Beacon Hotel

The cigarette smell throughout the building was disgusting, especially by the main entrance. It seemed like a carton-a-day habit, not just one or two cigarettes. I ran the AC fan the whole stay for fresh air, but it didn't help. On my first outing I bought a full can of air freshener and incense. The room itself was clean and updated, and most things worked, aside from the big lamp over the bed. Soaps, dishes, and towels were provided, but the sheets seemed sketchy and I didn't use them. There are 53 steps to the top room, with no mention of the stairs in the listing. I was glad my elderly parents hadn't joined me, since they wouldn't have made it past the first entrance. I called three times after my check-in email said I was booked for only one night, but nobody answered. I emailed and got a response. I don't understand why they wouldn't ban smoking inside or answer the phone. I should have gotten a refund and booked elsewhere. It wasn't worth $180 a night, and I left smelling of cigarettes.

The room itself was clean, pleasant, and had a nice quaint feel. That was the saving grace, because the rest of the place made for a really disappointing stay. The name and advertising are very misleading. This isn't a hotel so much as a hostel, with no staff or service, yet rates that are as high as or higher than local places. The entryway was filthy, with open jugs of spackle, building materials, and broken doors propped against the wall. Flickering lights gave it a horror-movie feel, and the floors were disgusting. The narrow hallways were so tight that my bags scraped the walls as I walked in. Anyone who's claustrophobic might have trouble here.

We came to Beacon for a few days of personal celebrations and picked this place because it was on Main Street, right where we wanted to be. I was really disappointed, and I honestly wish I could get a refund. It cost far too much for the experience. The room was mostly fine, but the heating and AC unit didn't work, so the nights were cold, and the toilet lid was cracked and sharp. The hallways were another story. The first one was covered in dirt and dust that looked like it had built up for years. From the second coded door all the way to our top-floor room, the cigarette smoke was overwhelming. Scent diffusers on each floor pumped out a foul air freshener that mixed with the smoke and made it nauseating. I usually don't mind cigarette smoke since my partner smokes, but this combination was awful. On our second night, the couple in the other room on our floor argued from 1 am to 6 am. The woman had apparently kicked the man out, and he kept yelling and banging on the door for hours. Even with our TV turned all the way up, we could hear them, and his banging shook our room. At one point he tried to get into our room, which is what finally made me call the authorities. We called the number for Beacon Hotel five times without an answer, then contacted the Beacon police department. The person I spoke with knew the couple in complete detail and could tell us their room, which made me think other people had reported this before or it was ongoing. I called the police several times between 3 and 6 am, but nothing was resolved and the couple kept arguing. Getting into the building was easy with the emailed codes, but when we arrived there was no sign to confirm we were in the right place, apart from a man who was day-drunk outside. This was one of the worst hotel experiences I've had. I wouldn't recommend it and likely wouldn't stay here again, even though the Main Street location is prime.

I'm a 67-year-old woman with double knee replacement, and my reservation said nothing about the stairs or the lack of an elevator. I was already coming down with the flu and had a temperature. The room smelled musty, was dark, and looked out over the car park. I left straight away, collected my luggage, and walked Main Street upset, trying to get back to NYC or find a B&B. The smoke-filled place had me coughing for hours. I couldn't reach anyone at the hotel, so I left a voicemail saying the room and experience weren't what I'd booked. This was a dingy, ramshackle men's boarding house, with drunk men coming and going while I was there. Staff at the theatre opposite said it was a well-known drug house. Cigarette smoke filled the entrance, and older men pushed past me on the stairs. I left my luggage just inside the front door and climbed five flights of switchback stairs to the room. While trying to key in the code on a sloping porch and stop my bags rolling into the street, a man barged out without looking sideways or offering to hold the door. The signage says Beacon short stay accommodation, and I can't call the place a hotel in any way. The taxi driver from the train station refused to take a debit card for a three-minute ride and abused me for not having cash. I thought he might have been vindictive because I asked where the Hotel was. I felt traumatized by the property and the taxi ride. I suggest booking The Factory Hotel instead. Beth, the wonderful owner, and Alex, her assistant manager, couldn't have been kinder. I stayed three nights there and found it the best boutique hotel I've encountered in many years. It's a must to visit. Being generally booked out every weekend and part of the week says to me they're doing right by their repeat customers. Booking dot cOm should remove the Beacon short term stay hotel from its listings, especially with all the reviews describing the same issue. Disgusting is too kind a word, and a quarter star is generous. Beware.