My husband and I will be traveling to Boston for the first time this spring. Our dates of travel are March 29- April 5. We would like to see the historic sites, do some shopping, eat some great food and see a concert at TD Garden. Our budget is $300 a night or under and we would like to stay at a quiet place that is walking distance to most of the sites we would like to visit. Any suggestions?

We have stayed at the Park Plaza a few times and like it. It's a great location for walking, shopping, dining.

It's an old building and the rooms vary by layout and design. Specify you want a newer room. We have checked in and then requested a different room for a couple of reasons, and the customer service was always helpful in changing rooms. (Try to get breakfast included.)

https://www.bostonparkplaza.com/?gcl...BoC8MgQAvD_BwE

Boston is a very walkable city if you like to walk. If you stay somewhere near Copley you can pretty much walk everywhere. Check a website like Booking.com. Put in your dates and see what pops up. Use the map function to locate where the hotels are. It is very helpful as it shows you all the hotels in an area. You can even look in a specific area. Once you get the prices on there be sure to check the hotel sites directly too. Sometime you get a better deal on the hotel site but other times you get better prices on Booking.com, Expedia etc. There are so many hotels in Boston. Check out Groupon too. They often have Boston hotels at pretty good prices.

Under $300 a night is too low for many Boston hotels. (I know because we always look for a similar range) We stayed last year at the Club Quarters Hotel which has some rooms in that range or a little over. It is in a good central location.

We have gone to Boston twice in the last few years , and it is expensive to get a hotel in the most central areas.

We have gotten less than $300/night in Cambridge, which is not far to the central areas.

I also recommend booking.com.

The other route you can go--if you really want to stay downtown is to try Priceline or Hotwire. This route is more labor intensive on your part in figuring out their respective systems. Priceline will only work if you are a group of two. Or it works if you are willing to book 2 rooms for 3 or more, and the 2 rooms not necessarily nextdoor to each other.

I recommend 1-2 hours studying betterbidding.com for tips before placing a bid with either one. And remember that once purchased, these bookings are noncancellable.

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Hi susannewc, I'm having trouble with the link, but here's where I stayed in Boston a couple of years ago: http://www.westincopleyplaceboston.com/

Here's my trip report...scroll down to May 20 to get to the start: Boston--Another Art Mission

Westin Copley Place was well-placed for a T station and the Public Libary. Reasonable walk to the Commons.

We stay at either Sheraton Back Bay or Westin or Marriott Copley when we head to Boston overnight. All of those I highly recommend for what you’re looking for...I don’t recommend Park Plaza - found it to be dingy. Hope you can get the hotels recommended in your budget - can be hit or miss price wise!!!

I agree that some of the older rooms could be considered to be dingey, but, as I said above, the front desk is very accommodating if you aren't happy with your room. Our family had arrived for Harvard Med School graduation weekend, and had three rooms reserved. The Hotel upgraded all of us to nicer suites.
(Try to get breakfast included.)

https://www.bostonparkplaza.com/?gcl...BoC8MgQAvD_BwE

We stayed a few years back at the Charlesmark Copley Square, which would be within your price range. Includes light continental breakfast. Location was absolutely ideal. Hotel was small, rooms tiny. That said, it reminded me of many of the small 3 star hotels I've stayed in Europe, so we were happy campers. It would not be a happy experience if you are used to big floor plans and luxury amenities, or sterile environment like a Hilton or a Marriott. It was ideal for us, and you really can't beat the location!

Have you check one of those instant deals from Priceline? you can save quite a bit of money and still get a good hotel.

Also, the Revere is a great place!

Boston walkable in early spring? Well, maybe, but bring your parka and your galoshes.

Harborside Inn has rooms $200-$225, book now because that price won't last, it's cancellable if you happen to find something that you like better.

Thank you all for your suggestions. We really appreciate it. We just booked a package with Expedia and we are staying at the Westin Copley Place. Seems like a good location. We are really excited to see Boston! We live in the Pacific Northwest so we have good rain gear and boots and it sounds like we should bring them. We have some ideas about what to see but we would love to know what is on your “must see” list.

Since you are interested in history, the Freedom Trail is an obvious must see. You might want to break it up into two days since there is a lot to see especially if you go into the different sites. I also highly recommend seeing the Beacon Hill neighborhood and the Black Heritage Trail.
You can check out park service guided tours or do your own self-guided tours.
If the weather is nice, explore the Harborwalk.

The Museum of Fine Arts and the Gardner Museum are both excellent.

Cambridge is an easy trip on the red line of the T (subway)

The Gardner is a fascinating place. Unique. Read about it ahead of time. The staff does not like to discuss it, but one of the most famous art heists occurred there. The cafe is nice for lunch, too.

There is a new podcast about the Gardner art heist--might be a bit more than you want, but it shows there is continued interest in the story 28 years later
https://www.bostonglobe.com/multimed.../gardner-heist

My go-to recommendation is Park Plaza. Older part is fine and usually less expensive than "towers" which is newer part. Can't beat location.

Two recommendations from our recent trip:

We had just spent 2 weeks walking in London, and wanted a combination walking/driving tour of Boston. We used www.trailblazertoursboston.com. Martin was absolutely delightful, customized the trip for us, and was a great historian.

At his recommendation, we had the best pizza I have ever had. Neighborhood place, nothing fancy, cash only.
https://www.santarpiospizza.com/

Next time I want to get out to the JFK Library.

Under $300 can be tough for Boston, but it can be done. Even if you are in a busier area, the hotel should be fairly quiet. I have stayed in many hotels in Boston and never had much of an issue with noise. Definitely focus on the area if you want to walk places. Cambridge has hotels in much quieter locations, for example, but it is harder to walk unless you take the MBTA too. You are more isolated. Look for something around Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market or Copley for the most "walkable" options. Personally I love staying in Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market. I have stayed at the Long Wharf Marriott, Boston Harbor Hotel, Marriott Vacation Club Pulse (which was amazing!), and The Bostonian. Even for a busy area, had no noise issues and loved having so much right outside my door.

Thanks for the great ideas. We have about 6 days in Boston and we would like to spend one day visiting Salem. Is it possible to visit most of the sites without a car? It looks as though there are a lot of transportation options. What do you suggest?