No. 284 Back Bay Hotel, Sonder — Hotel in Boston

Let’s start with what I found to be good. The room was fairly clean albeit very small – like under 200 sq.ft. small. The bathroom was so tiny, there was nowhere to even put down my small toiletry bag except the toilet lid or inside the sink basin, which was first for me in hundreds of rooms. The location was close to the Heinz Convention Center, which is why I chose it. It goes downhill from here, steeply.

My first big issue which I wrote another review in more detail about was a classic case of irrational inflexibility. On my original booking, I reserved 3 nights. Within 12 hours of that booking, I realized I needed one more day, but they would not let me book just one day since they have a 2-day minimum. My argument that I had already booked 3 days and was simply adding a fourth fell on deaf “Chat-Bot” ears.

On booking in, and with all these next issues, keep one thing in mind. Sonders is nothing more than glorified Air-B&B, with no staff to help if you have any problem. So, when I found my Wi-Fi password didn’t work on my phone or laptop, I spent almost 3 hours over the next 2 days trying to fix the problem, but the “Chat-Bot” support, which I’m guessing is in India or South Korea, could not help me. It worked fine in the plane, airport and coffee shop, but not here, and the two friends I had staying in other rooms couldn’t get on either. I never did speak with a human to help me, and this problem never was solved.

What alarmed me each night I was there was the Fire Alarm warning sound going off in the foyer saying there was a System Communication Error. The second night, I texted “Chat-Bot” Support again, but they never got back to me, so made a non-emergency call to the Fire Department, and when they came, they said it was likely if an alarm went off, the signal would not go to the central station. They felt it was a pretty big issue, and it happened again on night 3, but I had given up at that point. This issue was likely caused by the internet connectivity issue too.

Three other points worth mentioning start with they put a $350 “Incidental Hold” on your credit card for a week, where other real hotels put a $100 deposit on for a night. They must make good money on the interest float with that amount and time. The funny part is, there are no incidentals in the rooms to buy or even vending machines downstairs, not incidentally.

The final point relates to the common area cleanliness. For a place that can command upwards of $450 a night, I was in shock that the carpets look like it’s a dog kennel, with the old, worn carpet having literally hundreds of spots. It smelled like a kennel too, and this was true of all the halls, stairs and even inside the elevator, which smelled of urine. On the outside, there’s a lot of trash, probably from neighboring properties, and the rats were going BONKERS every night. Not only did I have them literally run into feet on three occasions, on two occasions a passersby shrieked as rats ran at their feet too. There were no visible rat-control traps anywhere, which is just another negligent cost savings measure on Sonder’s part. No staff, no internet, no repairs, and big money – what a great business model. There’s also absolutely no parking here, or anywhere near here.

The bottom line is there are dozens of other great hotels and Air B&B’s to stay at nearby – I'd avoid this overpriced low-grade hostel...

I wanted to reach out because the experience of staying at the Sonders in Boston was frankly quite appalling. I’ve stayed with them before in Miami and NY, where I really had a wonderful time – but I am afraid No. 284 Commonwealth Ave is not on par. There is no staff, no maintenance, no support, and much less space in any of their rooms.

Firstly, at 2AM the day I arrive the alarm goes off for 20 minutes due to some water issue? It is not until 2:30 AM that we all go back to our room. This was a huge disturbance due to lack of maintenance of the building.

Secondly, the rooms are much smaller than advertised, while the cleanliness of them was questionable. Hair clips that were thrown to the floor from a previous stay were still on the floor under the bedside tables in my room. This has never been an issue before when I've stayed in other Sonders.

You can also hear everything, from the elevator to the water running, to conversations in other rooms. Normally I find that their rooms are much better sound proofed in other locations where I’ve stayed before!

In previous stays, they've always provided at least one complimentary bottled water, or had a fountain to fill cups with water. This was not the case this time. The common areas also did not provide any water.

The space to store suitcases was fully packed so I had nowhere to store my larger suitcase, just my carry-on because by miracle there was one small space opened.

The last straw was when the alarm started ringing (AGAIN) becoming subtly stronger and stronger the last day of my stay. I again had to get work done, and it was so distracting. At first it seemed like a glitch, and then got louder and louder.

In general, this location does not seem as UpToDate and well-kept as Sonders other venues and was a major disappointment.

I really want to emphasize this review as someone who has always been a fan and recommends Sonders to friends. The stay in Boston has made me reconsider, as I got no sleep, peace of mind, nor space to work during my stay. It almost was a point of anxiety coming back to the room which is not what one wants while on...

Our stay at Sonder in Boston began with a bit of a challenge. Our check-in time was 4 PM, but we arrived early, around 11 AM, expecting to store our luggage in the lockers. This expectation was based on a prior conversation with customer service. Unfortunately, upon arrival, we found the two largest lockers occupied, leaving us with no storage option for our belongings.

We then approached the office to inquire if we could temporarily store our luggage there. However, the staff member declined, citing potential unavailability due to being out or on calls at other locations. He suggested using Bounce, a nearby service, for our storage needs, emphasizing that it was only a six-minute walk. While I understand walking is a feasible option, as the staff member pointed out his own routine of walking five miles a day, this solution felt dismissive of our specific situation and not very customer-centric.

When we inquired about the possibility of an early check-in or leaving our luggage in the room with a note for housekeeping, we were told that this was not an option as the housekeeping staff may not understand English. This lack of flexibility and unwillingness to assist was disappointing.

The room itself was fine and convenient, but this initial experience and the perceived lack of effort to accommodate our needs left a lasting impression. Additionally, the shower door in our room was not properly sealed, leading to water leakage and a wet bathroom floor. While the stay was overall acceptable, the lack of storage solutions and flexibility might influence my decision to stay again at Sonder...