I booked this hotel as a cheap last-minute option for a post July 4th trip to the Boston area. It is a very decent hotel and especially if you need to be in the Waltham area on business, it will work out fine.

We arrived around 3pm in the afternoon and after a small wait (~15 minutes), were given a room with two double beds. It was a decent sized room, although not huge by any stretch. It was certainly adequate for the two of us, however. I thought the beds were a little on the soft side (you kindof “sink” down into them). There is a thermostat on the wall, which was nice for keeping the room nice and cool. It had a relatively new TV with an adequate selection of channels. I will point out that they seemed to be having AC troubles in the hallways but our room was fine.

We did try the buffet one morning and my recommendation is that if you don’t have to, skip it. It is nothing special. Yes, they have omelettes and (supposedly) french toast. The self-serve waffle makers were better than usual fare at continental breakfast. This is not included in the room and probably not worth the $10.95 that they charge for it. We only did it to save some time in the morning. Personally, I wish we had just waited until we got to Boston where there were tons of good choices for food. I also want to add that there is pretty much NOTHING in the vicinity of the hotel. There was a relatively nice looking restaurant across the street, and a bunch of hotels in the area. And there is a Costco not far away. But you have to drive a bit to find any kind of selection of services. Not recommended if you don’t have a car!

Getting to Boston itself was so-so. We drove to the “T” station at Alewife, which was about 15 minutes away. This gave us full access to the subway system and got us to downtown Boston in less than an hour (from our hotel). We purchased one-day passes for $9/each. I think we could have saved some money by paying as we went (individual rides were $1.75). Personally, if I were to go back, I’d try to stay slightly closer to the city. Getting around Boston by car is rather inconvenient and time consuming. But for the price I paid, I was happy with my choice.

Overall, this is a fine mid-range choice for the Waltham area, especially if one has to be there on business. It is certainly clean and comfortable and sometimes that is all you can really ask for in a hotel.

I stayed at this hotel over a weekend in early April 2007 (see above). Overall, I think the hotel is just okay. I got a really good rate on the hotel on Hotwire and for that it is probably okay. I would not pay full price to stay here. The customer service is not very good, the amenities are just okay. They did seem to be working in the hallways so maybe some renovation is coming in the future.

We arrived on a Friday night. I had booked accomodations for 3 on Hotwire, which you are permitted to do. However, they gave me a room with only one bed! I went back downstairs and complained but they said they didn’t have any rooms. To make a long story short, a call was made to hotwire and they magically seemed to find a room with two beds! So off the bat, I wasn’t too impressed with the desk staff.

The room itself is rather old and has seen better days. The beds are not comfortable and there were stains on the linens. The bathrooms work but that is about all I can say about them. There is an adequate sized TV in the room. Also, during the time we were there, we had NO maid service in the room, although they did wake us up early on Sunday morning in the hopes that we were gone already (ignoring the “do not disturb” sign).

There is absolutely NOTHING in the area around this hotel. It is right off the freeway but it still will take 10-15 minutes to get to anyplace to eat. You need a car, certainly. The parking garage looks like it may cave in at any time. I was honestly afraid to even go down and check out the pool. I heard complaints from other customers so my feelings are not alone.

Having said all that, it is probably adequately clean and for the price I paid, it wasn’t a terrible deal. It’s just that I don’t think it meets the perceived standards of a Holiday Inn. We are going back next year and I will do everything I can to find another place to stay.

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