You absolutely must…
Must Eat:
Boston’s a harbour town, Cape Cod is around the corner (well sort of) so oysters are very Boston. Neptune Oyster is a classic New England seafood restaurant with a twist.
Must Shop:
Mohr and McPherson is an 8,000 square foot collection of global stuff that makes the word eclectic seem disappointingly inadequate.
Must Visit:
Prohibited is a bar with a secret “speak easy” style atmosphere. You have to know the password and you have to find the bookcase that will allow you to slip into its underground lounge.
• An historical building with contemporary style from the Morgans group.
• An historical neighbourhood with contemporary restaurants and nightspots.
• An historical city with this great new option for a HIP place to stay!
- Reduced rates and Virgin Sale fares. Save £144 per person for room only board basis. Stay 3 nights from just £749 per person. Book by the 23 May. Price based on traveling midweek in may and june. Supplements for school holidays apply.
The Whole Story
Beacon Hill is Boston’s benchmark. If it’s near, on or around Beacon Hill you’re in the right place as far as Boston is concerned. Anyone who remembers Ally McBeal might be interested to know that it was filmed in Beacon Hill. With its atmospheric mix of boutiques, antique shops, historic townhouses and fashionable restaurants, it is the city’s most desirable location.
Given the Boston’s status as an historical city, the Morgans hotel group and design team at Rockwell chose the 19th century Romanesque structure that originally operated as the corporate headquarters for the Ames family’s agricultural tool company. This exciting new hotel manages to both preserve the building’s landmark features and bring some badly needed attitude to one of America’s oldest cities. (Ever since the infamous Boston Tea Party, the city seems to have lost its taste for cheeky confrontation. Ames has brought back a bit of the fighting Irish to New England’s most patrician city). The lobby’s original elements include a listed mosaic, barrel-vaulted ceiling, and a dramatic white marble staircase. However the centrepiece is a dazzling Chandelier installation designed exclusively for Ames by an East London art studio.
This being Boston there is no bar… there’s a tavern! Named for a tavern once housed in the Ames family home, this is a modern translation of a tavern; Victoriana furnishings with white washed brick walls and tractor bar stools by Thomas Mozer accompany the reclaimed wood and hand-rubbed brass bar. A tavern is a place that traditionally serves food and ale. Appropriately enough, Woodward offers a regional ingredient driven menu (created by Chef Mark Goldberg), that was designed to be shared at a lively table. This is not a hush-hush type restaurant.
The Rooms
There are ten different categories of rooms and suites, ranging from standard to a one bedroom apartment. The thing that all the rooms, regardless of description, have in common is a clean, slick, pared down combination of white walls, white linen and white sash windows. Hints of the hotel’s 19th century origins have been incorporated into the brand new designs in the lamps, the desks and the grey flannel soft furnishings. Yet all contemporary comforts are covered with marble bathrooms with rain head shower, flat screen TV, i-pod docks and Wi-fi.
Standard rooms are 300 sq ft with Queen bed. Superior Rooms are 350 sq ft and available as King bed or two queens. Deluxe rooms are 400 sq ft and also come with King or two queens. Deluxe Corner Kings and Loft rooms are bigger still at 500 sq ft.