jent103

I'm planning a weeklong trip to Boston and Maine in a few weeks, flying round trip to Logan. This is my first trip to the Northeast, so I'm not familiar with the city at all. Our arrival flight gets in at 11pm on a Monday night, and our departing flight leaves at 7:15am on a Tuesday, so the plan is to stay at an airport-area hotel both nights. We'll pick up a rental car the morning after we arrive and head to the Acadia area, then drop off the car when we come back to Boston on Sunday and use the T to get around.

I was thinking about trying Priceline (name your own price) to get something as cheap as possible, since we truly will only be sleeping and showering in these rooms. Is the Revere/Logan zone generally a fine one to bid in? Looking at the map, it goes from the airport north to Mt. Hood Memorial Park and roughly from Broadway over to Lee Burbank Highway. We're just looking for safe and clean, hopefully with cheap cab fares back to Logan or airport shuttles included. Thanks in advance!

jent103

Meant to add - if anyone has any specific suggestions for inexpensive airport-area hotels, I'd love those as well. Hotwire prices for our first night are running about $170, so that's the price to beat!

cw

Check airport hotels on www.lastminutetravel.com. The hotels are not identified but you can usually ID the hotel through photos and/or by zooming in on the map provided. The Hyatt, Hilton, and Embassy Suites are at or adjacent to the airport. Most area hotels have shuttles to the terminals.

From the Hilton, you can walk to your terminal so it might be convenient for your last night, if you get a deal.

I don't know much about the Revere hotels but someone will have more information, I hope. But check reviews and prices on their own websites first. What days do you need to book?

cw

Meant to add that Boston hotel prices can vary greatly day to day depending on the time of the year and what events are occurring in town.

jent103

Thanks so much, cw! I hadn't checked that site yet but will. We're looking at 8/25 and 9/1 for the airport stays. My friend has a Marriott discount and booked us a tentative spot at the Renaissance Boston Waterfront, which might actually work well just based on Google Maps?

HappyTrvlr

We stay at the Hyatt Boston Harbor at Logan a couple nights each year. It is at the airport,on the waterfront, water taxi is out front and T station nearby via hotel shuttle.

Ackislander

I have used Priceline to get both the Hyatt and the Hilton at Logan on many, many occasions. Don't bid less than **** or you may wind up somewhere ungodly.

I have also stayed at the Embassy Suites at Logan. If you are certain enough of your plans to prepay for a non- cancelable room, you will do about he same overall as at the other two because you get free breakfast.

If I had a 7:15 AM flight, checking before 6:15, there is no way I would stay off the airport. One road wreck or wonky equipment on the T, and you are toast.

cw

I checked LMT and there don't seem to be bargains. The Hilton at the airport is $190 and $184 for your two dates. But it's still cheaper than some of the off site locations.

Boston is a college town and 9 million parents and students are in town before and after Labor Day to move in. This may account for the high prices.

Be aware that there will be traffic returning to Boston from Maine on Labor Day.

gail

Revere/Chelsea are is considered airport by some sites. While you are just sleeping there, they are terrible locations. If you find a really cheap hotel that is not actually at the airport (Hyatt, Hilton), don't stay there. I also agree with Ackislander - Tuesday after Labor Day is a high traffic date, and there will be a lot of idiots in town who create a mess on area roadways while dropping kids off at college. Even though Revere and Chelsea are really close, I probably wouldn't risk it to save $20-30. Stay at the airport - at least on the Tuesday. The money you save in a cab to the airport will probably cover the additional cost. Possibly same for arrival - you need to get back to the airport to do that.

jent103

Thanks, all, for the input - my apologies for the delay in response, as I've been out of town this weekend. This is super helpful! We're from Tennessee and universities down here have already been in session a couple of weeks by Labor Day, so I didn't think about college dropoffs creating problems. I'll talk with my friend and see what we can find - thanks so much for directing us!

jent103

One related question - we were thinking about getting a little bit out of town the night we arrive (yes, a very late night, but less traffic in the morning along with less expensive hotels, we're hoping?). If we were to do that, what would be areas to choose/avoid that aren't too far from Logan on the way to Acadia?

We'll be heading back to Boston on Sunday 8/30, so hope to avoid the Labor Day traffic from Maine.

jent103

(to clarify the last point - prices are even higher for airport hotels the night we arrive; Priceline has the Hilton for $179 the night before we fly out, but $239 a week beforehand. So if getting a bit out of town is a realistic option, we'd be willing to consider a late night!)

gail

If you would be willing to drive 20-30 minutes the first night, this gets cheaper. Look at hotels in Danvers or Peabody, MA. There is a TownePlace suites, Holiday Inn, Residence Inn - all sorts of chains just off of I95. Rent the car, drive to hotel, sleep. I think most car rental agencies (with possible exception of Enterprise) are open 24 hours/day at Logan, but make sure you check. I am very familiar with the area, so if you want me to think of some more specific hotels or if you want to run one by me before you book, just post it.

Since you will have all day Monday/Labor Day on the return, I would consider dumping the car on Sunday when you return, taking cab into Boston, staying in Boston for 2 nights and spending the day. Not sure of price and availability.

DebitNM

I used LMT in July to get the Hyatt. Perfect location and great hotel. That was for flight arriving at Boston. $245 and Hyatt was showing over $400 and many times when I check - no rooms.

One week later, I paid $189 direct with Hyatt for same hotel!
Had a room facing airport when it was $245 and a high floor facing city when it was $189.

jent103

gail, that is exactly the info I was hoping for! Thank you! We're willing to drive a bit that night (our bodies will be on Central time, so that'll help ), but since we know nothing about the area I was afraid of picking somewhere sketchy. I did check the Avis rental at Logan and it's 24 hours, so we should be OK there.

We'll definitely be dumping the car when we get back to Boston; still trying to figure out if it would be better to be closer to town Sunday night and move to the airport Monday night for our Tuesday flight, or just stay near the airport both nights.

Debit, the pricing is so wacky! I had a failed Priceline bid last night but trying again today.

travelgourmet

still trying to figure out if it would be better to be closer to town Sunday night and move to the airport Monday night for our Tuesday flight, or just stay near the airport both nights.

Personally, I would stay in the city both nights. Early in the morning, you are talking about a less than 20 minute cab ride from pretty much anywhere in Boston or Cambridge. I guess there is some risk that, at 6am-ish there will be some manner of catastrophe that could conceivably close all access to the airport, but why would you plan for something so unlikely and which would likely significantly impact airport operations anyway? There will be near-zero risk of traffic-related delays at that hour, so you would be only planning for some sort of extreme event.

Ackislander

What travelgourmet writes here is a assertion. It may or may not be fact.

jent103

gail - Hotwire is showing prices $50 less than anything where I can choose a specific hotel (with good TA and Hotwire reviews). I'm assuming that any area in their Peabody-Danvers-Wakefield zone would be fine? It's basically along I-95 from Wakefield/Reading to North Street, plus the area east of I-95 including Brooksby Farm over to 128.

travelgourmet, I've been wondering the same - would traffic really be that bad at 5 or 5:30am? But I don't commute in the Boston area so I rely on others! I'm not worried about extreme events, just traffic that would make me stress out. (I almost missed an early morning flight a few years ago because neither I nor my also-childless friends realized it was the beginning of fall break for two major school districts in our area. Longest security line I've ever seen at our airport, and it happened at 5:15am!)

jent103

Ackislander, I hadn't seen your post yet when I wrote. Thanks!

travelgourmet

travelgourmet, I've been wondering the same - would traffic really be that bad at 5 or 5:30am?

Not in my experience (I live in Boston) nor the experience of anyone I know. Traffic doesn't really start picking up until closer to 7. From around 7 to 9, it is brutal, but you are well outside that window.

Remember that the airport is only around a 5 mile drive from the Back Bay. This isn't like Denver where the airport is very far from downtown. Leaving right now, with traffic that would likely be worse than what you would see at 6 am, Google says it is less than 15 minutes from the Westin Copley Place (among the most centrally located hotels) to the Airport.

I'm assuming that any area in their Peabody-Danvers-Wakefield zone would be fine? It's basically along I-95 from Wakefield/Reading to North Street, plus the area east of I-95 including Brooksby Farm over to 128.

I would think so, assuming that you are just staying the night. Just bear in mind that it will be a half hour drive or so. Unfortunately, there isn't that much between there and the airport once you pass the Chelsea-area hotels.

What travelgourmet writes here is a assertion. It may or may not be fact.

It is a considered opinion of someone that lives here and has been to or from Logan Airport hundreds of times.