Inn at St John Hotel

, Portland, United States
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Inn at St John Hotel

, Portland
939 Congress St - Portland - Maine - 4102 - United States Hotel Website | 207-773-6481
176 Traveller

Reviews - Inn at St John Hotel

Historical Traveller Reviews of Inn at St John Hotel

Ask for a room away from the street

from lammejn
Very comfortable, large room - probably the nicest in 4 different B&Bs we stayed in over 2 weeks. Very clean and tastefully decorated. The staff was very helpful in recommending good restaurants.

However, even though I requested the quietest room they had, the only rooms available upon arrival sat on a VERY busy street facing the city's bus station. (They thought my request for a king bed took precedence over a quiet room.) This could have easily been handled by offering me this choice when I made the reservation. My husband thinks they didn't want to lose the reservation. (He also thought the breakfasts of packaged bagels, muffins, and pastry were uninspiring....okay, he really said they were "lousy")

Be forewarned too that there is no elevator so if that's a problem for you, ask for a ground floor room.

All in all, I'd stay here again but would definitely ask for a room away from the street.

Worth the visit

from Flyboy1969
Some have written concerns over safety. We never felt unsafe in the area and we walked to dinner around 9 PM. There were some kids hanging outside of a local establishment, but never felt threatened at any time.

The locating is not centrally located by the bay front, but it is not advertised that way. Still, you are close enough to the tourist area to be there within 10 to 15 minutes of walking. Portland is a small town and good for walking, snow storms excluded.

The property itself is attractive from the outside and inside. We had a king bedded room on the first floor facing the parking lot and had a very pleasant, quiet stay. The staff was VERY friendly and helpful. They directed us to a fantastic restaurant where we dinned on two lobster dinners for $22.95, per person! Each dinner had approximately two 1.5 lobsters on the plate.

Free wireless is a big plus. Good continental breakfast in the morning.

I would recommend The Inn at St. John.

Jim

Find a better place for the money

from Hokies
At first glance, the hotel is very quaint and the staff seems extremely helpful. However, we experienced a number of problems such as a rackety, chirping air conditioner and freezing cold, low pressured water in our shower. When we brought these issues up to the front desk, we were basically laughed off the premises. We generally would have liked to give the hotel another shot, but the front desk staff [--] was so unaccommodating and rude, that we will never go back.
Yes, the area is a little sketchy too. Spend your money on a B&B or hotel closer to Old Port and have a better time than we did.

B first timer

from occasionaltravels
This place was cute, the rooms were clean and comfortable. The stairs, hallways and bathroom were tight but it added character to the historic atmosphere which i don't mind. It was worth giving the small independent B&B-style expercience a try. The value was also great ($80/night), but the location was a little bit out of the city area, in a less attractive dollar-store type area.

The old bait and swwitch

from A TripAdvisor Member
Smug staff kept losing our reservations on two different occaisions, both of which had been confirmed twice, and attempted to both downgrade the room and charge double the internet offered rate. While somewhat resolved, only after repeated haggling and after having been repeatedly shown copies of the confirmation e-mails, the experience with the hotel's arrogant staff was unpleasant.

Quaint but a little awkward

from sand-da-man
I'd like to give this hotel a 5 star rating but can't. The staff is unbelievably cooperative and courteous. The rooms make you feel like you're in a Victorian hotel: mine had a comfortable bed with wonderful amenities (including extensive cable channels). I had a shared bathroom across the hall because of the very low rate, but found it very convenient. Everything was clean and my every request was granted. There was a very good continental breakfast in the morning and snacks available in the lobby all day long (great treat!) Nonetheless, keep in mind that not only is there no elevator, but the stairs are steep (did I say steep?). In my case, I had to go up two levels, which requires crossing over the interior staircase twice as well. It was daunting enough that I left my large suitcase in the car and jammed what I needed in a plastic bag. There is one other item also: it's not in what you would call the most attractive part of town- some surrounding buildings are extremely seedy with some questionable persons loitering around- and- it's close to a very busy intersection of about 4 streets. They advertise a"20 minute walk" to the dowtown. If that's 20 minutes, I'll give you $10.00! It's about 25 blocks up a steep hill and down and around buildings. I enjoyed my stay- due to the economical price, the wonderful staff and the pleasant room- but this place does have its drawbacks.

Wonderful place!

from sunflower35
My husband and I stayed at the Inn at St. John for 3 nights in the spring of '05 and had a wonderful time. The staff was accomodating and we were given a beautifully decorated room with a lovely private bathroom. There were some problems with the hot water in the morning hours, but was corrected within 20 minutes. There is no elevator, but the Inn's website specifically points this out, so we were prepared to burn a few extra calories upon check-in. The hotel staff recommended a wonderful cafe located next door and helped us with any questions we had about the area. A taxi ride to the Old Port area only cost $5.00, so if it was raining, you could always get a cab instead of walking, and not spend a fortune. The hotel has a very European feel to it and it reminded me of being back in England. I travel all over the world and have stayed in alot of places, and I feel that for the price you pay at the Inn at St. John, it's money well spent. We will definitely stay there again.

smells like smoke

from A TripAdvisor Member
You get what you pay for. Costs less than some other hotels in Portland, but the whole place smells like smoke.

Lovely Hotel

from marysr
My brother booked this hotel at the last minute for himself, his wife, my husband and myself. We got 2 rooms with kingsize beds at an excellent price, including a buffet style continental breakfast where you could have as much as you liked. I thought the hotel was great. Perhaps not in the best location but we only stayed for one night. The stairs could be a problem for some as there is no lift, but apart from the location and lack of lift, I would recommend this hotel and would definitely stay there again.

t even think about it, disaster!

from A TripAdvisor Member
When you walk in you think Wow this is a kool place... But it truly isn't.

I had reserved my room 4 months in advance for a 4 night stay, non-smoking, kingsize bed and this is what my confirmation reflected. But when I checked in I was told that I would be in one room for only 3 nights and then moved to another room on Saturday night with a private bath accross the hall. When I got to my room it stank of cigarette smoke, the bed was a double, not the king that I had reserved. When I returned to the desk I was told this was the only available room and there would be nothing else available during my stay unless there was a cancellation. I never got a non-smoking room. The heat in the room is not adjustable and one night it was so hot I had to open windows wide open... this actually helped with the stench of cigarettes. Two consecutive mornings there was no hot water... I was told they were having problems with their boiler. The stairs are from hell... no elevator... the neighbor hood reminds me of Harlem... there is constant noise all night from traffic... loud music coming from blasting car radios, screaming and yelling from weirdos on the street and in the bus station directly accross from Inn, and never a space in the Inn's parking lot after 8 PM... management is very unaccommodating and there was no restitution offered for all that I had to endure.

Top Local Tips for Portland

Go to the Art Museum! The Portland Art Museum is a wonderful, not too large museum. The collection includes paintings by Winslow Homer and pieces by other southern Maine artists as well as other American and international artists. The permanent & temporary collections are good. It includes an 18th century house that you can roam through. Much of the museum itself is light & airy. It's kid-friendly. I try to visit this museum each time I visit Portland.

The trolley tour and Wadsworth Longfellow Home The trolley tour was one of the best I've ever been on. Wadsworth Longfellow Home is also a fabulous guided tour.

Dogfish Cafe The Dogfish Cafe is a lovely little restaurant next to the inn. Very small, difficult to get a full table, but plenty of seating at the bar. Nice food and atmosphere.

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Other names for Inn at St John Hotel

  • inn at st john portland
  • Address: 939 Congress St - Portland - Maine - 4102 - United States
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