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Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel: Traveller Reviews

4.0 of 5
155 Portland Street, Boston, MA 02114
Hotel amenities
Special offer
Free Parking & Breakfast
Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel
Ranked #19 of 73 hotels in Boston
4.0 of 5 stars 498 Reviews
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498 reviews from our community

What travellers say about this hotel
  • North end(29)
  • Ruby room(14)
  • Very nice(13)
  • CUSTOMER SERVICE(6)
  • Wine reception(5)
  • Government center(5)
  • Dunkin Donuts(3)
  • Right next(3)
  • Free internet(3)
Traveller rating
    229
    166
    57
    31
    15
Only show reviews for Family (68) | Couples (176) | Business (71)
Date Rating
CT
Contributor
19 reviews 19 reviews
Reviews in 15 cities Reviews in 15 cities
18 helpful votes 18 helpful votes
“Great location and friendly staff”
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 12 February 2012
2
people found this review helpful

I stayed here for 2 nights this past December and was very happy with the hotel location. It is very close to the Garden and a short distance from Quincy Market. The room was clean albeit fairly small. We were given the option to choose 3 upgrades - via an email several days before our stay - that we did not avail ourselves to. We could have had a larger room for $50 extra per night, early check-in or late check-out for a nominal fee. There is free coffee, hot chocolate and spa-water in the lobby all day long and a bar with some light meal options. The hotel is pet friendly but doesn't smell like it. The staff are super friendly and helpful with directions, recommendations, etc.
The negatives are that you have to pay a small fortune to valet your car here. The walls are also pretty thin and we had a romantic couple on side and an "excited/emotional" child on the other. The work out room is in the basement and is very small and sparse. I think there were 3 treadmills and 2 bikes. They had run out of towels and it didn't look like a lot of attention was being paid to it. Ice machines are located on every other floor.
I would stay here again but likely upgrade to a larger room.

  • Stayed December 2011, travelled with family
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 4 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 4 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
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This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
Joe Capalbo, General Manager at Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel, responded to this review
14 February 2012
Your feedback is extremely helpful and valuable to us, since we are always aiming to improve every aspect of the hotel. I appreciate the kind words about the staff and will also review your parking/fitness center/noise concerns with the team here. Thanks again and we can't wait to have you back with us!

Joe
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Seattle, Washington
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
5 helpful votes 5 helpful votes
“Loved it!”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 11 February 2012

Cute boutique hotel! Rooms are beautiful, functional and the beds as with all Kimpton hotels are the best! The hotel is in a great location, very close to the Garden and T if you’re looking for that. The customer service was excellent, used their “forgot it, we got it” service and had hairspray up to my room in no time and had the bellmen hold my luggage after check out so I could do some shopping as I was not leaving the city until later in the afternoon. The lobby area is small, they host their evening wine hour there and it can get a bit crowded with people coming and going.

  • Stayed April 2011, travelled with friends
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 5 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
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Joe Capalbo, General Manager at Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel, responded to this review
13 February 2012
If you "Forgot it, we got it" or in mostcases, "we'll go get it." Glad you enjoyed your Onyx experience, it makes us happy. Please come back and visit!
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Bangor, Maine
Senior Reviewer
7 reviews 7 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
6 helpful votes 6 helpful votes
“Best Hotel I've ever stayed in !!!!”
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 7 February 2012
1
person found this review helpful

The service at this hotel was amazing. I've traveled all ove the world, and have never run across such accommodating, cheerful helpful staff. Lauren and Michael at the front desk were especially kind. The rooms were fabulous - clean, spacious, beautifully decorated. The beds were the most comfortable of any I've ever slept in!! When we arrived, we were greeted by chilled bottled water, a plate of fresh sliced fruit, and a very nice handwritten note from the hotel staff. The buffet breakfast was superb. Every evening a free glass of wine was served in the lobby. Coffee/Tea service in the lobby in the morning was complimentary, and was of the utmost quality. There was always iced lemon water in the lobby also. Such attention to detail is not common nowadays. We had appointments at Mass General Hospital, and asked to leave our luggage in the room after checkout time. It was no problem. I can't say enough nice things about this hotel!! Roger, Karen and Lauren Quirk, Lubec, Maine.

Room Tip: Higher floors, of course, have a great view.
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  • Stayed February 2012, travelled with family
    • 5 of 5 stars Value
    • 5 of 5 stars Location
    • 5 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 5 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 5 of 5 stars Service
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Joe Capalbo, General Manager at Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel, responded to this review
8 February 2012
I love when guests point out the amazing service at the Onyx, it makes my day. "Utmost quality", "attention to detail," & "no problem" are three phrases I now have pinned to the bulletin board in my office. Our goal is to constistently live by those phrases, and I thank you for pointing it out!

Please don't hesitate to reach out should your travels bring you back to Boston, we would love to have you back at the Onyx!

Thanks,

Joe
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Austin, Texas
Senior Reviewer
7 reviews 7 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
4 helpful votes 4 helpful votes
“Kimpton experience but not as nice as the Marlowe!”
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 1 February 2012

Kimpton hotels are generally pretty awesome and I have to admit i was psyche to get to try a new one in Boston. The onyx is close to Boston garden in the north end, and since I usually stay at the Marlowe in Cambridge, I was excited to see how the onyx fared.

Let me say this - it was a solid hotel experience, but not as good as my other kimpton stays. The bed was fantastic, the furnishings and style top end, but I missed the designer public spaces and high quality restaurant/bar i've come to expect. This felt more like an efficiency hotel for someone who was not going to spend any time in the hotel. Plus: they had a car service ready to go on demand, which was a lifesaver as it was tricky to catch a cab. Minus: the lobby/restaurant was small and not as welcoming as other kimpton properties.

Room Tip: If you get a street room, ask for a higher floor as bruins fans are loud on the street!
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  • Stayed January 2012, travelled on business
    • 3 of 5 stars Value
    • 3 of 5 stars Location
    • 5 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 3 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 4 of 5 stars Service
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Joe Capalbo, General Manager at Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel, responded to this review
6 February 2012
I love loyal Kimpton-ites that stay in one of our hotels whenever they can. I understand that the size of our lobby is very intimate, but I am happy that you enjoyed your stay overall. We are constantly evaluating our lobby and trying to opitimize our public space so that we continue to enhance the guest experience. Thank you for the feedback!

Thanks,

Joe
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Portland, Maine
Top Contributor
50 reviews 50 reviews
Reviews in 28 cities Reviews in 28 cities
73 helpful votes 73 helpful votes
“Worked well for our needs”
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 1 February 2012

My family of four took the train from Portland into Boston for a weekend Red Sox game and stayed at the Onyx. Neither my husband or I are especially familiar with Boston so we looked for a hotel reasonably close to North Station to make our navigation easier on arrival. This hotel's location was ideal for us in that sense. We were warmly greeted in the charming lobby area (I think the kids were mostly impressed by the revolving door and lemons floating in a water dispenser in the lobby... what can I say, they are easy to please) and promptly checked in. The room's decor was really well represented on the hotel website overall- the size was pretty tight for the four of us, but we sort of expected that given the location. Everything was very clean and the stay was a good one. Walking in the area after dark on the way home from the game was a little uneasy being poorly lit with little foot traffic; my husband and I certainly felt like we needed to be very alert although we had no actual problems. The only reason I give this hotel a 4 instead of a 5 relates to the kids. Besides location, the biggest sell for us was the information on the website that spoke of kid sized robes in the rooms, a welcome gift for the younger guests, kid comment cards etc... After settling into our room around 3pm we called the desk for kid-robes etc... and were told they would be delivered shortly. We called again a couple of hours later before heading out to dinner, and then again when we arrived home from dinner. The robes finally arrived as the kids were crawling into bed for the night. We never saw any of the other "Kimpton Kids" amenities during the stay or the comment cards on check out. In fact, the kids were barely acknowledged. They were oblivious and it did not hinder our good time, but it was a little disappointing given the promotional build up. I would stay here again if it were just my husband and I with a king sized bed, but with the kids too next time we'll likely opt for something that gives us a little more room to spread out and is closer to the ballpark.

  • Stayed July 2011, travelled with family
    • 4 of 5 stars Value
    • 4 of 5 stars Location
    • 3 of 5 stars Sleep Quality
    • 3 of 5 stars Rooms
    • 5 of 5 stars Cleanliness
    • 3 of 5 stars Service
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Joe Capalbo, General Manager at Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel, responded to this review
6 February 2012
I am happy to see you experience was a good one, for the most part. I just had a conversation with my managers about the Kids program and everyone understands the program and what we need to do to execute. Thank you for the feedback, so we could all stop and make sure we are delivering on the promises to our guests.

We hope to have you back for another game this summer!

Thanks,

Joe
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Additional Information about Onyx Hotel - a Kimpton Hotel

  • Onyx Hotel Kimpton
  • Onyx Hotel
Address: 155 Portland Street, Boston, MA 02114
Price range (per night):* 250 AUD - 489 AUD

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