Where the Party At: Harvard's Sweetest Party Suites

Every March, housing day makes or breaks more than a thousand Harvard freshmen as they discover the fate of their next three years. Whether they tear open their envelopes and cheer over getting Adams, or cry when they find they’ll actually have to come to the Quad sober, there’s one thing every incoming sophomore should be acquainted with: their house’s party suite. FM has compiled a list of the best and the brightest in each house for your convenience. While any of Mather’s low-rise suites could host a good party, none of them stand out from the pack. Leverett is also excluded from this list because Harvard’s biggest house is all about quantity, not quality.



Quincy: The Balcony Suite

Take the elevator in New Quincy to the third floor, where you’ll find the one balcony suite in Quincy that isn’t taken up by tutors. Currently home to eight senior athletes, the beirut table may not stay next year, but the infamous terrace definitely will. “The terrace, with a fantastic view of the courtyard, is great in the fall and the spring, where people come and play games or just hang out and drink, “ describes rower Edward W. “Teddy” Schreck ’09. This suite, which is actually made up of two regular Quincy duplex suites, has eight spacious singles, two common rooms, and two bathrooms. With a built-in bar and fairly sound-proof walls, this tri-level is definitely one of the best suites on campus.



Currier: The Ten Man

What more could you ask for than a personal elevator that opens up directly in the middle of your common room? This ten-bedroom suite on the second floor of A-entryway serves as Heaven in Currier’s annual Heaven and Hell party. The massive common room comfortably houses various couches, a beirut table, a large screen TV and still has plenty of room for the drunken masses. Although the ten single bedrooms aren’t as large as other Currier singles, the mere fact that this suite is the only one on campus with its own elevator and staircase places it near the top of our list—but it’s still in the Quad.





Winthrop: ‘The Palatial Penthouse Palace’

The fifth floor of Winthrop’s C-entryway boasts this mammoth suite, home to seven seniors each year. With fantastically insulated walls and prime views of the courtyard on one side and the Charles River on the other, the suite’s long hallways host everything from dance parties to beer bottle bowling. Switzerland native Alexandre N. Maurice ’09 says that he turned the giant common room this year into a “European discotheque, equipped with an excellent sound system whose speakers have been known to blow out on occasion.”



Pforzheimer: The Bell Tower

Right beneath Pfoho’s belltower sits this four-bedroom suite. It technically has four residents, but it also connects to two other four-person duplexes which, when hosting a blocking group of 12, makes it the largest party suite on campus. Slanted skylights grace the ceiling of the giant common room with its built-in bar. “Our space is great because it’s more intimate than massive dining hall parties and more welcoming than the final clubs,” says resident Krista E. Weiss ’09. “We throw frequent parties and everyone is invited.”



Eliot: The Cockpit

Currently, this co-ed suite on the fifth floor of Eliot’s C-entryway houses 10 people, and is located just a floor above another notorious Eliot party suite, the fourth floor’s “Ground Zero.” “Since we’re right above Ground Zero, which itself is on top of the Eliot Library, we never get noise complaints,” says current resident Eva L. Mihalis ’09. The giant common room with views of the courtyard fits comfortably in the middle of the suite, which has two wings, connected by two bathrooms.



Lowell: The Labyrinth

“It’s called the labyrinth because when there’s a party and it’s dark and you’re a little out of it, all the winding halls and bedrooms can be a bit confusing,” says current resident and former Crimson Associate Business Manager Tyler W. Bosmeny ’09. The suite is made up of three rooms all connected by fire doors, creating haphazardly placed hallways that run through this eight-bedroom senior suite. However, with its fourth floor D-entryway location, views of the courtyard, large common room and two master bedrooms, the Labyrinth nabs our pick for Lowell house’s best party suite.



Dunster: ‘The G-Spot’

Although Dunster house is infamous for walk-through bedrooms, this 10-person suite occupying the entire fifth floor of G-entryway is home to a set of spacious non-walk-through singles. “Both last year and this year, the suite has been home to nine guys and one girl,” says current resident Katharine T. Waterman, Jr. ’09. Since the common room looks over Cowperthwaite Street, non-registered parties are tough to conceal. If your blocking group is looking for a party suite with some privacy, we recommend buddying up to your housemasters now.



Kirkland: ‘The Swamp’

This maze of a suite on the second floor of I-entryway has eight connecting rooms, with three common rooms and five bedrooms. “This year we’ve kind of been known for the ‘smash-up/mash-up’ parties we’ve hosted, where we play a lot of mash-ups of music,” says James A. Fish ’10. Shaped like the letter C, the suite is mostly comprised of walk-throughs, but the view of the MAC quad and homey feel of the suite make it ideal for both comfortable living and partying alike. One of the bedroom windows even opens out onto the roof of the dining hall, where you can go out and tan or just bask on a sunny day.



Cabot: The Library Suite

Nothing says Ivy League academia like turning an old library into a student residence. This suite sits on the third floor of Cabot’s secluded B-entryway and is among the smaller suites on the list, typically housing five students every year. The ample common room has old, mahogany bookshelves filled with various books collected over the years, a fireplace, window seats, and a beautiful view of the Quad yard. With five singles and a bathroom, this is the perfect suite for the smaller blocking group that loves both books and booze.



Adams: ‘Heaven’

Every year, the five residents of Adams A-47 turn their room into Heaven as part of the annual Adams Heaven and Hell party. Four bedrooms, one of which is a double, surround the 400 square foot common room. The spacious bedrooms make up for the suite’s smaller size. This year’s inhabitants love the suite so much that they are hesitant to welcome newbies. “We might let the bar stay if next year’s residents give us a good offer.” says Nicholas K. Tabor ’09, a current resident and former Crimson editor.