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Discover Your Element at Godfrey Hotel Hollywood
Exciting news! Oxford Capital Group, LLC is growing the Godfrey brand in Hollywood, California.
We just celebrated with a ceremonial “last beam” signing for the topping off of Godfrey Hollywood. Joining us from the Oxford team was (from L to R): Dieter Schmitz, West Coast Operation Manager, Sar Perurui, Principal, George Jordan, Senior Vice President and Konstantine Kabilafkas, Hotel Manager of Godfrey Hollywood.
George Jordan, Senior Vice President of Oxford signing his name on the last beam.
Sar Perurui, Principal of Oxford signing his name on the last beam.
Located in the heart of the city minutes away from the Hollywood Hills, our hotel will be home to approximately 200 guest rooms and suites, a rooftop pool and a chef-driven restaurant.
Our “Discover Your Element” tagline encourages guests to discover an element that best fits their personalized needs, whether that may be taking advantage of our stellar location, rooftop or restaurant.
Stay tuned for more upcoming news about the development process and opening dates.
Click here to visit Godfrey Hotel Hollywood’s website.
The Summer of Giveaways: August Twitter
Can you believe that summer is more than halfway through? To make sure we wrap up the summer in true #GodfreyStyle, we’re giving away something special to one of you. We’re hosting a flash giveaway over on our Twitter page (@GodfreyBoston) until Wednesday, August 3rd.
One winner will be selected at random and gifted an overnight stay with us for a date of their choosing in August (some blackout dates may apply). Head over to this tweet, RT it and follow us to enter for your chance to win. You have until Wednesday, August 3rd at 10 am EST. We’ll pick one winner at random on August 3rd and notify them via Twitter by August 4th, 5 pm EST, so keep an eye out.
And – be sure to check back in September to see what campaigns we’ll be running this fall. Enter here!
And, to make everything fair, a few rules for the Giveaway:
- The Godfrey Hotel Boston is the sponsor of this Giveaway.
- Must be 21 or over at the time of entry and a legal, U.S. resident. No purchase necessary to enter or win. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. INTERNET ACCESS, A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS, AND A Twitter ACCOUNT.
- Only one winner will be selected by management at The Godfrey Hotel Boston. The winner can select his or her own guest to accompany him or her.
- Be creative. No profanity, no illegal or offensive or inappropriate submissions. No entries that defame, misrepresent or contain disparaging remarks about Sponsor, or its products or services or other people, products or companies.
- If including a photo, the photo must be an original that you submit and must be your own photo that you either took as a selfie, you captured, or someone took for you.
- There is no daily or overall limit on the number of entries per Entrant during the Giveaway Period.
- No photos of you, the entrant, consuming alcohol.
- By entering, you grant The Godfrey Hotel Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago, and its ownership the right to use your photo in current or future marketing efforts if they wish, including but not limited to social media sites, websites, public relations and advertising. The hotel does not guarantee the posting of any photo.
- Management at The Godfrey Hotel Boston will decide the winner of the giveaway. All decisions are final. Winner will be notified via social media to privately share their email, phone and mailing address with The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
- No cash substitutions will be provided and no transfer of any prize to a third party is permitted. Submissions of entries will be accepted at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each winner will be solely responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes on prizes. If applicable, winners may receive an IRS Form 1099 for the prize retail value. All Registered Trademarks and logos used in conjunction with this Giveaway are the intellectual property of their respective owners and are used by permission.
- Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the giveaway at any time for any reason whatsoever, at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Giveaway (including, without limitation, make changes to these Terms & Conditions) without notice.
- You are supplying this information to The Godfrey Hotel, not Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or its partners or application developers. You are providing your information to the owner or operator of this Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram page and not to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any of its partners or application developers.
- Giveaway ends Wednesday, August 3rd, 2016 at 10 AM EST.
- Winner must redeem their stay before August 31, 2016. Some blackout dates apply.
- Violation of these rules will disqualify you from the Giveaway.
Preservation Achievement Award
We’re thrilled to announce that we have been honored with the Boston Preservation Alliance’s Preservation Achievement Award this year for the work we did restoring our historic Ames and Blake buildings. The Boston Preservation Alliance’s mission is to protect and improve the quality of Boston’s distinct architectural heritage, and we could not be more proud to have our restoration efforts recognized by their team.
“The unique historic character of Boston’s buildings is increasingly recognized for the additive value they bring to projects. Demand for these distinctive spaces is growing,” says Greg Galer, Executive Director of the Boston Preservation Alliance. “Development can be tremendously successful working within historic building envelopes, and in this case the project made additionally viable through the use of historic rehabilitation tax credits. The Godfrey stands as a prime example that historic resources can bring a premium return.”
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our partners at Finegold Alexander Architects and GETTYS for all of their time, dedication and help during our restoration project.
You can purchase tickets to the 2016 Preservation Achievement Awards event, which will take place on October 24th from 6-8PM at the Paramount Center. Tickets are on sale here. To learn more about the Boston Preservation Alliance and the Preservation Achievement Award, you can watch the below video and visit their website.
George Howell Coffee At The Godfrey Hotel Boston Opens Today In Downtown Crossing
Pioneering coffee roasters George Howell Coffee today announce the official opening of the Downtown Crossing café located inside our ground-level lobby. Accessible to locals and hotel guests alike, George Howell Coffee at The Godfrey features a wide range of sophisticated yet inviting coffee experiences, such as an espresso bar, hand-poured single estate and micro lot coffee servings, and public cuppings. Later this summer, the café will offer coffee-tasting “flights,” specialty coffee-based creations, coffee brewer calibration clinic, group education coffee classes, and much more.
George Howell Coffee at The Godfrey is open daily 6:30 a.m. – 8 p.m., offering pairings for its estate coffees with a wide selection of pastries, toast tartines, and both breakfast and lunch sandwiches all made or sourced from local artisans or farms. In the evening, George Howell Coffee at The Godfrey offers fine French tarts and desserts from Praliné Artisanal Confections. The café is poised to offer expanded hours in the coming weeks for after-theater and dinner guests.
George Howell Coffee at The Godfrey offers a full retail section with a wide range of coffee brewing equipment on display and available for purchase, as well as an extensive range of retail coffee beans from farms across the world chosen for their quality and distinction. In this and all locations, George Howell Coffee is an expansion upon George Howell’s pioneering café collection The Coffee Connection in the early 1990’s with an esthetic environment combining contemporary art along with state of art coffee equipment producing exceptional coffee beverages.
For our guests looking to further immerse themselves in the thriving coffee culture in the heart of Boston, The Godfrey For Coffee Connoisseur package is available for booking beginning Monday, June 20. In addition to a two-night stay, the package includes a complimentary coffee flight for two, one-on-one coffee tasting course with a George Howell Coffee barista, and a takeaway of George Howell’s finest roast to take home.
The Summer of Giveaways: June Instagram
To celebrate the unofficial start of summer, we want to bring you the chance to have a #GodfreyStyle staycation or last-minute getaway. We’re hosting a flash giveaway over on Instagram (@GodfreyBoston) for today only. One person will win an overnight stay at The Godfrey Hotel Boston for the date of their choosing this month.
Head over to our most recent photo, give it a like, follow us and tell us what you love most about Boston in the summer. You have until tomorrow morning (Thursday, June 2nd) at 10 am EST. We’ll pick one winner at random on June 2nd and notify them via Instagram DM, so keep an eye out.
And – be sure to check back on July 1 for another giveaway on one of our social profiles!
And, to make everything fair, a few rules for the Giveaway:
- The Godfrey Hotel Boston is the sponsor of this Giveaway.
- Must be 21 or over at the time of entry and a legal, U.S. resident. No purchase necessary to enter or win. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. INTERNET ACCESS, A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS, A FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM or TWITTER ACCOUNT, AND PHOTO UPLOADING CAPABILITY REQUIRED.
- Only one winner will be selected by management at The Godfrey Hotel Boston. The winner can select his or her own guest to accompany him or her.
- Be creative. No profanity, no illegal or offensive or inappropriate submissions. No entries that defame, misrepresent or contain disparaging remarks about Sponsor, or its products or services or other people, products or companies.
- If including a photo, the photo must be an original that you submit and must be your own photo that you either took as a selfie, you captured, or someone took for you.
- There is no daily or overall limit on the number of entries per Entrant during the Giveaway Period.
- No photos of you, the entrant, consuming alcohol.
- By entering, you grant The Godfrey Hotel Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago, and its ownership the right to use your photo in current or future marketing efforts if they wish, including but not limited to social media sites, websites, public relations and advertising. The hotel does not guarantee the posting of any photo.
- To enter, you must have a public profile on the social media sites of Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and you must tag @GodfreyBoston and use #GodfreyStyle in the entry.
- Management at The Godfrey Hotel Boston will decide the winner of the giveaway. All decisions are final. Winner will be notified via social media to privately share their email, phone and mailing address with The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
- No cash substitutions will be provided and no transfer of any prize to a third party is permitted. Submissions of entries will be accepted at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each winner will be solely responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes on prizes. If applicable, winners may receive an IRS Form 1099 for the prize retail value. All Registered Trademarks and logos used in conjunction with this Giveaway are the intellectual property of their respective owners and are used by permission.
- Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the giveaway at any time for any reason whatsoever, at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Giveaway (including, without limitation, make changes to these Terms & Conditions) without notice.
- You are supplying this information to The Godfrey Hotel, not Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or its partners or application developers. You are providing your information to the owner or operator of this Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram page and not to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any of its partners or application developers.
- Giveaway ends Thursday, June 2, 2016 at 10 AM EST.
- Winner must redeem their stay before June 30, 2016. Some blackout dates apply. Blackout dates for the hotel stay at The Godfrey Hotel Boston are: June 6-8 and June 15-18.
- Violation of these rules will disqualify you from the Giveaway.
Getting to The Godfrey Hotel Boston
If you’re visiting us from out of town, there are several ways you could arrive at our hotel in Downtown Crossing. While you can always drive or take a cab when you arrive in town, we’re also easily accessible via the MBTA.
From Boston Logan Airport:
From any terminal at Logan, you can take the Silver line to South Station for free. Once you’ve arrived at South Station, you have two options:
- If you want to stretch your legs, we’re a ~10 minute walk. Once you exit South Station, take a left on Summer Street and walk until you come to Washington Street. Take another left onto Washington Street and we’re two blocks down on the right.
- If you would rather get as close to the hotel on the T as possible, you’ll want to switch trains at South Station. After getting off the Silver line, take the stairs up one level and take the Red Line (towards Alewife) for one stop. Get off at Downtown Crossing. Once on the street level, walk down Washington Street in the direction of the theater district and you’ll find us on the right side of the street.
From South Station:
Just like if you’re arriving from Logan Airport you have two options:
- Once you exit South Station, take a left on Summer Street and walk until you come to Washington Street. Take another left onto Washington Street and we’re two blocks down on the left.
- Take the Red Line (towards Alewife) for one stop. Get off at Downtown Crossing. Once on the street level, walk down Washington Street in the direction of the theater district and you’ll find us on the right side of the street.
From North Station:
If you arrive to town through North Station, get on the Orange Line (towards Forest Hills) and get off at Downtown Crossing. Once on the street level, walk down Washington Street in the direction of the theater district and you’ll find us on the right side of the street.
Sneak Peek: George Howell Coffee
As you know, we opened in February, but we’re not done growing. In fact, we’re adding two additions to our lobby floor – a restaurant coming later this year and George Howell Coffee’s newest location late May.
That’s right, in just about a month you’ll be able to grab a cup of freshly ground coffee before heading out for a day of business meetings or sight seeing.
We have to leave a little mystery for opening day, but we thought we’d share some sneak peek, behind-the-scene shots of what’s to come in our George Howell Coffee location.
Keep checking back for more details as we get closer to our George Howell Coffee opening at the end of May.
Giveaway: Fall into New England
We’re excited to announce a collaborative giveaway with Paramount today. We’ve partnered to bring you the chance to win an overnight stay with us and two tickets to see an ArtsEmerson show during their fall performances starting this September (based on availability).
To enter the giveaway, share on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram why you’re ready to “Fall into New England,” tag us and use hashtag #GodfreyStyle by 12 pm EST on April 27. Be creative and have fun!
We’ll select and notify one person at random with @ArtsEmerson to win by 5 pm EST on May 2, 2016.
And, to make everything fair, a few rules for the Giveaway:
- The Godfrey Hotel Boston is the sponsor of this Giveaway in partnership with Paramount and ArtsEmerson.
- Must be 21 or over at the time of entry and a legal, U.S. resident. No purchase necessary to enter or win. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. INTERNET ACCESS, A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS, A FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM or TWITTER ACCOUNT, AND PHOTO UPLOADING CAPABILITY REQUIRED.
- Only one winner will be selected by management jointly at The Godfrey Hotel Boston and ArtsEmerson. The winner can select his or her own guest to accompany him or her.
- Be creative. No profanity, no illegal or offensive or inappropriate submissions. No entries that defame, misrepresent or contain disparaging remarks about Sponsor, or its products or services or other people, products or companies.
- If including a photo, the photo must be an original that you submit and must be your own photo that you either took as a selfie, you captured, or someone took for you.
- There is no daily or overall limit on the number of entries per Entrant during the Giveaway Period.
- No photos of you, the entrant, consuming alcohol.
- By entering, you grant The Godfrey Hotel Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago, ArtsEmerson and its ownership the right to use your photo in current or future marketing efforts if they wish, including but not limited to social media sites, websites, public relations and advertising. The hotel does not guarantee the posting of any photo.
- To enter, you must have a public profile on the social media sites of Facebook, Twitter or Instagram and you must tag @GodfreyBoston and use #GodfreyStyle in the entry.
- Management at The Godfrey Hotel Boston and ArtsEmerson will decide the winners of the giveaway. All decisions are final. Winner will be notified via social media to privately share their email, phone and mailing address with The Godfrey Hotel Boston and ArtsEmerson.
- No cash substitutions will be provided and no transfer of any prize to a third party is permitted. Submissions of entries will be accepted at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each winner will be solely responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes on prizes. If applicable, winners may receive an IRS Form 1099 for the prize retail value. All Registered Trademarks and logos used in conjunction with this Giveaway are the intellectual property of their respective owners and are used by permission.
- Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the giveaway at any time for any reason whatsoever, at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Giveaway (including, without limitation, make changes to these Terms & Conditions) without notice.
- You are supplying this information to The Godfrey Hotel, not Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or its partners or application developers. You are providing your information to the owner or operator of this Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram page and not to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any of its partners or application developers.
- Giveaway ends Wednesday, April 27, 2016 at 12 pm EST.
- Some blackout dates apply for the available show dates with ArtsEmerson. Blackout dates for the hotel stay at The Godfrey Hotel Boston are: September 25-28, October 8-10, October 21-23, November 17-19, 2016.
- Violation of these rules will disqualify you from the Giveaway.
Good luck!
Guest Room Mobile Key Access
We’re excited to announce with OpenKey, the industry standard for universal mobile key access, that we are now offering our guests the convenience of digital key room access via OpenKey’s app.
OpenKey is helping to reinvent the hospitality experience by allowing guests authorized and secure access to their hotel room from their smartphone or mobile device. Our guests now have access to their rooms and additional conveniences to customize their stay via the app.
“We are very excited to be working with The Godfrey Hotel Boston to implement mobile key technology at such an iconic property. Guests can download the app directly onto their mobile device, check in on their way from the airport and go straight to their room while enjoying the convenience and security of smartphone room access.” – Brian Shedd, OpenKey Vice President of Sales and Marketing.
With the recent release of OpenKey Version 2.0, our guests are able to manage their check-in, call the front desk directly, confirm their identity with an ID capture for security and send their estimated time of arrival (ETA) to the hotel.
“We want to provide the very best digital guest experience possible. The hotel industry is evolving and technology has a big role in that. We are excited to work with OpenKey and have a partner with a hospitality technology platform that supports our needs and can be implemented into our existing BLE locks.” – Justin Tait, Godfrey Hotel Boston Director of Operations.
The OpenKey app is available to download in the iOS App Store and Google Play Store.
We look forward to welcoming you and hope you enjoy this new tech-savvy amenity.
A Boston Staycation
Over Valentine’s Day weekend, we hosted Style-Wire for a romantic staycation. Her review of our hotel shows just how much fun she had while staying with us, and her photos are certainly worth sharing.
Following are a few excepts from the review:
The Godfrey is super tech friendly with complimentary wi-fi, smart TVs (log into your Netflix account and chill!), and rechargeable Bluetooth speakers in every room. Obviously once my Valentine arrived we did what any other couple would do and binge watched Nurse Jackie on Netflix and ordered late night pizza from New York Pizza while munching on chocolate and sipping champagne. Perfect evening if you ask me!
We love Elissa’s recap of her overnight stay, which you can read entirety here, but we’re head over heels in love with the photos she shared. The photos capture her love for travel as she took advantage of our in-room amenities. We’ve shared some of our favorites above, but you can check out the rest on our Facebook page or in Elissa’s post.
We love hearing about our guests’ stays and we look forward to hosting you in the future.
Downtown Crossing: Past | Present | Future
We’ve discussed before how proud we are to be a part of such a historic, vibrant neighborhood. Downtown Crossing has experienced many different personalities over the years, and we’re honored to be a part of the current revitalization that is bringing commerce and residents back to this neighborhood.
The team at Boston Virtual Imaging created a great 5-minute video highlighting and discussing the change that is currently underway in Downtown Crossing, which features one of our own team members.
“You’ve got something interesting going on all of the time,” said Paul Sauceda, The Godfrey Hotel Boston Director of Sales and Marketing. “There are offices in the day, but there is theater and restaurants and nightlife at night.”
Thank you to Boston Visual Imaging for including us in this video and thank you to our neighbors for welcoming us to Downtown Crossing.
We’re so excited to grow with you.
#GodfreyStyle
Following last week’s opening celebrations – the ribbon cutting and evening reception – we are excited to share an extended look inside of our hotel.
We invested a lot into the refurbishment of our two historical buildings, so creating a design and environment that honored our past while looking to the future was of the utmost importance to our team. We worked closely with The Gettys Group on our interior design. Gettys is an international interior design, branding, consulting and procurement firm and they paid close attention to many of the unique and convenient touches in our luxurious rooms. We believe we achieved a look that boasts both modern and peaceful interiors, but we know that our guests are the true judge of our success.
We hope you enjoyed taking a sneak peek and we hope to host you in the near future. Share photos during your stay with #GodfreyStyle.
Opening Celebrations: The Evening Reception
Following our Wednesday morning ribbon cutting ceremony, we hosted an evening receptions for our neighbors, friends and guests.
Our friends at Yvonne’s catered our food and beverage, our partner at George Howell Coffee shared up a sampling of coffee-based beverages and DJ Liz Ladoux made sure the music was flowing all night long.
It was the perfect ending to a momentous and exciting day, and we couldn’t be more honored to be a part of such a vibrant neighborhood. Thank you to everyone for your continued support.
You can view more of the day’s photos on our Facebook page here.
Image Credit: 617Images.
Opening Celebrations: The Ribbon Cutting
It’s with great pleasure and a true honor that we can officially announce our opening. This morning, we hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate opening our doors and becoming a permanent part of the Downtown Crossing neighborhood.
After sharing a welcoming note, our General Manager Larry Casillo presented our neighbors The Wang YMCA of Chinatown, Boston Asian: Youth Essential Services, Kwong Kow Chinese School and Asian American Civic Association with charitable donations of $25,000 each to mark the start of a long and hospitable relationship.
Following the donation presentation, John Rutledge, President & CEO of Oxford Hotels & Resorts, spoke on our partnership and what opening The Godfrey Boston means to us.
Rosemarie Sansone, President and CEO of the Boston Improvement District (BID) shared what our hotel opening means to the vibrant neighborhood of Downtown Crossing. Pat Moscaritolo, President & CEO of Greater Boston CVB, touched on how the restoration of the Amory and Blake buildings breathes new life into the neighborhood.
We were then honored to have Mayor Martin J. Walsh speak on the transformation of Downtown Crossing over the past few decades and how The Godfrey Hotel is part of the movement to restore our neighborhood and usher us into the new year.
Our ribbon cutting ceremony was an absolutely wonderful way to ignite our relationship with the city and to mark the opening of our doors to Downtown Crossing, the rest of Boston and our current and future guests. We’re thrilled to be officially open and want to thank everyone who has supported us each step of the way.
We look forward to having you stay with us.
Discover Your Element: Our February 3rd Opening
Today we announced our debut of the architecturally restored Amory and Blake buildings as the 242-room, luxury lifestyle hotel in Boston’s historic Downtown Crossing neighborhood, set to open to the public Wednesday, February 3. An adaptive reuse project spearheaded by Oxford Capital Group, LLC, we are ushering in experiential excitement to out-of-town travelers and the Downtown Crossing community alike.
Immersed in the eclectic Theatre District, walking distance from Boston Common and the heart of Downtown Boston, we offer a sleekly-designed lobby with lounge and bar, Cicchetti at Godfrey, unparalleled in-room amenities with technological and luxury offerings, flexible meeting space, a spacious fitness center, and more. Coming later this spring and summer, a street-level coffee shop by George Howell Coffee and an upcoming restaurant helmed by local restauranteurs will open their doors to our hotel and neighborhood guests.
A pivotal opening in Downtown Crossing, we are committed to continuing the revitalization of the neighborhood. We are the second Godfrey Hotel property developed by Oxford Capital Group, LLC; the award-winning flagship property opened in February 2014 in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. “We are proud to call Boston home to our expanding Godfrey Hotel brand,” says Oxford Capital Group President & CEO John Rutledge. “With such a robust room demand in Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Boston is an instrumental development in the Downtown Crossing neighborhood, and city beyond.”
Future guests may take advantage of specials for the opening online at www.godfreyhotelboston.com/special-offers-en.html.
Discover: An Architectural Marvel
Under the direction of Finegold Alexander Architects, the exterior prewar brick-and-stone façade of our two adjacent historic buildings, the Amory and Blake, and the white terra cotta façade of the Blake building itself have been completely restored to pay tribute to the century-old office buildings in which we are located. Originally designed in the Neoclassical and Gothic Revival styles, the Amory and Blake buildings embody the spirit of Boston in their structure and design, while enabling us to breathe new life into the buildings from the inside out.
Our exterior combines the restored masonry of the six-story Amory Building with the white terra cotta 11-story Blake building to bring about the balance of old and new in our making. our interior, designed in collaboration with The Gettys Group, provides a sleek contrast to the restored, ornate exterior façade of both the Amory and Blake buildings. Our interior design strives to celebrate the past while embracing the new to offer a calming oasis amidst a vibrant, urban scene. The modern interior of our building blends the vintage exterior with the restoration of original elements, including the original first floor lobby, elevator banks, and stairwells with intricately cast banisters.
Discover: The Lobby
Our guests are welcomed by an energized, intricately detailed historic lobby juxtaposed by a dramatic 16-foot ceilinged architectural portal that connects to our serene guestrooms. Situated within our lobby, Cicchetti at Godfrey, open to hotel guests and locals alike, offers classic Italian cocktails and Italian small plates- reminiscent of the fare offered at cicchetti bars across northern Italy, particularly Venice. “The Gettys Group’s intent with the redesign of the hotel was to honor the existing fabric of the architecture, and infuse it with new life by juxtaposing the modern interiors with the historic façade,” said Ben Nicholas, Senior Design Director at The Gettys Group.
Discover: The Guest Rooms
Deliberately designed to offer each of our guests a distinctly customized experience, our 242 guest rooms offer a tranquil urban escape, complete with a neutral color scheme, tailored carpeting, luxury bedding, and upholstered seating designed to evoke a sense of refined comfort for each guest. As the first hotel in the Boston area and the larger U.S. to offer Stockholm-based InnSpire technology, we have outfitted each room with InnSpire’s award-winning “Guest Media Streaming” technology. This allows every guest to use personal mobile devices to stream photos, videos, and music of their choice directly to the 55” HDTV in their room. Simultaneously, guests will be able to access our hotel amenities such as room service, concierge information, in-room spa services, and complimentary Wi-Fi throughout the hotel.
Coming Soon …
Spring 2016: George Howell Coffee
We are a proud partner of pioneering coffee roaster George Howell Coffee in establishing a new café. This café is accessible to guests through our adjoining hotel lobby, as well as a ground-floor entrance on the corner of Washington St. and Temple Pl.
Reminiscent of George Howell’s own Coffee Connection, which first opened in Cambridge, MA in 1974, our café will focus on coffees from single farms, where the pinnacle of coffee quality is found, and feature a wide range of sophisticated, yet inviting coffee experiences. Guests will be able to enjoy beverages created using a state-of-the-art espresso bar, hand-poured single estate and micro lot coffee servings, coffee tasting “flights,” group education coffee classes, and much more.
Striving to provide customers with a superlative cup of coffee from its café and in the home, our George Howell Coffee location will provide an experience unrivaled by any other café in Greater Boston. Our café will immerse guests into the world of quality coffee in all of its diverse facets—ranging from an expansive offering of brewed coffee drinks bound to delight aficionados, to a dedicated consumer-friendly interactive retail space offering a wide selection of single estate coffees, equipment, and complementary products.
George Howell Coffee at The Godfrey Hotel Boston will open in spring 2016.
Summer 2016: Street-Level Restaurant
Poised to welcome guests soon after George Howell Coffee’s spring opening, we will debut a 4,600 square-foot restaurant and bar created in collaboration with soon-to-be-announced local restaurateurs.
To learn more, please visit www.godfreyhotelboston.com.
Finishing Touches
Earlier this week we shared the exciting news of our Boston Globe feature here on the blog. Today, we’re excited to share a look into our front lobby, which is now ready as we’re welcoming our first guests.
Our neutral palette of grey, white and rust orange allow for our accessories (think vintage-inspired globes, an array of hardcover books and poker chips) to pop. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that our bar is stocked with drinks that are ready to be served.
It’s so rewarding for our team to see everything come together and all of the finishing touches transform our historical building into a cozy and welcoming space for our guests.
Make sure to stop by next time you’re in Downtown Crossing; we look forward to hosting you.
The Godfrey Feature on The Boston Globe
We’re excited to announce that we were featured in The Boston Globe this weekend. This has been a labor of love for our team, so we are honored that Linda Laban took a behind-the-scenes tour in order to share our finished product with you.
“Nearly half of the white terra cotta tiles that clad the exterior were either severely damaged or missing altogether, The end result is stunning.” – Larry Casillo, General Manager
From the history behind our building and our modern amenities to the vibrancy of Downtown Crossing, Linda perfectly captures everything that personifies the Godfrey style. We could not be happier with the feature and we’re so excited to now be accepting reservations.
You can read the full Globe feature here. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did, and we can’t wait to host you.
Sunrise on The Godfrey
To us, a name signifies who you are and what you stand for; it defines you. In selecting the name, “The Godfrey,” there were a number of words that define our characteristics and who we are as a brand.
Since we put so much thought and time into our name, it’s always an exciting moment when our name is put up on our buildings. In Chicago, our name went up in lights as the sun set. Now in Boston, the sun rose on our newly installed sign.
We’re excited for the upcoming opening and are honored to be in such a historic neighborhood that is part of Boston’s past as well as future. We can’t wait to welcome you in and show you around.
A Sneak Peek of the George Howell Coffee Space
While we’ve shared a lot of photos of the guest rooms and lobby progress, there is one area we haven’t really shown you yet. Our George Howell Coffee space. Slated to open a bit after the hotel, George Howell Coffee will be to the right of the front lobby, opposite of our lobby bar and restaurant.
George Howell‘s career in coffee began in 1974, and we’re honored to be the third George Howell Coffee location in the Greater Boston area – other locations are Newtonville and the Boston Public Market.
Our shop location will be gorgeous and spacious, seating 53 people in total. The floor-to-ceiling windows will let in ample natural light and allow for panoramic views of Washington Street and Downtown Crossing. In addition to the coffee bar and seating, our shop will boast a retail space for speciality displays and demonstrations.
We can’t wait to unveil our George Howell Coffee location to you; we think you’ll love it as much as we do.
How The Godfrey Boston Does Laundry
About this time two years ago we gave you a sneak peek in to how The Godfrey Chicago does laundry. Now it’s time for us to show you how things will be done in our Boston hotel as well. As we mentioned in 2013, this is rare insight as most luxury hotels won’t let you behind the scenes and it’s even more common for hotels to outsource their laundry services.
So why don’t we outsource our laundry services like mot other luxury hotels? We have high standards for everything, and we want to make sure our guests’ linens and towels meet those standards each and every time. To meet our standards, we rely on heavy-duty machines that can wash 500 pounds of laundry in 38 minutes and press a sheet in just 7 seconds. That means we can get our guests’ Frette linens cleaned and back to their rooms in record time.
Our guests’ comfort is of the upmost importance to us, and fresh, clean linens are a key factor. We hope you’ll find them up to your standards during your future stay. Keep coming back for more behind-the-scene details leading up to our opening this winter.
Latest #SiteVisit Updates
The holiday season is always filled with hustle and bustle and our hotel progress is no different. This holiday season, we have a few more updates we’re excited to share with you around our hotel. Our guest rooms are already set up and ready for opening, so we’re excited to see the rest of the hotel come together as well.
Below is a sneak peek at the light fixtures that were installed in our lobby bar last week:
We also want even our lobby bathroom to feel consistent with the rest of our hotel design and aesthetic – luxurious and welcoming. Our lobby restrooms were tiled with a geometric pattern you’ll find throughout the hotel and as seen below.
We’ve shared a number of updates on the area leading to the elevators as we restored some of the original, historic charm. The elevator bank ceiling was recently white washed again.
Last, our new geometric light fixtures went up in the guest room hallways:
The George Howell and restaurant spaces are coming along nicely too and we’ll share more on that later. Come back for more updates and continue to watch our progress.
Meeting Notes
If business has brought you to Boston, you won’t need to worry finding a location for offsite meetings. With The Godfrey, you can relax and work in the same building. Plus, holding your meeting at the same place you’re staying is perfect for those months when we happen to accumulate a lot of snow.
Our state-of-the-art conference room can host a variety of different event types for a day of meetings, conferences, brainstorming sessions, planning sessions and more. Our capacity comfortably holds 25 people for banquet style, 40 people for reception, 30 people for theater style, 25 for classroom style and 16 for executive boardroom style. Our meeting space provides clients with exclusivity and privacy during their events.
Just like the rest of our hotel, our conference room boasts cutting edge WiFi and two 65-inch, Bluetooth enabled HDTVs with wireless connectivity from laptop to TV, which is ideal for presentations, multimedia and video. The room is also equipped with conference phones, projector and screen. And in case your meeting is too productive to pause, we offer full in-room catering for you and your team.
We hope to host you and your group for a future business meeting. You can also inquire about group meetings, events and group rates through our website here. Keep checking back for more updates on our meeting space, guest rooms and other features.
New Contest – Discover Your Element
When traveling, you want to stay “in your element.” You want to feel like yourself. At The Godfrey Hotel, we encourage you to “Discover Your Element” – whether that be working out, relaxing, dining, shopping and more.
What makes you feel “in your element”? Today, we’re launching a new contest and asking you to share how you “Discover Your Element.” At The Godfrey, we understand life requires us to live outside our comfort zone; outside our element. Our aim is to give our guests a rare spot where they feel entirely at ease.
To enter, share a photo of how you Discover Your Element. Post the photo to our Facebook page, Twitter (@GodfreyBoston) or Instagram (@GodfreyBoston) with hashtag #DiscoverYourElement for a chance to win a 2-night stay at The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
We’ll also be sharing “inspiration photos” as well – stay tuned to our social media channels all week. You’re welcome to submit more than one photo – a selfie or a photo- to this contest to enter. Full rules and details below:
Timing:
- Contest begins at 12 pm EST, December 8, 2015 and ends at 12 pm EST, December 16, 2015.
- Winner will be finalized and announced by December 21 at 5 pm EST.
- Prize to be redeemed for a two-night stay at The Godfrey Hotel Boston until January 1, 2017. Some blackout dates apply.
Rules and Guidelines:
- The Godfrey Hotel Boston is the sponsor of this contest.
- Must be 21 or over at the time of entry and a legal, U.S. resident. No purchase necessary to enter or win. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. INTERNET ACCESS, A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS, A FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM or TWITTER ACCOUNT, AND PHOTO UPLOADING CAPABILITY REQUIRED.
- Only one winner will be selected by management. The winner can select his or her own guest to accompany him or her.
- Be creative. No profanity, no illegal or offensive or inappropriate submissions. No entries that defame, misrepresent or contain disparaging remarks about Sponsor, or its products or services or other people, products or companies.
- The photo must be an original that you submit and must be your own photo that you either took as a selfie, you take, or someone took for you.
- There is no daily or overall limit on the number of entries per Contestant during the Contest Period.
- No photos of you, the entrant, consuming alcohol.
- By entering, you grant The Godfrey Hotel Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago and its ownership the right to use your photo in current or future marketing efforts if they wish, including but not limited to social media sites, websites, public relations and advertising. The hotel does not guarantee the posting of any photo.
- Management at The Godfrey Hotel will decide the winners of the contest. All decisions are final. Winner will be notified via social media to privately share their email, phone and mailing address with The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
- No cash substitutions will be provided and no transfer of any prize to a third party is permitted. Submissions of entries will be accepted at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each winner will be solely responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes on prizes. If applicable, winners may receive an IRS Form 1099 for the prize retail value. All Registered Trademarks and logos used in conjunction with this Contest are the intellectual property of their respective owners and are used by permission.
- Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Contest at any time for any reason whatsoever, at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Contest (including, without limitation, make changes to these Terms & Conditions) without notice.
- You are supplying this information to The Godfrey Hotel, not Facebook. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook or its partners or application developers. You are providing your information to the owner or operator of this Facebook page and not to Facebook or any of its partners or application developers.
- Violation of these rules will disqualify you from the contest.
Good luck!
Guest Room Details
A few weeks ago, we hosted a couple of hard hat media tours where we toured the lobby, the George Howell space and the guest rooms. As we near our opening date this winter, it was exciting to show our guests the details in the guest rooms as they come together.
Following shows some of the extra details in our rooms to create a luxurious experience for our future guests.
The Frette linens and Heeley bath products make the rooms comfortable for our guests, while the decor makes them a relaxing oasis from the fast-paced energy of Downtown Crossing.
We can’t wait to welcome our first overnight guests to stay in our rooms come opening day this winter. Keep checking back for more updates as we get closer.
A New Tour with BLDUP
Always a busy time when you’re preparing for the opening of a hotel. We were thrilled to offer a tour this week to Gil Propp of BLDUP, a leading site for construction and real estate development. We shared a sneak peek at our rooms, the lobby and the latest updates on our hotel.
Throughout the tour, Propp took a number of excellent photos that we’re pleased to share below. With every glimpse into our hotel, you can see the fast progress being made as we near completion.
To see BLDUP’s full post on our hotel developments, please visit this link.
Two Hard Hat Tours in Two Days
This week we hosted two hard hat tours with local media and social media influencers. You might remember that we hosted our first hard hat tour in May, and as you can imagine, a lot of progress has been made to the hotel since then. We’re thrilled to be getting even closer to our opening.
Paul Sauceda, our Director of Sales and Marketing, led the tour and shared information on the history of our building, construction updates and details surrounding our upcoming opening. The groups toured the hotel lobby, George Howell Coffee Shop, restaurant space, historically-preserved elevator lobby and fifth-floor guest rooms.
We shared how guests will “Discover Your Element” at our upscale boutique hotel with suite and room amenities such as luxury linens by Frette, plush robes, complimentary Wi-Fi and more.
Please continue to follow our ongoing updates on our blog, along with our social media channels including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (@GodfreyBoston).
Air It Out
You most likely don’t think about air that often, but it’s something we put a lot of thought into while building The Godfrey Boston. We want to make sure our guests are as comfortable as possible during their stay, and we think that being able to adjust the temperature of their room to their liking is key.
To ensure that each room could deliver, we knew we needed to have the infrastructure in place. We planned for one compressor to every six guest rooms. That means that there are about 50 compressors lining our roof. Each guest can control the hot and cool air in their room using the high-tech Toshiba panels.
We’re getting closer to our opening, so continue to check back for more updates.
Happening in Downtown Crossing
As we’ve discussed before, there is no shortage of things to do, eat and see in Downtown Crossing. And with each passing day, there seems to be something new popping up – a new shop, play or update to the ongoing neighborhood development.
Take for example Downtown Crossing’s newest shopping addition – Primark. This Irish clothing retailer opened its doors in early September for the first time ever in Boston. It also happens to be the very first U.S. location as well. Yet another reason Boston’s Downtown Crossing continues to boom and spark interest with businesses and guests alike.
Our neighbor Millennium Tower also had something to celebrate recently. Their team worked tirelessly for the past two years and announced that they are now at 90 percent and had reached their “topping off.” You can see all of their photos from the “topping off” celebration on their Facebook page.
And if you’re looking for something to do in the neighborhood this weekend, you don’t have to look far. You can secure tickets to a performance of the Boston Ballet’s Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler and the Actors’ Shakespeare Project’s Othello or attend a live taping of America’s Got Talent.
Things are always changing in our neighborhood, so make sure to keep coming back for more updates.
InnSpire Partnership Keeps Our Guests Connected
We are excited to announce that we have selected Stockholm-based InnSpire to provide Mobile & IPTV services to all of our guests. In adopting this cutting edge hospitality technology, we are the first U.S. hotel to offer InnSpire services on site.
Each one of our 242 rooms is outfitted with InnSpire’s award-winning “Guest Media Streaming” technology, allowing our guests to use personal mobile devices to stream photos, videos, and music of their choice directly to the 55” HDTV in their room. Simultaneously, guests are able to access hotel amenities such as room service, concierge information, and in-room spa services.
“We want to modernize how travelers view boutique hotels by flipping the paradigm and creating an experience that is completely focused on how people are living today. In partnering with InnSpire, we now have the opportunity to create a guest experience that is authentic and luxurious, allowing access to the familiar comforts of home through advanced technology.” – Larry Casillo, general manager of The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
InnSpire requires no work on the part of our guests: without the downloading of any new app, guests are able to use mobile devices to access hotel services over free hotel Wi-Fi. This simple solution enables guests to access all hotel amenities and services from anywhere in the hotel.
“We are thrilled to partner with The Godfrey Hotel Boston, and look forward to helping the hotel find new ways to make every guest’s stay even more special. InnSpire exists to help hotels better embrace their role as hosts, and to optimise operations through the use of real-time data.” – Martin Chevalle, InnSpire CEO and Co-Founder
Check back for even more information about our opening next month.
Cleaning Up Nicely
After a long day exploring Downtown Crossing and the rest of Boston, you can enjoy a night in by slipping into your robe and unwinding in our luxurious guest bathrooms.
We know how important having the space and amenities to properly relax while also feeling at home is to our guests, so we’ve built the guest rooms to incorporate:
- Heeley bath products and Frette robes in each room
- Large walk-in showers with glass doors
- Extra counter space for all your toiletries and beauty necessities
- Ample lighting built into the mirrors above the sinks
Our sole goal is to ensure the comfort and enjoyment of our guests during their stay, and the en-suite bathrooms are a key piece to that success.
Make sure to keep coming back for additional updates as we near our opening day.
We’re Hiring in Boston
With our grand opening next month, we are thrilled to say we’re hiring for a number of positions at The Godfrey Hotel Boston. If you’re a motivated and hard working Bostonian who loves the hospitality industry, then there’s no better place for you than Boston’s newest boutique hotel.
We are looking for applicants for the following positions: Front Office Manager, Assistant Front Office Manager, Night Auditor, Communications Agent and Bellmen. You can see more details below:
Interested candidates should send their resume to jobs@godfreyhotelboston.com. Also, if you know a friend or family member who is looking for a job, please share this with them.
The Godfrey Hotel Boston is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
Follow @GodfreyBoston on Twitter or like The Godfrey Hotel Boston on Facebook for our latest employment opportunities.
A Walk Around Boston
Some blogs use Wednesdays for #WordlessWednesday and we thought today was the perfect opportunity to share our excitement and passion for opening a hotel in the great city of Boston. To that, here’s a (nearly) #WordlessWednesday post highlighting the beautiful landmarks that make Boston a most desirable place to visit.
Walk around with us and see some of the great spots in Boston, including:
Local Bostonians, what are your favorite spots to take visitors?
We’re looking forward to opening this November.
The Other Things – A Video
We created a short and sentimental video to showcase what makes Boston great: Endurance, hard work and brilliant minds.
The Godfrey Hotel is proud to call the city of Boston home starting in the fall of 2015. We encourage travelers to visit to the “city upon a hill” to Discover Your Element.
Take a look at our YouTube video:
Take a look at our YouTube channels – Chicago and Boston – for all our videos.
Installing the Guest Room Carpet
Exciting times here! We recently hit the 10-week countdown mark, which means we’re nearing the end of our construction work and we’re furthering the interior design. For us, the true sign of rounding the corner and being in the home stretch was the carpets going down in the guest rooms.
All 242 of our guest rooms will be outfitted with plush gray-and-white carpet from Clayton Miller Hospitality Carpets, adding a cozy touch to the modern and sophisticated decor. The neutral colors and patterns allow the other pieces in the rooms to really pop. We’ve worked closely with the talented team at Gettys Worldwide on our interior design.
Keep checking back for more progress updates as we get closer to our opening later this fall.
Improper Bostonian’s Party
Last night we had the honor of sponsoring Improper Bostonian’s rooftop party at Troy, one of Boston’s hottest new apartment complexes in the South End.
It was a wonderful night filled with good company, gorgeous weather and breathtaking views of the Boston skyline. The delicious food was catered from A Catered Affair. We could have not asked for a better night and we look forward to celebrating more with the Boston community.
Stay tuned for more details about our opening in the near future.
#FreeBrady
If you’ve paid any attention to local Boston news in the past several months, you’ll know that the Deflategate drama is still going strong. As the court hearings continue, local Patriots fans (and even some members of our team included) are calling for the NFL to #FreeBrady.
In order to show our support of Brady and the Patriots, we created #FreeBrady t-shirts and handed them out to friends of The Godfrey for them to wear around town. If you were one of the lucky ones, you can enter our giveaway for a chance to win a free night’s stay with us. Simply share a photo of yourself wearing the shirt around town on social media and tagging us in the photo along with #FreeBrady. You can find us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Our management will pick one winner at random.
We look forward to seeing everyone’s photos and the day when the NFL announces the end of Deflategate and Brady is free of this.
Good luck to all those who enter!
And, to make everything fair, a few rules for the contest:
- The Godfrey Hotel Boston is the sponsor of this contest.
- Must be 21 or over at the time of entry and a legal, U.S. resident. No purchase necessary to enter or win. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. INTERNET ACCESS, A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS, A FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM or TWITTER ACCOUNT, AND PHOTO UPLOADING CAPABILITY REQUIRED.
- Only one winner will be selected by management. The winner can select his or her own guest to accompany him or her.
- Be creative. No profanity, no illegal or offensive or inappropriate submissions. No entries that defame, misrepresent or contain disparaging remarks about Sponsor, or its products or services or other people, products or companies.
- The photo must be an original that you submit and must be your own photo that you either took as a selfie, you take, or someone took for you.
- There is no daily or overall limit on the number of entries per Contestant during the Contest Period.
- No photos of you, the entrant, consuming alcohol.
- By entering, you grant The Godfrey Hotel Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago and its ownership the right to use your photo in current or future marketing efforts if they wish, including but not limited to social media sites, websites, public relations and advertising. The hotel does not guarantee the posting of any photo.
- Management at The Godfrey Hotel will decide the winners of the contest. All decisions are final. Winner will be notified via social media to privately share their email, phone and mailing address with The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
- No cash substitutions will be provided and no transfer of any prize to a third party is permitted. Submissions of entries will be accepted at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each winner will be solely responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes on prizes. If applicable, winners may receive an IRS Form 1099 for the prize retail value. All Registered Trademarks and logos used in conjunction with this Contest are the intellectual property of their respective owners and are used by permission.
- Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Contest at any time for any reason whatsoever, at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Contest (including, without limitation, make changes to these Terms & Conditions) without notice.
- You are supplying this information to The Godfrey Hotel, not Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or its partners or application developers. You are providing your information to the owner or operator of this Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram page and not to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any of its partners or application developers.
- Contest ends Friday, Sept. 4, 2015 at 12 pm EST.
- Violation of these rules will disqualify you from the contest.
Good luck
#GoGodfrey Contest Winner
Drumroll please! We asked you to show us your Boston Strong pride and you delivered! After looking at so many passionate and enthusiastic photos, we have a winner for our #GoGodfrey Contest. We loved seeing photos of Fenway Park, Boston Common, Boston Harbor and more!
Congratulations to Marlon C. for his award-winning photo he captured of the Boston Harbor. Marlon said he took this photo from the “Spirit of Boston” cruise ship on his birthday last year. Turns out he received a belated present from us!
Marlon wins a roundtrip flight to Chicago and a two-night stay at The Godfrey Hotel Chicago, which is located in the city’s trendy River North neighborhood. We can’t wait to hear all about Marlon’s trip and see future photos from him.
Congrats again Marlon! Thank you to all who participated in the contest. We’ll have more contests coming up with exciting prizes – stay tuned!
Shopping, Sightseeing and Shows in Downtown Crossing
While we’re proud of what’s inside of The Godfrey and can’t wait to unveil it to you, we’re also proud of what’s outside – Downtown Crossing. We’re excited to be part of such a historic neighborhood, which was once coined “The Hub of the Universe,” and is currently undergoing a vibrant revival.
Stores, restaurants and lodging galore are opening left and right over the past few years. In addition to the construction work we’re undergoing, Millennium Tower Boston – soon to the be the 4th tallest building in Boston – is also going up. It’s exciting to see our progress side-by-side.
What’s so great about Downtown Crossing outside of its location and ease of access is that you don’t need to leave the surrounding area to experience shopping, sightseeing and shows. True to Boston’s nature, there is more than you could ever imagine within a 10-minute walk from our front door.
Shopping
Whether you’re shopping for groceries, jewelry, clothing or antique books, Downtown Crossing has you covered. Some of our guest rooms even overlook Brattle Book Shop – a neighborhood favorite since 1825.
Walking up and down Washington Street you’ll see everything from Roche Brothers to local flower stands and Macy’s to TJMaxx. A Primark is set to open this fall and there are jewelry stores dotting the street that offer a nod to the neighborhood’s (and our) past. And if you’re up for a 15-minute walk, the famous Newbury Street is within reach.
Sightseeing
Located along the Freedom Trail, Downtown Crossing is home to and neighbors on a variety of historical landmarks. If you step outside of The Godfrey and look left down Washington Street towards State Street, you’ll see the Old South Meeting House.
The Boston Commons is a block behind us, the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum is a 13-minute walk down Summer Street to the Boston Harbor and Faneuil Hall is just a 10-minute walk from our front doors. And for something a bit off the beaten path, the Boston Athenæum is just an eight-minute walk through the Commons and overlooks the Granary Burying Ground.
Shows
If you’re still not tired after a day of shopping and sightseeing in and around Downtown Crossing, spend a night out in the neighboring Theater District. It starts one block down from us on Washington Street and boasts everything from Broadway musicals to ballet and concerts to the silver screen.
In a one-minute walk you can catch a show at the Boston Opera House or walk an extra block to see the newest blockbuster at AMC Lowes. The Orpheum Theatre is a couple blocks in the opposite direction and hosts concerts of all sorts. Or, support the local Emerson students by attending one of their many shows at The Paramount Theater.
Needless to say, there is a never-ending list of things to do and see in Downtown Crossing and the neighboring areas … and we haven’t even discussed all of the dining options yet. Stay tuned for more updates on what to do and see during your stay with us.
Get Fit with The Godfrey Hotel Boston
We’re working hard to make sure our hotel is in shape on opening day so that our guests can keep in shape during their stay. We are laying the groundwork for our in-house fitness center and recently purchased the top-of-the-line equipment that will fill out the space.
Our fitness center spans 1,900 square feet on the lower level and will be outfitted with premier Life Fitness equipment. All guests will have unlimited access to the four treadmills, three ellipticals, various free weights, bosu balls, yoga area and much more. After all, Boston was named one of the 2015 top 10 fittest US cities by the American Fitness Index, and we want to help our guests reach their fitness goals while staying with us.
Fitness won’t be constrained to within our hotel, however. We’re working on some exciting partnerships that will allow our guests to get fit while exploring Boston and the surrounding area, so make sure to keep coming back for more details as they unfold.
And don’t forget, after you break a sweat in our fitness center, you can head back to your room to log your workout online and lounge in our luxurious Frette robes after your post-workout shower.
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Treadmill image courtesy of MilitaryHealth.
#GoGodfrey Contest
Boston, are you ready for the ultimate fan experience? We’re excited to launch our #GoGodfrey contest today on our social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Here’s how it works and how you can get involved (and possibly win!):
From July 23 – 31, show us your Boston (Boston Strong) pride and share a selfie that shows why you love Boston. Need inspiration? Snap a selfie wearing your Red Sox gear or at the Red Sox game (such as when they play the Chicago White Sox on July 27-30). Or take a photo while you’re walking through Public Garden. There’s endless possibilities of how to show off your Boston pride.
Then, share your photo on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with hashtag #GoGodfrey for a chance to win and tag @GodfreyBoston. Remember, your profile must be public to be considered.
What’s the prize? This contest is worth your creativity!
The winner will receive a round-trip flight from Boston to Chicago over the Red Sox’s series against the Chicago White Sox at U.S. Cellular Field, Aug. 24-26. The prize package includes a two night stay at the soon-to-open The Godfrey Hotel Boston’s sister property, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago, over Aug. 24-26. If the winner cannot make it to Chicago on that weekend, the winner will have until Nov. 15, 2015 to redeem the prize of the roundtrip flight and a stay at The Godfrey Hotel Chicago.
This contest starts today at 12 pm EST and runs until 12 pm EST on July 31, 2015. We will announce the winner by Aug. 5, 2015.
Additional Rules:
- The Godfrey Hotel Boston is the sponsor of this contest.
- Must be 21 or over at the time of entry and a legal, U.S. resident. No purchase necessary to enter or win. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. INTERNET ACCESS, A VALID E-MAIL ADDRESS, A FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM or TWITTER ACCOUNT, AND PHOTO UPLOADING CAPABILITY REQUIRED.
- Only one winner will be selected by management. The winner can select his or her own guest to accompany him or her.
- Be creative. No profanity, no illegal or offensive or inappropriate submissions. No entries that defame, misrepresent or contain disparaging remarks about Sponsor, or its products or services or other people, products or companies.
- The photo must be an original that you submit and must be your own photo that you either took as a selfie, you take, or someone took for you.
- There is no daily or overall limit on the number of entries per Contestant during the Contest Period.
- No photos of you, the entrant, consuming alcohol.
- By entering, you grant The Godfrey Hotel Boston, The Godfrey Hotel Chicago and its ownership the right to use your photo in current or future marketing efforts if they wish, including but not limited to social media sites, websites, public relations and advertising. The hotel does not guarantee the posting of any photo.
- Management at The Godfrey Hotel will decide the winners of the contest. All decisions are final. Winner will be notified via social media to privately share their email, phone and mailing address with The Godfrey Hotel Boston.
- No cash substitutions will be provided and no transfer of any prize to a third party is permitted. Submissions of entries will be accepted at Sponsor’s sole discretion. Each winner will be solely responsible for paying all applicable federal, state and local taxes on prizes. If applicable, winners may receive an IRS Form 1099 for the prize retail value. All Registered Trademarks and logos used in conjunction with this Contest are the intellectual property of their respective owners and are used by permission.
- Sponsor shall have the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Contest at any time for any reason whatsoever, at the sole discretion of Sponsor. Sponsor reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate the Contest (including, without limitation, make changes to these Terms & Conditions) without notice.
- You are supplying this information to The Godfrey Hotel, not Facebook. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook or its partners or application developers. You are providing your information to the owner or operator of this Facebook page and not to Facebook or any of its partners or application developers.
- Violation of these rules will disqualify you from the contest.
Good luck and have fun!
Slip into your robe and relax
When staying at a hotel, feeling like you have the comforts of home at your fingertips is important. That’s why we’re making big decisions that will impact our future guest’s stay – and hopefully make all the difference. One update we’re excited to share is the luxurious robes we’ve selected for our guest rooms. The brand is Frette – a well-known and luxury linen company headquartered in Italy.
We believe when guests see the Frette label on their robes, they’ll know immediately that we chose only the best. We believe even the small details like a shower robe can make a big difference. It should feel as relaxing and luxurious as the robe you would select to have at home.
The robes will be monogramed with our logo, as shown above.
Frette is known for their high quality linens and style. Quality and style: Two things we certainly aim to achieve as well.
So, when you stay with us, you can slip into a luxurious robe by Frette and use Heeley shampoo and conditioner when you shower. We hope you’ll find our bathroom amenities top notch.
The Hub of the Universe
“The hub of the universe.” That’s what William Filene once called the intersection of Washington Street, Winter Street and Summer Street. We’re thrilled to say our hotel is then located right in “the hub of the universe” then!
While that may be a fun exaggeration, we certainly think the location in Boston’s Downtown Crossing is perfect for our future hotel guests and locals. The area is bustling with activity throughout the day – including people headed to work, lunch or shop right in the heart of Boston.
Right on Summer Street, Winter Street and Washington Streets, you’ll find plenty of shops ranging from convenience stores to jewelry to books to music, along with street vendors and ample restaurants to check out.
The area also offers ample public transportation for our future guests, including the subway and bus lines near our hotel.
There’s also an entrance into Macy’s, which proudly hangs the American flags as well. There’s no shortage of American pride and history in Boston.
We’ll continue to keep you posted on our area and the updates at our hotel.
Add Tech to Your Stay
At The Godfrey, we’re all about high tech and high touch throughout the hotel. Our Chicago property led the way with its cutting-edge technology and amenities. We are proud to say our Boston property will boast a number of high tech offerings throughout the guest rooms and the hotel.
First, a look in the guest rooms and the guests will notice a number of tech advances, including but not limited to our mobile keyless room entry. Guests who have a smart phone can simply download the app on their phone. This makes entering the room easy, plus it is one less thing to carry when you’re out and about exploring Boston. While on the phone, guests will also have the option of mobile accessible hotel services.
The room also has large 55 inch HD TVs and a high-quality bluetooth audio system. The desks are designed with USB ports. The room is set for a high-tech traveler on business or leisure travel.
Perhaps most importantly, we have invested in a state-of-the-art wireless / WiFi that’s fast and reliable, something that can be hard to find at other hotels. Plus, have we mentioned it is free? Yes, free, fast and reliable Wi-Fi. That makes getting business finished at our hotel a little easier.
Restoring the Past
Boston is entrenched in history. From the Freedom Trail to the Bunker Hill Monument, it’s hard to go a block without reveling in one of the hundreds of historical monuments. And while The Godfrey Boston is mere blocks away from some of these main landmarks, you don’t have to leave our hotel to experience the city’s rich past.
As previously mentioned, our hotel is a complete restoration of the Amory and Blake buildings, which were once the center of Boston’s shopping district. Working together with Spillane, we’re bringing the Amory and Blake back to life and restoring their original beauty, which we shared a sneak peak of earlier this week. In fact, the three main areas we’re working to restore -the facade, the elevator lobby and the interior-facing light wells – are historically protected by the National Register of Historic Places.
Upon entering The Godfrey, you’ll see the building’s past married with its future. The walkway leading up to the front desk will start out as a matte, textured marble that displays the brick and other original materials used. The floor will then gradually transition to highly polished dark marble that signifies the decidedly modern design of The Godfrey and the future of these two historic buildings.
As you head up to your guest room, you’ll notice another nod to the past. The elevator vestibule boasts the original marble walls and ornate ceilings of the Blake. We’ll update this area to be mainly monochromatic white while maintaining and paying homage to the intricate detail.
If you’re staying in an interior-facing guest room, you’ll have the privilege to overlook our historically-preserved courtyard. It might not look like much at this point in the restoration, but it’s set to be a gorgeous respite from the bustling streets outside.
There are still a lot of changes in progress, but the restoration is coming along quickly. Stay tuned for more updates on our historically protected areas in future posts.
Every Detail Counts
To us, every detail counts as we continue to build our hotel. We are paying close attention to areas we feel are the most important to our future guests, along with other details that just make for a pleasant, smooth experience. Some may even go unnoticed to the leisure traveler as well – simply just elevating our hotel with luxurious touches.
The outside facade of our buildings are being restored and maintaining some of the original detail is important. As previously mentioned in this post, our hotel will be a complete renovation and build of the historic Amory and Blake buildings. We are restoring the outside of the buildings, including great attention to the architecture renovation.
We are working with Spillane, which has strong roots and history in building restoration throughout Massachusetts. Spillane has been restoring architecture for decades including other projects for Harvard, Boston College, Boston University, YWCA and more.
In the following photo, you can see the ornate detail that Spillane is restoring.
More detail coming soon on our restoration and the main areas we’re focused on. Stay tuned!
Exciting Times – Now Taking Reservations
We know we’re close to opening since we’re now accepting reservations. We’re inviting visitors and locals to “get to know Godfrey” with two opening rates.
In the extremely high-occupancy Boston hotel market, we are offering special promotional rates for leisure and business travelers, as well as locals looking for the ultimate staycation.
The ‘Get to Know Godfrey’ promotion has special rates starting as low as $199, available for stays from November 16, 2015 through March 15, 2016, while Boston locals are invited to enjoy the ‘Element 617’ discounted rate throughout the entirety of 2016:
Following are the details on the two new rates:
Get to Know Godfrey: Guests are invited to get to know The Godfrey Hotel Boston and its many amenities by receiving special room rates starting at $199. The Godfrey Hotel Boston’s thoughtfully-appointed rooms feature fast, complimentary Wi-Fi, 55-inch HDTVs, luxurious Frette linens, Heeley bath products and more. This rate is available for stays November 16, 2015 to February 29, 2016.
Element 617: With the opening of The Godfrey Hotel Boston, Downtown Boston locals are invited to “Discover Your Element” with customized room rates this fall and beyond. Residents, and those who work in the Downtown Boston area, receive a 15% discount off of the lowest standard rate on all guest rooms throughout the year 2016. In order to receive this rate, guests must present a state ID or business card with a Downtown Boston address at check-in.
Future guests may take advantage of these specials for the opening of The Godfrey Hotel Boston online at www.godfreyhotelboston.com/special-offers-en.html. Booking is now available!
Bathroom Amenities to Feel At Home
Frequent travelers see great importance in the bathroom amenities and products, and we couldn’t agree more. When staying at a hotel, you want to feel as comfortable as you are at home. Through our branding and focus groups before development, we asked travelers what they value in a hotel bathroom and we heard the following:
– Luxurious and high-quality bathroom products
– Large shower with a shower door
– Spacious countertop to place toiletries, blowdryer and more.
We heard these requests loud and clear and we hope our bathrooms will deliver just that. For the bathroom products, we’ve selected a luxurious line called Heeley for our shampoo, conditioner and shower gel.
Below is a photo of our shower installation in one of the guest rooms. You can see how clean (pun intended) and spacious the design is, along with the high-end Kohler features to be added soon as well.
We’ll continue to keep you posted on our hotel developments.
Peace and Welcome
Many people have asked what our name means and we’re proud to share the background on it. “Godfrey” means peace and welcome and that’s exactly what we want our guests to feel when they enter our lobby.
The hotel lobby is a critical experience for guests and it must accomplish a lot – it has to make guests feel welcome, while also offering assistance with their stay at the same time. The lobby must evoke a consistent feel that the guest will experience throughout the hotel, including in the guest rooms and other common areas of a hotel.
Our lobby is designed to be spacious and luxurious, complimented with intimate seating for socializing or relaxing. The interior design will include oak paneling, polished porcelain flooring and contemporary furniture. There will also be a Chef-driven restaurant adjacent to our lobby (stay tuned for details!).
Following is a look inside our lobby and the progress underway, followed by what it will actually look like upon completion – the lobby rendering.
Larry Cassillo, our General Manager, provided a tour of our hotel and is pictured below in front of where the front desk will soon be.
Last – a beautiful rendering of what our lobby will look like! After much work, we’re certain the lobby will welcome our future guests.
Incredible Views From Godfrey Hollywood
Gorgeous sunshine and blue skies! Sar Peruri, Principal of Oxford Capital Group, visited the property this week to check on the progress of the hotel and rooftop.
You can see the stunning LA skyline in the background – The Godfrey Hollywood will boast incredible views! To learn more about The Godfrey Hollywood and sign up for the e-newsletter, please visit the website here.
Trends in Hospitality: What’s Next?
2017 was the year of technology, according to our Director Of Sales And Marketing, Paul Sauceda.
Technology was implemented as a main feature in lots of hotels last year, giving the customer new options to interact with staff: like ordering room service on an iPad or streamlining the check-in process by allowing guests to bypass the front desk.
New entertainment options came with the use of more technology, like offering guests more ways to connect their preferred streaming services to smart TVs.
Going that extra mile to personalize a guest’s experience is also important, according to Sauceda. The buzz phrase “living like a local” was alive and well throughout 2017 – and hospitality professionals hope to continue to encourage guests to explore cities like locals.
Creating connections for guests is important.
“If it’s a bar that connects you with people, a tour with a local or dinner in someone’s house, that’s connection with people. We want to connect with people more than we ever have.”
You can read more from Paul Sauceda here.
Godfrey Tampa Featured in Boutique Design
After a couple years of renovation, we’re finally open as the Godfrey Hotel & Cabanas Tampa! We’re super excited to share recent design updates with the public and are happy to be apart of the Godfrey brand, with locations in Chicago and Boston.
Boutique Design featured our debut, noting our “soft, neutral tones throughout” and our “lounge seating, fireplaces and cabanas.”
The article also mentioned our addition of 15 guest rooms and our existing accommodations, such as:
- Hardwood flooring
- Marble countertops
- Double-sink vanities
- Frameless walk-in showers
- Backlit LED mirrors
- Contemporary furnishings
- Nautical-inspired room accentsand more.
Click here to read the full article.
We hope to see you soon!
Building The Godfrey 