Hotel Ivy Boston Common

Bad

The location is unbeatable - a stone's throw from Boston Common and downtown area, and yet the street which the hotel is on is generally very quiet. The room was a good size and generally very clean (although see below) and included everything you would expect (although see below). One thing I appreciated was that you could open the windows (a rare thing in hotels these days!). There is a coffee machine in the entrance area (tea bags as well) for unlimited use by guests, which I thought was a nice gesture. I didn't interact with the staff much but they seemed very pleasant. There were insufficient rails/hooks for drying towels. There was one hook inside the bathroom for one towel but that was it - no rail of any kind, not even by the wash basin to keep a hand towel (and there was plenty of space for one). The inside of the wardrobe hadn't been cleaned and was very dusty - including the hangers. The air conditioning system worked well but could be very noisy. From time to time it would make a loud buzzing noise (lasting 30 seconds or so), easily loud enough to wake you up at night (which it did me on several occasions).

Staff is friendly and location is convenient. One of the persons in the booking is known for being able to sleep anywhere and she has an awful night sleep in this hotel. The stay was an overall bad experience: (1) The bed was extremely uncomfortable; (2) there was a leak and one could consistently hear the drop dripping; (3) the room has no real windows they were either tinted or looking at walls; (4) you could hear all the noise of the lobby and people coming in and out of the hotel, (5) the room was not cleaned in between days, (6) At some point the room smelled strongly like marijuana, (7) one of the windows was clearly not properly sealed, as a cloth was covering wholes, (8) there was vomit on the sidewalk next to the entrance of the hotel that was never cleaned.

The staff was very kind and helpful, they also let us check in before 3pm which was great since we had luggage and to return the car. They were there to help if anything was needed. They gave us all the information needed for us to go in and out and any other recommendation if asked. The room was small, we made it work. The structure of the bed was making some squeaking when turning in bed. Bathroom was big, they didn't clean it the second day, not sure why, we made it work, we were leaving the day after anyway.

Exceptional

Good location and (mostly) friendly staff. Was not expecting much given the pictures (you get what you pay for). However, even with low expectations the room itself was not good. It looked surface level clean but triggered my dust allergies and asthma so I spent the entire next day feeling unwell. There was an extremely loud vibrating noise that would come on every 30-60 minutes (either was the AC or pipes) and wake me up. Bed was uncomfortable. Shower was fine. This was not cheap for one night either, though that may be indicative of Boston as a whole anyway.

Bad

Superb

Old building they just added new fixtures too. Elevator was scary, general building was old

Great location. Small shower. Elevator went out of service.

My family and I loved the centralized location The staff could have been more attentive (e.g. brought extra clean towels, when we asked). The noise level was rather high due to the thin walls

Great staff and location. Nothing.

They communicated well when we had a late arrival. The hotel felt safe and cozy. It was honestly the most comfortable bed I've slept on in years!

Absolutely nothing. Room reservation was moved without our knowledge or consent after check in. Luggage was taken and searched through without knowledge or consent. Several personal items were taken from our luggage including personal hygiene and documentation with financial information. Several personal items were also thrown out in the hallway as if it were trash. I’d never recommend this establishment ever. Also still receiving emails from them asking to rate my stay yet the email they send is for a complete different person. This is establishment is in DIRE need of new ownership AND management.

The location was easily the highlight of this hotel. Being close to downtown Boston was very important to our group, and we were able to walk to most of the attractions and places we wanted to visit during our stay. That said, because we were on the second floor and so close to downtown, there was quite a bit of street noise at night, particularly between about 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. If you're a light sleeper, this is something to keep in mind. The public restroom was the first disappointment. It was a tiny room tucked down a hallway near the laundry area and felt more like a staff bathroom than a guest facility. I’m not sure if this was temporary, but it was extremely cramped and not suitable for changing or getting ready. Unfortunately, the biggest issue during our stay was the check-in experience. We arrived at 3 p.m., which was the stated check-in time, only to be told that our room was not ready. One of the front desk staff members was very pleasant and offered us another room that was available immediately, but we decided to wait 15 mins for the room we had originally booked. Fifteen minutes turned into 20, then 25, and eventually I went back to the front desk myself. The staff member who had originally helped us had apparently finished her shift, and we were dealing with a different employee. Unfortunately, the communication and service from this point onward were extremely poor. He spoke very quietly and was difficult to understand, was playing loud and inappropriate music in the lobby, and couldn't give us any clear information about why our room was delayed or when it would actually be ready. We were told that our room was 206 and that it would be ready soon, but there was no indication that anyone was actively checking on it. After waiting for approximately an hour, we went back to the desk again. At that point, the employee pulled out a clipboard and spent several minutes going through the list of available rooms, only to tell us, "Oh, looks like it's been ready for a while." This was incredibly frustrating. We had been waiting for an hour with no communication, only to discover that our room had apparently been ready for some time. We then had to wait through another lengthy check-in process before finally receiving our key.

The location was good, bedrooms were nice but on the smaller size, couldn’t open two suitcases in their as not enough space. On our second night we found a centipede in our room on the wall, after we reported this the manager changed us room but unfortunately 20 minutes before we were checking out and packing our suitcases to leave the morning after our third and last night we found yet again another centipede on the wall.

Very clean and nice stay for a quick trip! Highly recommend.

The vibe and location were good for the price. In the middle of the night our AC kept making this really bad sound interrupting our sleep. All night.

The room was compact but clean and well laid out. The bed was comfortable and there was a small desk which was useful. The bathroom area was nice. The hotel is minimal in amenities, which isn't necessarily negative, but also pricey probably because of the location. There was prolonged yelling outside on the street the evening I stayed (Saturday). The vibe was much calmer the following day.

Pleasant