Charles Hotel

Fabulous experience at the Charles Hotel, during Head of the Charles Regatta, there is no better place to stay. Great room, great staff, great location. Would not change a thing. Would be happy to repeat this visit and we would highly recommend it.

The location of the hotel was appropriate for the meeting I was attending. The atmosphere in the lobby area was unexpectedly loud. My room experience was terrible as I couldn’t get the lights to turn on because they had a silly card above the lights, which said save the world and you had to push it down before any of the lights would come on. I’ve never experienced that anywhere else in the world, and it led to me nearly falling. I called downstairs. They were going to send someone up to fix the lights, but then they said to try the card, and they eventually came on, given how they sell themselves as a luxury hotel. I cannot say that the value was commensurate with their perception of themselves. However, at night, the room was quiet. There were several other poor experiences, including having no body wash to shower until I specifically requested it. I think that’s enough to share with people that it was an unsatisfactory experience.

The Charles hotel is a first class operation, attractive, well managed with friendly and professional staff. I love its location on the edge of Harvard Square next-door to the Kennedy school of government. That place is it near the Charles River and an attractive residential neighborhood with Exceptional 18th and 19 century architecture. It is easy walking distance to several of my favorite restaurants especially the one which Julia Childs loved called, Harvest. We rented a Dean’s suite which gave us an extra room with a nice sofa, leather chair, desk and large screen television attached to a comfortable king size bedroom with another swing-out flat TV. Bathroom is adequate, but I prefer having a bathtub in an expensive suite. Meeting spaces are modern and attractive. And the hotel sits on a large plaza with outdoor pub and a relaxing vista.

Room was noisy. Oysters in the bar were putrid--could smell them from several feet away. The room rate is comparable to that of excellent hotels in Boston. But this one isn't. It's all about the location: if you need to be near Harvard, this might still be your best option.

The Charles Hotel excels in every aspect, and the warmth and attentiveness of the staff are especially memorable. The location is also exceptionally good. If I may offer a small suggestion, it would be perfect if the rooms could provide complimentary drinking water.