Pros:
- Base price reasonable ($140)
- Free wi-fi
- Shuttle bus easy, taxi reasonable
Cons:
- Parking expensive ($46/day valet)
- Hotel is being renovated/rebranded and no signage exists, lots of construction noise, "front desk" was a coat check, etc
- Bit far for a walk
Debating whether to pony up the extra cost for the Westin next year.
Stayed at the Westin and had a blast. Always a reliable hotel chain, so no problems there. Being connected to the center was worth any additional expense but the key that put it over the top was the gaming area in the Mezzanine. Played Cards Against Humanity on Friday and Saturday nights with a bunch of cool guys from Iowa and had an absolute blast. Despite being beyond exhausted, we played until close to 3am both nights. Pretty much doubled the fun of PAX.
We stayed at the Ramada on Morrissey Blvd. ~$95 a night, free parking, free wifi and free breakfast that wasn't half bad. Staff was very friendly and had an answer to any question i had. They were running free shuttles direct to the BCEC since there were so many of us but we decided to drive Saturday and Sunday since it was a 10 minute drive and $12 parking was better than a $20 cab back.
7-eleven across the street, a bowling alley with pool tables and small arcade was right across the parking lot which also had a sit-in/take-out brewery with great food for a damn good price.
Yes it was a bit far from all goodness around PAX but the minor hassle of getting there was worth it for how much money we saved.
Only issue we had was the wifi crapping out Sunday night, but judging by how many laptops my ps3 was picking up you can't really blame the hotel for the fact all the PAXers and Anime Boston folks staying there flooded the network.
The Westin Waterfront was amazing. However my only beef with their hotel was the price of their Wi-Fi and I swear they were jamming the 3G network. ( Just kidding don't get it twisted.) I eventually switched to the Edge network on Sunday and got a much better connection through Edge, it was as fast if not faster than the 3G and Wi-Fi networks. I Room shared with some folks and paid $180 for the 4 nights and $132 for 4 days parking. I understand why they don't offer free Wi-Fi especially on a w eek end like this one. I'd have used all the data up.
The Boston Plaza, though not our usually place for PAX, ended up being nice. However, the fire alarm going off at 3:30 a.m., and again at 4:00 a.m. was a bit much. I was told that a guest had pulled two separate alarms, but was wondering if anyone else got a different explanation?
I stayed at Seaport the first night no complaints. The best part was the 7-11 across the street. Switched to Westin for the other night, other than the sucky cell reception no complaints
Doubletree in Chinatown. Far (~1.5mi), but fine and inexpensive. The attached Starbucks for the morning walk was a plus for me, too.
What's the area like around this hotel? I love staying at Doubletrees. I've done the Westin this year and last but wouldn't mind saving some money and being closer to some differnt food/attractions. Are there any convenient ways to get to and from the Con?
Crowne Plaza in West Newton
$81 a night (hotwire), $21 a day for unlimited in/out parking.
Short drive (10 mins) to and from BCEC on the turnpike.
Room was small, but only used it for sleeping/showering for my GF and myself.
was across the street from an Uno.
We stayed at the Westin (this was my second year there).
Pros;
Really nice rooms, we were on the 16th floor with a great city view
connection to the Con is everything, I don't know if I could give this up. popping in mid day for a break, trudging back late night after the concerts, I don't know if I could go farther away
The pub is good food and you run into awesome people. Thursday night we essentially shared a table with Tycho and Kilroy and the people they were there with.
Cons;
expensive, charge for Wifi, expensive to park(though hopefuly next time we PAX we will fly), no vending machines in the building and a healthy walk to get something late night,
all together a good experience but I'm really curious about Seaport, proximity to Dunken and a 7-11 would be so nice.
As we become more laid back about our PAX experience being connected to the the Con center is a little less important. We took cabs and shuttles out for food and attractions this year whereas the frst two years I never left the convention/connecting hotel.
I stayed at the Westin Waterfront, and it was fantastic. The room was great. The extra bed we wanted for the room was already there and made when we walked in the door. The service was great. The staff were all very polite, and the gaming tables they set up for us upstairs at the mezzanine were a fantastic way to spend late nights. Each time we got back at the end of the day, our room was in pristine condition and looked like we had never even been there. The only odd thing is that the room services apparently took one of our bed pillows one day for no apparent reason but there were plenty of extras, so that's more me being curious as to what exactly they did with it than a complaint.
I'm the first here I think who stayed at the Airport Hilton. We decided to go to PAX late, so the Airport Hilton was all that was left as a reasonable option.
Pros:
- Front desk clerks were friendly and helpful, offering good tips on navigating city and transit.
- No shuttle, but T-line transit was efficient an inexpensive. Paid for a 7 day pass and was able to rely on it to get to and from airport no problem. Taxi from BCEC and nearby bars ~15$
- free Wifi once you ask for the code at the front desk
- Beds comfortable
Cons:
- Distance to BCEC. While transit was reliable, buses only available at airport terminals, which are a good walk away, and the trip itself is about 15 minutes.
- Expensive. Price was 227 with tax.
- Nothing nearby. Hotel is at airport, there are Dunkins and a few other restaurants within the airport (some only past the TSA checkpoints though), but nothing else convenient nearby.
- Service not that great for price paid. Staff was friendly, but the ironing board in our room was broken, and getting someone to come up and give us the code for our in-room safe took about an hour.
Overall, it wasn't that bad an experience, but I will definitely try and book earlier if I go again next year.
Stayed at the Hilton Financial District. Second year in a row since the Weston seems to fill up very quickly. Biggest downside is there is no hotel parking; it's $40 a night valet service only. Not a terrible walk to the BCEC from there, plus shuttles were running if you wanted those. (The weather was fine so we mostly chose to walk.)
No free WiFi, but not to be expected at a place like that. Room cost wasn't bad since we had 4 in one room and 5 in another.
Wouldn't advise it for smaller groups, or people who need to go back to their rooms a lot. It works for us, so that's why we go back.
I stayed at the Westin. I had an issue with Internet, but called the support line and got it fixed in a couple minutes. Other than that, being able to walk to the BCEC indoors is key to me. I'm a big sweaty guy, so i need to wear shorts/tshirt in the expo hall. If i would have had to wait outside or even walk outside i would have had way too much clothing on. But the staff was friendly for sure. Actually, when i was checking in, the guy from Austin so we had that in common right away lol.
My only issue was that i fell for the PAX pizza discount sign. That little tiny cracker pizza cost $23.75 plus tip. We immediately ordered Dominos and got 2 pizzas and a soda for less than that lol.
This was my second time staying at the seaport hotel. As always, it was a blast. The hotel was clean and had enough space to accommodate four people easily. Internet was free as well! It good enough to stream youtube videos and check out the forums easily so that was all I really needed. 7-11 and Dunkin Donuts was directly in front of the lobby so that is why I choose this hotel again instead of the Westin. 7-11 offered double gulps for 1.50 and 20 wings for 10 dollars. It was all we needed
Edit: Hotel also offered a pool, fitness area and Steam room. I did not go inside the pool or steam room this year, but I did last year and it was great! The fitness center also had a lot of cardio machines but I was a little let down by the variety of machines and free weights. However, not many people workout in vacation time so it was empty.
The Seaport is amazing! As a local, I had no need for a hotel room for the con. However, drinking a dozen jack and cokes at the curse party made me miss the last train home so a few friends and I got the second to last suite they had for the night. The bathrobes were plush, the beds were soft, and the shower made me hate my own shower at home. My favorite parts were the view from the room, rubbing elbows with developers at breakfast, and the breakfast. Top 5 breakfasts Ive ever had and hands down best eggs benedict ever. Granted, between the room and the breakast, it came to $300 for the night, but it was split comfortably between four people and we got to live like kings for a night. Totally worth it!!
We stayed at the Boston Christopher, it was about 2 miles away, we caught the shuttle over at another hotel to get in.
They rent out studio apartments for corporate use, we snagged it for us for $400 for the weekend.
It was nice to have our own little place for the weekend as it was our honeymoon and we didnt feel like being around folks at the end of the day. Since each unit includes a kitchenette we had our own food and drinks.
The only two downsides were distance, and no on site staff, there was in fact a panic one night when I buried our door codes and couldnt find it, and it was after the main office was closed (Luckily I found the codes before we go into the cab).
Free wifi though, and if PAX was still at the hynes I'd definitely stay there next year.
My only issue was that i fell for the PAX pizza discount sign. That little tiny cracker pizza cost $23.75 plus tip. We immediately ordered Dominos and got 2 pizzas and a soda for less than that lol.
Next time go down the street and around the corner to Salvatore's. 19" cheese pie for twelve bucks.
Oh we had Salvatore's on Wed night lol. It was really good. Friday night we were just too tuckered out to go get food.
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Kilonum[E]Somewhere near BostonRegistered Userregular
I stayed at the Westin Waterfront with a pair of friends, one a second time attendee, the other a first-timer and this was my third PAX (and second as an Enforcer)
The awesome: The staff went out of their way to make us feel welcome before we were even through the door and were super helpful with helping us get our stuff (2 desktop computers and 5 bags) into our room. Also, working with attendees beforehand to make the experience more awesome.
The good: Our room had a decent view, and everything else not mentioned in this post was as I expected it from my stays at other Westins in the past.
The Bad: $13/day internet access (for the laptop, we ended up tethering off of my phone for the weekend).
The Ugly: The food at the hotel restaurant off of the lobby was really not worth even half the price.
I will never stay anywhere but the Westin until there's another connected hotel. For me, being connected is of a massive value that can't be matched by the amenities anywhere else.
I second that opinion. A big part of it is because I don't want to walk outside in April in my cosplay... brrrrr.
Our hotel in the Westin came with a mini fridge which was AWESOME because there is no reasonable place to get food anywhere near the BCEC. Lesson learned, I will never attempt to eat out in that area again, I will always bring food and get delivery.
I felt that we were treated very fairly at the Westin by the staff. I am still thrilled about the gaming tables they set up for us and everyone was friendly and helpful. I have been to conventions where the hotel staff treated us like crap because we were con-goers.
Basically the Westin cost $200/night (after taxes, fees, etc etc.) plus $33/day for parking. Expensive, but worth it I would say.
I guess I should reiterate that the Westin covered the basic things you would expect out of a hotel perfectly well. Clean, comfortable beds, shower water was hot consistently and had good water pressure (and 2 shower heads...?? random...), they gave us plenty of towels and pillows without us even asking, hair dryer and iron in the room... I will say that the closet was very tiny which was sad because my friends and I like to hang up our costumes which requires more space. oh and I liked their free body lotion.
I will never stay anywhere but the Westin until there's another connected hotel. For me, being connected is of a massive value that can't be matched by the amenities anywhere else.
Our hotel in the Westin came with a mini fridge which was AWESOME because there is no reasonable place to get food anywhere near the BCEC. Lesson learned, I will never attempt to eat out in that area again, I will always bring food and get delivery.
For future reference, Salvatore's (talked about earlier in the thread) and JJ Pace are super reasonably priced takeout places with high quality food that are very close to the BCEC. Also, check out the "hungry near the BCEC? thread" for other ideas
I stayed at the Hampton Inn Crosstown. It was a nice room, that I didn't need for anything other than a bed to sleep in. Unfortunately it was a bit of a distance from the BCEC. There was a shuttle that took us to PAX in the morning at 10AM, but at night it was up to us to hitch a Taxi, which ended up costing about $13. Parking was $25 which seems to be pretty universal (when did hotels start charging for parking?). Also there was little in the way of food that was within walking distance of the Hotel. We got back to the Hotel at about 11PM on Friday, and the only nearby options were a McDonalds Drive Thru, and a local pizza joint. We ended up getting grinders at the pizza joint, which were pretty good.
The Boston Plaza, though not our usually place for PAX, ended up being nice. However, the fire alarm going off at 3:30 a.m., and again at 4:00 a.m. was a bit much. I was told that a guest had pulled two separate alarms, but was wondering if anyone else got a different explanation?
Dude! That fire alarm scared the hell out of me and the constant fog horns going on for 40mins after didn't help.
I stayed at the intercontinental for last year's PAX. They let me check in early (around noon) which was nice, but they sent someone up to say that I was too loud. I was showering, and it was not that loud, and I can't imagine who I could have been disturbing at 1:30pm. The staff was incredibly rude and passive aggressive. Later that night, when I got back about 3:00am, the room party next to us was really loud. I didn't call anyone to bust it up, but the walls in this place are the worst at stopping noise of any place I have ever stayed. This is not good when I am paying the rates they charge. The staff always seemed to act like I was bothering them by being there. The bathroom was amazing, glass shower, and nice big tub, but don't use it, or else a goon in a monkey suit will show up at your door and threaten you. The valet service sucked, they only let you use the front door when you drop the car off. When you leave, they make you go down into the garage. It has a decent view, nice looking clean rooms, and nice amenities, but the cheap construction and haughty staff make this place unwelcoming.
Staying in the Westin is very convenient for any show at BCEC. The rooms and beds are great. The staff is polite and accommodating, and seems literally unphased by the strangest conventions. The rates are usually reasonable. The Starbucks in the lobby is full service and has espresso drinks rather than just coffee.
Ask for a room on the west side, they have a view of the city skyline.
My Wife and myself stayed at the Hotel 140 in Downtown Boston.
Pros:
The commute to PAX was easy enough via the T. Instead of Google's recommended route of Train hopping and waiting for busses we just took the Orange line from the Back Bay station (right around the corner) to the Red Line and then over to the Silver Line. Assuming we made all connections right it was only 15 minutes.
Cons:
The room was tiny. I am a larger guy (6'4", 350), but I should not be able to stand in the middle of the room and come 1 foot short of touching both walls. It was only a double bed room, but that bed was the smallest double bed I have ever been on.
We couldn't open the shower door and the bathroom door at the same time.
The room cleaning was something to be desired. One morning we left to go to PAX and my Wife left a wrapper on the bed side table, room service didn't touch it.
The door to the room let in more light than the tiny window we had. The gap surrounding the door was a giant night light with the hall lights on all night.
We were "lucky" enough to get a room next too a service closet.
Saturday night, just after Midnight there was a loud piercing alarm that went off. It sounded like it was just outside our room it was so loud. I never bothered to find out what it was.
The Boston Plaza, though not our usually place for PAX, ended up being nice. However, the fire alarm going off at 3:30 a.m., and again at 4:00 a.m. was a bit much. I was told that a guest had pulled two separate alarms, but was wondering if anyone else got a different explanation?
Dude! That fire alarm scared the hell out of me and the constant fog horns going on for 40mins after didn't help.
I think my friends and I were still too groggy to be startled initially. Though a trip down seven flights in a narrow stair case will wake you up pretty fast. To be fair though, if some silly goose is going to pull fire alarms there isn't much the hotel can do about the whole thing.
Doubletree in Chinatown. Far (~1.5mi), but fine and inexpensive. The attached Starbucks for the morning walk was a plus for me, too.
What's the area like around this hotel? I love staying at Doubletrees. I've done the Westin this year and last but wouldn't mind saving some money and being closer to some differnt food/attractions. Are there any convenient ways to get to and from the Con?
Area's okay -- it's the kind of slightly-sketchy that might make you uneasy were you walking alone late at night, but other than that it's a cool spot. I have absolutely no idea if the shuttles ran past the hotel; we never checked. Just walked back and forth each day, never taking a taxi in either direction.
That said, I'm either shooting for the Westin just to be attached or staying with some friends in Cambridge next year, so my endorsement is weak at best.
I stayed in the westin waterfront. So far I have been in that hotel about 6 times (2 for PAX, 4 for other conventions at the BCEC) and its been a good experience every time.
Pros:
Most everything
Cons:
City bar charging $15 for a long island
The lobby bar closing at 11:30pm
Water pressure (but this seems to be a Boston thing instead of a hotel thing)
I stayed in the westin waterfront. So far I have been in that hotel about 6 times (2 for PAX, 4 for other conventions at the BCEC) and its been a good experience every time.
Pros:
Most everything
Cons:
City bar charging $15 for a long island
The lobby bar closing at 11:30pm
Water pressure (but this seems to be a Boston thing instead of a hotel thing)
i also was shocked when the bar had last call at 11:30pm on thursday when the mezzanine was still abuzz with gaming. pretty disappointing. other than that though, i am definitely in the 'i will always stay at the westin' camp, especially if they keep that great mezzanine setup. and i know i've said it a million times, but foodler.com is the best way to get a plethora of reasonably-priced take out options. our food win was getting some free food thrown into an order from el triunfo because someone else hadn't picked up their order. bonus burritos!
also, did you know the westin has a pool and hot tub? that was definitely a fun and relaxing break from the crowded con, and their gift shop clerk was very helpful finding bathing suits for my friend's daughter and i.
I stayed at the Holiday Inn in Somerville for the last two years. It's not a part of the PAX discount thing, but I have a friend in the hotel business, so the room was pretty cheap. And parking was included. And internet.
Room was fine. It's about three miles to the event, but on Friday, the traffic actually made that a bit of a rough trip. I still like to have my vehicle at the event, so I can use it as a storage locker (think Fallout 2 with games instead of firearms).
Having seen the rooms in the Westin, I'm very tempted to get a room there next year. I saw Koalabro2's room (it's not like that! I ran the Burning Wheel game!) and the convenience of being attached to the event is very tempting.
We stayed at the Westin & it was definitely worth it but I had almost nothing but bull puckey from the staff. Even before pulling into their driveway their shuttle driver was blasting away at his horn behind me while I was yeilding to pedestrians. I pulled in he got out shot the shit with the doorman who were both incredibly insulting to all PAXers (calling us cheap & rude among other things) & then he walked in to use the bathroom. The doorman then guilted me into tipping him as did the one at checkout. The only positive experience I had was the bartender Monday morning and that was at least a thank you for a tip I left for a coke...
We stayed at the Westin & it was definitely worth it but I had almost nothing but bull puckey from the staff. Even before pulling into their driveway their shuttle driver was blasting away at his horn behind me while I was yeilding to pedestrians. I pulled in he got out shot the shit with the doorman who were both incredibly insulting to all PAXers (calling us cheap & rude among other things) & then he walked in to use the bathroom. The doorman then guilted me into tipping him as did the one at checkout. The only positive experience I had was the bartender Monday morning and that was at least a thank you for a tip I left for a coke...
I think a lot of this has to do with the fact that hotels like the Westin are almost exclusively used to business crowds. That doesn't excuse the behavior, and you may want to try calling the hotel manager and explaining the situation so they can be better prepared for next year. I tend to avoid contact with those sorts by heading immediately to the parking area (which might be difficult to find your first time at the Westin) and always moving all my stuff myself. I bring a foldable 2-wheel hand truck for things like your shitton of cookies . I never, ever, use any of their doorman/bellhop/valet services. Anyhow, it sucks that they treat "normal" people as sub-par. Hopefully you can avoid them next year, or maybe they'll improve
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Hi I'm Vee!Formerly VH; She/Her; Is an E X P E R I E N C ERegistered Userregular
The Boston Plaza, though not our usually place for PAX, ended up being nice. However, the fire alarm going off at 3:30 a.m., and again at 4:00 a.m. was a bit much. I was told that a guest had pulled two separate alarms, but was wondering if anyone else got a different explanation?
Dude! That fire alarm scared the hell out of me and the constant fog horns going on for 40mins after didn't help.
I think my friends and I were still too groggy to be startled initially. Though a trip down seven flights in a narrow stair case will wake you up pretty fast. To be fair though, if some silly goose is going to pull fire alarms there isn't much the hotel can do about the whole thing.
No, that's true.
I'll tell you what they can not do, though. They could refrain from blaring loud alarm tones over the in-room intercom as a preface to an announcement that "it's okay to return to your rooms". They could perhaps resist the urge to do this every 15 minutes or so for an hour after everybody trudged downstairs and back upstairs for the false alarm.
The initial thing wasn't their fault. Keeping me awake for an hour afterwards with jarring buzzes and repeated announcements was absolutely their fault, though.
Aside from that, I thought the Boston Park Plaza Hotel was pretty decent, especially for the price. Although, I think I'd rather have one regular-sized bathroom than the two tiny ones with no locks that we had in our room.
The shuttle was a fantastic idea, and makes the distance-from-the-convention-center problem much less of an issue.
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robocr0nRetired [E], Supplicant of the Great KtuluSeattleRegistered Userregular
I stayed at both the Seaport and the Westin. The Seaport was pretty nice and I enjoyed myself there quite a bit. The security that came to end a party at 5am was fair and respectful too, so that was nice. Didn't have much exposure to the Westin but I was able to sleep in a bed while staying there rather than on the floor, so I instantly loved it.
This was our second year at the Cambridge Marriott. My friend handled the payments and stuff (we gave him the money), but I can say it's a decent deal for us. We had two rooms with four people in each one and it worked out pretty well. ~$150 a night per room, for four nights (Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun) split across four people, so only $150 for the whole weekend.
Each room had two queen beds, and we got a rollaway brought in as well (one couple on one bed, and the others on separate beds). For our group it worked well. It might be more trouble for other people.
The hotel is on top of the Kendall/MIT stop on the Red line. If you're coming up from South Station, the exit from the stop is like 20 feet from the hotel door. Very convenient! There are plenty of food places nearby and easy access back down to the T for even more options. It's four stops to South Station, and from there two more on the Silver Line to the BCEC.
The rooms were clean and I had no complaints overall. The internet charge was like $13 for a shitty connection, we just had someone create a hotspot with their phone and we used that, but honestly I was only in the room to sleep and shower.
It should be noted that the Seaport is a no-tip hotel. I tried to tip the guy who helped us with our bags, and stayed with us for 10 minutes to make sure we were taken care of by a very busy front desk at the time, and you'd have thought I shot his dog. They do charge $3 per person per night to cover tips, but that's nothing.
I did have some problems with the Westin. Some are minor, some not so minor.
I asked for a room near the elevator and was told I was 3 rooms down. It wascomte like 8 rooms down and there was only 1 room in our hall farther from the elevator.
The rooms are smaller than the Renaissance (where I stayed last year). For most people, it wouldn't be an issue. But we had 5 people, lots of luggage, and several hundred cookies. Our room was a little crowded.
The water pressure in the sink was super low. And why was it cloudy?
Because of the roomshare, I paid cash to the desk periodically as i got it from my roommates. I was told my card wouldn't be charged anything until I checked out, but woke up Monday morning to a bill saying my remaining balance had already been taken from my card. I wanted to pay it in cash, so I was annoyed they jumped the gun on this. They did reverse the charge when I talked to the desk, but it's an important distinction that they say "when you check out" and actually mean "first thing on the day of your scheduled checkout."
Our do not disturb sign wouldn't stay on the door so even though I told the desk to make a note we didn't want the room cleaned, I was still woken up when a maid walked in to clean on Sunday afternoon.
I heard things about water pressure from a lot of people, but my water pressure was always great imo. The showers had very high water pressure... the sinks were lower than the showers, but seemed normal for a hotel sink. Maybe I have a weird perspective.
I would guess the issue you had with paying cash would happen with a lot of hotels. Most hotels nowadays do an "automatic" checkout the morning you are leaving. You usually have to specifically tell them to NOT do this, and it's usually a big pain in the ass to get them to not do that with ANY hotel I've ever been to. It sucks.
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Pros:
- Base price reasonable ($140)
- Free wi-fi
- Shuttle bus easy, taxi reasonable
Cons:
- Parking expensive ($46/day valet)
- Hotel is being renovated/rebranded and no signage exists, lots of construction noise, "front desk" was a coat check, etc
- Bit far for a walk
Debating whether to pony up the extra cost for the Westin next year.
I hope you got an umbrella from them as well! Still use ours from last year. Distance does stink, but the hotel was great.
7-eleven across the street, a bowling alley with pool tables and small arcade was right across the parking lot which also had a sit-in/take-out brewery with great food for a damn good price.
Yes it was a bit far from all goodness around PAX but the minor hassle of getting there was worth it for how much money we saved.
Only issue we had was the wifi crapping out Sunday night, but judging by how many laptops my ps3 was picking up you can't really blame the hotel for the fact all the PAXers and Anime Boston folks staying there flooded the network.
3DS Friend Code: 2449-5711-0640
What's the area like around this hotel? I love staying at Doubletrees. I've done the Westin this year and last but wouldn't mind saving some money and being closer to some differnt food/attractions. Are there any convenient ways to get to and from the Con?
$81 a night (hotwire), $21 a day for unlimited in/out parking.
Short drive (10 mins) to and from BCEC on the turnpike.
Room was small, but only used it for sleeping/showering for my GF and myself.
was across the street from an Uno.
Pros;
Really nice rooms, we were on the 16th floor with a great city view
connection to the Con is everything, I don't know if I could give this up. popping in mid day for a break, trudging back late night after the concerts, I don't know if I could go farther away
The pub is good food and you run into awesome people. Thursday night we essentially shared a table with Tycho and Kilroy and the people they were there with.
Cons;
expensive, charge for Wifi, expensive to park(though hopefuly next time we PAX we will fly), no vending machines in the building and a healthy walk to get something late night,
all together a good experience but I'm really curious about Seaport, proximity to Dunken and a 7-11 would be so nice.
As we become more laid back about our PAX experience being connected to the the Con center is a little less important. We took cabs and shuttles out for food and attractions this year whereas the frst two years I never left the convention/connecting hotel.
Pros:
- Front desk clerks were friendly and helpful, offering good tips on navigating city and transit.
- No shuttle, but T-line transit was efficient an inexpensive. Paid for a 7 day pass and was able to rely on it to get to and from airport no problem. Taxi from BCEC and nearby bars ~15$
- free Wifi once you ask for the code at the front desk
- Beds comfortable
Cons:
- Distance to BCEC. While transit was reliable, buses only available at airport terminals, which are a good walk away, and the trip itself is about 15 minutes.
- Expensive. Price was 227 with tax.
- Nothing nearby. Hotel is at airport, there are Dunkins and a few other restaurants within the airport (some only past the TSA checkpoints though), but nothing else convenient nearby.
- Service not that great for price paid. Staff was friendly, but the ironing board in our room was broken, and getting someone to come up and give us the code for our in-room safe took about an hour.
Overall, it wasn't that bad an experience, but I will definitely try and book earlier if I go again next year.
No free WiFi, but not to be expected at a place like that. Room cost wasn't bad since we had 4 in one room and 5 in another.
Wouldn't advise it for smaller groups, or people who need to go back to their rooms a lot. It works for us, so that's why we go back.
My only issue was that i fell for the PAX pizza discount sign. That little tiny cracker pizza cost $23.75 plus tip. We immediately ordered Dominos and got 2 pizzas and a soda for less than that lol.
Edit: Hotel also offered a pool, fitness area and Steam room. I did not go inside the pool or steam room this year, but I did last year and it was great! The fitness center also had a lot of cardio machines but I was a little let down by the variety of machines and free weights. However, not many people workout in vacation time so it was empty.
They rent out studio apartments for corporate use, we snagged it for us for $400 for the weekend.
It was nice to have our own little place for the weekend as it was our honeymoon and we didnt feel like being around folks at the end of the day. Since each unit includes a kitchenette we had our own food and drinks.
The only two downsides were distance, and no on site staff, there was in fact a panic one night when I buried our door codes and couldnt find it, and it was after the main office was closed (Luckily I found the codes before we go into the cab).
Free wifi though, and if PAX was still at the hynes I'd definitely stay there next year.
Next time go down the street and around the corner to Salvatore's. 19" cheese pie for twelve bucks.
The awesome: The staff went out of their way to make us feel welcome before we were even through the door and were super helpful with helping us get our stuff (2 desktop computers and 5 bags) into our room. Also, working with attendees beforehand to make the experience more awesome.
The good: Our room had a decent view, and everything else not mentioned in this post was as I expected it from my stays at other Westins in the past.
The Bad: $13/day internet access (for the laptop, we ended up tethering off of my phone for the weekend).
The Ugly: The food at the hotel restaurant off of the lobby was really not worth even half the price.
I second that opinion. A big part of it is because I don't want to walk outside in April in my cosplay... brrrrr.
Our hotel in the Westin came with a mini fridge which was AWESOME because there is no reasonable place to get food anywhere near the BCEC. Lesson learned, I will never attempt to eat out in that area again, I will always bring food and get delivery.
I felt that we were treated very fairly at the Westin by the staff. I am still thrilled about the gaming tables they set up for us and everyone was friendly and helpful. I have been to conventions where the hotel staff treated us like crap because we were con-goers.
Basically the Westin cost $200/night (after taxes, fees, etc etc.) plus $33/day for parking. Expensive, but worth it I would say.
I guess I should reiterate that the Westin covered the basic things you would expect out of a hotel perfectly well. Clean, comfortable beds, shower water was hot consistently and had good water pressure (and 2 shower heads...?? random...), they gave us plenty of towels and pillows without us even asking, hair dryer and iron in the room... I will say that the closet was very tiny which was sad because my friends and I like to hang up our costumes which requires more space. oh and I liked their free body lotion.
For future reference, Salvatore's (talked about earlier in the thread) and JJ Pace are super reasonably priced takeout places with high quality food that are very close to the BCEC. Also, check out the "hungry near the BCEC? thread" for other ideas
Dude! That fire alarm scared the hell out of me and the constant fog horns going on for 40mins after didn't help.
Staying in the Westin is very convenient for any show at BCEC. The rooms and beds are great. The staff is polite and accommodating, and seems literally unphased by the strangest conventions. The rates are usually reasonable. The Starbucks in the lobby is full service and has espresso drinks rather than just coffee.
Ask for a room on the west side, they have a view of the city skyline.
Pros:
The commute to PAX was easy enough via the T. Instead of Google's recommended route of Train hopping and waiting for busses we just took the Orange line from the Back Bay station (right around the corner) to the Red Line and then over to the Silver Line. Assuming we made all connections right it was only 15 minutes.
Cons:
The room was tiny. I am a larger guy (6'4", 350), but I should not be able to stand in the middle of the room and come 1 foot short of touching both walls. It was only a double bed room, but that bed was the smallest double bed I have ever been on.
We couldn't open the shower door and the bathroom door at the same time.
The room cleaning was something to be desired. One morning we left to go to PAX and my Wife left a wrapper on the bed side table, room service didn't touch it.
The door to the room let in more light than the tiny window we had. The gap surrounding the door was a giant night light with the hall lights on all night.
We were "lucky" enough to get a room next too a service closet.
Saturday night, just after Midnight there was a loud piercing alarm that went off. It sounded like it was just outside our room it was so loud. I never bothered to find out what it was.
I personally wouldn't recommend the hotel.
I think my friends and I were still too groggy to be startled initially. Though a trip down seven flights in a narrow stair case will wake you up pretty fast. To be fair though, if some silly goose is going to pull fire alarms there isn't much the hotel can do about the whole thing.
Area's okay -- it's the kind of slightly-sketchy that might make you uneasy were you walking alone late at night, but other than that it's a cool spot. I have absolutely no idea if the shuttles ran past the hotel; we never checked. Just walked back and forth each day, never taking a taxi in either direction.
That said, I'm either shooting for the Westin just to be attached or staying with some friends in Cambridge next year, so my endorsement is weak at best.
Pros:
Most everything
Cons:
City bar charging $15 for a long island
The lobby bar closing at 11:30pm
Water pressure (but this seems to be a Boston thing instead of a hotel thing)
i also was shocked when the bar had last call at 11:30pm on thursday when the mezzanine was still abuzz with gaming. pretty disappointing. other than that though, i am definitely in the 'i will always stay at the westin' camp, especially if they keep that great mezzanine setup. and i know i've said it a million times, but foodler.com is the best way to get a plethora of reasonably-priced take out options. our food win was getting some free food thrown into an order from el triunfo because someone else hadn't picked up their order. bonus burritos!
also, did you know the westin has a pool and hot tub? that was definitely a fun and relaxing break from the crowded con, and their gift shop clerk was very helpful finding bathing suits for my friend's daughter and i.
Room was fine. It's about three miles to the event, but on Friday, the traffic actually made that a bit of a rough trip. I still like to have my vehicle at the event, so I can use it as a storage locker (think Fallout 2 with games instead of firearms).
Having seen the rooms in the Westin, I'm very tempted to get a room there next year. I saw Koalabro2's room (it's not like that! I ran the Burning Wheel game!) and the convenience of being attached to the event is very tempting.
I think a lot of this has to do with the fact that hotels like the Westin are almost exclusively used to business crowds. That doesn't excuse the behavior, and you may want to try calling the hotel manager and explaining the situation so they can be better prepared for next year. I tend to avoid contact with those sorts by heading immediately to the parking area (which might be difficult to find your first time at the Westin) and always moving all my stuff myself. I bring a foldable 2-wheel hand truck for things like your shitton of cookies
No, that's true.
I'll tell you what they can not do, though. They could refrain from blaring loud alarm tones over the in-room intercom as a preface to an announcement that "it's okay to return to your rooms". They could perhaps resist the urge to do this every 15 minutes or so for an hour after everybody trudged downstairs and back upstairs for the false alarm.
The initial thing wasn't their fault. Keeping me awake for an hour afterwards with jarring buzzes and repeated announcements was absolutely their fault, though.
Aside from that, I thought the Boston Park Plaza Hotel was pretty decent, especially for the price. Although, I think I'd rather have one regular-sized bathroom than the two tiny ones with no locks that we had in our room.
The shuttle was a fantastic idea, and makes the distance-from-the-convention-center problem much less of an issue.
Each room had two queen beds, and we got a rollaway brought in as well (one couple on one bed, and the others on separate beds). For our group it worked well. It might be more trouble for other people.
The hotel is on top of the Kendall/MIT stop on the Red line. If you're coming up from South Station, the exit from the stop is like 20 feet from the hotel door. Very convenient! There are plenty of food places nearby and easy access back down to the T for even more options. It's four stops to South Station, and from there two more on the Silver Line to the BCEC.
The rooms were clean and I had no complaints overall. The internet charge was like $13 for a shitty connection, we just had someone create a hotspot with their phone and we used that, but honestly I was only in the room to sleep and shower.
I asked for a room near the elevator and was told I was 3 rooms down. It wascomte like 8 rooms down and there was only 1 room in our hall farther from the elevator.
The rooms are smaller than the Renaissance (where I stayed last year). For most people, it wouldn't be an issue. But we had 5 people, lots of luggage, and several hundred cookies. Our room was a little crowded.
The water pressure in the sink was super low. And why was it cloudy?
Because of the roomshare, I paid cash to the desk periodically as i got it from my roommates. I was told my card wouldn't be charged anything until I checked out, but woke up Monday morning to a bill saying my remaining balance had already been taken from my card. I wanted to pay it in cash, so I was annoyed they jumped the gun on this. They did reverse the charge when I talked to the desk, but it's an important distinction that they say "when you check out" and actually mean "first thing on the day of your scheduled checkout."
Our do not disturb sign wouldn't stay on the door so even though I told the desk to make a note we didn't want the room cleaned, I was still woken up when a maid walked in to clean on Sunday afternoon.
http://www.mwra.com/04water/2004/whitewater.htm
I heard things about water pressure from a lot of people, but my water pressure was always great imo. The showers had very high water pressure... the sinks were lower than the showers, but seemed normal for a hotel sink. Maybe I have a weird perspective.
I would guess the issue you had with paying cash would happen with a lot of hotels. Most hotels nowadays do an "automatic" checkout the morning you are leaving. You usually have to specifically tell them to NOT do this, and it's usually a big pain in the ass to get them to not do that with ANY hotel I've ever been to. It sucks.