Inn @ St. Botolph

Located in the South End, the Inn is the sister hotel to luxurious XV Beacon, sharing the same eclectic, urban-chic look.

• Location in the charming South End
• The fully equipped kitchenettes
• The deluxe two-bedroom suite with a trundle in the second bedroom, great for families

Boston’s brownstone and boutique-filled South End long lacked a proper place to stay—until the opening of the Inn at St. Botolph. A sister hotel to luxurious XV Beacon, the Inn shares the same eclectic, urban-chic look (and the same interior designer), with a mix of minimalist four-poster beds, classic wing chairs flanking sleek striped couches and a muted palate of coppers, creams and blacks. Flat-screen televisions are mounted above working gas fireplaces in the larger suites, and the tall windows overlook one of the area’s most charming streets.

The sixteen suites range in size from 300 square feet to 850 square feet and are divided into studios, one-bedrooms, deluxe one-bedrooms and one two-bedroom unit. All have fully equipped kitchenettes, smart phone docking stations, complimentary WiFi and desks that can be pulled out to serve double duty as dining tables. The building’s other amenities include a small gym, a lounge where continental breakfast is served and access to the concierge services at XV Beacon. The lounge also has a workstation with internet and printer access.

Although the Inn has plenty of advantages, there are drawbacks to staying here instead of in a more traditional hotel. Guests are emailed an access code that gains them entrance to both the building and their room. Once you commit this number to memory, buzzing yourself in and out is easy, but searching for that message on the night of my arrival, I missed the ease of a check-in desk and a porter.

When you consider the rates, which are hundreds of dollars below that of other hotels, the small sacrifices feel like an easy trade-off. And with a location one block from the Prudential Center and a short walk to South End eateries, it’s hard to complain. Besides, if after dinner and a bottle of wine at nearby B&G Oysters you can’t remember your access code, the concierge button will ring up a helpful assistant who can buzz you in remotely. The hotel does not have its own parking lot, and nonresidents cannot leave cars overnight on the street in this neighborhood. If traveling by car, park at the garage in the nearby Prudential Center. Better yet, use taxis or public transportation to save yourself the hassle and the fees. The Prudential Center subway stop is two blocks from the hotel.

Families looking for affordable suites and travelers who want something with an apartment feel.