Spent a week here on a timeshare exchange and have stayed at other Marriott 'resorts' so I know what to expect. The old building is nice to look at; a distinctive hallmark in financial district of Boston and a great location overall from which to walk all over town. Central location both good and bad as what's near in addition to the Harbor, Aquarium, and shopping are noisy, obese tourists, and hordes of buffoonish locals, typically seen either smoking and/or eating, many in various stages of inebriation, (much WORSE at night), wearing Celtics/Red Sox apparel, with shaved heads and multiple tattoos. Local males are just as offensive in appearance.

The rooms at the Customs House are large but with typically cheap Marriott furnishings and amenities. For example, there are no glasses in the bathroom and the shampoo/soap are decidedly downscale. Gym on 25th floor is adequate and that term just about describes the entire experience. Activities at the property are typically outsourced and do not expect to get anything useful without paying for it, e.g., no free Internet access, overpriced continental breakfast offerings, exorbitant valet parking charges, only McPaper for morning reading, and limited housekeeping service. You can, however, watch old movies and free TV in a 'special' lounge.

Staff very helpful and amiable overall. Were I not able to trade for this space I would never pay what room costs at retail, upwards of 400.00 per night. For those planning to visit and stay in Boston there are probably many more comfortable hotels (Hilton Financial District is one I would recommend) but the downside is that you'll still be in Boston. Go Yankees!!!

We had a fabulous time in Boston for 3 days!The Custom House was a very interesting place to stay. The rooms were beautiful and very large. It was great to have a little kitchen area as we had 2 kids with us. I would stay there again anytime.However, I was a little befuddled why it was rated so highly for children. There is no pool, the game room is a bit lame, and there is no room service or restaurant. The nightlife outside our windows was extremely loud, very late into the night. Our children are not small, so it wasn't too much of an issue for us personally but I found it strange that it is the number 1 rated hotel for children.The elevators were challenging sometimes and if you were staying on the higher rooms or wanted to use the game room, or observation deck you have to change elevators, which were extremely slow. Overall we had a great time, the service was outstanding, the architecture of hotel was so fascinating and beautiful.

We stayed at the Custom House for one night on a quick family vacation. We chose this hotel primarily for its location. Despite being told there was a 4 pm check in time, our room was ready when we arrived at noon. Our original room was located on the second floor, which would have required traveling up and down two small staircases to reach the room. As we planned on using our stroller for most of the trip, we requested another room without stairs. Our request was handled quickly and politely. We made several special requests, including late checkout and extra parking time, which were handled in a similar manner. The staff we dealt with were all extremely courteous and we were very impressed.

The hotel itself is beautiful and the location ideal, directly adjacent to Fanueil Hall. The rooms are clean and attractive, and the observation deck, which we visited both during the day and after dark, shouldn't be missed. The kitchenette is a great feature for anyone traveling with small children who need a home base to refrigerate food and serve meals. The street noise, which we read about in reviews, is very audible, but we didn't find late night noise from the bar crowd to be a problem, although our stay took place on a weeknight.

The only small disappointment was the fact that the cold breakfast available in the hotel was not included in the room price (which, with taxes and fees, was over $400). Although we received paperwork on timeshare presentations, and there are signs and notices about them in the room and on hotel documents, we did not feel any pressure to attend a presentation.

We would definitely stay here again and would recommend this hotel to anyone who wants a great location and isn't overly concerned with price.

Have stayed here before. This visit didn't disappoint. The staff here are always helpful. There were 4 of us on this occasion. Good value for money