REVIEW: Candlewood Suites Boston-Braintree, Braintree MA

STAY DETAILS
March 14-15, 2012
1 Queen studio
$92/night via Hotwire

I recommend this hotel for the value, amenities and proximity to South Shore Plaza Mall.

I got very nervous after reading all the negative reviews on Tripadvisor. We got to the hotel and saw a sign about their renovation. We got in our room and were pleasantly surprised! Our room was very clean, modern and newly renovated. The newly renovated rooms were A LOT nicer than the photos on the hotel’s website.

It was a last-minute trip I booked the day before check-in. I went to Hotwire, booked a 2-star hotel for $92/night without knowing what hotel I would get. It would have cost us about $119/night if not booked through Hotwire. $119 was the cheapest I could find that time on other sites for any 2+ star accommodation.

LOCATION
The hotel was a 15-minute drive from downtown Boston without traffic. It was very close to I-93. I suggest bringing or renting a car.

It was very close to South Shore Plaza Mall and other retail stores. A movie theater was also close by, located across the mall. There’s a good bakery (Konditor Meister) at the end of the road. However, the road the hotel was on was pretty secluded and I am not sure if I’d walk it alone at night.

PREMISES
There was a strong smell at the hotel’s parking lot. It could have been the paint from renovations. The lobby was tiny but looked nice and clean. There were only 2 chairs. The front desk counter was tiny as well. The front desk staff was staying at another counter behind the front desk counter and I found it awkward talking to her that far.

I was only able to see the first floor as our room was on that floor and it looked clean. The hotel halls had a faint smell, but it wasn’t a bad smell.

There was no scenic view from this hotel. You would see parking lot, highway, and trees.

STAFF
Check in was a breeze and front desk staff was friendly. Since we were only here one night, the front desk was the only staff we encountered.

ROOMS
We had room 113 which was a queen bed studio. The room was pretty large and equipped with a small kitchen. The room was clean and had mostly new furnishings except the refrigerator and dishwasher. It looked like the flooring was replaced too during the renovation including the tiles in the bathroom. Our view was the back parking lot.

The kitchen had a full-size refrigerator, electric stove top, microwave, dishwasher, cooking and dining utensils. However, our room only had 2 sets of dining utensils which I guess is adequate for a 2-person room. We were provided with paper towels, 2 dishwasher detergent and 1 hand dishwashing detergent. However, I didn’t find any sponge. The kitchen towels were worn. Refrigerator was loud.

There was a custom L-shaped desk with 2 chairs. A nice large Panasonic TV (around 36″) was propped on the corner wall above the desk.

The bed was firm but very comfortable. The sheets were clean. But the duvet was obviously old, it was pilling on one side. What is odd was that there were only 3 pillows on the queen bed and no extras in the closet. There were 3 types of pillows available: regular, firm, and feather pillow. It was nice that there were electric outlets IN the night stand, in addition to the one on the lamp on top of it. There was a recliner by the bed which had gotten to be my husband’s favorite reading spot.

The bathroom was nice, modern, and installed with Moen fixtures. The shower head was great with 3 settings. Unfortunately, the bathroom amenities were limited. There were only a conditioning shampoo, facial soap and bath soap (Jergens).

There was one closet in the room which was adequate in size. It had hangers and an ironing board. There was an iron holder, but no iron. We didn’t bother asking coz we didn’t need it. There was no safe in the room, but there are safe-deposit boxes available at the front desk at no cost.

The AC under the window worked very well. It wasn’t very loud, the fridge was louder! There was a sensor thermostat above the desk, but it didn’t look like it worked. I pressed the On button several times, but nothing appeared on the display.

It was a non-smoking room I believe and we didn’t smell any hint of smoke. At check-in, I was asked to initial and acknowledge that I would be charged $200 if we smoked in the room.

We heard some noises coming from outside at different times of the night, but it didn’t affect our sleep much. In the morning, we could hear the doors slamming in the hallway although not frequently.

AMENITIES
Internet
There was complimentary internet (wi-fi), but the speed wasn’t that great. I got an average of 1.5Mbps download and 0.25Mbps upload. Internet password was provided at check-in.

Gym
The gym was tiny, but very clean. It had 1 bike, 1 elliptical, 2 treadmills, and 2 other machines, and a digital weighing scale.

Self-serve laundry
The hotel was equipped with 5 washers and 6 dryers for guests to use at no cost. Guests need to bring their own detergent.

Candlewood Cupboard (small convenience store)
The hotel didn’t have a manned convenience store. Instead, their store is based on the honor system. Guests pick up what they need from the store and drop off their payment (cash or charged to the room) in a slot. The store had cold beverages, snacks, ice cream, frozen food, fruits, medications, canned goods and more.

MY RATING:

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