Luxury Boutique Hotels in Boston

6 top small Boston luxury hotels to enjoy

When you want to pamper yourself, choose one of these luxury boutique hotels in Boston for your next visit. 

Even though they're not the most expensive hotels in the city, these small Boston luxury hotels provide stellar levels of service, amenities, design, and comfort.

Interestingly, almost all of these luxury boutique hotels in Boston are either individually owned or belong to small hotel groups specializing in unique luxury accommodations. 

At some, the owners themselves will greet you by name when you arrive.

What's special about these small Boston luxury hotels and inns?  Actually, quite a lot - free town car service, in-room fireplaces, high-quality furnishings, cutting edge design, plush bedding, cool electronics, and the 2 best luxuries of all: personalized service and real comfort.

Keep in mind - each of these 6 luxury hotels offers an individual concept of luxury - and rates vary quite a bit as well.  In case you're wondering, all are in excellent locations, but some may be more convenient for you than others, depending on what you plan to do while you're in Boston.

Quick links to luxury boutique hotels:  Fifteen Beacon - Charles Street Inn - Hotel Commonwealth - Ames Hotel - Eliot Hotel - Beacon Hill Hotel

You'll my best "Boston insider" tips on getting reservations - not always easy, especially at the smaller boutiques - and finding the best prices near the end of this page.

 

XV Beacon                                                                    Beacon Hill

About XV Beacon:  This 60 room luxury boutique hotel in Boston's historic downtown/Beacon Hill area occupies a landmark 1903 Beaux Arts building in an excellent location close to Boston Common, the Massachusetts State House, Suffolk University, and several Freedom Trail sites. 

Owner Paul Roiff, a local real estate developer with no prior hotel experience, created Fifteen Beacon based on his vision of an ideal luxury hotel, with superb results.

Luxuries to enjoy:  See the 2 Lexus sedans in front of the hotel in the photo?  Fifteen Beacon uses them to provide you with complimentary car service within a 2-mile radius of the hotel, which covers practically all of central Boston. 

Although XV Beacon offers plenty of luxuries, the personalized service you'll receive here tops the list.  Call the concierge before arriving to discuss your needs - for example, airport transport, tickets, private tours of the city, exercise equipment in your room - and they'll be met.

The hotel's private roof deck provides the perfect spot to relax, enjoy the Boston skyline - or perhaps fireworks on the Fourth of July.

More to enjoy in this Boston luxury boutique hotel:  Fresh fruit on all of XV Beacon's 10 floors, specially baked pastries made by the in-house pastry chef when you arrive (plus special biscuits for pooch), a gas fireplace in every room, and windows that open. 

Rooms feature an elegant taupe, cream, and espresso color scheme, a mix of high end modern and antique furnishings, commissioned artwork, fresh flowers, 42" flat screens, 5-disk cd players, Frette linens and cashmere throws, free WiFi, and other luxurious comforts.

• Read reviews and find best rates

Charles Street Inn                                                         Beacon Hill

About Charles Street Inn:  Imagine you have a very gracious aunt who lives in a mansion in one of the best locations in Boston. 

Now imagine that out of all of her nieces and nephews, you're the favorite, and get to stay in the best of her 9 splendid guestrooms every time you visit.  

Of course, that's just a fantasy . . . but you can almost believe it's true when you stay in the Charles Street Inn.

Luxuries to enjoy:  Each of the 9 rooms, named after famous 19th century Beacon Hill residents such as Louisa May Alcott, Frederick Law Olmstead, Isabella Stewart Gardner (until she decamped to her new mansion in Fenway), and Ralph Waldo Emerson, features a working original marble fireplace with complimentary logs. 

You'll also enjoy the gorgeous antiques, comfortable furnishings, original art, warm colors, and elegant Victorian decor. 

Perfect for a romantic weekend, a change from cookie-cutter corporate hotels, or a glimpse of what life on Beacon Hill might have been like for the well-heeled 100+ years ago.

More to enjoy at this Boston luxury boutique hotel/inn:  Personalized service, freshly cooked breakfasts served in your room whenever you choose, terrific Beacon Hill views, whirlpool bathtubs, Frette linens and robes, chenille throws, Turkish carpets, free WiFi/DSL, Bose clock radio/CD players, in-room temperature controls. 

• Compare rates and check reviews by recent visitors

 

Hotel Commonwealth                                                         Fenway

About Hotel Commonwealth:  If you're looking for luxury boutique hotels near Boston University, Fenway Park, and Newbury Street shopping in the nearby Back Bay neighborhood, you'll love this hotel's Kenmore Square location immediately across from a T (Boston's subway) stop. 

With 148 rooms, Hotel Commonwealth barely squeezes into the "boutique" category (which I'm defining as 150 rooms or less) - but the staff greets each guest by name and provides such personalized service that you'll feel like you're in a much smaller hotel.  You'll quickly see why Travel + Leisure ranked Hotel Commonwealth as #13 on their 2010 "World's Best" Large (100 rooms or more) City Hotels in US/Canada.

Luxuries to enjoy:  Location, service, and elegance make Hotel Commonwealth a top choice.  Discuss your wishes with the staff before you arrive, and they'll have everything in place when you arrive so that you can relax and enjoy every minute of your stay.

In your room, you'll find a special collection of books by local Boston authors, state-of-the-art electronics, 32" televisions with DVD/CD players, and complimentary WiFi high speed internet access.   You can also borrow DVDs from the hotel's complementary lending library.

More to enjoy at this Boston luxury boutique hotel/inn: From the creamy white marble exterior to the splendid lobby to the cream, caramel, and burgundy rooms, the highest quality materials and furnishings provide elegant luxury.

Look for Frette linens, super-comfortable pillowtop mattresses, down comforters and pillows, high-end blankets, and spa-type bath amenities in the marble bathrooms. 

On the hotel's ground level, choose between two of the city's most popular dining spots:  Eastern Standard Restaurant and Island Creek Oyster Bar. 

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Ames Boston                                                                Downtown

About Ames Boston Hotel:  Part of the Morgans Hotel Group, owner of hotel design icons such as the Delano in South Beach and the Hudson in New York, the 114-room, 12-suite Ames is one of Boston's newest hotels and not surprisingly, features cool design elements.

From the moment you walk through huge, almost frameless plate glass doors into the soaring white and black lobby with Romanesque arches and a massive chandelier made from thousands of silver discs, you'll know that you're in for some visual treats.

The hotel occupies Boston's ornate Ames Building, built in 1893 as Boston's first skyscraper.  Its location at the edge of the Financial District near the Freedom Trail, Faneuil Market, and TD Garden offers excellent convenience. 

Luxuries to enjoy:  What makes the Ames luxurious is the coolness of the design - if you're into minimalist decor with a few edgy touches along the way. 

If you're not, you'll probably prefer one of Boston's more traditional luxury boutique hotels.

In the rooms, you'll find sleek dark gray, taupe, and white furnishings, comfy beds, flat-screen TVs, rain showerheads, deep soaking tubs in some rooms, and high-end bath products.  Light oak floors with area rugs complete the contemporary decor. 

Throughout the hotel, you see large expanses of glass used to give a sense of transparency and light.  In the rooms, this design theme extends to glass walls physically but not visually separating the showers from the bedrooms.  If you suddenly realize you should have been spending way more time getting buff in the gym, you can pull a curtain around the walls for privacy - or next visit, request one with frosted glass.

A couple of luxuries you may long for:   Complimentary WiFi and a robe.

• Read reviews by recent visitors and compare best rates
  
  

Fairmont Battery Wharf Hotel                                          North End

About the Fairmont Battery Wharf Hotel:  With 150 rooms and suites, the waterfront Fairmont Battery Wharf sits right on the border between boutique and big. 

The hotel is the only luxury boutique hotel on Boston's waterfront - and the only hotel in Boston's North End neighborhood.

In stark contrast with the Fairmont hotel family's other Boston property, the ornate Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel, the Battery Wharf is sleek and contemporary. 

An in-hotel Italian restaurants serves up excellent food and drink - although with almost 100 North End restaurants at your doorstep, you may want to explore the neighborhood offerings.

Luxuries to enjoy:  Enjoy plus bathrobes, pillow top mattresses, high-quality linens, windows that open, and large screen TVs.  Get free internet access when you join the Fairmont President's Club.

The fitness center offers a variety of cardio machines, and Harborwalk is just outside the door if you feel like a run.

Also located at the hotel is a top spa featuring zen-inspired services.

More to enjoy:  The Fairmont Battery Wharf's closeness to all the North End restaurants, and to the TD Garden sports/entertainment center.

A water taxi stop is right outside the hotel.

• Read reviews by recent visitors and get best rates
  
  

Eliot Hotel                                                                       Back Bay

About the Eliot Hotel:  With 79 suites and 16 rooms, the Eliot occupies a corner on a mansion-lined stretch of Commonwealth Avenue.  Travel + Leisure included the Eliot Hotel on their "World's Best" Small City Hotels (less than 100 rooms) list for 2010 and 2011.

This family-owned hotel seems over-the-top elegant when you walk into the white and black marble, gold-accented lobby centered by a stunning chandelier - but it's renowned for providing warm, personalized service that makes guests feel at home. 

At street level, you'll find Ken Oringer's award-winning in-house Uni Sashimi Bar and Clio Restaurant.

Luxuries to enjoy:  In addition to top-notch service, you'll enjoy the muted but luxurious decor . . . toile and raw silk in tones of cream and taupe, comfortable furnishings, down comforters and designer throws, and curtained French doors between rooms. 

Your suite or room will also have flat panel high-def TVs, wireless internet service, and umbrellas. Adjoining white marble bathrooms feature high-end products, robes, and rubber duckies for your children.  

More to enjoy:  The Eliot's convenient location near Newbury Street shopping and not far from Fenway Park.

Although the Eliot doesn't have a fitness room, it offers something even better (considering the small size of most hotel fitness facilities): complimentary passes to top-rated Boston Sports Club one block away on Newbury Street.

A luxury you may long for:   Complimentary WiFi for your laptops . . . sure, the charge is only a few dollars a day, and sure, internet access on the touch-screen computer provided in your room is free . . . but why the nickle-and-dime charge to use WiFi on your laptop in a luxury boutique hotel?

• Read reviews by recent visitors and compare best rates
  
  

Beacon Hill Hotel                                                          Beacon Hill

About Beacon Hill Hotel:  With only 12 rooms and 1 suite carved out of the upper floors of two adjoining 19th century town houses, the unpretentious Beacon Hill Hotel may remind you of a small European Inn in a charming village, especially because an award-winning French bistro occupies much of the first floor. 

Like the Charles Street Inn, the Beacon Hill Hotel enjoys a prime location on Beacon Hill's Charles Street, lined with gas lamps, dozens of antiques shops, unique boutiques, and chef-owned restaurants and cafes. 

Luxuries to enjoy:  What's luxurious about the Beacon Hill Hotel is the comfort of the charmingly furnished rooms and suite, the personalized service provided by the hotel's owners and staff members, the welcoming fireplace in the lobby, and complimentary breakfast downstairs in the bistro. 

You'll find plenty of other nice touches - complimentary WiFi, flat screen televisions, original photographs on the walls.  There's a compact roof deck, and a small bar where visitors and neighbors gather.

What you won't find:   Quite frankly, Beacon Hill Hotel doesn't offer the gorgeous antique or plush furnishings, expensive or trendy decor, or cutting-edge electronic gadgets provided by some of Boston's other luxury boutique hotels. 

Instead, luxury here centers on the chance to stay in a comfortable, stylish inn with affable hosts in the heart of Boston Proper. 

• Read reviews by recent visitors and compare best rates

 

Getting reservations in Boston's luxury boutique hotels

Add together superb service, plush rooms, luxe amenities, and top locations, and what do you get?  Very satisfied guests!  Who return again, and again, and again . . .

Which means that if you want reservations in one of these luxury boutiques for your next Boston visit, you may face competition, particularly in the smaller places.  Holiday weekends and practically any time during the summer can be tough. 

My best "insider" advice?  Make your reservations as soon as you know your dates!

How to find the best deals at luxury boutique hotels in Boston

You'll find a fairly wide range of rates among the hotels on this page, and while none of these hotels can be called "inexpensive," they're also not the priciest places in town.  Bottom line?  These luxury boutiques give you a lot of value for your money! 

If you can visit during Boston's "off-season" - January through March, you'll find the lowest rates of the year.  Getting reservations may also be easier (except for Valentine's Day).  Look for special packages to save even more.

Two final tips for staying in Boston's luxury boutique hotels at an affordable cost: 

• Ticket aggregators such as Expedia and Travelocity may offer significantly lower rates, especially at slower times of the week or year, than you'll find on these hotels' own websites, so it pays to compare 
• As with all Boston hotels, the best way to reduce your total bill is by leaving your car at home, as parking rates here are always sky-high