We are looking for Boston hotels who have week end promotions for May

Lew, I suggest using quikbook.com or 180096hotel.com. Both have "quick looks" for Boston that will give you a sense of what's available from these consolidators.

I might also suggest that a brief prayer might be in order before you visit these sites. May is graduation season in Boston. The area is filled with parents and relatives, and finding a good hotel room at a discount is going to be very, very difficult.

Also, try www.boston4less.com - and the websites of the hotels - many offer short notice weekend deals depending upon their fill rate. Another place to try, although prepayment is required, is www.180096hotel.com (be sure to price shop before booking here - sometimes their prices are better, sometimes not). We also had good luck last August with Priceline when deciding to spend the weekend at the last minute.

Hey, are you two shills for travel web sites that start with too many numbers?

Thanks for the tips, Neal & Donna. I've been trying w/o luck to bid on Priceline for a trip to Boston next week. I am finding very high occupancy (sellouts, basically,) for the places I want to stay. It is definitely a rough time to book a place in Your Fair City. I'll take a look at the sites you recommended.
On the other hand, someone did post a note recently on the much-maligned Sheryl's bulletin board (don't know if you saw the maligning, the thread is currently close to the top) that he got a room through Priceline in a downtown, purportedly 3-star hotel, for $125/night the weekend of the 12th. So I guess there are some deals to be had, even in May.

Helen: You were no doubt attempting wit and cleverness, but if it's valuable tips and information you hope to acquire here, it's best not to malign those willing to share them. Hotel rates in Boston have increased significantly in the past several years, despite several new, large, hotels. Boston is a popular destination, and has been even busier with the strong economy and those gorgeous shots on TV Shows such as The Practice and Ally McBeal. My husband and I weekend in Boston frequently. Each time, finding a good deal on a hotel room is a new endeavor. There are deals if you know where to look and how to find them. Your opening paragraph makes me wish I hadn't bothered to post.

lighten up, Donna

Boston is home to over seventy institutions of higher education, and aside from Harvard which still graduates in June, they all (ALL!!!) have graduations in May. The weekend of May 19-21 is probably the busiest of all. BU, BC, Brandeis, Simmons...and that's just offhand knowledge. I'd be surprized if you could find a hotel room in Boston at full price that weekend, let alone one with a promotion, but good luck anyway.

Huh?

Tom: It's because of posts like Helen's that many valuable, long time, contributors to this forum no longer bother to post. Neal and Donna are two of the few that remain. I, for one, hope they don't "lighten up" by going away. An astute individual might notice that "180096hotel" is also a phone number, but they they probably would also know that there would be slim pickings in any major city on a weekend during high season when trying to book for "next week".