boston hotel rec?

The waterfront is a great area.

 

On Congress Street.

 

I've had friends and family find a lot of decent prices at hotels in Kendall Square and the vicinity in Cambridge. Also don't sleep on Somerville ... there are only a few hotels there (Holiday Inn, La Quinta) but they are often relatively cheap and have free parking. The Holiday Inn (which says it is in "Boston/ Bunker Hill" but isn't) is pretty close to Union Square, which is a good non-touristy destination*, and is also walkable to the Orange Line T stop at Sullivan Square, which will get you downtown quite quickly.

On the other hand, if you want to splurge, Hotel Commonwealth is right by Fenway and a bunch of great restaurants/ bars.

*Union features a great german beer-focused restaurant called Bronwyn, a solid beer bar called the Independent, and an awesome hidden cocktail bar, Backbar.

 

The Independent, IMHO, seems to have gone from "solid beer bar" to "incredible beer bar" in the past few months. Their list is starting to rival Lord Hobo's of late, with better prices.

 

Even if you do have a rental car don't use it to get around Boston. Fenway Park, Trillium, Cambridge Brewing, etc are all close to T stops and are in dense, walkable neighborhoods with other cool stuff nearby. Cars are the worst way to get around Boston, doubly so if you intend on drinking. AirBNB may not work if you have a rental car because many neighborhoods have residential permit parking only(another reason to not have a car in Boston) so it would be tough to find a parking spot.

 

A couple of thoughts:
- If you need a car, you probably don't need it for your entire stay. Figure out where you can rent a car, and rent it for a day, and cab/public transportation from the airport. Be prepared that if you cab from the airport to Boston there's a $7.50/toll automatically added, so even if you're not going far, you're looking at a $30 cab fare.
- The residence inn in Charlestown charges $15/night for self park. I'm not sure about the public transportation options over there, but it's much less than $40/night.

 

$100 hotels about 20 minutes outside Boston.

 

I second staying on the outskirts, especially the other side of the bridge(s) with a rental car. $150 rooms, free parking, 15 minutes from what you mentioned. Sounds like what you're looking for price wise.

 

there's a holiday inn in east somerville that's probably not that expensive. and i think there's free parking.