several times. It is not really close to very many attractions...or at least not close enough to walk; you would have to take a cab. There is the Children’s Museum, The New England Aquarium, and The Science Museum, but again, not within walking distance (especially if you have children); there is a T station about ½ to ¾ of a mile away.
The hotel is huge and very open. And I think poorly designed; I want to be able to go down to the gym or pool and just run into hotel staff and guests, not everyone getting a coffee at the Starbucks on the way to work, taking a date to dinner at the expensive restaurant, or going out of overpriced martinis at one of the two bars at the hotel. I also got lost in the hotel several times. Getting in and out of the garage was also an issue—it is not at all marked and often when you see an exit sign it is an exit for a person and not a vehicle.
The good parts were the room was large and comfortable, the bed and shower were awesome. I’m sure that the views in some of the rooms are great, the one I had (the cheap one $300/night) overlooked the parking garage and the building under construction next door.
All in all, this seems like it would be a great hotel if you were travelling for business, it is right next to the convention center in Boston. But, not a good hotel if you just want to get away and pamper yourself or have a nice family vacation. If you want to stay at a higher end hotel in Boston for leisure, I would recommend the sister hotel Westin Copley
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