The Viking

Bringing my 13 year old i 2 weeks time for her first visit to NYC, considering the Westin TS which will give me a twin Club Room for approx. 330USD/night under the Z3H promotion. Are all the Club rooms located on lower floors or are there any high floor located ones?? Would love a corner room, but apparently these do not come with twin bedding.
Other hotels to consider in this vicinity or close to Central Park?

BlissWorld

Club floors are on lower floors (below 13 I believe). They are bigger and are equipped with an iMac (free internet access?). Club lounge offering is decent with one or two hot entrees (pasta, etc) and some antipasto and free sodas. Higher corner rooms have better view but are smaller.

330 per night, so essentially you are paying 990 for 2 nights with 3rd free? Or are you paying 660 total for 3 nights? I ask because 330 per night AFTER Z3H is not a good deal.

I like the W, and most of the kids (nephews, nieces) I've taken there think W is "way cool." But, YMMV. If you decided to go down the W route, I'd suggest Times Square Fabulous/Kool corner room. Unfortunately, those rooms only come with king beds.

The two Sheratons are mediocre. They are cheap for a reason. The standard rooms are extremely small and are pretty run down.

The other Ws + Four Points aren't worth visiting. That leaves you with St Regis or W Union Square. St Regis is $$$$ for most people. W union sq is bigger, but more expensive and is not near Central park as you requested.

dkelly1110

Take a harder look at Union Square if you can foot the bill. The neighborhood is a million percent better to be in. It is so subway accessible that you can take the N/R and be in times square very quickly, and additionally take the 4/5/6 and be uptown at the park in 2 stops (on 4/5).

tnw

I thought I remembered reading about this before, so I apologize in advance for not being able to find out through the search function...but does this hotel have a separate check in area for Platinums? My husband will be checking in soon and I wanted to give him a heads up if there is. Thank you.

LurkerNoMore

I was there in March and IIRC, there was a seperate desk to the left for Starwood Gold & Platinum members. IME this hotel has a very swift turn around for check-ins so even if the Gold/Plat desk isn't opened, you shouldn't wait very long to be checked in.

Enjoy your stay! The club lounge is a wonderful place to catch some brekky and a cappuccino prior to enjoying NYC. Free internet in the club lounge too if you have a laptop.

tnw

Thanks for the info. My husband will be there in about 15 minutes and I couldn't recall if they had Platinum check-in on a separate floor or if it was at the front desk. Appreciate the info. I will give him the info on the Club Lounge as well.

LurkerNoMore

Gold/Plat check in is not on a seperate floor.

You actually enter the Westin on the ground floor & have to take an escalator or elevator up one floor to the check-in/lobby area.

I hope your husband enjoys his stay @ the Westin as much as I did.

travelnow100

There are two negative reviews dated June 16, 2008 about the Westin TS posted by SPG members. I have booked 4 nights there in July for my husband, son and I during the MLB All-Star game. I chose the Westin TS based on consisently good reviews on this forum which I consider more reliable than trip advisor.
Please post reviews on any recent stays at the Westin TS, I can still cancel and move to another hotel. I am particular about where I stay!
Thanks!

prncess674

I don't think the reviews were that harsh. I stayed at the Westin Times Square last week for a business stay and found it was the usual business hotel. Yes, it is in the middle of a very busy Times Square, but that is pretty obvious from the name. I didn't notice any bad smell to the water.

jmiyazawa

Stayed here for three nights last month. Got upgraded to Club level room as a Gold, which was surprising. Club lounge is nice with one of the better breakfast spreads I've seen, including oatmeal and frisbee-sized bagels. The iMac is a nice touch (and internet access was free). Two nits, one small and one not so small:

1. TV reception was oddly spotty - sometimes no ABC, sometimes no CBS. Might have been because rain/storms affected satellite reception - not sure. Not really a big deal since we were hardly in the room.

2. Concierge arranged car service to take us to JFK. Confirmed 1:00 pick up time with the concierge that day, but the car never showed. Wound up taking a cab instead. Left a message for the Service Manager, who called me back an hour later and told me the car service had the pick up scheduled for 2:00, not 1:00. She wasn't sure where the comms breakdown took place but offered a very generous slug of SPG points for the inconvenience, which I did not solicit but which was very appreciated.

Service was friendly, room was large, and we rarely waited for an elevator. All in all, solid property, and we'll definitely be back.

BeantownFlyer

My reaction to this hotel is that unless: (a) you are motivated by the SPG points; or (b) you get a very attractive rate, there is no reason to stay here. First of all, it is not right in the middle of Times Square. In reality it is one LONG block away - Times Square is where Broadway and 7th Avenues cross - the Westin is on 8th Avenue. While the entire area has improved significantly in the past 5-10 years, the 8th Avenue area is still pretty seedy, and there are not really any of the national or upscale shops and restaurants that have moved into Times Square on 8th Avenue.

The hotel itself is clean and well maintained, but is essentially a large convention hotel. If you can get in there for under $300 its a steal. If its under $400 that is ok, but there are other hotels in the area that are much nicer for comparable pricing. If the rate is over $400 you start to get into pricing where I just have to scratch my head and say why?! Not because I dont pay those prices - in fact I regularly do, but because you can stay in much nicer hotels, with personalized service - at those rates (at least in the summer, when rates tend to be lower in NYC).

travelnow100

What other hotels would you suggest? I have seen no ringing endorsements of the Westin TS since I requested reviews on this forum. I do not like staying in dicey areas. I have stayed at the Drake on previous trips to New York. However, I am using points for one of the nights at the Westin. Is the W TS better? This is my 12 year old son's first trip to NYC and we will be doing all the tourist things.
Thanks for your help!

Earthman

I would recommend the W Times square over the Westin.
That said I've only drank in the bar there and not stayed in it.

I have stayed in the westin Times square and agree with beantownflyer in the post on this page.

I felt it was more like a higher end 3 star hotel than a 5 star one.It also on the club level where we were has cardboard thin walls where at 4 am in the morning you can hear everything at both sides of you and believe me thats no place for a 12 year old

Try W the court

SASfan

What if I was able to get a $199 promotional rate at the Westin?

travelnow100

Have you seen a $199 rate available now? There was one offered in May.
Please advise.