Element by Marriott Boston Seaport District

This newer Marriott property is clean and well maintained, with large, well outfitted rooms, a nice gym, pool, and outdoor eating area. The included continental breakfast in the lobby is very good, with choices for most tastes. But the place has little character or ambience, which seems fitting for the name "Element". I spent four nights there, and the lobby had a rambunctious front desk and very bright fluorescent lighting all day and night, not relaxing if you like to unwind in the lobby. I ended up doing that at their "A Loft" sister property across the street, which felt more relaxed and refined. The area is the bigger drawback. D Street, Element, and Seaport feel like an industrial former warehouse district, full of asphalt and concrete parking lots, with almost no foot traffic, shopping, or restaurants. It's a fringe, sterile area with little to see, and Boston's public transit network doesn't really connect it to everything else. If you're a very fast walker, South Staton MBTA Station is about 25 minutes away. Boston's a wonderful city for walking, and location matters. I'd suggest staying in Back Bay, Waterfront, meaning the area different from Seaport, Beacon Hill, Brookline/Fenway, or Cambridge instead. Those areas are good for walking, shops, food, coffee, and people watching, with easy MBTA access. If you're on a budget and can handle the isolation and long walk to civilization, this could work. Otherwise, I'd spend more to stay in Boston proper, which this isn't. I'm a distance runner, by the way.

The pool looked beautiful, so my family was disappointed to find it wasn't beautiful or open. Luckily, we could use the pool at the Aloft next door, and its staff were helpful and accommodating. Housekeeping here was friendly, skilled, and thorough. The scent piped into the lobby was a bit overwhelming. Staff at this hotel were warm and welcoming, and breakfast was terrific, with lots of good options and friendly service. It's a fairly comfortable place for a small family, though the location is challenging with kids or in bad weather. There isn't much nearby, and a car is a must.

The pet fees were another frustration: most hotels charge once per stay, but here it's per night. I might not have complained about that if the other problems hadn't piled up, but it was the cherry on top. Management needs to do a lot better. I'm a Titanium Bonvoy member. I chose this place after seeing surprisingly good reviews for the location. I didn't mind being farther from things, and a roughly 10-minute walk to restaurants seemed fine. My past stays at Element hotels in other cities were great, but this one wasn't. We spent three nights around year-end and New Year's Day during ongoing construction. Other reviews suggest it was still going on later, despite lobby signs saying it would finish the first week of January. I wish we'd been told before arrival so we could decide whether to stay. At noon, drilling near the lobby was so loud I couldn't hear the front desk during check-in. Staff should have printed the information for guests instead of trying to talk over it. There was only one working elevator because of construction. The check-in was awful, and no one told us the daily $15 credit only applied to the night you stayed, so I lost $15 trying to buy something from the mini store. Breakfast was subpar, and there were no special perks for higher Bonvoy tiers. If you're Platinum or Titanium, I'd suggest Sheraton Boston, which has a dedicated room with breakfast, midday snacks, coffee, and drinks, and treats Bonvoy members well. This hotel gave me the feeling that construction was ongoing and guests just had to deal with it, and that minor problems were tough luck. If they can't make guests comfortable during construction, I can only imagine how little they'd do without the drilling in the lobby.

Nelly at the front desk was informative and helpful, and the breakfast was very good. Housekeeping was good too, and reception staff were professional. We had an excellent experience and think this is a great hotel for Boston visitors, especially anyone going to the convention center across the street.