Boston Harbor Hotel Review

The Boston Harbor Hotel is located at 70 Rowes Wharf, right on the Boston waterfront. If you're not renting a car, you can take the free (yes, free!) Silver Line bus from Boston Logan Airport to South Station, about a 20 minute ride, then simply walk along Atlantic Avenue to Rowes Wharf, which takes all of about 8 minutes. It doesn't get much simpler than this.

One of the great things about traveling *really* lightly, with just a shoulder bag (we were in town just overnight) is that no one even asks to take your bag. There was one person in front of me at reception, but there was only one associate working reception and presently there were two people waiting behind me. Fortunately the associate went into the adjoining office and presently the Front Desk Manager emerged, and he checked me in efficiently. He helpfully answered my questions about the house courtesy car, which is managed by the Concierge (more on that later).

Superior Harbor View Room

I'd booked a Superior City View Room, but was upgraded to a Superior Harbor View Room (this Virtuoso upgrade at time of booking, as I mentioned above, is available whenever the room category above is available at time of booking). The harbor view, especially if you can get a high floor, is definitely worth it. There's something so relaxing about gazing out at the water on a clear, sunny day such as the one we had–it was warm and summery, even though it was the end of September.

Decor at the Boston Harbor Hotel is traditional elegance–don't expect Park Hyatt minimalism here. The King bed was comfortable, and next to it was an overstuffed chair that, together with the ottoman, we used as a bed for the munchkin, since Superior Rooms do not accommodate a rollaway bed.

The bathroom was on the small side, and I was somewhat disappointed to see that it was a shower-bathtub combination, which is standard in cheaper hotels but, in my view, doesn't belong in a luxury hotel. It didn't matter for our stay, as it was only an overnight, and may not matter for most business travelers who aren't in the hotel much, but I do think a bathroom should be every bit as luxurious as the rest of the room and in my opinion this one wasn't. There was also only a single vanity, as that's all there was room for, and no separate toilet chamber.

Bath products were Asprey's Purple Rain: perfectly fine, but not my favorite, and I wasn't tempted to take them with me. I did like the fact, however, that a comb was provided, and that there were also travel size packets of Purell hand sanitizer wipes, Woolite (handy for washing out your bathing suit) and even Shout, in case you had a stain you needed to get out.

Swimming Pool, Jacuzzi and Fitness Center

In addition to the beautiful harbor views, another nice feature of the Boston Harbor Hotel is its saltwater lap pool. It's probably not the best choice for kids, at least not in the early morning, since there were adults swimming laps for exercise, but it's a great pool if you're a serious lap swimmer.

Next to it was a good sized jacuzzi hot tub. I didn't have time to make full use of it, since we had a morning flight, but I soaked my legs and it was a great temperature for soothing sore muscles.

The fitness center was likewise busy when I checked it out at about 7:30am on a Sunday morning, but also a good size, with plenty of machines.

Complimentary coffee, tea, and even orange juice was available right across from the fitness center, so even if exercise isn't your thing and you just need your morning caffeine, this is a good place to get it. Decaf coffee drinkers may be out of luck, however–I often put half regular coffee and half decaf in my morning cup to reduce my caffeine intake, but that wasn't an option the morning I was there–there was no decaf coffee in the carafe.

House Car Service

The Boston Harbor Hotel offers complimentary house car service within a 2 mile radius of the hotel, and you can request it in advance at the Concierge Desk. I had it take me to a T station, and the driver was courteous, although not very knowledgeable about the T–although that was my fault for not looking up more precise directions beforehand. No matter, I was able to get help from a station attendant.

The Verdict

My husband and I enjoyed our brief stay at the Boston Harbor Hotel. It's in a great location for walking around downtown Boston and for easily getting to and from the airport, and the harbor views are a major selling point. Service was friendly and courteous as well, and our room was comfortable, although as noted above I didn't care for the bathroom in the Superior Room. The house car service is a nice service, and, along with the Concierge Desk, is available longer hours than many other hotels–7am-11pm daily. And as of 2015, the Boston Harbor Hotel is the only Virtuoso hotel in Boston to offer an upgrade to the next room category at time of booking (rather than on availability at arrival) so for the views and this reason alone, I continue to recommend it to a number of my clients staying in Boston.

If you've stayed at the Boston Harbor Hotel, what was your experience?

Related Posts

Four Seasons Boston State Suite Review

Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel Review

Cathay Pacific First Class Boston to Hong Kong Flights Coming

10 Places to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth in Boston

Hotel Review: Intercontinental Boston

Disclosure: I paid for our stay at the Boston Harbor Hotel at a travel professional rate.

Need Award Booking Help? Our fee is as low as $75 per ticket if you book your hotel or cruise through us.

If you enjoyed this, join 200,000+ readers: please follow TravelSort on Twitter or  like us on Facebook to be alerted to new posts. 

Become a TravelSort Client and Book 5-Star Hotels with Virtuoso or Four Seasons Preferred Partner Amenities!