Description: I stayed here on a business trip to Manhattan. It's a quick cab ride from Penn Station, as the official description notes, and is also very close to Grand Central. The location is on a nice westbound side street that is not very congested. The decor is modern and upscale but not pretentious, with dark woods and opaque glass.
There is a small restaurant off to your right upon entering. It doesn't offer a full breakfast, but the sister hotel next door (W Court) does at the Icon restaurant.
I had a quick check-in. They were very courteous, but unfortunately, I didn't notice that I had been charged $559 instead of the reserved $359 rate, probably because I didn't go through the usual "initial here, sign here" drill, but more on this later.
The elevators are small. I had a large corner king-size room with a long entry hallway. There was a small minibar and bathroom off to the sides. The snacks were overpriced as usual, but at least if you're going to pay $4.50 for a bottle of water, it's Voss instead of Dasani.
The bathroom wasn't huge but was a good size. The Bliss co-branded toiletries were a nice touch. By the layers of paint on the door and heating elements, you could tell that the hotel was in a fairly old building, and they have done a great job upgrading facilities.
The bedroom was fantastic, with lots of space, even with a king-size bed. The suede-wrapped couch, technically a "chaise lounge," with soft fuzzy pillows and large TV in the corner both would've been great if I wasn't going to do another 4 hours of work. That being said, the desk/work table was large, with Starwood high-speed cable. As you know in New York, though, there is lots of wi-fi around, so there was no problem connecting. The closet had ample room and the bed was the highlight, with soft sheets and a comfortable mattress.
The next morning was interesting. While I was trying to get my $200 difference resolved, a bellhop dressed like a motorbike courier interrupts and says he needs a key made because another guest has locked herself out. It was interesting because for a relatively upscale hotel, it seems like they don't have a great idea of what customer service should be.
It costs about what I'd expect to pay for a New York City hotel. It's in a decent location for business but not close to much sightseeing, so if you're going for leisure, I'd look for something else. That being said, it was a pretty comfortable place to stay.
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