I need a Boston hotel.

[Ought To Be Cruising]

    I do not know anything about Boston. We want to stay 2 or 3 days before our cruise. I would like to get a motel/hotel near public transportation so we could get to the HOHO. We did Uber the last trip .  Don't want to do that again. So being out of Boston would be ok. I look at motels and have no idea where they are.  Can anyone help with suggestions. 

Thanks. 

[princeton123211]

47 minutes ago, New Mexico 8 said:

  I do not know anything about Boston. We want to stay 2 or 3 days before our cruise.

Without knowing your budget or preferences its hard to make a recommendationn. Like most major northeast cities, Boston has a ton of hotels ranging from budget to very expensive. Boston isn't inexpensive-- most hotels in the downtown core will be at least $120-130 a night on the very low end with most $200-350 with luxury options in the $500-700 range. 

 

There are options outside the city that you can take the MBTA in and out of the city that might be less expensive. 

 

49 minutes ago, New Mexico 8 said:

I would like to get a motel/hotel near public transportation so we could get to the HOHO.

Worth noting that Boston doesn't really have HOHO in the traditional sense-- most of the streets are too narrow for the traditional double decker busses and these tours are done by smaller trolleys. Frankly, walking is the best way to do Boston as the busses just don't cover it well. The Freedom Trail is a great way to see the major sights. 

[138east]

2 hours ago, New Mexico 8 said:

    I do not know anything about Boston. We want to stay 2 or 3 days before our cruise. I would like to get a motel/hotel near public transportation so we could get to the HOHO. We did Uber the last trip .  Don't want to do that again. So being out of Boston would be ok. I look at motels and have no idea where they are.  Can anyone help with suggestions. 

Thanks. 

It looks like you’re on Celebrity Summit Oct 5, 2020, which means you’re looking for a hotel foe a Fri-Mon or Sat-Mon.  Honestly it’s still a bit early to be looking.  I’m assuming 2 people.  What is your budget range?  Hotels are very expensive in the fall and your budget will determine where you can afford to stay.

 

Don’t understand your reference to doing Uber last trip.  Did you stay in a hotel last time?  If so, where?  Are you interested in anything besides the HoHo trolley?

 

The problem is that the cheaper places you are seeing might be relatively isolated or in not such a good neighborhood.

[Nitemare]

Specific dates (which 138 has figured out) and bedding requirements are needed in order to give you real help.

 

There aren't really any "motels" in the city or nearby.  There are some cheaper hotels in the sticks.

 

Do tell us your stretch budget.  This isn't going to come in under $200/night, most likely, and that's with a serious public transport commute and possible an uber just to get to the transit.

[musicgal]

We cruise in early October- and I have browsed the rates for several hotels, most in the $400 range (right now).  The way I am going to approach this is to find an acceptable hotel (it's our anniversary so no budgetel that night), make a cancellable reservation and watch for special rates coming up in late summer.   We are loyalty members at Hilton (Hilton Honors) and I have my eye on the Faneuil Hall Hilton right now, so I might book a standard there and see if they run a Fall promotion later on in the summer which they often do.  Then, I will book the lower priced (or better room) and cancel the previous reservation. Other loyalty program (Marriott, Accor) members get notifications when promotions are run... and invariably, at least 1 chain will run promotions around the time the kids go back to school-

It's worth joining the loyalty programs to get the notifications, even if you don't end up staying at the chain. 

FWIW-  the Holiday Inn Express is a cheaper option that is supposed to have a cruise shuttle.

[senoragilbert]

Musicgal's idea seems smart to me. Find something cancellable for now, that you could live with if it were the best you could do. Then keep checking for good sales, rate drops, and of course Hotwire and Priceline. For instance, Hotwire currently has a downtown 4* for $199 plus tax per night. You'd pay up front, of course, but that's a pretty good rate for a swanky stay in an excellent location.

 

I've booked a couple of these opaque deals far in advance and I've never been sorry. Once got a Residence Inn near the port in New Orleans for $87, 9 months in advance. By the time the cruise rolled around, those rooms were selling for $450. Already nabbed a 4.5* in Montreal for our July cruise and not looking back!

[princeton123211]

22 hours ago, musicgal said:

We are loyalty members at Hilton (Hilton Honors) and I have my eye on the Faneuil Hall Hilton right now, so I might book a standard there and see if they run a Fall promotion later on in the summer which they often do.  Then, I will book the lower priced (or better room) and cancel the previous reservation. Other loyalty program (Marriott, Accor) members get notifications when promotions are run... and invariably, at least 1 chain will run promotions around the time the kids go back to school-

I think your strategy is good-- I'm in Boston at least once a month and sometimes hotels are much easier to come by than others. Get your foot in the door with something you can live with and then see what is available closer to your travel dates. You are a bit far out to get any really great deal. 

 

That being said, if you are Hilton, Marriott, and Accor members that time of year is prime time and it might be worth looking at using any points you have to either reduce the rate or to make the stay free. Not always a good value when prices are lower but they will be on the higher side this time of year in Boston. 

 

Last piece is that while I'm a big fan of Hilton, they have some very drab corporate hotels in Boston. Both Hilton Faneuil Hall (used to be called Hilton Financial District) and Hilton Back Bay are fairly nondescript places aimed at business travelers. Accor with their Fairmont Copley Plaza and Marriott with their Liberty Hotel and W have much more distinctive places to stay.

 

If they were all priced similarly, I would much rather stay at the Fairmont Copley Plaza or Liberty Hotel that have a ton of character than a generic feeling corporate hotel. 

[olemissreb]

On 1/19/2020 at 12:17 PM, musicgal said:

We cruise in early October- and I have browsed the rates for several hotels, most in the $400 range (right now).  The way I am going to approach this is to find an acceptable hotel (it's our anniversary so no budgetel that night), make a cancellable reservation and watch for special rates coming up in late summer.   We are loyalty members at Hilton (Hilton Honors) and I have my eye on the Faneuil Hall Hilton right now, so I might book a standard there and see if they run a Fall promotion later on in the summer which they often do.  Then, I will book the lower priced (or better room) and cancel the previous reservation. Other loyalty program (Marriott, Accor) members get notifications when promotions are run... and invariably, at least 1 chain will run promotions around the time the kids go back to school-

It's worth joining the loyalty programs to get the notifications, even if you don't end up staying at the chain. 

FWIW-  the Holiday Inn Express is a cheaper option that is supposed to have a cruise shuttle.

My mom and I stayed at the Faneuil Hall Hilton (the one on Broad Street?).  Loved it.  I thought it had a lot of charm.  I had hoarded my Hilton points and so we were able to stay free - relatively speaking.  I requested an upgrade to a suite for $145/night and received it, so essentially, we stayed in a suite for $290!!!  We were able to walk to a few places and just ubered to others.  We ubered to a tavern (can't remember the name now, but really great food!) up near Bunker Hill and the USS Constitution.  We did end up walking to both those places and then took the water taxi back to the area where the hotel is.  It was really nice.  The water taxi dropped us off near the Marriott and we were able to sit and have a couple drinks and talk before walking the 3 or 4 blocks (maybe 5 or 6) back to the hotel.  Our stay was at the end of September 2019 and I booked it probably a year in advance.  Originally we were staying at another Hilton property, but I was notified about 3 or 4 months out that that property would no longer be in the Hilton family and was "moved" to a Hampton Inn that did not meet our needs.  So I was able to find the Faneuil Hall Hilton and able to book it then.