Great & Inexpensive Hotel in Heart of Boston
Written: Oct 05 '08 (Updated Oct 05 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Clean, spacious rooms with basic amenities; very inexpensive for its location; pleasant staff.
Cons: Some rooms very noisy from street crowds & traffic; no restaurant or breakfast.
The Bottom Line: A great small hotel in the heart of Boston with clean, spacious rooms and an excellent rate for its location. Make sure to reserve the "quiet" rooms.
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| newtownbeans's Full Review: Harborside Inn |
I have visited Boston many times in the past and have stayed at several hotels. This past visit I stayed at the Harborside and was very pleased, save a few exceptions, with my choice.
Boston is a wonderful city to visit, with many things to do, great food and excellent shopping. For more info on the city you can read my review about Boston on this site.
The Harborside Inn is on State Street just off Atlantic Ave. and only a few short blocks from Faneuil Square. It is centrally located to the heart of the city and within walking distance to the North End where there are dozens of fantastic restuarants to indulge in many different styles of Italian food. There is a subway stop just outside of the hotel (Aquarium) where you can take the "T" to just about anywhere throughout the city. My advice is to use the subway to get around as driving and parking in the city is impossible.
The hotel is 8 stories tall and one end of the building faces State Street and the back end faces a small street which runs parallel to State Street. There are 2 rooms on each floor that face State Street and 2 rooms in the back that face the other smaller street. The rest of the rooms are "inside" rooms which only have windows to a central court within the building. There are advantages and disadvantages to the location of these rooms. The inner rooms are quiet but the views are of the shaft-like courtyard in the center. You can't tell what the weather is like outside from these rooms. The front facing rooms overlooking State Street give you a view of the city (and fresh air if you open a window), but they are very noisy late at night from the crowds leaving the bars and the traffic. Contributing to this is the fact that these rooms are lined in front with interior brick and there is no appreciable insulation to deaden the noise. Even the rooms on the 8th floor pick up the street noise as if all the windows were open. My choice is the rooms in the back of the building which face the street but are constructed with sheet rock and insulation and overlook a much less noisy street as far as crowds and traffic. From these rooms you can see the city and tolerate the little noise that emanates from the street at night.
The rooms are very well appointed and clean. Bathrooms are spacious enough, some with tub/showers and some with marble lined oversize showers. Bath amenities are basic with some toiletries, hair dryers and sufficient towels. There are very large flat-panel TVs in the rooms and some have tuners with wall mounted speakers in the room and the bathroom for listening to music. Some rooms also have DVD/VCR players. Closets are very large and there are sufficient clothes hangers and suitcase stands provided. Ironing boards and irons are also in each room. Rooms are carpeted and the carpets seem to be fairly new and clean. Windows can be opened and there are heat and A/C controls in each room.
The lighting in each room is more than adequate and there are huge full size mirrors on the wall. There are 2 elevators serving the building and the wait is short most of the time.
The lobby is small but functional, but there is only one ice machine in the basement. Most rooms have queen size beds and a few have kings. There are also a few with full size beds.
The hotel does not have a restaurant and there is no breakfast served. There is a coffee and tea table in the lobby which is available from early morning to late at night. The staff is pleasant and helpful, and during my stay they allowed me to change my room from one that faced State Street to one in the rear of the building. They also allowed me to see some of the other rooms in the interior of the building so that I could decide on a location for a future visit. When I mentioned the extreme noise at night from the street however, they seemed to be perplexed as to what I was referring to. I am sure other guests have complained about this in the past and they were either in denial or they think this level of noise is acceptable. Fortunately there are rooms available to escape from this and I would not totally discount this hotel because of it.
They charge about $40. a night for parking, but I never bring my car to Boston. I live in Connecticut so I take the bus to South Station which is about a $6. cab ride to the hotel. As I stated previously, driving and parking in this city is next to impossible and the subway is cheap and convenient. The hotel is also located where you can walk to many attractions, shopping and dining.
The best thing about this hotel is its rates. My stay was from Thursday to Sunday, and the average room rate for these four nights was $225. For a clean, spacious and comfortable room in the heart of Boston, this is the best deal you can get. Most other hotels in this area run about $350- $500. a night.
In conclusion, I recommend a visit to the great city of Boston and a stay at the Harborside Inn, but leave your car at home and take a bus, train or plane to get there.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
newtownbeans
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 - Top 1000 |
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Location: Newtown, CT
Reviews written: 140
Trusted by: 7 members
About Me:
"All power, even the most despotic, rests ultimately on opinion"_______Hume
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