DealAddict

Finishing an 8 night stay at the Lexington in the 1 bedroom suite. Second year in a row I'm staying here... For comparison purposes a 600 square feet 1 bedroom suite in a Midtown hotel would cost upwards of $500-600 this time of year.And it wouldn't have 2 bathrooms. I'm paying $ 320 with Look No Further. This is less than some people are paying here for a regular room.

Large living room with a table and 6 dining chairs, mini-bar area microwave and fridge. Huge TV in the living room (didn't use), and one other TV in the bedroom. Sofa(bed) and another kind of couch (backless on one side)

Closet space is a con. Very few hangers, so had to ask for extra. Instead there are a lot of drawers though. Safe is also annoyingly small. The one at Courtyards is bigger and can fit my laptop. Why?

Housekeeping did a really good job with cleaning, although they brought us an exta blanket that was burnt by an iron and a torn towel once, which something that shouldn't really happen. Also, one of the couch pillows has stains on it, which is well... they should clean it. But otherwise, very very clean bathroom and room.

Asked for and got a rollaway for free - really crappy mattress, but I cannot complain, since it's free. When I'm tired, I tend to not care.

Internet charges are high robbery - $ 12.95 and $ 16.95 per day depending on what kind of speed you want. i didn't pay for internet here... just used my phone as a hot spot.

I love the lobby and the design of the hotel - it's artsy and unique. The lobby is extremely busy at all times. The location is great as well... far enough from the madness of Times Square, yet close enough to the attractions.

I didn't have much interaction with the stuff other than requests to housekeeping... Oh, they also held packages for me that were mailed to the hotel.

In short, this is a great hotel to stay in and even great value assuming you know how to get a good deal. It seems like a lot of people are paying crazy prices for a regular room and are then disappointed it's tiny, etc. Don't pay those prices.... there is no reason to pay the price I paid for a STANDARD room. Those are not large. Last year, I had an amazing deal thanks to Look No Further and paid $ 150 for a junior suite. I'm paying twice as much this year for a 1 bedroom suite, but this is still a far better deal compared to the far more expensive alternatives in the same room category.

SkiAdcock

Thanks for the update. Much appreciated.

On a dif note (and not directed towards you bit generic), I'm tired of rev rate to LNF rate comparisons which we see in dif threads. I don't think I'm going out on a limb to say that of the multi million MR members most don't know about LNF so I think rev to rev is more important if one is going to do a comparison.

Cheers

DealAddict

You are right - most people don't know about LNF, however I keep seeing reviews of the hotel where people spent $ 400, get a small room and then blame the hotel because they decided to pay obscene amounts of money for said room. I find it odd. I guess it's the same as me saying the internet charges are obscene. But I think it's important to point out that you can get good LNF deals for this hotel... it's not a coincidence I was able to do it for the second year in a row.

SkiAdcock

Most hotels don't advertise 'small rooms' when they're charging the $400, so yes some people will not be thrilled they're paying high rates for closets

Cheers.

Eujeanie

The Lexington clearly states their square footage under "Room Details", and also even calls their 180 sf rooms "Cozy".

SkiAdcock

I deliberately said most hotels, not all hotels I think it's more the exception than the norm to have something listed as "small" or "cozy" in rooms that show up as one of the offerings when booking rooms at Marriott properties worldwide.

I do agree that if one books a small/cozy room then one knows they're going to get something tiny.

BTW - the Algonquin in NYC has a room even smaller than the Lex's at 165sq ft, but it just lists it as "guest room, 1 king or 2 doubles". Doesn't say squat about small or cozy as a designation.

Cheers.

DealAddict

I would say people who are paying that much should do better research imo. The square footage can be found online, and even if it's not there, you can always call the hotel and find out. It's not really a secret. Why pay $400 for something unknown and then complain about a small room. I know I would research before dropping that much cash.

SkiAdcock

Dif strokes for dif folks. Not everyone drills down to see the telephone, tv, etc in the room details. Anyway, we get FTers complaining all the time about minor things. If someone who isn't a FTer wants to complain about a small room for $400, let them complain. What does it matter to you? Shrug.

Cheers.

DealAddict

It's nothing to me... I just find it strange that's all. Obviously not everyone cares about the small details. The people complaining about room size clearly care about that though, so why didn't they take the time to research them before paying that money... that's my question?

joshua362

Most people aren't mathematicians and interior designers so even if they bothered to check the details, 165 and 180 sf don't mean much without context such as what the sf of a "normal" room is. So again, most people put their trust and faith into the Marriott chain to provide value and consistency, hence the shock, IMO.

SkiAdcock

Agree.

Also, if they're used to staying in more modern properties that have decent size rooms & then end up at some properties from different eras when rooms were quite small, it will come as a shock. And then the I'm paying what for this comes into play

Cheers.

flyaxa

Are there any properties in Manhattan that can accommodate a family of five in one room/suite and are bookable with points?

DealAddict

Only the courtyard Manhattan midtown east as far as I know has regular rooms that can fit up to 5 with 2 queen beds and a sofa bed (has to be requested). So those can be booked with points I presume. I don't think you can book a suite with just points...

flyaxa

Thanks! I did notice online reservations don't allow for five at the Courtyard, but from what you say it sounds like I might be able to phone in the award reservation.

DealAddict

It's possible to do it online... you can book for 5 at that Courtyard online using points. I am not sure which dates you are looking at though, but it worked for me when I checked.

You should call in and ask for the sofa bed though and call back to follow up a few days before your stay. 90 percent of the rooms with 2 queens have a sofa bed... but just to make sure.