I'm going to be in Boston August 27-29 for an event, and I'm trying to find a good hotel with good weekend rates. I think I've narrowed it down to the Westin Waltham or Sheraton Needham. the Shearaton is a little closer to where I need to be, but the Westin is $10/night less expensive and looks like it might be a better hotel (is that true?). A big plus is that both of these hotels have free parking (I will need a car since the event is in the boonies).

The Hyatt Cambridge is $30-$40/night more, does not have free parking I believe, and is even further away from where I need to be, so even though I am a big Hyatt fan, they lose out in this case (and the Hyatt by the airport is too expensive to even consider)!

So any comments on the two hotels I'm considering or any alternate suggestions (the event I'm attending is South-west of Boston, down by Foxboro).

Beckles....in my real time trip report I just commented on the Marriott Residence Inn near Foxboro/Mansfield. US$140 with amazing rooms! Granted it is not in Boston but what a great hotel!

Dorian

Given our late hour of arrival in Boston, I'd actually prefer something closer to the airport than our destination!

The Residence Inn Foxboro is definitely one I considered, it is also only $89/night (with a free breakfast), but I'm thinking the Westin may be a slightly nicer hotel overall for the same price!

This Residence Inn just opened last year and it is a good choice. Another alternate possibility that's not bad is the Courtyard, which is also in Foxboro I believe.

My cardinal rule for getting around Eastern Massacusetts: If your event is in X, then stay in X.

Otherwise you leave yourself at the no-so-tender mercies of the ruthless "Boston Drivers" (of which I am a former card-carrying member). If you want to arrive for your meeting on time and not stressed-out, spend as little time driving as possible!

To get to Foxboro from Waltham, you're driving Route 128. If this is for a morning meeting, as Clint Eastwood would say, "You have to ask yourself a question, 'Do I feel lucky?'"

A lot of this is personal. For me (and many others in the Boston area), I grew up believing the breakdown lane was just a vastly underutilized alternative lane. Some of the asphalt acrobatics can really freak out some out-of-towners. It's a lot of unnecessary stress if you can avoid it.

Needham isn't as bad, so if you are TRULY opposed to the drive to Foxboro the night before, that isn't a bad alternative.

My two cents.



------------------
"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own."

NOTE: I have NOT stayed in this area but I'm basing this on my experiences with Both Starwood chains...

If given the choice, I would go with the Westin not because it's ten dollars less but because the majority of the hotels are very nice with good service. (a rare exception is the Westin Copley Square in downtown Boston with the slowest elevators in the U-S and construction everywhere. Staff was good though.)

Jon ~ Now you've got me scared!

Note, that's a weekend, so I'm hoping the traffic will not be *that* bad. Also, I don't really feel like navigating too much unknown territory at 11:00 PM after working/flying all day!

You might consider the Courtyard by Marriott in Danvers. It is about a half-hour north of Boston and won some awarrd for being the best CBM in the country. Very reasonable rates too.

Avoid the Hyatt Regency at all costs.

I can only speak of the new Marriott Residence Inn in Cambridge. Opened just this year and usually has good weekend rates. Very nice.

Quiet Lion: Danvers is north of Boston. Foxboro is south.

To get there, you'd have to drive I-93 (Southeast Distressway, home of the big dig - $10 billion/10 miles). They are making a PARK above the underground highway. At $1 billion per mile, I want Disney, Epcot AND Fenway there.

Either that, or the complete Route 128 (technology belt). Not so bad on weekends, but no fun at all during rush hours (7-10, 3-6)

But back to the issue at hand... Weekends are fine, except for Friday and Sunday nights, when you hit Cape Cod traffic (heading South from Boston on Friday, North to Boston on Sunday).

Foxboro is served by I-495, which bears the brunt of Cape Cod traffic. If you can get to Foxboro via Route 1, you should have a much easier time.

If your travel plans haven't been made yet, may I suggest PVD - a nice airport that is usually cheaper than BOS.

PS) As for the scare, wait until you actually start driving!

PPS) Actually, it isn't all that bad. It depends what you are used to. Some friends of mine from Indiana are paralyzed with fear at the prospect. Some friends from NY/NJ look forward to the challenge.


------------------
"I will not be pushed, filed, stamped, indexed, briefed, debriefed or numbered. My life is my own."

Check out the Renaissance Hotel in Bedford. They offer a $79.00 weekend special. This property has an indoor pool, indoor/outdoor tennis courts, a health club, and a good restaurant. It,s located about 5 minutes from the Burlington Mall, and the hotel has limo service to take you and pick you up anywhere within 5 miles of the hotel. The best way to get this rate is by contacting the hotel direct and asking for Rhonda in the reservations department. She has always done whatever she could to get me the accomodations I needed. If this rate isn't available, they have a leisure rate of $85.00 and a breakation rate of $99.00, which includes breakfast.. This property is located about 25 minutes, if the traffic isn't heavy, from Boston. Easy to get to( I-93 North to I-95/128 south to Middlesex Turnpike) 3 turns from Boston and about 25 miles and you are there. I can give you other recommendations, but this is probably the most hotel for the least money in this area.

[This message has been edited by general45 (edited 08-02-1999).]

[This message has been edited by general45 (edited 08-02-1999).]

Do their "Standard" Rooms really look like this?!?
http://renaissancehotels.com/BOSSB/rates/stdrm.asp

That would be an awfully nice room for $79/night!

I would recommend the Westin Waltham. It is a great hotel, especially for the $89.00 weekend special rate. As mentioned before, it is off of Rt 128, so access to Foxboro is quite easy.

Another possible option would be to fly to PVD. It is about the same distance from Foxboro, but because of Southwest's presence, airfares are usually lower than flying to BOS. There is also a Westin in Providence.

FlierLie ~ You would think PVD would be less expensive, and it is actually closer to my destination ... but, it's not! And I even live in a city serviced by WN.

I've been checking the fares for a few weeks, and basically it came down to BOS for $220 or so or PVD for $300 or so ... wasn't a hard choice in the end!

My theory: PVD has WN (cheap), but BOS has AirTran (even cheaper!). DL matches (within a couple of bucks) AirTran's fare between MSY and BOS!

The rooms are everything the picture shows and more. This is perhaps the best value in the Boston area. By the way, as of 10:00 P.M. this evening, the $79.00 rate was still available.

[This message has been edited by general45 (edited 08-02-1999).]