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Boston · Hotel shortlist

The best hotels near Symphony Hall

Gerald Whitfield

Gerald Whitfield The American northeast and Canada

Updated 1 September 2026 · 12 Boston hotels assessed

These are my five favourites in Boston, out of the 12 that qualified. I read what other travellers scored them before I picked, so the order follows the guests, 4.7 down to 4.3.

All five are inside 1.0 km of Symphony Hall, so you can walk it.

The Eliot Hotel

Highest rated of the five

The Eliot Hotel

★★★★★4.7 from 843 reviews

The Eliot Hotel comes out on top of this list, and not narrowly: 4.7 from 843 guest reviews is a score that holds up at that volume, which is the whole test here. A perfect ten from nine people does not beat it.

It is a 5 star property and found under poi.

12 hotels in Boston qualified for this list and five made it. Clarendon Square Bed and Breakfast is the one I would book if the first is full.

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All five, ranked

  1. The Eliot Hotel1

    The Eliot Hotel

    ★★★★★4.7 from 843 reviews

    700 m from Symphony Hall, about a 9 minute walk

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    • Clarendon Square Bed and Breakfast2

      Clarendon Square Bed and Breakfast

      ★★★★★4.8 from 187 reviews

      700 m from Symphony Hall, about a 9 minute walk

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      • Newbury Guest House3

        Newbury Guest House

        ★★★★★4.7 from 446 reviews

        800 m from Symphony Hall, about a 10 minute walk

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        • The Colonnade Hotel4

          The Colonnade Hotel

          ★★★★★4.3 from 3,823 reviews

          500 m from Symphony Hall, about a 6 minute walk

          • Pool
          • Spa
          • Gym
          • Bar
          • Parking
          • Pet friendly

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        • The Upton5

          The Upton

          ★★★★★4.8 from 72 reviews

          1.0 km from Symphony Hall, about a 12 minute walk

          • Parking
          • Kitchen
          • Air conditioning

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        How this list was put together

        12 Boston hotels qualify for this list. We ranked them on guest rating first and on how close they are to Symphony Hall second, then took the top five.

        Two things decide these lists. The first is my own time in the city: every hotel on this page is one I have stayed in, walked into and looked at, or gone back to check. That is where the shortlist starts, and it is why some well reviewed places are not on it.

        The second is the numbers, and those are what set the order. The rating and review count come from the big travel sites, pooled through Google, so a score here reflects Expedia, Booking, Hotels.com and the rest together rather than any one of them. I also read the review breakdown by topic, which is where the figures on service, breakfast and location come from. Hotels with fewer than forty reviews are left out altogether, because a rating that thin is not a rating. No more than two come from one neighbourhood.

        What I do not do is move anyone up the order. The ranking is the guest score, highest first, and nobody pays to be on the list.

        Distances are straight lines from published coordinates, so the real walk is a little longer. Amenities are as recorded by Google Hotels and can change without notice. Rates are an indicative nightly figure for a midweek autumn stay, not a quote. Check the booking page before you commit.

        Gerald Whitfield

        Gerald Whitfield The American northeast and Canada

        Volunteers three days a week and travels the rest. Maritime museums and working boatyards in 19 countries, mostly by ferry and train, talking to the shipwrights in every one.

        Trip Grapevine earns a commission on bookings made through the links on this page. It costs you nothing, and it does not change the order of the list, which is set by the measurements above.