Hotel Review • North America • United States • Maine • Portland

The Weldon Review: Portland’s Artful Old Port Aparthotel

Discover The Weldon in Portland, Maine. Read our review of this 13-suite Old Port aparthotel featuring full kitchens, local art, modern amenities, and total privacy.

Courtesy of The Weldon

BY HOTELS ABOVE PAR

Why it works

Hotel Snapshot

There is no front desk at The Weldon, and no concierge standing behind it. That’s not a flaw, but rather the point of this fabulous boutique property that is truly for travelers in the know. For example, upon entering the Weldon, you’ll find yourself in the midst of an art show thanks to a partnership with Portland's Willard Gallery that turns the common areas into a hung, curated exhibition you walk through on your way to your own front door. You let yourself in with a code, drop your bags in a suite with a full kitchen and a washer and dryer, and within about four minutes you have stopped behaving like a tourist. That's the whole proposition of this 13-suite Old Port aparthotel, opened in 2024 by local owners Chris DiMillo and Jay Hibbard and managed by Fathom Companies, the Portland group behind the Press Hotel and the Canopy Portland Waterfront: accessible luxury for travelers who know how to take care of themselves.

Design & Character

The building sits at the corner of York and Maple, a block from Commercial Street, in the part of the Old Port that still smells like the harbor. Inside, the mid-century modern furniture is warm rather than showroom-stiff, and the rooms are bright in a way that flatters Maine light.

The Willard Gallery collaboration is the thing that separates this from every other well-appointed apartment you could rent in Portland. Nine original works hang throughout the common spaces, by Maine artists including Donna Bruni, Bayard Hollins, Beth Munro, Lou Schellenberg, Kathy Soles, and John Vinton, and every one of them is for sale. If something stops you on the stairs, the gallery will arrange a private viewing. Frankly, it may just be the smarter use of a lobby than…a lobby.

The Rooms

Rooms range from studio apartments to two-bedroom suites, and the square footage is a big selling point. Our one bedroom was significantly sized, with a separate bedroom, a real living room, a dining table, and a kitchen that is a kitchen - full-size refrigerator, stove, oven, dishwasher, actual counter space. The two-bedrooms run to roughly 775 square feet and sleep four. Bedding is Cuddledown, the Maine linen company, and the suites are soundproofed, which matters more than you'd think a block from a working pier.

The details that stuck are the small ones. Every suite has a turntable and a curated stack of records, which is the rare in-room amenity that people actually use. There's a MoccaMaster with local beans instead of a pod machine, and a Ninja blender and cocktail set for the nights you decide not to go out. A full-size washer and dryer in the unit is not glamorous, and it is the single most useful thing in the building if you are traveling with a child or staying more than three nights.

The Food & Drink

There isn't any, and that's the design. The Weldon has no restaurant, no bar, and no breakfast service, which means the kitchen is the dining program and Portland is the room service. For a city with this much to eat, that trade is easy to make - though if you want someone to hand you coffee in the morning without you having to grind it, this is not that hotel.

Amenities

The Weldon Gymnasium in the lower level is a proper gym rather than a treadmill in a closet: cardio machines, free weights, Gronk Fitness equipment, open around the clock. There are co-working areas and private office space, a bike room, and extra storage, all of which point at the same guest - someone here for a week, not a night.

Housekeeping is weekly rather than daily, self-parking runs $40 a night, and the property is pet friendly. And it's worth saying plainly: with no on-site staff, a quiet stretch in a 13-suite building can feel empty. Guests who want a concierge presence will notice its absence. Guests who came to Portland to be left alone will consider it the amenity.

Location & Neighborhood Recs

The address does a lot of work. You're steps from Commercial Street, a five-minute walk to the Cross Insurance Arena, seven to the Portland Museum of Art, and eleven to the Casco Bay Lines ferry terminal for a day out to the islands. The Eastern Promenade Trail and the Wadsworth-Longfellow House are both walkable. If you’re looking for a drive, please drive to Cape Elizabeth and enjoy not only the fabulous lighthouses, but also the fabulous food. An underrated gem comes in the form of The Good Table, which serves up some of the best pizza you’d never expect to find. What started as a dinner party has since become a community institution. It survived a fire, a full rebuild, and a change of ownership to Prentice Hospitality Group (the same team behind Douro) a few years ago. It’s absolutely worth a visit.

Because you have a kitchen, use it. Harbor Fish Market on Custom House Wharf has been selling off the boats since the 1800s and will happily talk you through a whole fish or set you up with oysters to shuck at your own dining table - it's a five-minute walk, and lobsters you cook yourself in Portland cost a fraction of lobsters someone cooks for you. Rosemont Market handles the rest of the groceries. That's a night in that no conventional hotel room can offer, and it's the closest most visitors will get to a Portland weekend that feels like an actual life.

Fast Facts

Location: 54 York Street, Portland, ME (Old Port)

Vibe: Apartment living with a hotel's polish, staffed by no one

Rating: 5 stars

Room Count: 13 one- and two-bedroom suites

Pricing: Prices start at $399 per night

Our Favorite Thing About the Hotel: A kitchen good enough to justify a trip to Harbor Fish Market

Dining: None on site - the suites have full kitchens, and the Old Port is at the door

Amenities: Full kitchens, in-suite washer and dryer, turntables with record collections, Sonos, 24-hour gym with Gronk equipment, co-working and private office space, bike room, storage, contactless check-in, pet friendly, self-parking ($40/night)

Nearby Attractions: Commercial Street, Custom House Wharf, Portland Museum of Art, Casco Bay Lines ferries, Eastern Promenade Trail, Wadsworth-Longfellow House, State Theatre

Airport: Portland International Jetport (PWM), about 10 minutes

Hotel Iroquois: Why This Waterfront Victorian Is Reason Enough to Visit Northern Michigan

Gallery

A closer look

Courtesy of The Weldon

Courtesy of The Weldon

Courtesy of The Weldon

Courtesy of The Weldon

Credit: Jeana Bala, Unsplash

Hotels Above Par

Independent, boutique-minded travel journalism from writers who know the places they cover.

Partnership Disclosure

Hotels Above Par may receive compensation, promotional fees, hosted-stay consideration, affiliate commissions, or other benefits from hotel, travel, or brand partners mentioned in this piece. These relationships do not determine our editorial judgment. We choose what to feature based on relevance, taste, usefulness, and fit for our readers. Purchases, bookings, or inquiries made through partner links may result in compensation to Hotels Above Par at no additional cost to you.