For those who like to read the bottom line i'll place it up here. The Beacon hotel is good value for money with an excellent placement. The staff are helpful and not at all overbearing. The standard rooms are a reasonable size however a full occupancy will be cramped but ideal for two or three people. Larger parties may be better with a suite.

I stayed in the Beacon Hotel for a week over the christmas period with my wife in 2003.

The Location of the Beacon hotel is excellent, the hotel itself is on Broadway between 74th and 75th street. There is an express subway station (1,2,3,9 red line) on 72nd street/broadway and is less than 3 minutes walk with luggage.

There is also an accessibility lift at that subway station which is ideal for disabled or elderly. For those who may not use the NYC subway system, the system is great and before 9pm you can expect a 10 minute maximum wait for a train. You can get a subway train from JFK airport (A blue line) and change at Columbus Circle -Express for the A line but not express for 1,2,3,9 - for the 1,2,3,9 trains to the hotel, the total journey is about 45 minutes to 1 hour and
will cost you (each) $2 plus $5 for the airtrain connection at JFK. For a group of people travelling a shuttle bus may be cheaper, I didnt price the bus as we bought a subway week pass. The 104(uptown) bus stops near enough outside the hotel (corner 74th street).

The hotel has a ramp for luggage and three lifts (elevators) which were rarely crowded or busy. Although there is no restaurant in the hotel each room has a kitchenette consisting of a set of hob rings, microwave, coffee maker, toaster and fridge (with small integral freezer compartment). There are limited cooking utensils and cups/plates/bowls for 4 people. I did not use that laundry service however there is a coin operated laundry self serve available.

Bathroom facilities were good with a good sized mirror with good lighting and a powerful mixer shower. A shaving socket was within good reach of the mirror and there were soaps and shampoos available. We did not monitor the replacements as we used our own. Television was provided by Time Warner hotel Cable and featured a good selection of channels (certainly over 50) including HBO and HBO2 although the pay per film options were quite expensive ($10 per film).

The maids cleaned the room daily and there was an option to change the sheets and towels daily if necessary. The USA today paper was delivered gratis daily and the coffee/tea was replenished daily. Our room was on the 15th floor and had a good view. The beds were firm but not uncomfortable and the sheets and bed linen were clean. Wardrobe and storage space was limited to a walk in closet and a double set of drawers a family of 4 may have difficulty storing all their luggage and belongings but for 2 or 3 people there should be no problem. A room safe (codelock) was provided and no charge was made for the use of it. We could fit our camera and camcorder in the safe but not the camera bag (to give an idea of the size).

Facilities outside the hotel are good, there is a market style grocery store across the street (Fairways) and there is a supermarket (Gristedes) one block down from the grocery store (who are also happy to take travellers cheques).

Eating out is easy with numerous choices to be found within walking distance. Big Nicks (up broadway about 5 blocks) serves great cheap food 24 hours a day and Ollies noodle bar (10 blocks down broadway) has great takeaway and sit in Chinese. Central park is easy to walk to (about 15 minutes) and the natural history museum is a great day out (again 15 minutes walk). Loews cinema complex is across the street from Ollies and either way the 104 bus travels up and down broadway for those who may find walking difficult. Most of the action is in the centre around Times Square and the 1,2,3,9 trains will get you to the centre within 10 minutes (including waiting for a train).

The Upper West areas is cheaper than other areas too with prices average for the goods you get. Certainly better value than midtown. The area also seems safe enough and since broadway and its parallel roads are always busy you can catch the bus quite late at night and feel ok.

Not perfect but thoroughly recommended.

Recommended: Yes