This Fairmont Copley Plaza Boston Review is from a recent stay in a Signature Gold King Room. Visiting Boston? See all our Boston reviews and posts.
TravelSort Clients may book the Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel in Boston with Virtuoso benefits:
- Upgrade on arrival, subject to availability
- Full breakfast daily for up to two in-room guests, in restaurant
- One $50 Hotel credit to be utilized during stay (not combinable, not valid on room rate, tax or Spa, no cash value if not redeemed in full)
- A seasonal Executive Chef creation in room upon arrival
- Complimentary Wi-fi
- Early check-in/late check-out, subject to availability
The Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel is, as its name implies, located right on Copley Plaza, at 138 St. James Avenue, in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood. The hotel opened in 1912, although it has only been managed by Fairmont since 1996.
The elegant entrance hallway, nicknamed “Peacock Alley,” is stunning, with its soaring, gilded ceiling, crystal chandeliers and Italian marble columns.
The lobby is likewise grand, and a pretty trompe l'oeil ceiling above the front desk depicts the sky:
Dog lovers will want to visit Catie Copley, the hotel's black laborador and canine ambassador that is no doubt the most famous hotel dog in Boston. She's been with the Fairmont Copley Plaza for 12 years, and guests can take her or her fellow canine ambassador, Carly Copley, for walks.
We arrived in the evening, and were swiftly given an elevator key to check-in on the Gold Floor, the 4th floor.
Signature King Room on Fairmont Gold Floor
I highly recommend booking a Fairmont Gold Signature Room (390 square feet) or a Fairmont Gold Suite (800 to 1020 square feet), since in addition to Fairmont Gold Club Lounge access, these room and suite types have a view of Copley Square park. Regular Fairmont Gold Rooms are very small, at 250 square feet, so best if you won't be spending time in the room apart from sleeping.
While it was winter, so fairly bleak, it was still nice to get natural light in the room and have a view of the park in the morning:
The room itself was classic in style, but had ample space for the rollaway bed for our son in addition to the King size bed.
The bathroom was quite small, constrained by the hotel's historic heritage, with a single vanity and a bathtub-shower combo:
Bath products, as at other Fairmont hotels such as the Fairmont Orchid in Hawaii and the Fairmont Mayakoba, in Playa del Carmen, were Le Labo Rose 31. I still think it's a curious choice for a hotel, given the feminine scent. Most men I know would prefer a more neutral or citrusy scent, or no scent at all.
There was VOSS bottled water, a nice touch, as well as some local chocolates as a welcome amenity, which we appreciated.
And there was an in-room Nespresso maker, although I didn't have occasion to use it since the Gold Floor Lounge was just steps away.
Fairmont Gold Floor Club Lounge
The Fairmont Gold Floor offers these amenities:
- Complimentary breakfast 6:30am-10am Monday-Friday and 7am-11am Saturday and Sunday
- Complimentary evening hors d'oeuvres daily 5-7pm
- Complimentary overnight shoeshine
- Complimentary high speed internet in all Fairmont Gold Rooms and the Lounge
- Business Center with colored printing; light secretarial work
Since it was Christmas time during our visit, there were holiday themed sweets right by the Gold Floor Reception, when we checked in:
The Club Lounge itself had several seating areas, although our favorite was by the fireplace, where my husband and son enjoyed a game of scrabble:
The breakfast buffet featured a good variety for a U.S. Club Lounge. I was happy to see a variety of berries–raspberries, blackberries and strawberries–in addition to melon and pineapple. The yogurt left something to be desired, but that's also because many conventional yogurt brands in the U.S. just aren't very good, compared to their European or Australian counterparts.
There was also smoked salmon and tomatoes:
Juices included grapefruit, orange and carrot:
Hot items included bacon quiche and scrambled eggs, which thankfully were cooked well and not runny.
The pastries were honestly not very good–not as bad as Entenmann's, but not a great deal better. Which is a shame, since Boston does have some great bakeries, including branches of “When Pigs Fly,” a Maine bakery.
I was particularly disappointed to see that the maple syrup wasn't 100% maple syrup; it was adulterated with regular cane sugar.
While service at the Club Lounge Reception at our check-in the day prior had been very warm and welcoming, I found breakfast service very perfunctory, even though the lounge didn't seem that crowded. I understand that it's no fun to be working on the Christmas holiday, but it is the hospitality industry, so a little warmth and a smile wouldn't have gone amiss.
There was self-serve tea and coffee, but I was also able to ask for a cappuccino, which was passable:
The Verdict
We really enjoyed the Fairmont Copley Plaza's convenient location right on Copley Square, the beautiful grand entrance and lobby, and the fireplace in the Gold Floor Club Lounge. It was also convenient to be able to be able to have breakfast in the Club Lounge, since our son usually wake up pretty hungry, and it was nice not to have to wait in a restaurant or for room service. The decor won't be to everyone's taste, given the hotel's historic nature. And while I would have appreciated warmer service in the Lounge at breakfast, other staff at the Club Lounge Reception and the doormen were friendly and helpful. I do think the yogurt, bread, pastries and maple syrup should be improved, however.
If you've stayed at the Fairmont Copley Plaza in Boston, what was your experience?
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Disclosure: I paid for our stay at the Fairmont Copley Plaza at a travel professional rate.
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There is no place better than the Fairmont Copley Plaza.