From the Orange Line’s State Street subway station, I walked across the street to the Ames Boston Hotel, a 13-story, luxury boutique property that was once Boston’s tallest skyscraper when it opened as an office building in 1893.

The building was originally the home of the Ames Co., a manufacturer of America’s first shovels and other agricultural tools. The firm was founded in the 1770s and is the oldest existing company in the United States, now headquartered in Pennsylvania. The structure was built without steel, with a three-story granite base and sandstone and brick façade. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the conversion of the building to the Ames Boston Hotel was complete in 2009.

The lobby is intimate and stylish, with an eclectic chandelier designed by Rolf Knudsen made of thousands of reflective Mylar discs suspended on wires over the interior entryway. Above the chandelier is a stunning, domed mosaic ceiling, preserved from the original 19th-century architecture.

Off the lobby is the hotel’s King Street Tavern, a pleasant, casual dining venue with long, communal wood tables as well as smaller individual tables situated next to large windows overlooking Court Street. This on-site restaurant serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The front desk clerk was friendly and efficient, and I was soon on my way to my third-floor accommodation — a wonderfully designed, minimalist loft-style king bed guestroom (there are only four loft-style rooms out of 114 guestrooms and suites), with a huge eyebrow-style window overlooking the street and the Old State House (1713). The room had high ceilings, bare oak floors and an open-configuration; a sitting area and a large, comfortable couch were separated from the bedroom by a half-wall holding two back-to-back 42-inch high-definition televisions, allowing television viewing from each area. A stylish Vers model radio/alarm/iPod docking station was next to the bed, and a brushed aluminum Pablo Pardo-designed tube LED desk light sat on a white desk.

The extra-large bathrooms are one of the hotel’s most popular features. My bathroom was separated from the bedroom by a huge glass window through which the commode, shower and sink were all quite visible. The property promotes their “infamous sexy showers” on marketing materials, and they are quite nice, with deep-seated marble bathtubs in some of the rooms and streamlined stainless-steel fixtures. Modest couples, however, should note the optional sheer curtains that can be drawn over the bathroom window will not conceal much.

The hotel offers free WiFi and provides all the standard property amenities found in larger deluxe hotels, including a 24-hour fitness center, a 24-hour business center, concierge services, valet parking, and meeting and event space.

The Ames Boston Hotel is located in the heart of the city’s financial district, a short walk to the Government Center, Faneuil Hall Marketplace, Beacon Hill, Boston Commons, several subway lines and Amtrak’s South Street Station.

Ames Boston Hotel

1 Court St.
Boston, MA 02108
tel 617 979 8100