Kimpton hotels are generally pretty awesome and I have to admit i was psyche to get to try a new one in Boston. The onyx is close to Boston garden in the north end, and since I usually stay at the Marlowe in Cambridge, I was excited to see how the onyx fared.

Let me say this - it was a solid hotel experience, but not as good as my other kimpton stays. The bed was fantastic, the furnishings and style top end, but I missed the designer public spaces and high quality restaurant/bar i've come to expect. This felt more like an efficiency hotel for someone who was not going to spend any time in the hotel. Plus: they had a car service ready to go on demand, which was a lifesaver as it was tricky to catch a cab. Minus: the lobby/restaurant was small and not as welcoming as other kimpton properties.

My family of four took the train from Portland into Boston for a weekend Red Sox game and stayed at the Onyx. Neither my husband or I are especially familiar with Boston so we looked for a hotel reasonably close to North Station to make our navigation easier on arrival. This hotel's location was ideal for us in that sense. We were warmly greeted in the charming lobby area (I think the kids were mostly impressed by the revolving door and lemons floating in a water dispenser in the lobby... what can I say, they are easy to please) and promptly checked in. The room's decor was really well represented on the hotel website overall- the size was pretty tight for the four of us, but we sort of expected that given the location. Everything was very clean and the stay was a good one. Walking in the area after dark on the way home from the game was a little uneasy being poorly lit with little foot traffic; my husband and I certainly felt like we needed to be very alert although we had no actual problems. The only reason I give this hotel a 4 instead of a 5 relates to the kids. Besides location, the biggest sell for us was the information on the website that spoke of kid sized robes in the rooms, a welcome gift for the younger guests, kid comment cards etc... After settling into our room around 3pm we called the desk for kid-robes etc... and were told they would be delivered shortly. We called again a couple of hours later before heading out to dinner, and then again when we arrived home from dinner. The robes finally arrived as the kids were crawling into bed for the night. We never saw any of the other "Kimpton Kids" amenities during the stay or the comment cards on check out. In fact, the kids were barely acknowledged. They were oblivious and it did not hinder our good time, but it was a little disappointing given the promotional build up. I would stay here again if it were just my husband and I with a king sized bed, but with the kids too next time we'll likely opt for something that gives us a little more room to spread out and is closer to the ballpark.

This was my first time in Boston, and came to see my Rangers take on the Bruins on 1/21. Another hotel was suggested to me, but I had discovered the Onyx by accident and based on convenience to the T and to the TD Garden, so my friend who I was traveling with decided to spend a few bucks more and stay there.

We had arrived about 2 hours before check-in time and were prepared to leave our luggage and sight see. The friendly desk staff (they all were) looked to see if anything was available, and lo and behold we were able to get settled in before heading out.

As many have mentioned, rooms are small. If you're just 1 or 2 people each with a carry-on it's perfect. (I can't speak to other rooms, but the room we stayed in would not provide adequate room for a family.) But it's quirkily decorated, with faux fur throws on the beds, the checkered carpet. Oh yeah, and the fabulously tacky animal print bathrobes. The bathroom was a nice size and there was adequate room for 2 ladies to fit all their toiletries. The room was clean and the beds comfortable.

From our room on the 3rd floor, there was no scenic view (we looked out what may have been the back of other buindings on the block behind us). But that was not what we were there for so it was not an issue for us.

The only issue we ran into was when we returned from The Four's after celebrating the Rangers' OT win, our room keys did not work. But that was quickly rectified with a simple visit to the front desk. After a little talk about the game, it was back to the room, with working keys.

I would like to come back and explore more of the city, as time did not permit us to see a whole lot. I would certainly consider making the Onyx my "home base" again.

The Onyx is a small hotel in the North end area of Boston, just steps from the TD Bank Garden. Keeping with Kimpton charm, this hotel offers very friendly, VIP service to all their customers. They even made arrangements weeks in advance for me to a driver take me to the airport at 5am, at a very low fare I might add.
The king corner room was very nice, and complimentary wine and beer in the lobby at 5pm was a fun, cozy eperience.
Though they have a small bar and restaurant at the hotel, we opted to walk around the North End and find a spot we hadn't tried before.
I would definately stay here again.