What a Boston hotel costs on graduation weekend
May is the most expensive week of the year to sleep in Boston. Recent commencement-weekend hotel pricing ran between $509 and $699 a night, with a number of properties simply showing sold out on the peak dates. Families are routinely advised to book three to six months ahead, and earlier still for the late-May weekends when Harvard and MIT overlap.
Now count the rooms. Two parents, a sibling or two, and a set of grandparents is not one hotel room - it is three. At those rates, three rooms for three nights is well past $4,000 before anyone has eaten or parked a car.
Our three-bedroom apartments run $275 to $390 a night for the whole apartment, and they sleep seven. The four-bedroom sleeps ten.
Every school has its own weekend, and some collide
Boston and Cambridge hold something like thirty-five colleges between them, and their commencements are spread across May rather than falling on one weekend. That is why availability moves so strangely - a date that looks open in early May can be impossible two weeks later.
Confirmed dates for 2027 are below. If your school is not listed, check its registrar - and then check our calendar for those exact nights, because the apartments book on the same cycle the hotels do.
| School | 2027 commencement | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Boston University | May 13-16 | Full commencement weekend; all-university ceremony Sun 16 |
| Boston College | May 24 | Monday ceremony |
| Harvard University | May 26-27 | 376th Commencement; overlaps peak demand |
Why families book an apartment for graduation
Graduation is a group trip that behaves like a family holiday. People fly in from several states, everyone wants to be together, and there is usually a celebration meal involved.
A hotel splits that across floors and charges for each room. An apartment keeps everyone under one roof with separate bedrooms, so the grandparents get a real bed and nobody is on a rollaway. The full kitchen matters more than people expect - you can host the dinner yourselves rather than trying to book a table for eight in Boston on the busiest weekend of the year. There is in-unit laundry, and free off-street parking for however many cars the family arrives in.
Book earlier than feels necessary
This is the one trip where waiting costs you real money. Graduation dates are announced a year ahead and families book against them immediately, which is why hotels are quoting $509 and up by the time most people start looking.
If you know the date, hold the apartment. Call or text and we will tell you straight away what is open for those nights - you are talking to the owner, not a call centre.
Apartments that suit this trip
9 Warner Street, Apt 9W2View ApartmentFree cancellation — 100% refund any time before check-in
7 Warner Street, Apt 7W2View ApartmentFree cancellation — 100% refund any time before check-in
7 Bernard Street, Apt 7B2View ApartmentFree cancellation — 100% refund any time before check-in
17 Ellis Street, Apt 1View ApartmentFree cancellation — 100% refund any time before check-in
19 Ellis Street, Apt 1View ApartmentFree cancellation — 100% refund any time before check-in
42 Glenway StreetView ApartmentFree cancellation — 100% refund any time before check-in
Daryl's place was spacious. We went to Boston for our daughter's graduation - six of us total. Very comfortable and clean. Kitchen was fully equipped. We really enjoyed our stay.— verified guest review
Common questions
- How many people can stay in one apartment?
- Up to ten in a single booking, which is what makes a graduation weekend work - one apartment instead of four hotel rooms, and everyone eats breakfast together.
- Is parking included for a graduation weekend?
- Yes. Every apartment has its own free off-street parking, so you are not paying a garage on top of the stay and you are not circling for a space when you arrive.
- What are the check-in and checkout times?
- Check-in is 3pm and checkout is 10am as standard, with self check-in so there is no meeting anyone at a set hour. On a same-day booking tell us what you need and we will work with it.
Coming to Boston for something else?
- All 19 apartmentsEvery whole apartment we let, across Dorchester and Hyde Park
- Red Sox & Fenway Park
- Gillette Stadium events
- Coming to Boston for treatment
- Boston hospital stays
- Concerts & arena shows
- Salem in October
- Where to stay in Boston
- Near Boston Medical Center
- Harvard & MIT visits
- Wedding weekends
- Conventions & trade shows
- Marathon weekend
- Visiting family
- Hyde Park
- Holidays in Boston