Sonder The Hancock

Clean, excellent location, have all supplies needed, safe area. Cozy and comfortable.

Great location and walking distance to Boston Common among others.

The location is good.

Beacon Hill is a great location. The apartment was spacious and comfortable.

Tastefully furnished and supplied with all the necessities and cookery/cutlery/utensils.

Location!!

Great location, quiet Street, easy check in

Wonderful. 3 long stair flights a bit of a set back but doable. Must say the shower was awful. Low pressure and clogged shower head. Otherwise very clean and nice.

Location, size, basic amenities, beautiful and quiet neighborhood

This apartment was on the 5th floor with 54 stairs. My husband is disabled and nowhere does this listing say it is a 5 floor walkup.

Very clean. Excellent location. Well equipped.

Location worked great for us.

Stylish and good location.

I recently stayed at 40 Hancock for a multi-day sports event at TD Garden and needed a place that was within walking distance of the venue (it is also a quick walk down the hill to Whole Foods). In 2023, I stayed at another Sonder in Boston – the Pierce, in the Fenway area. I loved this staffed and new high-rise luxury building but Fenway was too far this time.

The Hancock is very different as it is a townhouse with no elevator or staff on site. I reserved Unit 2, which is on the ground floor. I had read reviews that said it was difficult to bring luggage to the upper floors, so I made sure to reserve a ground floor studio. To enter the ground level, you need to enter through a small set of steps outside the front entrance. At night there is motion sensor lighting.

There are three units on the ground floor, one faces the street and the other two (including unit 2) face the courtyard in the back, where the garbage bins are located. There are paid laundry machines on the ground floor, which I did not use.
As for the unit itself, it was clean and well equipped. The full-size bed was comfortable although I would not recommend it for 2 people as one side was against the wall. I primarily booked this place to due the kitchenette so I could make breakfast. Sonder provides a full fridge, a stovetop with 2 burners, a microwave and a Bosch dishwasher. A coffee machine, electric tea kettle and toaster were also provided along with cookware, dishes and cutlery. The prep area is small but workable.

The living area had a sofa, some additional seating, a flat screen TV and a small table for eating. I noticed that the chairs looked a bit worn. As another reviewer mentioned, a coffee table would be nice to have in the living area.

My least favorite part of the apartment was the bathroom. Although it was clean, it was very small and had no storage except for some space behind the sink. The shower was tiny and had no shelving. After being spoiled by the amazing bathroom at the Pierce, this fell short. I had to put my toiletries in the sink which was very annoying. On the plus side, there were enough hooks to hang towels, including one on the back of the door.

Although the HVAC was set to 74 degrees, it felt a bit damp and cold, especially in late March. Sonder provided 2 space heaters, and I used both. I plugged in one unit near the foot of the bed and the other was in the bathroom. If they had not provided the space heaters, my experience would be very different. I also made sure to turn them off before leaving for the day!

Another issue was security. Although I felt safe most of the time and the unit is secured with a coded lock, the front door was left open a few times. The front door has a code and should be always locked. This could be addressed with a sign reminding guests to close the door firmly.

Overall, the unit served my purpose but at $300 a night, it was a bit overpriced. I also would not recommend this place for people with mobility issues as the building has no elevator and Hancock Street is on a hill and some of the bricks in the sidewalk are loose. If you can deal with some of the caveats I listed above, it is a good little apartment in Beacon Hill.