A Stay Not by Choice
Written: Feb 08 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Location
Cons: Just about everything else
The Bottom Line: Only stay here if you are more concerned about the room rate than with the whole "New York Experience".
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| achflkeys's Full Review: New Yorker Ramada |
Okay, my wife and I went to NYC in Nov. '01. We were going up from Philadelphia to see a concert at Madison Square Garden on a Friday night, and then her family was meeting us Saturday to see a show and stay until Sunday. Well, I had originally arranged for us to stay at a 4-Star luxury hotel at an "incredible, never-get-this-again" rate. Because of a situation I will not bore anyone with, we were forced to change our plans and stay at the New Yorker/Ramada Plaza. As I said in my "Pros" section, the location was awesome. We took the train up to NYC from Philadelphia and were blessed with a short, 2 minute walk from Penn Station to our hotel. And, for the concert, we had another 2 minute walk over to the Garden. Let me tell you, the "Pros" stop there. This hotel is HORRIBLE. Check-in took 1/2 hour. The type of room I reserved was not available and we were NOT there before official check-in time. Imagine my delight when I was informed I was being upgraded to a suite. A suite! Yeah, right! Before even getting to our suite, the entire floor after we got off the elevator was dark, it had a terrible odor. You could hear everyone's conversation from inside every room. Ok, we open our suite. Our accommodations would not even be considered a broom-closet in other hotels! The room was again, very dark. What lights we did have were equipped with like 40w light bulbs that really didn't brighten much of anything. Maybe that was a good thing. Who knows what we might have noticed with good lighting. Did I mention the smell? The water pressure in the shower was so high, you could have hosed down circus animals in there. And boy was it hot! You had to be careful not to scald off a layer of skin. I guess the "end-all" sign that told us this was not the type of hotel we were looking for was when we discovered the remote control for the television was tied to the nightstand by a cord. Real classy. The common areas were not much better than the rooms. I already mentioned the hallway outside of the elevator. The lobby is definitely nothing to write home about. It is bustling with every Tom, Dick and Harry off the street just milling around. You are definitely not "wowed" when you come through the front door. The restaurant/lounge was nothing special. I'm really trying not to get sarcastic or embellish my review. My wife's aunt and uncle did have an incredible view of the NYC skyline and of the Empire State Building (that is, after they had to request to be moved 2 separate times for poor conditions). We had a view of a back alley and the building next door. Did I mention the smell? Okay, I know you don't come to New York to sit in your hotel room. But when I go to New York, it is something special and I would like to stay somewhere that continues the specialness (is that a word) of my trip. This place really put a negative spin on our whole weekend. I like to be out and about and enjoying the nightlife. And when that is over, I want to come back to a nice place with an inviting room and an air of grandeur that is New York. If you consider yourself at all like that, please, please do not stay here! But, if you just care about the $$$ and don't mind unacceptable conditions, by all means, book yourself a room at the New Yorker. I'm telling you, do yourself a favor, spend an extra $40-$50 a night and thoroughly enjoy your next trip to a glorious city.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
achflkeys
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Location: Wayne, PA
Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 0 members
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